Cynthia McCabe
EXELONAbout Cynthia McCabe
Cynthia McCabe is Senior Vice President and Chief Communications Officer at Exelon, overseeing all communications and marketing across the holding company and its six regulated utilities; she sits on Exelon’s Executive Committee and was appointed to her current role effective Nov 1, 2024 . She joined Exelon in 2017 and previously served as VP, Executive Operations and Chief of Staff to the CEO, as well as communications leadership roles at Exelon Utilities and Pepco Holdings; earlier, she held communications roles at AFSCME and the National Education Association and began her career as a reporter; she holds a BA in English from Clemson University . Exelon’s recent performance context during her senior tenure: FY2022–FY2024 net income rose from $2.054B to $2.460B and the value of a $100 investment in EXC was $147 (2022), $127 (2023), $138 (2024) .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Exelon Corporation | SVP, Chief Communications Officer (Executive Committee) | 2024–Present | Leads enterprise communications, reputation, brand, and marketing across holding company and six utilities |
| Exelon Corporation | VP, Executive Operations; Chief of Staff to CEO | 2023–2024 (VP); 2021–2023 (Chief of Staff) | Supported CEO agenda and culture-change initiatives; executive operations leadership |
| Exelon Utilities (holding) | Director of Communications | Pre-2021 | Led communications for utility platform consolidation and stakeholder messaging |
| Pepco Holdings (Exelon) | Director of Communications | 2017–(pre-Utilities role) | Regional utility communications for PHI subsidiaries (Pepco, DPL, ACE) |
| AFSCME | Communications leadership | Pre-2017 | National public-sector union communications |
| National Education Association | Communications role | Pre-2017 | National association communications |
| Various newspapers (NC, FL) | Reporter | Early career | Editorial/journalism foundation |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reginald F. Lewis Museum of African American History & Culture (Baltimore) | Board member; Chair of Marketing Committee | Current | Civic/community engagement |
| Friends of the National Zoo (FONZ), Washington, D.C. | Former board member | Prior | Prior non-profit governance experience |
Fixed Compensation
| Component | Disclosure for McCabe | Company policy context |
|---|---|---|
| Base salary | Not individually disclosed (non-NEO) | Exelon reviews executive base salaries annually for competitiveness, retention, scope, and performance . |
| Annual Incentive Program (AIP) | Not individually disclosed | AIP metrics and 2024 weightings: 60% Adjusted Operating EPS; 15% SAIDI; 15% SAIFI; 10% Customer Satisfaction; Responsible Business Modifier ±10% . 2024 company AIP performance factor: 136.64% . |
| Perquisites | Not individually disclosed | Limited perquisites (aircraft within policy, car/driver, BYOD stipend, financial planning, relocation benefits); policies also outline caps and governance . |
Performance Compensation
| Incentive vehicle | Metric(s) | Weighting | Target (program design) | 2024/Most recent actual | Payout mechanics | Vesting |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Annual Incentive (AIP) | Adjusted Operating EPS; SAIDI; SAIFI; Customer Satisfaction; Responsible Business Modifier | 60%; 15%; 15%; 10%; ±10% | Pre-established goals annually | 2024 AIP factor: 136.64% | Individual payouts subject to formula and modifier; NEO payouts shown in proxy; non-NEOs follow plan design . | Cash, paid annually . |
| Long-Term Incentive (LTIP) | PSUs (Utility Earned ROE, Exelon Net Income, Exelon CFO/Debt) with 3-yr TSR modifier; RSUs | 67% PSUs / 33% RSUs | Three-year overlapping cycles; targets set each grant | 2022–2024 PSU cycle: 83.76% of target (based on disclosed performance/TSR factors) | PSU payout based on 3-year performance metrics and TSR modifier; RSUs time-vest | PSUs cliff vest at end of 3 years; RSUs ratable/time-based; timing governed by TMCC grants |
Exelon does not grant stock options and has not issued options since 2012; annual equity generally granted at first regular TMCC meeting; insider policy prohibits hedging/pledging .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
| Topic | McCabe-specific disclosure | Company framework |
|---|---|---|
| Beneficial ownership | Not individually disclosed for McCabe; proxy shows “All other executive officers” as a group holding 86,254 shares as of Feb 3, 2025 . | Directors/NEOs/executive officers collectively owned <1% of shares; none pledged; no options outstanding . |
