Ellen Robinson
About Ellen S. Robinson
Independent director at First Western Financial, Inc. (MYFW); age 62; joined the Board in 2024. She is Principal and Founder of Robinson Coaching Group, Inc. (since 2007), with prior leadership roles at Denver Pepsi Cola, EventConnex, Ascent Sports, and Frito-Lay. Education: B.S. in Finance and Marketing from The Wharton School (University of Pennsylvania) and Professional Coach Certification (2012). Board-designated independent under Nasdaq rules; tenure ~1 year as of the 2025 proxy.
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Denver Pepsi Cola | Executive and General Manager | Not disclosed | Sales/marketing leadership; team building; coaching talent |
| EventConnex | Founder & CEO | Not disclosed | Built and led operations; change management |
| Ascent Sports, Inc. | President | Not disclosed | Executive leadership; brand growth |
| Frito-Lay, Inc. | Brand Manager | Not disclosed | Brand management; marketing execution |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Focus/Scope |
|---|---|---|---|
| Robinson Coaching Group, Inc. | Principal & Founder | Since 2007 | Leadership development and coaching for private/public sectors |
Board Governance
- Independence and tenure: Independent director; joined in 2024. The Board determined all directors except the CEO (Scott Wylie) and COO/Bank President (Julie Courkamp) are independent.
- Committees and chair roles: Member, Audit Committee; other members are Luke A. Latimer and Chair Julie A. Caponi. No chair role disclosed for Ms. Robinson. Audit Committee met 5 times in 2024.
- Attendance and engagement: Board met 5 times in 2024; each director attended at least 75% of aggregate Board and assigned committee meetings.
- Board leadership context: Combined Chair/CEO structure with a Lead Independent Director (Joseph C. Zimlich) providing independent counterbalance.
Fixed Compensation (Director)
| Item | 2024 Amount/Terms | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Cash fees (Robinson) | $29,200 | 2024 partial-year cash fees inclusive of Bank Board meetings |
| Stock awards (RSUs, Robinson) | $12,500 (grant date fair value) | RSUs time-vest 20% annually; partial-year grant |
| Total (Robinson) | $41,700 | 2024 director compensation |
| Program: Annual board retainer | $45,000 (of which $25,000 in RSUs; $20,000 cash) | Standard structure; per-Director |
| Program: Per board meeting | $800 (cash) | Per meeting fee |
| Program: Committee chair retainers | Audit $8,000; Comp $5,000; Governance $5,000 | Annual, cash |
| Program: Committee member retainers | Audit & Trust $5,000; Comp & Governance $4,000 | Annual, cash |
| Program: Per committee meeting | Chairs: Audit/Trust $800; Comp/Gov $700; Members $500 | Cash |
Performance Compensation (Director)
| Element | Structure | Vesting/Performance |
|---|---|---|
| Annual RSU retainer | Granted at/around annual meeting | Time-based: 20% per year over 5 years; no performance metrics; subject to one-year minimum vesting under the Omnibus Incentive Plan (limited exceptions) |
| Dividends on unvested awards | Not paid until vesting | Governance feature of plan |
| Change-in-control treatment | Double-trigger vesting (termination without cause within 12 months post-CIC) | Awards become fully vested/exercisable under plan provisions |
No director performance metrics (e.g., TSR goals) apply to non-employee director equity; awards are time-based under the Omnibus Incentive Plan.
Other Directorships & Interlocks
| Company/Organization | Role | Committee roles | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| — | — | — | No current public company directorships disclosed for Ms. Robinson in the 2025 proxy. |
Expertise & Qualifications
- Core expertise: Leadership development and coaching, sales and marketing, building effective teams, talent mentoring, and driving change.
- Financial expertise designation: Not designated as the Audit Committee financial expert (that role is held by Audit Chair Julie Caponi).
- Education: B.S., Wharton (Finance & Marketing); Professional Coach Certification (2012).
Equity Ownership
| Metric | Amount | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Beneficial ownership (as of Apr 11, 2025) | 146 shares | Shares issuable upon settlement of restricted stock within 60 days; <1% of outstanding shares |
| Outstanding stock awards (12/31/2024) | 733 | Vested and unvested stock awards held by Ms. Robinson |
| Ownership as % of SO | <1% | SO = 9,667,142 shares outstanding |
| Pledged shares | None disclosed for Robinson | Company policy generally prohibits hedging/pledging, subject to limited exceptions and pre-approval |
| Director ownership guideline | $250,000 within 5 years of joining Board | Applies to non-employee directors; sales limited if below target after 5 years |
| Compliance status | Early tenure; below guideline | New director in 2024; allowed 5 years to comply |
Related-Party & Conflict Screening
- Related-party transactions: None disclosed for Ms. Robinson. The related-party section lists leasing with a director-controlled entity (Mr. Gart), an executive’s relative employed at the Bank, and vendor relationships tied to a later-hired executive—not involving Ms. Robinson. The Company applies an SEC/Nasdaq-compliant related-person transaction policy.
- Independence: Board-affirmed independent director; not an employee of the Company or Bank.
Governance Assessment
-
Positives for investor confidence
- Independent director enhancing Board diversity and leadership/HR expertise; no related-party transactions disclosed.
- Audit Committee membership provides additional oversight on financial reporting; committee met 5 times in 2024; Board-wide attendance ≥75%.
- Director equity retainer creates alignment; plan includes best-practice features (no liberal share recycling, minimum one-year vesting, no dividends on unvested awards, clawback, no tax gross-ups).
- Strong director ownership guideline of $250,000 within five years.
-
Watch items / potential red flags
- Low current personal ownership as a new appointee relative to guideline (expected to build over time).
- Broader governance context: combined Chair/CEO remains, mitigated by an empowered Lead Independent Director.
- 2024 Say-on-Pay support was 67%, prompting shareholder outreach and program changes; while focused on executives, it signals governance scrutiny.
Net: Robinson appears independent, conflict-free, and engaged, adding leadership and talent development depth to the Board. Ownership alignment should strengthen as she accumulates RSUs toward the five-year ownership requirement.