Nicole S. Arnaboldi
NEXTERA ENERGYAbout Nicole S. Arnaboldi
Independent director of NextEra Energy (NEE) since 2022; age 66. She is a partner at Oak Hill Capital Management (since 2021) and formerly vice chairman of Credit Suisse Asset Management and managing director at Credit Suisse Securities (2000–2019). She holds a BA from Harvard College, MBA from Harvard Business School, and JD from Harvard Law School. Current NEE board committees: Audit; Finance & Investment. Also serves on Manulife Financial Corporation’s board (since 2020).
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Credit Suisse Asset Management | Vice Chairman | 2000–2019 | Senior leadership in asset management; finance and strategy leadership |
| Credit Suisse Securities Corp. | Managing Director | 2000–2019 | Investment banking/private equity leadership |
| Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette | Managing Director (VC, then PE) | Venture Capital 1985–1992; Private Equity MD from 1996 | Investment leadership roles prior to Credit Suisse integration |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oak Hill Capital Management | Partner | 2021–present | Private equity partner |
| Manulife Financial Corporation | Director (public) | 2020–present | Current public board directorship |
Board Governance
- Committee assignments: Audit member; Finance & Investment member. She is not a committee chair. Audit met 8x in 2024; Finance & Investment met 9x in 2024.
- Independence: Board determined she is independent under NYSE standards and NEE Governance Guidelines.
- Attendance: In 2024, each current director attended 100% of Board and assigned committee meetings; NEE’s Board met 6x. Executive sessions of independent directors are scheduled at each regularly scheduled Board meeting, and after each committee meeting (except quarterly Audit earnings review sessions).
- Oversight emphasis: As an Audit Committee member, she participates in oversight of financial reporting, internal controls, and new AI risk oversight added to the Audit Committee Charter in Feb. 2025.
Fixed Compensation
| Component | 2024 Amount/Detail | 2025 Amount/Detail | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual cash retainer (non-employee director) | $145,000 | $145,000 (effective 1/1/2025) | Director cash retainer unchanged vs 2023 |
| Equity retainer (annual) | $185,555 grant date fair value; 3,240 shares granted on 2/15/2024 at $57.27/sh | $185,000; 2,700 shares granted on 2/13/2025 | Shares generally not transferable until stock ownership guideline met |
| Meeting fees | None (no per-meeting fees since 2023) | None | — |
| Lead Independent Director additional retainer | N/A to Arnaboldi; $40,000 if applicable | $40,000 | — |
| Committee chair fees | N/A to Arnaboldi; Audit/Nuclear chair $25,000; other chairs $20,000 | Same | — |
| Matching gift program | $10,000 for Arnaboldi in 2024 (educational institution match) | Not disclosed | Perquisites < $10,000 otherwise omitted |
Performance Compensation
Non-employee directors do not receive performance-based bonuses or PSUs. Equity is delivered as time-based stock grants, not tied to performance metrics.
| Metric | Applies to Director Compensation | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue, EPS, ROE, TSR goals | Not applicable | Director pay not performance-metric based; equity is a fixed-value grant |
Other Directorships & Interlocks
| Company | Role | Potential Interlock/Conflict |
|---|---|---|
| Manulife Financial Corporation | Director | No NEE-related interlocks disclosed in proxy; Board affirmed independence and no material relationships for Arnaboldi |
Expertise & Qualifications
- 35+ years in financial services and private equity, including senior leadership at Credit Suisse Asset Management; partner at Oak Hill. Degrees: BA, MBA, JD (Harvard).
- Financial and business expertise aligns with Audit and Finance & Investment committee assignments, which oversee financial reporting, risk management related to energy trading exposures, financing plans, dividend policy, and investment fund performance.
Equity Ownership
| Item | Amount | As of/Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Common shares owned (beneficial) | 8,501 shares | As of March 25, 2025 |
| Shares acquirable within 60 days | 0 | — |
| Phantom/Deferred shares | 14,797 | Deferred compensation plan |
| Pledged shares | None (no shares pledged by directors/officers) | — |
| Ownership guidelines | 7x annual cash retainer required within 6 years; Arnaboldi meets guideline (all directors except Henry, Stahlkopf, Martha meet) | Alignment policy in Governance Guidelines |
| Deferral elections (2024) | Deferred 100% of annual cash retainer and 100% of equity retainer | Indicates long-term alignment via deferral |
Governance Assessment
- Strengths
- Independence affirmed; no related-person transactions disclosed for Arnaboldi; strong attendance (100%).
- Deep finance/PE background complements Audit and Finance & Investment oversight; Audit charter now includes AI risk oversight—enhanced risk governance scope where she participates.
- Strong ownership alignment: meets 7x retainer guideline; no pledging; company prohibits hedging/pledging by directors; elected to defer 100% of cash and equity retainers.
- Compensation and incentives
- Simple, transparent director pay: fixed cash plus fixed-value equity; no meeting fees; modest perqs (education match); additional retainers only for leadership roles (not applicable to her).
- Risk indicators and red flags
- No red flags identified specific to Arnaboldi in the proxy: no related-party dealings, no attendance issues, no hedging/pledging, no excessive fees.
- Board has adopted policies on director time commitments to mitigate overboarding risk; continued monitoring advisable given external roles (Manulife board; Oak Hill partner).
Conclusion: Nicole S. Arnaboldi presents as a fully independent, finance-savvy director with strong engagement and alignment. Her committee roles place her at the center of financial oversight (Audit; Finance & Investment), including emerging AI risk oversight via Audit, without disclosed conflicts or attendance concerns.