Glenn Pladsen
About Glenn Pladsen
Glenn R. Pladsen is Vice President and Chief Excellence Officer at Knife River (effective Jan 1, 2025), age 58 as of Dec 31, 2024. He joined Knife River in 2007 and previously led IT, capital budgeting, national accounts, safety and environmental programs; he holds a mechanical engineering degree from North Dakota State University . Company performance during his senior leadership tenure has been strong: 2024 company TSR translated a $100 initial investment to $290.23 vs. $117.14 for the peer group, while Adjusted EBITDA rose to $469.5 million (from $432.4 million in 2023) and net income to $201.7 million (from $182.9 million) .
Company performance context
| Metric | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Total Stockholder Return – $100 initial value | $188.98 | $290.23 |
| Peer Group TSR – $100 initial value | $120.11 | $117.14 |
| Adjusted EBITDA ($000s) | $432,421 | $469,502 |
| Net Income ($000s) | $182,872 | $201,678 |
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Knife River Corporation | Vice President & Chief Excellence Officer | 2025–present | Leads “Excellence” pillar of EDGE strategy (process improvement/PIT Crews, training, safety/operational excellence) |
| Knife River Corporation | Vice President, Support Services | May 2023–Dec 2024 | Oversight of IT, environmental management, capital budgeting, national accounts |
| Knife River Corporation (KRC Materials, Inc.) | Vice President, Operations Support | Jan 2020–May 2023 | Led safety & environmental programs; added corporate training center leadership |
| Knife River Corporation | Director of Information Technology (expanded scope in 2012 & 2015) | 2007–2019 | Standardized enterprise systems/processes; added capital budgeting & national accounts (2012); assumed safety & environmental leadership (2015) |
Fixed Compensation
- Not individually disclosed for Mr. Pladsen (non-NEO). Knife River discloses individual base salary/bonus detail for named executive officers (NEOs) only in its proxy .
Performance Compensation
Knife River’s disclosed executive scorecard (for NEOs) concentrates incentives in financial performance and safety. While Mr. Pladsen’s individual payouts are not disclosed, the 2024 corporate plan and results are:
| Metric | Weight | Threshold | Target | Maximum | 2024 Result | Payout % of Target |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adjusted EBITDA | 90% | $325.5m | $434.0m | $477.4m | $469.5m | 181.8% |
| TRIR (safety) | 5% | 2.40 | 2.10 | 1.84 | 1.89 | 180.8% |
| LTIR (safety) | 5% | 0.91 | 0.55 | 0.26 | 0.39 | 155.2% |
- The weighted 2024 annual incentive payout for NEOs was 180.4% of target, driven by above-target Adjusted EBITDA and improved safety outcomes .
- Long-term incentives for 2024 were 65% PSAs (3-year performance: relative TSR vs peers and Adjusted EBITDA margin growth) and 35% RSUs (time-based), with RSUs vesting Dec 31, 2026 and settlement in Jan 2027 .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
- Initial beneficial ownership: Mr. Pladsen’s Form 3 (filed June 1, 2023 for event date May 31, 2023) reported no securities beneficially owned at that time .
- Latest proxy ownership table (as of Feb 28, 2025) lists directors and NEOs individually; Mr. Pladsen is not individually listed. All directors, director nominees, and executive officers as a group held 173,203 shares (0.3%) .
- Ownership policy and retention: Executive officers must meet stock ownership requirements (CEO 6x salary; other NEOs 2x–3x) within five years of June 1, 2023 or appointment; executives must retain all vested share awards net of taxes until in compliance .
- Hedging/pledging: Insider Trading Policy prohibits hedging and pledging (and holding shares in margin accounts unless explicitly excluded from margin/pledge) .
Employment Terms
- Employment agreements: Knife River discloses that executives do not have employment agreements entitling them to continued employment or specific severance on termination .
- Change-in-control (CIC) severance plan: Adopted Aug 20, 2024, designating then-current NEOs as participants (CEO: 3x; other NEOs: 2x). Benefits on double-trigger CIC include (i) prorated target annual incentive, (ii) multiple of base salary plus target annual incentive, and (iii) multiple of COBRA premiums; subject to release, 1-year non-compete and non-solicit, 2-year non-disparagement, and perpetual confidentiality; with 280G “best net” cutback .
- Equity vesting moved to double-trigger commencing with 2025 equity awards (no automatic vesting solely on CIC) .
- Mr. Pladsen was not among the NEOs designated as CIC plan participants in the Aug 20, 2024 8‑K; no subsequent proxy disclosure lists him as a CIC-plan participant .
Compensation Structure Analysis
- Pay mix and structure: Company program emphasizes at-risk pay (annual and long-term), uses PSAs (relative TSR and Adjusted EBITDA margin growth) and RSUs; no stock options granted .
- Governance safeguards:
- Stock ownership/retention requirements for executives
- Anti-hedging/anti-pledging policy
- SEC-compliant clawback policy (effective Oct 2, 2023)
- Double-trigger CIC vesting from 2025 awards
- Benchmarking and target levels: Compensation targeted at ~50th percentile versus a curated peer group; Meridian is the independent consultant .
Performance & Track Record
- EDGE strategy execution: Pladsen leads the “Excellence” pillar, building on PIT Crews and Knife River Training Center to drive operational excellence and safety, integral to EBITDA margin improvement .
- Corporate outcomes during 2024: Above-target Adjusted EBITDA delivered elevated annual incentive outcomes (180.4% of target for NEOs) and supported strong TSR versus peers, indicating alignment between pay and performance .
Investment Implications
- Alignment and selling pressure: Strict anti-hedging/pledging rules and a mandatory hold-until-compliant policy reduce near-term selling pressure; however, RSU vesting/settlment tied to 2024–2026 may create predictable liquidity events in early 2027 for participants (individual awards for Mr. Pladsen not disclosed) .
- Retention risk: Double-trigger CIC for equity and CIC severance coverage specifically disclosed for NEOs enhances senior team retention; Mr. Pladsen was not listed as a CIC-plan participant in the Aug 2024 8‑K, implying comparatively lower contractual protection unless subsequently added (not disclosed) .
- Execution leverage: Pladsen’s remit (process excellence, training, safety) is directly tied to Knife River’s Adjusted EBITDA margin growth objective and the performance metrics used in incentives, strengthening pay-performance linkage and potential value creation if EDGE initiatives continue to scale .
Sources: 2025 and 2024 KNF Proxy Statements and company 8‑Ks/press release excerpts as cited above.