Joseph W. Connolly
About Joseph W. Connolly
Joseph W. Connolly is Chief Compliance Officer (CCO) of BNY Mellon High Yield Strategies Fund (DHF) and has served as the Fund’s CCO since 2012. He has been CCO of the BNY Mellon Family of Funds and BNY Mellon Funds Trust since 2004; he also served as CCO of BNY Mellon Investment Adviser, Inc. from 2004 until June 2021. His age is disclosed as 67 in the 2024 proxy. The Fund’s disclosures do not attribute TSR, revenue, or EBITDA performance metrics to Fund officers.
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| BNY Mellon Family of Funds / BNY Mellon Funds Trust | Chief Compliance Officer | Since 2004 | Oversees compliance across a broad complex; disclosed as CCO of 51 investment companies comprising 101 portfolios (as of 2024), indicating scale and regulatory scope. |
| BNY Mellon Investment Adviser, Inc. | Chief Compliance Officer | 2004 – June 2021 | Adviser-level compliance leadership for the manager to DHF, aligning Fund compliance with adviser policies and regulatory expectations. |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Not disclosed in DHF proxy officer biography | — | — | No public company directorships or external roles are disclosed in the Fund’s proxy officer section. |
Fixed Compensation
- The Fund’s proxy provides compensation tables for Trustees only and states details of Trustee retainers/meeting fees; it does not present officer pay (no base salary, target bonus, or other cash compensation for officers).
- Officer biographies emphasize their employment by the Investment Adviser/affiliates; there is no officer compensation table in Part II (officers), indicating officer pay is not paid/disclosed by the Fund.
- The Compensation Committee’s function is to establish appropriate compensation for serving on the Board (Trustees); the Fund “does not have a bonus, pension, profit-sharing or retirement plan” (language in the compensation section refers to Trustees).
Performance Compensation
- The Fund provides no disclosure of officer performance metrics (revenue growth, EBITDA, TSR percentiles, ESG goals) tied to pay, nor any officer incentive plans (PSUs/RSUs/options) at the Fund level. The proxy’s compensation detail is limited to Trustee fees.
Equity Ownership & Alignment
| Metric | 2014-06-02 | 2017-06-01 | 2019-06-03 | 2021-06-16 | 2023-06-13 | 2024-06-11 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Group beneficial ownership (Nominees, Continuing Trustees and officers) as % of Fund shares | <1% | <1% | <1% | <1% | <1% | <1% |
- Officer-by-officer holdings, vested vs. unvested shares, options, and any pledging/hedging are not disclosed in the Fund’s proxy; the officer section (Part II) contains biographies but no ownership or pledging schedules.
Employment Terms
| Term | Disclosure |
|---|---|
| Officer term | Each officer holds office for an indefinite term until a successor is elected and qualified. |
| Employment start/tenure at DHF | CCO “(2012)” for DHF; CCO of BNY Mellon Family of Funds/BNY Mellon Funds Trust since 2004; CCO of the Investment Adviser from 2004 to June 2021. |
| Severance / Change-of-control | No severance multiples, change-of-control triggers, or accelerated vesting terms for officers are disclosed in the Fund’s proxy. |
| Clawback / Non-compete / Non-solicit / Garden leave | No officer-specific provisions are disclosed in the Fund’s proxy. |
| Section 16(a) compliance | For FY ended March 31, 2024, the Fund states officers/Trustees and other reporting persons complied with required filings. |
Performance & Track Record (context)
- DHF’s proxy and shareholder reports do not attribute stock/NAV performance specifically to Fund officers, and no officer-specific value-creation metrics are disclosed. The CCO role is focused on compliance oversight across the fund complex rather than portfolio performance.
Additional Governance Context (Board/Compensation disclosure)
- The Compensation Committee “establish[es] the appropriate compensation for serving on the Board” (Trustees). The proxy’s compensation section and tables address only Trustee fees/retainers; no officer compensation tables are provided.
Investment Implications
- Alignment: Officer and Trustee/Officer group beneficial ownership in DHF has consistently been <1%, suggesting limited direct insider alignment and low insider-selling pressure signals tied to equity ownership levels.
- Transparency of incentives: Because officer compensation is set and paid by the Investment Adviser (not the Fund) and not disclosed at the Fund level, pay-for-performance linkage, vesting schedules, and change-of-control economics for Mr. Connolly cannot be evaluated from DHF filings—reducing insight into retention and incentive risk from a Fund shareholder perspective.
- Retention risk: Long-tenured tenure as CCO across the BNY Mellon fund complex (since 2004) and at DHF (since 2012) points to continuity and low near-term retention risk in the compliance function.
- Governance/process signal: The Fund reports Section 16(a) compliance for FY 2024 and operates with standard independent board committees (including Compensation and Audit), indicating established governance and compliance processes rather than trading catalysts.