Mala Singh
ELECTRONIC ARTSAbout Mala Singh
Executive Vice President & Chief People Officer at Electronic Arts, leading People Operations, Talent Acquisition, Succession Planning, Learning & Development, Real Estate and Workplace Experience, and driving executive compensation and investor governance outreach . Named a NEO in EA’s FY2023–FY2025 proxies, with individual performance modifiers of 120.24% (FY2024) and 118% (FY2025), reflecting strong execution on retention, talent strategy, culture, and governance engagement . Company performance during FY2025 included $7.463B GAAP net revenue, $7.355B net bookings, $1.121B net income, and $2.079B operating cash flow . EA’s advisory say‑on‑pay passed with 92% in 2023 and 87% in 2024, signaling broad investor support for the pay program evolution .
Past Roles
Not disclosed in EA proxy for Ms. Singh (NEO section provides current role and FY accomplishments only) .
External Roles
Not disclosed in EA proxy for Ms. Singh (no external directorships or affiliations listed) .
Fixed Compensation
Multi-year compensation summary for Mala Singh:
| Metric | FY 2023 | FY 2024 | FY 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Salary ($) | 625,000 | 637,231 | 648,077 |
| Stock Awards ($) | 4,704,675 | 5,511,786 | 6,292,132 |
| Non-Equity Incentive Plan Compensation ($) | 600,000 | 800,000 | 700,000 |
| All Other Compensation ($) | 11,927 | 17,702 | 24,690 |
| Total ($) | 5,941,602 | 6,966,719 | 7,664,899 |
FY2025 base salary increased 1.56% to $650,000 (approved in May 2024) . Target bonus opportunity held at 100% of salary in FY2024 and FY2025 .
Performance Compensation
Annual bonus program parameters and outcomes (company funding + individual modifier determine payout):
| Component | FY 2024 | FY 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| Bonus-Eligible Salary ($) | 640,000 | 650,000 |
| Target Bonus % of Salary | 100% | 100% |
| Company Bonus Pool Funding (%) | 106.1% (financial 106.1%, business 106.1%) | 91.7% (financial 88.5%, business 95%) |
| Individual Performance Modifier (IPM) (%) | 120.24% | 118% |
| Actual Bonus ($) | 800,000 | 700,000 |
Annual bonus financial metrics and targets (company-wide):
| Metric | FY 2024 Target | FY 2024 Actual | FY 2025 Target | FY 2025 Actual |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Non-GAAP Net Revenue ($B) | 7.50 | 7.430 | 7.550 | 7.355 |
| Non-GAAP Diluted EPS ($) | 7.48 | 7.76 | 8.48 | 7.83 |
Long-term equity incentive design (FY2025 awards): PRSUs measured on annual Net Bookings and Non‑GAAP Operating Income plus three-year rTSR, and an aTSR modifier; three-year cliff vesting for earned units on May 16, 2027; RSUs vest over 35 months (1/3 at month 11, then semiannual installments) .
FY2025 PRSU payout factors (company-wide financial tranches):
| Financial PRSU Metric | Threshold | Target | Maximum | Actual Result | Payout (% of target) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Net Bookings ($B) | 6.795 | 7.550 | 8.305 | 7.355 | 87.1% |
| Non-GAAP Operating Income ($B) | 2.186 | 2.484 | 2.782 | 2.223 | 56.2% |
| Combined FY2025 Financial PRSU Payout | — | — | — | — | 71.6% |
Relative TSR PRSUs payout schedule (S&P 500 comparator for FY2025 awards; capped at 100% if absolute TSR negative) . FY2023 rTSR tranche for older awards vested at 60.3% of target (38th percentile) .
FY2025 Absolute TSR PRSUs payout schedule:
| Absolute TSR over FY2025–FY2027 | Payout (% of target aTSR PRSUs) |
|---|---|
| < 25% | 0% |
| 50% | 100% |
| 75% | 200% |
Equity Ownership & Alignment
Beneficial ownership and alignment policies:
- Shares beneficially owned: 38,131 (held via family trust; less than 1% of outstanding) .
- Shares outstanding: 251,271,874 (June 17, 2025) .
- Insider trading policy prohibits hedging and pledging; directors and Section 16 officers cannot pledge EA stock as collateral .
- Stock ownership guidelines apply to Section 16 officers with annual testing; officers must hold 50% of net after-tax vested shares until requirements met; as of May 2025, all Section 16 officers were compliant or within their compliance window .