| Stock ownership guidelines | As an SVP, she is covered by VP+ stock ownership guidelines (multiple of salary, five-year compliance window) | Executives at VP+ must hold stock equal to a multiple of salary within five years; shares counting include RSUs, ESP/DRIP holdings; PSUs do not count until vested . |
| Hedging/pledging | Not permitted | Insider trading policy prohibits hedging, short sales, derivative transactions, or pledging of company stock . |
| Grant vehicles | Not individually disclosed | LTI mix: 67% PSUs / 33% RSUs; metrics as above . |
Employment Terms
| Provision | Summary (company policy) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Employment agreement | Exelon does not utilize employment agreements for executives (including NEOs) . | McCabe’s individual offer terms not disclosed. |
| Severance (SMSP) | For NEOs: 24 months of base salary + target AIP paid over 24 months; pro-rated AIP for year of termination; continued health/welfare; prorated vesting of RSUs and PSUs (based on actual performance); outplacement/financial planning; pension crediting subject to plan . | Exelon references severance plans for executives in 8-Ks; McCabe, as SVP, would typically participate in executive severance programs, though her individual schedule is not disclosed . |
| Change-in-control | No single-trigger payouts; double-trigger applies; no excise tax gross-ups . | Vesting and benefits subject to plan terms and release conditions . |
| Clawback | Company maintains both discretionary and mandatory restatement recoupment policies; clawback applies to incentive comp . | Aligns with SEC/Nasdaq rules. |
Performance & Track Record (Company context during tenure)
| Metric | FY 2022 | FY 2023 | FY 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenues ($ USD Billions) | 19.08 | 21.73 | 23.03 |
| EBITDA ($ USD Billions) | 6.24* | 6.81* | 7.19* |
| Net Income ($ USD Billions) | 2.05 | 2.33 | 2.46 |
Values with an asterisk (*) retrieved from S&P Global.
| TSR – Value of $100 Investment | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Exelon Total Shareholder Return ($) | 147 | 127 | 138 |
Related Policies and Governance (Compensation infrastructure)
- Strong practices include: pay-for-performance, meaningful stock ownership, capped incentives, independent consultant, double-trigger CIC, clawbacks, prohibition on hedging/pledging, and no option repricing; “no employment agreements” and “no excise tax gross-ups” also disclosed .
- 2024/2025 consultant transition: Meridian advised most of 2024; WTW selected in Oct 2024 as new independent consultant (TMCC concluded WTW is independent) .
Items Not Disclosed for McCabe (as of latest filings)
- Individual base salary, target bonus %, actual bonus payouts, grant-date values/quantities, vesting schedules, deferred comp/pension values, and individual beneficial ownership (Form 4 data not identified in SEC feed). Company-level policies and plan structures above frame likely design but not the individual economics .
Investment Implications
- Pay design alignment: As an SVP subject to VP+ ownership rules and clawbacks with prohibited hedging/pledging, incentives emphasize multi-year ROE/earnings/credit metrics plus company AIP metrics (EPS and reliability/customer KPIs). That structure aligns communications leadership with financial/operational outcomes and capital stewardship .
- Vesting/selling dynamics: Exelon uses 3-year PSU cycles with TSR modifiers and time-based RSUs; severance provides pro-rata vesting—reducing cliff-risk but still creating periodic settlement windows. Absent Form 4s, there’s no evidence of near-term insider selling pressure by McCabe; policy bans pledging mitigate forced-sale risk .
- Retention risk: No individual contract; company standard severance (SMSP) and ownership guidelines provide retention hooks. Being on the Executive Committee increases strategic influence and suggests succession bench depth in enterprise reputation and stakeholder engagement—an important lever for regulated utilities’ rate cases and policy outcomes .
- Execution lens: Communications efficacy influences regulatory relationships, customer satisfaction (AIP metric), and reputational risk—areas explicitly tied to incentive funding (AIP weighting and Responsible Business Modifier), reinforcing alignment between her remit and pay outcomes .
Citations:
- Executive role/appointment and bio: Exelon bio page and promotion press release ; Executive Committee reference .
- Compensation program, metrics, outcomes, policies, severance/CIC, ownership guidelines, and ownership table: .
- Company financials and TSR: ; revenues/EBITDA from S&P Global via GetFinancials (asterisked where applicable) .