Christopher D. Krygier
About Christopher D. Krygier
Christopher D. Krygier, age 41, is Chief Operating Officer of Global Water Resources (GWRS) since February 2023; he joined the company in June 2020 as Chief Strategy Officer. He holds an MBA and a BS in Economics from Arizona State University’s W.P. Carey School of Business, is a Certified Management Accountant, a CFA charterholder, and a member of the Latino Corporate Directors Association; he also serves as President of the Water Utilities Association of Arizona . Company performance metrics relevant to his incentive design include 2024 “Further Adjusted EBITDA” of $23.2 million versus a $22.9 million budget (100% achievement), full compliance/safety scores, on-budget capital execution, and full discretionary component, resulting in 100% payout of the 2024 incentive pool . The company’s pay-versus-performance disclosure shows the value of a $100 TSR investment moving from $92.67 (2022) to $84.52 (2024), indicating a weaker shareholder return trend over that period .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Liberty Utilities (Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. subsidiary) | Director of Operations | Late 2018–Mid 2020 | Oversaw ~75,000 water/wastewater utility customers in AZ and TX; operations management and execution . |
| Liberty Utilities | Director of Rates & Regulatory Affairs | Early 2017–Late 2018 | Oversaw regulatory commission activities for six states and ~330,000 customers; regulatory strategy and rate-setting . |
| Liberty Utilities | Director of Regulatory & Government Affairs | Late 2013–Late 2017 | Oversaw regulatory commission activity for three states and ~55,000 customers; policy, rates, and regulations . |
| Multi-jurisdictional utility representation | Regulatory representative | Various (pre-2020) | Represented utilities before the Arizona Corporation Commission and other PUCs; municipal/county governments on policy, rates, and regulations . |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Water Utilities Association of Arizona | President | Current | Trade group representing Arizona’s investor-owned water utilities . |
| Latino Corporate Directors Association | Member | Current | Professional association membership . |
Fixed Compensation
| Metric | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 (New Agreement) | 2026 (New Agreement) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Base Salary ($) | $249,000 | $262,500 | $275,000 | $287,500 |
| Target Annual Incentive (% of base) | 45% (program eligibility) | 45% | 45% | 45% |
| Incentive form (cash vs RSUs) | 50% cash / 50% RSUs | 50% cash / 50% RSUs | Up to 50% RSUs for 2025–2026 | Up to 50% RSUs in 2026; 100% cash from 2027 onward |
| RSA Grants (time-based) | 20,000 (May 8, 2022 grant) vests 1/3 May 2023/2024/2025 | Continues vesting 1/3 each year | 6,667 (May 5, 2025), vests May 8, 2026 | 6,667 (May 5, 2026), vests May 8, 2027 |
Performance Compensation
| Component / Metric | Weight | Target | Actual | Payout | Vesting |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Compliance & Safety (discrete objectives; safety/IT metrics) | 25% | No compliance events; meet safety goals | No compliance events; safety goals met | 25.0% achieved | Annual award split 50% cash/50% RSUs; RSUs vest ratably over 12 quarters . |
| Further Adjusted EBITDA | 25% | Budget $22.9m; payout scale 0/50/75/100% | Actual $23.2m; 100% of payout scale | 25.0% achieved | RSUs vest ratably over 12 consecutive quarters . |
| Capital Expenditure execution | 25% | CapEx budget $31.0m (excl. growth/acq); overages offset | Actual CapEx $25.6m; 100% payout | 25.0% achieved | RSUs vest ratably over 12 consecutive quarters . |
| Board discretionary (ops/customer service/regulatory/H&S/water loss) | 25% | Committee evaluation | Board awarded full amount | 25.0% achieved | RSUs vest ratably over 12 consecutive quarters . |
| Overall pool outcome | 100% | — | — | 100.0% (all NEOs) | RSUs issued Q1 following year; 12-quarter vest . |
Additional payout detail (2024 actuals for Krygier):
- Non-equity incentive plan compensation (cash): $59,063 .
- Stock awards (cash-settled RSUs): $59,063 .
- Total incentive: $118,126, consistent with 100% of 45% target on $262,500 base .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Direct common shares owned | 29,923 shares |
| Awards vesting within 60 days (record date) | 6,667 (restricted stock tranche) |
| Total beneficial ownership | 36,590 shares; <1% of outstanding |
| Shares outstanding (record date) | 24,226,016 |
| Unvested RSUs (earned for FY2024; granted Mar 21, 2025) | 5,307 units; $61,031 market value at $11.50 |
| Unvested RSUs (FY2023 grant) | 2,856 units; $32,844 |
| Unvested RSUs (FY2022 grant) | 1,171 units; $13,467 |
| Unvested restricted stock (May 8, 2022 grant) | 6,667 shares; $76,671 |
| Options (exercisable/unexercisable) | None outstanding for Krygier as of 12/31/2024 |
| Hedging/short sales/pledging policy | Prohibited (short sales, options trading, hedging/monetization, margin); pledging generally prohibited except with Audit & Risk Committee pre-approval |
Notes:
- RSUs vest ratably over 12 consecutive quarters from grant date; RSUs are cash-settled and carry dividend equivalents .
