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Nancy Faginas-Cody

Director at El Pollo Loco Holdings
Board

About Nancy Faginas-Cody

Independent director since December 2021; age 65 as of April 1, 2025. Veteran IT executive with 40+ years of experience, including Senior Vice President, Information Technology Enterprise Business Systems at The Walt Disney Company (2013–2020). Education: MBA, University of California–Irvine; BA in Economics, California State University–Fullerton . She is nominated for re-election as a Class II director in 2025 to serve through 2028 if elected .

Past Roles

OrganizationRoleTenureCommittees/Impact
The Walt Disney CompanySVP, IT Enterprise Business Systems2013–2020Led global corporate enterprise business systems
Disney Consumer Products, Inc.VP, Information Technology2004–2013Senior IT leadership
Disney Stores WorldwideDirector, Information Technology1999–2004IT leadership for retail chain
FEDCOIT leadership rolesNot disclosedRetail IT leadership
MacFrugal’sIT leadership rolesNot disclosedRetail IT leadership

External Roles

  • No other public-company directorships disclosed in LOCO’s proxy; biography lists prior operating roles (Disney, FEDCO, MacFrugal’s) without other board service .

Board Governance

CommitteeRoleMeetings in 2024
Audit CommitteeMember5
Nominating & Corporate Governance CommitteeChair7
Compensation CommitteeNot a member7
  • Independence: Board determined Faginas-Cody is independent under Nasdaq rules; also independent for Audit Committee under Nasdaq and Rule 10A-3 .
  • Attendance and engagement: Board held 12 meetings in 2024; each incumbent director attended at least 75% of board and committee meetings; all directors attended the 2024 annual meeting .
  • Audit Committee report signatories include Faginas-Cody, evidencing active participation .
  • Director stock ownership guidelines: 5x annual board cash retainer; directors are in compliance or within five-year transition .
  • Hedging/pledging: Prohibited for directors (limited pledge exception requires company pre-approval) .

Fixed Compensation

YearCash Fees ($)Stock Awards ($)Total ($)
202475,000 90,000 165,000
202371,868 90,000 161,868
  • Cash components (policy): Annual cash retainer $60,000 for non-chair directors; committee chair fees—Audit $15,000, Compensation $12,500, Nominating & Corporate Governance $10,000; committee member fee $5,000, all paid quarterly .
  • Her 2024 roles (Audit member; Nominating chair) are consistent with the $75,000 fees earned reported for Faginas-Cody .

Performance Compensation

Grant dateEquity typeShares grantedGrant-date fair value ($)Vesting
May 29, 2024Restricted Shares8,604 90,000 Vest in full on first anniversary; accelerate upon termination by Company without “cause,” death, or “disability”
  • As of Dec 25, 2024, she had 10,502 unvested restricted shares outstanding .
  • Director equity awards are time-based; no performance metrics (e.g., TSR/EBITDA) are disclosed for director grants .

Other Directorships & Interlocks

  • Compensation Committee interlocks: 2024 committee members were Babb, Borgese, Buller, Gonzalez; none had relationships requiring Item 404 disclosure; Faginas-Cody was not a compensation committee member in 2024 .

Expertise & Qualifications

  • Deep enterprise IT, data systems, and cybersecurity relevance: Audit Committee oversees data privacy and cybersecurity programs, aligning with her IT background .
  • Governance leadership: Chair of Nominating & Corporate Governance Committee with responsibilities for board composition, diversity, evaluations, and ESG oversight .
  • Education: MBA (UC Irvine), BA Economics (CSUF) .

Equity Ownership

MetricValueAs of
Total beneficial ownership (shares)32,868 Record date April 2, 2025
Ownership % of classLess than 1% Record date April 2, 2025
Unvested restricted shares10,502 Dec 25, 2024
  • Stock ownership guidelines: Required ownership equal to 5x annual board cash retainer; directors are in compliance or within the five-year transition period .
  • Hedging and pledging restrictions enhance alignment .

Governance Assessment

  • Board effectiveness: Active Audit member and Nominating & Corporate Governance Committee chair with strong attendance (≥75%), supporting robust oversight of financial reporting, cybersecurity, board composition, and ESG matters .
  • Alignment: Compensation mix skews toward equity (2024: $90k equity vs $75k cash), reinforcing skin-in-the-game; stock ownership guidelines further align interests .
  • Independence and conflicts: Determined independent; no related-party transactions naming Faginas-Cody identified in Item 404 disclosures; not on Compensation Committee in 2024, mitigating interlock risks .
  • Signals for investors: Governance posture (time-based equity, ownership guidelines, hedging/pledging prohibitions) supports investor confidence; her enterprise IT expertise is directly relevant to Audit Committee cyber oversight .

RED FLAGS

  • None identified specific to Faginas-Cody in LOCO’s 2025 proxy (no Item 404 related-party exposure; Section 16(a) delinquency notices did not include her) .