Liz Tennican
About Liz Tennican
Liz Tennican (age 56) has served as an independent director of Four Corners Property Trust (FCPT) since 2020. She is Managing Partner at Carmel Partners, overseeing Investor Relations, Research, ESG, Fund Management, and IT; she is on Carmel’s Executive and Investment Committees and chairs its Management Committee. Tennican holds a BA in Economics and an MBA from Stanford, and FCPT has designated her an “audit committee financial expert,” reflecting deep finance and capital markets expertise and investor relations credentials .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Watershed Asset Management | Managing Director; Head of Investor Relations & Business Development | 2013–2016 | Capital raising and IR leadership for credit-oriented hedge fund |
| Barclays Global Investors / BlackRock (iShares) | Head of Institutional Consultant Relations; Head of U.S. Institutional Sales (iShares) | 2006–2013 | Institutional distribution leadership; iShares U.S. sales lead |
| Robertson Stephens | Investment banking; co-founded capital markets desk | ~7 years (prior to 2006) | Market structure and execution leadership |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Carmel Partners | Managing Partner | Head of IR, Research & ESG; oversees Fund Management & IT; Executive Committee; Investment Committee; Chair of Management Committee |
Board Governance
- Independence: FCPT’s Board determined all directors other than the CEO are independent; Tennican is independent .
- Committees: Currently serves on the Nominating & Governance Committee and Investment Committee; will become Investment Committee Chair contingent on re-election at the 2025 Annual Meeting .
- Prior assignment: Served on Audit & Risk Committee Jan–Jun 2024; FCPT designates her as an audit committee financial expert .
- Attendance: In 2024, the Board held 7 meetings; each director attended at least 75% of Board and applicable committee meetings, and all eight directors attended the 2024 Annual Meeting .
- Committee activity cadence: Audit & Risk met 9 times in 2024; Nominating & Governance met 4 times; Investment met 8 times—indicating active oversight .
| Committee | 2024 Status | Chair Role |
|---|---|---|
| Audit & Risk | Member (Jan–Jun 2024), then rotated off | N/A |
| Nominating & Governance | Member (current) | N/A |
| Investment | Member (current) | Chair contingent on re-election in 2025 |
Fixed Compensation
| Metric | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual Cash Retainer ($) | $60,577 | $65,000 | $65,000 |
| Equity Grant (RSUs fair value, $) | $120,000 | $120,000 | $120,000 |
| Total Director Pay ($) | $180,577 | $185,000 | $185,000 |
| Annual RSU Grant (units) | 4,502 (granted 6/10/2022; $26.66) | 4,553 (granted 6/8/2023; $26.36) | 4,859 (granted 6/6/2024; $24.70) |
| Vesting of RSUs | 1-year cliff (annual grant) | 1-year cliff | 1-year cliff; vests 6/6/2025 |
| Deferral Elections | Deferred shares (policy permits deferral) | Deferred shares | Deferred shares (2024 election) |
| Potential Chair Fees (policy) | Audit Chair: $15k; Comp/Nom/Inv Chair: $10k (if applicable) | Audit Chair: $15k; Comp/Nom/Inv Chair: $10k | Audit Chair: $15k; Comp/Nom/Inv Chair: $10k |
- Director compensation policy: $65,000 cash retainer plus $120,000 in RSUs annually; RSUs have dividend equivalent rights reinvested; directors may defer share settlement; chair fees as noted above .
Performance Compensation
- No performance-based pay for directors; FCPT director equity grants are time-based RSUs with 1-year vesting; no options and no meeting fees are disclosed for directors .
Other Directorships & Interlocks
- Public company directorships: None disclosed for Tennican in FCPT’s proxy materials .
- Compensation committee interlocks: FCPT discloses no interlocks or insider participation on the Compensation Committee .
- Potential interlocks/conflicts: FCPT reports no related-party transactions in 2024; Board policy requires recusal on any “interested transaction” >$50,000 .
Expertise & Qualifications
- Audit Committee Financial Expert designation (SEC definition), signaling advanced financial reporting competence .
- Skills matrix marks: Environmental & Sustainability; Finance/Capital Markets; Financial Reporting/Accounting; Investor Relations; Tenure 4 years; Age 56; Independent .
- Investment oversight: Expected to chair Investment Committee (contingent on re-election), indicating Board confidence in her transaction judgment .
Equity Ownership
| Metric | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Beneficial Ownership (shares) | 5,777 | 10,818 | 16,035 |
| % of Shares Outstanding | <1% (of 80,363,738) | <1% (of 86,753,030) | <1% (of 91,986,471) |
| Unvested RSUs at FY-end (#) | 10,550 (incl. deferred RSUs) | 4,685 (unvested) | 4,982 (unvested) |
| Deferred RSUs (not yet settled) | 2,121 (with DERs) | 4,685 (policy compliance noted) | Deferred receipt elected for 2024 grant |
| Ownership Policy Compliance | Directors must hold ≥$400,000; compliant | Compliant as of 12/31/2023 | Compliant as of 12/31/2024 |
| Evidence | — |
- Hedging/pledging: Prohibited for directors; no short sales, options, hedges, margin or pledging of FCPT securities .
Insider Trades
| Date | Filing | Summary | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11/05/2020 | Form 3 | Initial statement of beneficial ownership; “No securities are beneficially owned” | Filed via POA by James L. Brat; POA on same date |
Governance Assessment
- Strengths: Independent director with audit committee financial expert designation; finance, IR, and ESG expertise; consistent attendance; active committee participation; expected Investment Committee chair role suggests strong deal oversight; director ownership policy compliance enhances alignment .
- Pay structure: Director compensation is modest and equity-heavy (annual RSUs), reinforcing alignment without performance metric gaming; no options or guaranteed perquisites beyond standard reimbursement .
- Conflict controls: No related-party transactions disclosed; robust related-party policy with recusal; insider trading policy bans hedging/pledging and margin accounts, lowering red-flag risk .
- Shareholder sentiment: High say-on-pay approval in 2024 (97.7%) signals investor confidence in FCPT’s compensation governance context in which Tennican serves .
- Watch items: External leadership at Carmel Partners (real estate investor) requires ongoing monitoring for potential overlap with FCPT transactions; current disclosures show no conflicts, but Investment Committee chair role heightens need for vigilant recusal if any Carmel-related counterparties arise .
Overall, Tennican’s profile reflects strong governance credentials (financial expertise, IR, ESG) and alignment via equity, with no disclosed conflicts or attendance concerns; forthcoming Investment Committee chair assignment could further strengthen FCPT’s transaction oversight .