- Restricted stock from May 2022 vests 1/3 annually in May 2023/2024/2025; new RSAs in 2025 and 2026 vest the following May .
Employment Terms
| Term | Key Provisions |
|---|---|
| Agreement effective / term | New Employment Agreement effective Jan 1, 2025; continues until Jan 1, 2028; auto-renew for successive 12-month periods unless either party gives notice before end of term . |
| Base salary schedule | $275,000 (2025); $287,500 (2026–2027) . |
| Target incentive | Up to 45% of base salary; 2025–2026 paid in cash and/or RSUs with max 50% RSUs; 2027 onward 100% cash . |
| Time-based restricted stock grants | 6,667 RSAs on each of May 5, 2025 and May 5, 2026; vests on May 8 of the following year; from 2027 onward, RSAs equal to 50% of base salary, vesting in three equal annual installments beginning Dec 15 following grant . |
| Termination without Cause / Good Reason | Base salary through termination date; prior-year incentives owed; pro-rata incentive if termination in last six months subject to terms; COBRA reimbursement; immediate full vesting/acceleration of equity awards; lump sum of 4.35× current base salary for Krygier . |
| Change-of-control (CoC) | Cash: 4.35× current base salary if Good Reason or terminated without Cause within 24 months post-CoC (double trigger for cash) . Equity: all outstanding equity/stock price-based awards fully vest and restrictions lapse upon CoC, regardless of continued employment (single-trigger equity acceleration) . |
| 280G “best-net” provision | Cutback if it increases net after-tax proceeds to the executive . |
Governance, Peer Group, and Risk Indicators
- Compensation peer group: FW Cook engaged; 16 utilities/water/gas/electric peers used; analysis indicated average NEO target annual compensation below the 25th percentile of the peer group as of August 2023 .
- Insider trading controls: Robust prohibitions on hedging/pledging/short sales/options trading/margin accounts .
- Section 16(a) compliance: One late report for Christopher D. Krygier in the most recent fiscal year .
- Standstill agreement: Controls to limit potential “control” by major shareholders (LILP, Levines, Cohn) and codify behavior; not specific to Krygier but relevant to governance stability .
Multi-Year Compensation (Named Executive Officer)
| Metric | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Salary ($) | $249,000 | $262,500 |
| Stock Awards ($) | $56,025 (cash-settled RSUs) | $59,063 (cash-settled RSUs) |
| Non-Equity Incentive Plan ($) | $56,025 | $59,063 |
| All Other Compensation ($) | $14,239 | $8,778 |
| Total Compensation ($) | $375,289 | $389,403 |
Compensation Structure Analysis
- Shift to cash: The New Employment Agreements stipulate that from 2027 onward, 100% of annual incentive compensation is paid in cash, reducing direct equity linkage of performance pay; RSAs remain but are time-based and tied to base salary levels .
- Equity cadence: RSUs from annual incentives vest quarterly over three years, and RSAs have annual vest dates (May/December depending on grant year), creating predictable windows of potential Form 4 activity and insider trading clearance needs .
- Pay-for-performance: 2024 incentive outcomes were fully earned (100%) on compliance/safety, EBITDA vs budget, CapEx discipline, and board discretionary components—consistent with operational execution and budget stewardship .
Investment Implications
- Alignment: Beneficial ownership is <1%, with a mix of time-based RSAs and cash-settled RSUs that vest over time; hedging/pledging restrictions limit misalignment risks. The move to 100% cash incentives from 2027 weakens direct stock-price linkage of annual incentives, partially offset by time-based RSAs sized to salary .
- Retention/transition risk: Strong severance (4.35× base salary) and single-trigger equity acceleration at change-of-control suggest low retention risk and high transition certainty; double-trigger cash at CoC balances incentives with governance norms .
- Trading signals: Quarterly RSU vesting and annual RSA vesting dates (e.g., May 8, 2025; May 8, 2026) create periodic liquidity events that could coincide with insider sales subject to window policies; one late filing last year is a minor process flag rather than a thesis driver .
- Performance lens: Budgeted EBITDA outperformance and on-budget CapEx execution supported full incentive payout in 2024; however, TSR trends from pay-versus-performance disclosures reflect softer shareholder returns across 2022–2024, contextualizing incentive outcomes against investor experience .
Net take: Compensation incentivizes operational execution and compliance—core for a regulated utility—while severance/CoC terms minimize retention risk. From 2027, cash-heavy incentives reduce equity sensitivity; monitor RSU/RSA vest schedules for incremental supply and Form 4 cadence, and track any evolution in performance metrics to maintain pay-for-performance alignment amid TSR headwinds .