James Scarola
EvergyAbout James Scarola
Independent director of Evergy (EVRG), age 69, serving since 2022. Scarola is an independent nuclear oversight consultant with deep nuclear operations leadership; he co-chairs the Operations Committee and serves on the Audit Committee. He previously led U.S. industry response to Fukushima and served as Chief Nuclear Officer at Progress Energy. Education: B.S. Electrical Engineering (Notre Dame), MBA (Florida Institute of Technology), Executive Management Program (Darden); certified Pressurized Water Reactor Senior Reactor Operator and INPO Senior Nuclear Plant Manager .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nuclear Industry Fukushima Steering Committee | Chairman | 2012–2014 | Established and coordinated U.S. industry strategic direction post-Fukushima |
| Progress Energy (pre-merger with Duke Energy) | Senior Vice President & Chief Nuclear Officer | 2008–2012 | Oversight of nuclear operations, engineering, fiscal control, labor relations |
| Progress Energy – Brunswick Nuclear Plant | Site Vice President | 2005–2008 | Plant leadership and operational management |
| Progress Energy – Harris Nuclear Plant | Site Vice President | 1998–2005 | Plant leadership and operational management |
| Florida Power & Light – St. Lucie Nuclear Plant | Leadership roles | 1980–1998 | Nuclear operations and engineering leadership |
| Independent Consultant | Independent nuclear oversight consultant | 2015–present | Consulting to CNOs and boards; monitors/assesses nuclear operations |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wolf Creek Nuclear Generating Station | Director | Since 2022 | EVRG’s nuclear plant board; nuclear oversight experience |
| Evergy, Inc. | Director | Since 2022 | Independent director; Audit member; Operations Co-Chair |
Board Governance
| Committee | Role | 2024 Meetings | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Audit | Member | 6 | 100% |
| Operations (combined May 8, 2024) | Co-Chair | 6 (2 Nuclear/Power Supply & Environmental + 2 Safety & Power Delivery pre-combination + 2 Operations post-combination) | 100% |
- Independence: Board determined 11 of 12 nominees are independent; Scarola is independent .
- Board meetings and attendance: Board held 4 meetings in 2024; each incumbent director attended >75% of Board and committee meetings .
- Governance practices: Lead Independent Director structure, independent committee chairs, executive sessions each meeting, proxy access, special meeting rights, clawback policy, and anti-hedging/pledging .
- Committee responsibilities: Operations Committee oversees Wolf Creek operations, generation, transmission and delivery, safety, cybersecurity, customer service; compliance with environmental and SEC GHG/cyber reporting .
Fixed Compensation
| Component | Amount ($) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Annual base cash retainer | 115,000 | Non-employee director cash retainer |
| Operations Committee Co-Chair fee | 20,000 | Co-Chair annual cash retainer (effective May 8, 2024) |
| Equity retainer (annual) | 155,000 | Paid in Evergy common stock, May 8, 2024 grant cycle |
| 2024 Fees Earned (Cash) | 135,000 | Reflects base + co-chair fees |
| 2024 Stock Awards (grant-date fair value) | 155,361 | FASB ASC 718 value |
| Nonqualified deferred comp earnings | 0 | No above-market earnings reported |
| All other compensation | 0 | No perquisites >$10k; charitable match not shown for Scarola |
| 2024 Total | 290,361 | Sum of components |
Performance Compensation
- Director pay is not formulaically tied to performance metrics; equity retainers are delivered as common stock and/or DSUs at director election and are not option-based or PSU-based for non-employee directors .
Company incentive scorecard (context for governance oversight; informs board’s pay-for-performance alignment):
| Metric | Weight (%) | 2024 Result | Weighted Payout (% of Target) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adjusted EPS for Incentive Compensation | 32.5 | $3.79 | 29.3% |
| Adjusted NFOM Expense for Incentive Compensation | 32.5 | $930.1mm | 38.4% |
| DART (safety) | 6.25 | 1.14 | 0.0% |
| PVAR (safety) | 3.125 | 0.61 | 6.3% |
| PSIF Investigated w/ Plans on Track (safety) | 3.125 | 100% | 3.1% |
| SAIDI (operations) | 3.75 | 96 minutes | 4.7% |
| SAIFI (operations) | 3.75 | 1.03 | 3.0% |
| Unplanned Commercial Availability Factor (operations) | 7.5 | 88% | 0.0% |
| J.D. Power Residential CSAT (customer) | 2.25 | 0.61 | 0.0% |
| Call Center Survey (customer) | 2.625 | 4.22/5 | 2.2% |
| Business Customer Satisfaction (customer) | 2.625 | 96.2% | 4.6% |
| Weighted Achievement (Total) | 100.0 | — | 91.5% |
Other Directorships & Interlocks
| Company | Role | Committee Roles | Interlocks/Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| — | — | — | No current public company directorships disclosed for Scarola |
| Wolf Creek Nuclear Generating Station | Director | — | Plant board; not a listed company; nuclear oversight |
| Compensation committee interlocks | — | — | None disclosed for 2024; no related-party relationships requiring disclosure |
Expertise & Qualifications
- Nuclear operations leadership across multiple plants (Harris, Brunswick, St. Lucie) and CNO role; certified Senior Reactor Operator and INPO Senior Nuclear Plant Manager .
- Strategic risk oversight and project management; fiscal control and labor relations in nuclear context .
- Board-level nuclear oversight (Wolf Creek); relevant to EVRG’s nuclear asset risk governance .
- Technical education and executive training (Notre Dame EE, FIT MBA, Darden executive program) .
Equity Ownership
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Beneficially owned shares | 7,522 |
| Share equivalents to be settled in stock (DSUs/RSUs) | 0 |
| Total share interest | 7,522 |
| Ownership as % of shares outstanding | <1% |
| Stock ownership guideline status | All non-employee directors in compliance with 5x retainer guideline as of 12/31/2024 |
| Hedging/pledging | Prohibited by policy; no short selling, hedging, pledging allowed |
| Related-party transactions | None requiring disclosure since start of FY 2024 |
Governance Assessment
- Strengths: Independent status; dual role as Operations Committee Co-Chair and Audit Committee member supports robust oversight of nuclear operations, reliability, and financial controls; perfect committee attendance in 2024; governance environment includes clawback policy, anti-hedging/pledging, proxy access, and independent committee chairs .
- Alignment: Director pay mix balances cash and equity; Scarola’s 2024 compensation was ~53% equity by grant-date value ($155,361 of $290,361), aligning with shareholder interests; stock ownership guidelines compliance further aligns incentives .
- Shareholder signals: Strong say-on-pay support (96% in 2024) suggests investor confidence in compensation governance overseen by the Board and its committees .
- Conflicts: No related-party transactions; no hedging/pledging; no Section 16(a) delinquencies disclosed—low conflict risk profile .
RED FLAGS
- None identified specific to Scarola: no related-party transactions, no pledging or hedging, strong committee attendance, independent status .
Note: Director compensation for non-employee directors at EVRG is structured via cash retainers and equity (common stock/DSUs) with no stock options; governance standards include no tax gross-ups, double-trigger change-in-control for executives, and a standardized annual grant cycle, reflecting disciplined pay practices the Board oversees .