Alan Bennett
SM EnergyAbout Alan Bennett
Alan D. Bennett is Vice President – Controller and the Company’s Principal Accounting Officer, appointed in March 2025; he joined SM Energy in 2011 after beginning his career as a Senior Associate at Ernst & Young and has more than 18 years of accounting and finance experience . He is 42 years old (as of March 24, 2025) and serves among SM Energy’s executive officers . Company performance frameworks that drive executive pay include a 2024 STIP multiplier of 1.31x and a 2021–2024 LTIP PSU payout factor of 1.69x; 2024 results featured record production and reserves, inventory additions, and capital returns, which underpin “pay-for-performance” alignment at the firm level . Governance protections include a clawback policy and prohibitions on hedging and pledging, which reduce misalignment and risk for executive compensation outcomes .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| SM Energy | Vice President – Controller; Principal Accounting Officer | Appointed March 2025 | Principal accounting oversight; signatory on SEC reports |
| SM Energy | Senior Director, Financial Planning & Analysis | 2023–2025 | Led FP&A supporting budgeting and performance management (implied by role) |
| SM Energy | Director, Financial Planning & Analysis | 2019–2023 | FP&A leadership (implied by role) |
| SM Energy | Director, Operations Accounting | 2018–2019 | Operations accounting leadership (implied by role) |
| SM Energy | Senior Accountant | 2011–2018 | Corporate accounting responsibilities (implied by role) |
| Ernst & Young | Senior Associate | Pre-2011 | External audit/assurance foundation (implied by role) |
External Roles
No public company directorships or external board roles disclosed for Bennett in the 2025 Proxy .
Fixed Compensation
- Executive compensation design: base salary targeted at median of peer group; executives are “at-will” with no guaranteed increases or employment contracts .
- Company maintains qualified/non-qualified retirement and deferred compensation programs that apply to executives broadly .
Note: Bennett was not a 2024 Named Executive Officer (NEO); his specific base salary and target bonus were not individually disclosed in the 2025 Proxy .
Performance Compensation
Short-Term Incentive Plan (STIP) – 2024 Company Framework
| Performance Measure | Weight | Threshold | Target | Max | Actual | Weighted STIP Multiplier |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cash Flow ($mm, adj. FCF basis) | 25% | 1,453 | 1,720 | 2,141 | 1,858 | 0.35 |
| Proved Developed Reserve Additions (MMBOE, adj. FCF basis) | 20% | 75.50 | 89.40 | 111.30 | 94.00 | 0.26 |
| Finding & Development Costs ($/BOE) | 15% | 15.44 | 13.38 | 10.09 | 12.35 | 0.20 |
| Sustainability (safety, spills, GHG/methane) | 15% | 0.85 | 1.00 | 1.25 | 0.90 | 0.10 |
| Production Volume (MMBOE, adj. FCF basis) | 15% | 48.50 | 57.40 | 71.50 | 59.10 | 0.17 |
| Cash Operating Costs ($/BOE) | 10% | 14.49 | 12.56 | 9.47 | 11.48 | 0.14 |
| Subtotal | 100% | 1.21x | ||||
| Qualitative: Exploration & Inventory Additions | +/-0.10 | Achieved +0.10 (303 MMBOE vs 80 MMBOE target) | +0.10 | |||
| Absolute TSR Modifier | n/a | +2% TSR → no impact | 0.00 | |||
| Final STIP Multiplier | 1.31x |
- STIP construct includes an absolute TSR modifier and adjusted free cash flow-based calculations for key metrics; payout capped at 2.0x and can be reduced if absolute TSR is negative beyond thresholds .
- Target bonus levels for NEOs range from 75%–120% of base; VP-level targets for non-NEOs are not disclosed in the Proxy .
Long-Term Incentive Plan (LTIP) – Design and Outcomes
- Mix: RSUs (time-based, ratable vest over 3 years) and PSUs (3-year performance) .
