Nadine Leslie - Director | PROVIDENT FINANCIAL SERVICES (PFS) Executive Profile & Compensation

About Nadine Leslie

Independent director of Provident Financial Services, Inc. (PFS) since 2021; age 61; current term expires in 2026. Serves on the Audit Committee and Enterprise Risk Committee. Leslie is President & CEO of Middlesex Water Company; previously CEO of SUEZ North America. She also serves on the Board of Trustees of Hackensack Meridian Health and the Board of Directors of SYENSQO; prior board service includes Seven Seas Water Group and the Montclair State University Foundation .

Past Roles

Organization	Role	Tenure	Committees/Impact
SUEZ North America	Chief Executive Officer	Not disclosed	Led regulated, multi-business operations; relevant to risk oversight
Seven Seas Water Group	Director	Not disclosed	Not disclosed
Montclair State University Foundation	Director	Not disclosed	Not disclosed

External Roles

Organization	Role	Tenure	Notes
Middlesex Water Company	President & CEO	Not disclosed	Public utility; regulated operations experience
Hackensack Meridian Health	Board of Trustees	Not disclosed	Nonprofit health system governance; overlaps with another PFS director’s prior leadership (see interlock)
SYENSQO	Board of Directors	Not disclosed	Public company (materials) board experience

Board Governance

Independence: Board affirmatively determined Leslie is independent under NYSE and company standards .
Board and committee engagement: Board met 14 times in 2024; all directors attended ≥75% of board and applicable committee meetings in 2024; all directors attended the April 25, 2024 Annual Meeting (virtual) .
Executive sessions: Six executive sessions of non-management directors were held in 2024, presided by Lead Director John Pugliese .
Anti-hedging/pledging: Directors are prohibited from hedging and should avoid pledging company shares as collateral .

Committee	Role	Chair	2024 Meetings	Notes
Audit	Member	Chair: Edward J. Leppert	12	Committee composed of independent directors; charter posted; two members qualified as “financial expert” (not Leslie)
Enterprise Risk	Member	Chair: James P. Dunigan	11	Oversees liquidity, credit, cyber, and operational risks; independent committee

Fixed Compensation (Director)

Component (FY2024)	Amount ($)	Detail
Board retainer	55,000	Annual cash retainer
Audit Committee member fee	15,000	Annual cash for committee membership
Enterprise Risk Committee member fee	12,500	Annual cash for committee membership
Total cash fees earned	82,500	Sum of above
All Other Compensation	8,613	Includes dividends on stock awards and Executive Health Plan benefits
Total Director Compensation (cash + stock + other)	181,112	Includes $89,999 equity grant (see next section)

Performance Compensation (Director)

Grant Date	Award Type	Grant Value ($)	Vesting	Performance Metrics
May 28, 2024	Time-vesting restricted stock	89,999	One-year vesting	None; director equity is time-based (no TSR/financial hurdles)

Standard director pay structure (unchanged from 2023): Board retainer $55,000; committee chair/member retainers as specified; annual equity grant sized to $90,000 with one-year vest; no per-meeting fees .

Other Directorships & Interlocks

Entity	Type	Role	Potential Interlock/Notes
Hackensack Meridian Health	Nonprofit health system	Board of Trustees	Interlock: Director Frank L. Fekete is immediate past Chairman of Hackensack Meridian’s Board of Trustees (network ties, not a related-party transaction)
SYENSQO	Public company	Director	Materials industry; international exposure
Middlesex Water Company	Public utility	CEO	Regulated utility leadership; no PFS-related party transactions disclosed
Seven Seas Water Group	Private	Former director	Not disclosed
Montclair State University Foundation	Nonprofit	Former director	Not disclosed

Expertise & Qualifications

Regulated operations leadership across water/waste services and public utilities; multi-business oversight strengthens risk/enterprise oversight skillset .
Audit and risk committee exposure at PFS; familiarity with financial reporting and enterprise risk governance, though “audit committee financial expert” designation applies to other members (Leppert, Flynn) .
Broader boardroom experience (SYENSQO; Hackensack Meridian Health), adding cross-industry perspective relevant to technology, sustainability/governance, and operational resilience .

Equity Ownership

Holder	Shares Owned Directly/Indirectly	Unvested Stock Awards Included in Beneficial Ownership	Percent of Class
Nadine Leslie	19,316	6,177	<1%

Stock ownership guideline for directors: minimum holding value equal to 5x annual cash retainer; company highlights “robust stock ownership guidelines” for directors and NEOs .
Hedging/pledging: Prohibited by policy for directors .
Compliance status with director ownership guidelines: Not individually disclosed .

Governance Assessment

Strengths: Independent status; dual membership on Audit and Enterprise Risk committees; strong attendance policy and board engagement; risk oversight focus; anti-hedging/pledging policy; structured director pay with meaningful equity component supporting alignment .
Potential conflicts: No Leslie-specific related-party transactions disclosed; aggregate director/executive loans are subject to standard terms and approvals. Specific related-party relationships noted for other directors (Harding, Hanson), but none for Leslie in the independence review . RED FLAG status: none disclosed for Leslie.
Interlocks: Nonprofit interlock at Hackensack Meridian Health with another PFS director; monitor information flow and board independence but no related-party transactions are indicated .
Investor confidence signals: 2024 say-on-pay approval approximately 97% suggests broad shareholder support for compensation governance (company-wide, not director-specific) .
Overall: Leslie’s regulated-industry CEO background and committee roles bolster board effectiveness in audit and enterprise risk oversight. No disclosed conflicts or attendance concerns; equity and ownership policies support alignment, with standard director equity being time-based rather than performance-tied (typical for directors) .