Outstanding equity awards for Ms. Singh (FY2025 year-end snapshot):
| Grant Date | Type | Units | Market/Payout Value ($) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6/17/2024 | aTSR PRSUs (target) | 8,180 | 1,179,965 |
| 6/17/2024 | rTSR PRSUs (target) | 7,286 | 1,051,006 |
| 6/17/2024 | OM PRSUs (earned FY2025 tranche) | 3,466 | 499,971 |
| 6/17/2024 | RSUs | 21,813 | 3,146,525 |
| 6/16/2023 | OM PRSUs (targets/earned prior tranches) | 7,138 | 1,029,657 |
| 6/16/2023 | RSUs | 8,004 | 1,154,577 |
| 6/16/2023 | RSUs | 10,687 | 1,541,600 |
| 6/16/2022 | OM PRSUs (earned prior tranches) | 3,926 | 566,326 |
| 6/16/2022 | PRSUs (earned prior tranches) | 8,416 | 1,214,008 |
| 6/16/2022 | RSUs | 2,442 | 352,259 |
Vesting pressure indicators:
- RSUs vesting schedule creates semiannual release after month 11; FY2025 vesting/realizations: 31,231 shares vested, $4,188,275 value realized for Ms. Singh .
- PRSUs earned for FY2025 financial tranches vest May 16, 2027 (three-year cliff) .
Employment Terms
Severance and change-of-control economics:
| Provision | Terms |
|---|---|
| Executive employment contracts | EA does not use executive employment contracts (except where required by local law) . |
| Cash Severance Policy | No new arrangements above 2.99× salary+target bonus without shareholder ratification . |
| CIC Plan (SVP and above) | Double-trigger; lump sum of 1.5× (CEO 2×) salary + target bonus; COBRA premiums for 18 months (CEO 24); full vesting of RSUs; PRSUs vest per “Eligible Units” rules (actual/target by period); requires release; no tax gross-up; potential cutback if 280G excise tax reduces net after-tax benefit . |
Estimated potential payments for Ms. Singh (as of March 29, 2025):
| Scenario | Cash Severance ($) | RSUs ($) | PRSUs ($) | Other ($) | Total ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Death | — | 5,040,384 | — | — | 5,040,384 |
| Disability | — | 1,755,234 | — | — | 1,755,234 |
| Qualifying Termination (CIC double-trigger) | 1,950,000 | 4,098,176 | 6,596,553 | 49,661 | 12,694,390 |
Clawbacks:
- Dodd‑Frank compliant clawback policy; recovery required for erroneously awarded incentive comp over prior three years on restatement; equity awards include forfeiture and recapture provisions for misconduct leading to restatement .
Investment Implications
- Pay-for-performance alignment: CPO bonus funding tracked company operating and strategic scorecards; IPMs above 100% reflect execution in talent retention and governance, with actual payouts flexing down/up as funding moved from 106.1% (FY2024) to 91.7% (FY2025) . Equity mix includes balanced PRSUs/RSUs (50/50 for CPO) with rigorous PRSU hurdles and three-year cliff vesting; FY2025 financial tranches paid at 71.6%, indicating moderate performance pressure on unvested PRSUs .
- Retention and selling pressure: RSUs vest semiannually post month 11, creating periodic release events; FY2025 saw 31,231 shares vest for Ms. Singh ($4.19M value realized), while large PRSU components defer until 2027, supporting retention . Anti-hedging and anti-pledging policies mitigate misalignment risk .
- Ownership and alignment: Beneficial ownership is small (38,131 shares), but Section 16 officer ownership guidelines and mandatory holding of 50% of net shares until compliant support alignment; no pledging allowed .
- Change-of-control economics: Double-trigger CIC with 1.5× cash multiple plus equity acceleration under “Eligible Units” framework; estimated CPO package of ~$12.7M suggests standard market severity, not excessive relative to peers; no excise tax gross-up .
- Governance signals: Strong say-on-pay approvals (92% in 2023, 87% in 2024) and proactive shareholder engagement suggest low governance overhang risk; Compensation Committee uses Semler Brossy; peer benchmarking spans 17 tech/media firms including Take‑Two, Intuit, ServiceNow, Netflix, etc. .
Overall, Ms. Singh’s incentives emphasize retention and long-term alignment via PRSUs with demanding absolute and relative TSR plus financial hurdles; near-term selling pressure arises primarily from scheduled RSU vesting rather than discretionary sales, with policy constraints reducing alignment risks .