- PSU metrics and equal weightings: adjusted free cash flow generation, absolute TSR, relative TSR, and sustainability; threshold performance required for payout .
- Policy guardrails: no dividends on unvested equity; clawback applies to all awards; no repricing; no single-trigger acceleration under the plan; no 280G excise tax gross-ups .
- 2021–2024 PSU payout: 1.69x, with maximum (capped) outcomes on FCF, leverage, and absolute TSR; sustainability below target .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
- Stock ownership guidelines: CEO 5x salary; EVPs 3x; Senior VPs and VPs 1x salary; directors 5x cash retainer; unvested RSUs count toward guidelines (unvested PSUs excluded). Sales restricted until compliant; approvals required for sales pre-compliance .
- Securities Trading Policy: pre-clearance required; prohibitions on hedging, short sales, derivatives, margin accounts, and pledging of company stock (reduces misalignment and forced selling risk) .
- Clawback Policy: mandatory recovery of incentive compensation upon accounting restatement, regardless of fault, per SEC/NYSE rules (3-year lookback) .
- Beneficial ownership: the Proxy table lists directors and 2024 NEOs individually; Bennett (appointed March 2025) does not appear with an individual share line; all executives and directors as a group owned ~1.5% (1,720,090 shares) as of March 24, 2025 .
Employment Terms
- At-will employment; Company typically does not provide severance absent change-in-control context .
- Change-of-control (CoC) severance agreements (double trigger) apply to executives at VP level and above, including executive officers: severance payable if terminated without cause or resigns for good reason within 2.5 years post-CoC; “good reason” includes diminution of duties, pay cuts, or relocation beyond 25 miles; no excise tax gross-up (cut-back may apply) .
- 2025 Equity Plan CoC treatment: upon double-trigger CoC termination within 30 months, RSUs vest, options/SARs become exercisable, and PSUs vest at target; if awards are not assumed in a CoC, outstanding awards vest/settle at or before the transaction per plan terms .
- No written employment contracts; minimal perquisites; compensation risk assessed annually by independent consultant .
Performance & Track Record (Company context relevant to Bennett’s role)
- 2024 achievements: record oil production (+20% YoY), record year-end proved reserves (+12% YoY), larger drilling inventory (≈+40%), reduced revolver borrowings by $121.5mm, and record dividends ($85mm) plus ~$84mm buybacks; STIP pool multiplier 1.31x .
- LTIP rigor: five-year average PSU payout 1.48x; ten-year average 0.86x, underscoring cyclicality and program stringency .
Compensation Structure Analysis (governance and risk levers)
- Variable pay emphasis: heavy weighting of performance-based STIP/LTIP; inclusion of absolute and relative TSR and adjusted FCF directly ties awards to shareholder outcomes .
- Guardrails: caps on payouts when absolute TSR is negative, no dividend equivalents on unvested equity, anti-hedging/pledging policy, clawback compliant with SEC/NYSE—all mitigate agency and reputational risk .
- Peer benchmarking: compensation targeted near market median; peer group refreshed in 2024 to maintain relevance and sample robustness .
Investment Implications
- Alignment and retention: Bennett’s role (Principal Accounting Officer) is covered by VP+ double-trigger CoC agreements and stock ownership requirements (1x salary), reinforcing retention and alignment, while clawback and anti-hedge/pledge provisions reduce governance risk .
- Incentive drivers: Company-wide STIP metrics centered on adjusted FCF, costs, volumes, and reserves, plus TSR modifiers, create clear operating and capital discipline signals; 2024 outcomes (1.31x) and 2021–2024 PSU (1.69x) indicate recent performance tailwinds that could influence future insider equity settlements and perceived selling pressure at vesting events .
- Disclosure limits: Bennett was not a 2024 NEO, so individual base salary, bonus target, grant sizes, and ownership details are not disclosed; monitoring future proxies and any Form 4 filings will be important for assessing personal selling pressure and equity alignment over time .