Pablo Mercado
COMFORT SYSTEMS USAAbout Pablo G. Mercado
Independent director (since November 2018), age 48; currently CFO of S&S Activewear (appointed November 2024) after prior CFO roles at Lithium Americas (2023–2024), EnLink Midstream (2020–2022), and Forum Energy Technologies (2018–2020), with earlier investment banking at Credit Suisse, UBS, and Bank of America; holds a B.B.A. and B.A. in Economics from SMU and an MBA from Chicago Booth; designated Audit Committee financial expert and serves as Audit Committee Chair; Board determined he is independent .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| S&S Activewear | Chief Financial Officer | Nov 2024–present | Finance leadership; private apparel distributor |
| Lithium Americas Corp. | EVP & Chief Financial Officer | Apr 2023–Nov 2024 | Public company finance; mining development |
| EnLink Midstream, LLC | EVP & Chief Financial Officer | Jul 2020–Dec 2022 | Midstream energy finance leadership |
| Forum Energy Technologies | SVP Finance; VP Operations Finance; later SVP & CFO | Aug 2015–Jul 2020 (various roles); CFO Mar 2018–Jul 2020 | Corporate strategy, finance |
| Credit Suisse (Oil & Gas Group) | Investment Banker | 2005–2011 | Capital markets advisory |
| UBS Investment Bank; Bank of America | Investment Banker | 1998–2005 | Corporate finance |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Public Company Board? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Current public company boards | — | — | 0 (none) |
| Prior public company boards (last 5 years) | — | — | Not disclosed for Mercado |
Board Governance
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Committees | Audit (Chair); Compensation & Human Capital (Member) |
| Audit Committee meetings (2024) | 8 regular; all members financially literate and designated audit committee financial experts |
| Compensation & Human Capital meetings (2024) | 4 regular; 1 special |
| Board meetings (2024) | 5 regular; 4 special; non-employee directors held executive session at each regular meeting |
| Attendance | Each director attended ≥75% of aggregate Board/committee meetings in 2024 (exception: Kapoor); Mercado met threshold; all directors attended 2024 Annual Meeting |
| Independence | Board determined Mercado (and 9 of 10 continuing directors) qualify as independent under NYSE and Company guidelines |
| Board leadership | Independent Chair (Franklin Myers); Board deemed Lead Director not necessary at present |
Fixed Compensation
| Component | Policy (2024) | Mercado Actual (2024) |
|---|---|---|
| Annual Board cash fee | $80,000 | Included in cash total |
| Audit Chair fee | +$30,000 | Audit Chair; received |
| Comp/Nominating Chair fee | +$20,000 (if chair) | Not applicable (member only) |
| Equity grant (fully vested shares) | ~$160,000 grant-date fair value; annual stock grant | $159,716 stock awards; 498 fully-vested shares methodology disclosed |
| Total cash received | — | $110,000 |
| Total compensation | — | $269,716 |
Performance Compensation
| Metric | Applies to Director Pay? | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| EPS, FCF targets | No | Director equity grants are fully vested at grant; no performance conditions |
| Options/PSUs for directors | No | Company generally does not grant options; director awards are time-vested/fully vested shares |
| Meeting fees | Not disclosed | Structure is fixed cash retainer + chair fees; no per-meeting fees noted |
Other Directorships & Interlocks
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Other current public boards | None (0) |
| Interlocks | Compensation Committee interlocks: none involving FIX executives; Company discloses no interlocks creating conflicts |
| Related-party exposure | None disclosed involving Mercado; policy requires Audit Committee review of any related person transactions; only AECOM transactions disclosed (Kapoor role), ~$230,000 in 2024; Kapoor recused |
Expertise & Qualifications
- Audit Committee financial expert; deep finance/accounting and corporate strategy experience .
- CFO experience across industrial/energy sectors; investment banking background enhances capital allocation oversight .
- Education: B.B.A., B.A. Economics (SMU); MBA (Chicago Booth) .
Equity Ownership
| Holder | Shares Beneficially Owned | % of Class | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pablo G. Mercado | 9,036 | <1% | As of March 1, 2025; sole voting/dispositive power unless noted |
| Stock ownership guidelines (directors) | 10× annual Board cash fee; 5-year compliance window | All non-employee directors compliant or in phase-in period | |
| Hedging/pledging | Prohibited for directors under Insider Trading Window Policy | No margin accounts or pledging permitted |
Governance Assessment
- Strengths: Independent director with material finance expertise; Audit Committee Chair and designated financial expert; strong committee engagement (Audit: 8 meetings; Comp & HC: 5 meetings); meets attendance thresholds; independent Board leadership; robust anti-hedging/pledging and director ownership guidelines .
- Alignment: Receives a balanced mix of fixed cash (retainer + chair fee) and equity (annual fully-vested shares), with significant director ownership requirements to align with shareholders .
- Shareholder signals: Company’s say-on-pay support >95% in 2024, indicating broad approval of pay governance framework (context for overall governance environment) .
- Conflicts/related party risk: No related-party transactions disclosed for Mercado; Section 16(a) compliance reported for all directors/officers; no delinquent filings .
- RED FLAGS: None identified specific to Mercado (no overboarding; no pledging; no disclosed conflicts). Monitor external CFO role at S&S Activewear for potential future customer/supplier relationships, though none disclosed in 2024 .