Jeanmarie Desmond
TrinseoAbout Jeanmarie Desmond
Jeanmarie Desmond, 58, is an independent director of Trinseo PLC (TSE) who joined the Board in October 2020. She chairs the Audit Committee, serves on the Nominating & Corporate Governance Committee, and is designated an “audit committee financial expert”; she is the former EVP & CFO of DuPont de Nemours and a CPA (inactive), with three decades of finance and chemicals industry experience . The Board determined all directors other than the CEO are independent; the company reported 100% Board and committee meeting attendance in 2024 .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure (if disclosed) | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| DuPont de Nemours, Inc. | Executive Vice President & Chief Financial Officer | Not disclosed | Senior finance leadership; chemicals industry operator |
| DowDuPont | Vice President & Co-Controller; finance leader for Specialty Products post-merger | Not disclosed | Led finance integration post-merger |
| DuPont (prior roles) | VP-Controller; General Auditor & Chief Ethics & Compliance Leader; Director-Investor Relations | Not disclosed | Audit, ethics/compliance, investor relations leadership |
External Roles
| Company | Role | Since | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| IPG Photogenics Corporation (Nasdaq: IPGP) | Director | 2021 | Public company board experience |
| Sylvamo (NYSE: SLVM) | Director | 2021 | Public company board experience |
Board Governance
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Independence | Board affirms independence for all directors except the CEO |
| Committees | Audit (Chair, since June 2024); Nominating & Corporate Governance (member); EHSS&PP (former member; left Feb 2025) |
| Committee transitions | Left EHSS&PP in Feb 2025 (replaced by Mr. Tomkins); joined/replaced on Nominating & Corporate Governance in Feb 2025 (replacing Mr. Tomkins) |
| Attendance | Company reported 100% Board and committee attendance in 2024 |
| Audit committee financial expert | Yes (Board-designated) |
| Compensation committee interlocks | None reported for TSE (company-wide) |
Fixed Compensation (Director)
| Component | Program Terms | 2024 Actual for Desmond |
|---|---|---|
| Annual cash retainer | $90,000 (non-employee directors) | $102,847 (reflects retainer plus applicable chair fees/proration) |
| Committee chair fees | Audit Chair: +$25,000; Compensation Chair: +$20,000; Nominating Chair: +$15,000; EHSS&PP Chair: +$15,000 | Included in actual above (Audit Chair since June 2024) |
| Board Chair retainer (if applicable) | +$130,000 (not applicable to Desmond) | N/A |
Performance Compensation (Director)
| Component | Grant Value | Instrument | Vesting | Performance Metrics |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Annual equity retainer | $130,000 | RSUs | Cliff vest on 1-year anniversary | None (time-based RSUs; no performance metrics disclosed) |
| Unvested RSUs (as of 12/31/24) | 41,009 (each non-employee director) | RSUs | Vest June 2025 | N/A |
Note: Director equity is time-based; no director performance metric framework is disclosed for equity retainers .
Other Directorships & Interlocks
- Current public boards: IPG Photogenics Corporation (since 2021) and Sylvamo (since 2021) .
- Compensation committee interlocks and insider participation: None reported for TSE (company-wide) .
Expertise & Qualifications
- Former EVP & CFO of DuPont; extensive finance, accounting, and chemicals industry leadership .
- CPA (inactive); designated audit committee financial expert .
- Public company board experience at IPG Photogenics Corporation and Sylvamo .
Equity Ownership
| Measure | Value | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Total beneficial ownership (TSE) | 15,886 shares | As of March 31, 2025 |
| % of shares outstanding | <1% | “*” indicates less than 1% |
| Unvested director RSUs (12/31/24) | 41,009 | Each non-employee director; vest June 2025 |
| Director ownership guideline | 5x annual cash retainer within 5 years; retain 50% of net shares until met | Seven directors had passed the accumulation date as of 3/31/24; only Mr. Cote was in compliance due solely to stock price decline (others named were not) |
| Hedging/pledging | Prohibited under company policy |
Governance Assessment
-
Strengths
- Deep finance/audit expertise (audit committee financial expert) and prior CFO experience at DuPont; chairs TSE’s Audit Committee .
- Board independence affirmed; company reported 100% attendance in 2024, supporting engagement and oversight .
- Strong governance policies: clawback policy, prohibition on hedging/pledging, and director ownership guidelines .
-
Alignment and incentives
- Director pay mix emphasizes equity via time-based RSUs ($130,000 annual grant), aligning with shareholder outcomes; 2024 cash retainer and Audit Chair fee structure standard for role .
- Beneficial ownership recorded at 15,886 shares (<1%); ownership guidelines require 5x cash retainer within five years, with retention requirements until met .
-
Conflicts and red flags
- No compensation committee interlocks reported; related-party transactions are subject to Audit Committee review under policy, with no director-specific related-party transactions described in the proxy .
- Anti-hedging/pledging policy reduces misalignment risk .
- Say-on-pay support (context for governance climate): 95% approval in 2024 (NEO pay) .