Simon Turner
About Simon Turner
Simon Turner (age 64) is an independent Class II director of Sonder Holdings Inc., on the Board since October 2023; he chairs the Compensation Committee (since April 2024) and serves on the Investment Committee (since January 2025) . He is founder and Managing Director of Alpha Lodging Partners (since 2017) and previously served as President, Global Development at Starwood Hotels & Resorts (2008–2016); earlier roles included Hotel Capital Advisors, Salomon Brothers, and Pannell Kerr Forster . The Board has affirmatively determined he is independent under Nasdaq and SEC standards .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. | President, Global Development | 2008–2016 | Led global development; deep hospitality growth expertise |
| Alpha Lodging Partners, LLC | Founder & Managing Director | 2017–present | Hospitality investment/advisory leadership |
| Hotel Capital Advisors, Inc. | Investment advisory roles | Not disclosed | Hotel investment advisory for UHNW investor |
| Salomon Brothers, Inc. | Investment banking role | Not disclosed | Capital markets background |
| Pannell Kerr Forster | Accounting/consulting role | Not disclosed | Financial and accounting grounding |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Public/Private | Committee Roles |
|---|---|---|---|
| Goldman Sachs Real Estate Income Trust, Inc. | Director | Private REIT | Audit Committee Chair |
| Goldman Sachs Real Estate Finance Trust, Inc. | Director | Public real estate debt enterprise | Audit Committee Chair |
| Purchase Senior Learning Community Inc. | Director | Non-profit/senior living | Finance Committee Chair |
Prior public company boards: Watermark Lodging Trust; Steigenberger Hotels AG; ESH Hospitality, Inc.; ClubCorp Holdings, Inc.; Fairmont Raffles Hotels International; Four Seasons Hotels Limited .
Board Governance
- Board classification/tenure: Class II director; current term expires at the 2026 annual meeting .
- Independence: Independent under Nasdaq/SEC rules; all members of Compensation, Investment and Nominating committees are independent .
- Committee assignments and leadership: Compensation Committee Chair (since April 2024; member since September 2023); Investment Committee member (since January 2025) .
- Committee cadence and consultants: Compensation Committee met nine times in 2024; retains Ferguson Partners as independent advisor (independence reaffirmed May 2025); oversight includes CEO/executive pay, risk in comp programs, clawbacks, and director compensation .
- Investment Committee: Established January 2025; members Frymire (Chair), van Paasschen, Turner; assists on investment strategy, decisions, and policy adherence .
- Attendance: Board met 22 times in FY 2024; each current director attended at least 75% of aggregate Board and committee meetings held during FY 2024 .
Fixed Compensation
| Component | Policy/Amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Annual cash retainer (non-employee director) | $65,000 (effective Dec 2024) | Increased from $35,000; committee member retainers removed |
| Committee chair retainers | Increased (Dec 2024) – amounts not individually enumerated; Investment Committee Chair: $20,000 | Applies to chairs of each committee |
| Lead Independent Director retainer | Increased to $35,000 (May 2024) | Signal of enhanced role |
| Board Chair retainer | $50,000 (Dec 2024) | Replaces prior Lead Independent Director structure |
| 2024 fees paid to Simon Turner | $45,131 | Includes annual retainer and chair fees under policy; paid quarterly |
| Meeting fees (special cases) | Not applicable to standard non-employee directors; special compensation for certain directors on Special Committee only | Turner not listed among special-compensated directors |
2024 equity grants to directors were suspended due to restatement/S-8 effectiveness issues; no equity awards issued to non-employee directors in 2024 .
Performance Compensation
| Element | Structure | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Annual equity award (directors) | Time-based RSUs | Grant-date fair value $125,000; vests in full on earlier of one-year anniversary or next annual meeting; change-in-control acceleration for directors |
| 2024 grants | None | Due to Affected Financial Statements, S-8 was not usable; no equity awards in 2024 |
| Options | None for Turner as of 12/31/2024 | Options outstanding: 0 |
No performance metrics (e.g., TSR/EBITDA) are used for director equity; awards are time-based RSUs per policy .
Other Directorships & Interlocks
| Company | Overlap/Interlock Consideration | Governance Note |
|---|---|---|
| Goldman Sachs Real Estate Income Trust, Inc. | External board; no Sonder transaction disclosed | Turner chairs audit; monitor only if Sonder enters GS-affiliated transactions; none disclosed in RPT section |
| Goldman Sachs Real Estate Finance Trust, Inc. | External board; no Sonder transaction disclosed | Turner chairs audit; no related-party transaction disclosed |
| Purchase Senior Learning Community Inc. | Non-profit/private | Finance committee chair; unrelated to Sonder |
Related-party transactions: Proxy discloses material related-party arrangements broadly; no director-specific transactions involving Mr. Turner are identified .
Expertise & Qualifications
- Sector expertise: Extensive hospitality and real estate leadership (Starwood global development; multiple hotel/REIT boards) .
- Governance expertise: Audit committee chair experience at two REITs; compensation oversight chair at Sonder .
- Capital markets/finance: Background at Salomon Brothers and accounting/consulting at Pannell Kerr Forster .
Equity Ownership
| As-of Date | Beneficial Shares | RSUs (status) | Options |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12/31/2024 | Not disclosed separately | 26,622 RSUs outstanding | 0 |
| 9/8/2025 (vesting within 60 days) | 8,874 common shares held beneficially | 58,563 RSUs scheduled to vest within 60 days of 9/8/2025 | Not stated |
No pledging disclosed; percent ownership not provided in excerpted tables .
Governance Assessment
-
Strengths
- Independent director with deep hospitality/real estate credentials; chairs Compensation Committee and serves on Investment Committee, aligning skills with Sonder’s business model .
- Active compensation oversight: nine Compensation Committee meetings in 2024; retention of independent consultant Ferguson Partners (independence reaffirmed May 2025); explicit clawback oversight within committee remit .
- Attendance: Met Nasdaq/SEC expectations; each current director attended at least 75% of Board/committee meetings in FY 2024; Board held 22 meetings (high cadence) .
-
Risks/Red Flags to Monitor
- Restatement/S-8 issues halted director equity issuance in 2024—signal of prior control/reporting weaknesses; though not specific to Turner, it affected Board alignment and compensation structure that year .
- External board load at two GS-affiliated real estate entities could present perceived conflict risk if Sonder engages in GS-related financing; no related-party transactions disclosed involving Turner as of the latest proxy .
-
Net View
- Turner’s sector-specific and governance expertise (audit chair experience elsewhere; comp chair at Sonder) support board effectiveness; independence affirmed; attendance adequate .
- No director-specific related-party transactions disclosed; equity ownership includes both beneficial holdings and near-term RSU vesting, indicating alignment, albeit 2024 equity awards were suspended due to restatement constraints .