Companies Willdan Group, Inc.
Willdan (WLDN): executive pay, fiscal 2025
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CEO pay, last three years
- $1,270,785FY2023
- $2,400,089FY2024
- $3,637,831FY2025
CEO total pay was $3,637,831 in fiscal 2025, up from $2,400,089 in fiscal 2024.
FY2025: salary $606,241 · bonus $1,200,000 · stock awards $1,827,320 · option awards $0
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Full detail
Every table from the filing. Open any section.
Summary compensation table
| Named executive officer | Salary | Bonus | Stock awards | Option awards | Non-equity incentive | Pension / NQDC | All other | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Michael Bieber | $606,241 | $1,200,000 | $1,827,320 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $4,270 | $3,637,831 |
| President and Chief Executive Officer | ||||||||
| Creighton Early | 466,359 | 500,000 | 438,557 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4,250 | 1,409,166 |
| Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer | ||||||||
| Micah Chen | 420,992 | 500,000 | 438,557 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4,250 | 1,363,799 |
| Executive Vice President and General Counsel | ||||||||
A dash means the company reported no figure in that column; 0 means it reported zero. Figures are as printed in the filing, without adjustment.
Three-year trend — total compensation per named executive
| Named executive officer | FY2025 total | FY2024 total | FY2023 total | Δ FY2024→2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Michael Bieber | $3,637,831 | $2,400,089 | $1,270,785 | ↑ +1,237,742 |
| Creighton Early | 1,409,166 | 936,568 | 924,687 | ↑ +472,598 |
| Micah Chen | 1,363,799 | 896,024 | 549,936 | ↑ +467,775 |
Prior-year totals as disclosed in the corresponding proxy; deltas are computed values with the derivation shown in the register.
Incentive-plan design — the Compensation Discussion & Analysis
The primary objective of the executive compensation program is to align executives' pay with the long-term interests of stockholders by emphasizing variable, at-risk compensation that rewards short-term and long-term financial, strategic, and operational performance. The program aims to attract, motivate, and retain top contributors while remaining competitive with similarly sized companies.
| CEO STI target (% of salary) | — |
|---|---|
| CEO LTI target (% of salary) | — |
| Independent consultant | Pearl Meyer |
| Clawback policy | true |
| Anti-hedging | true |
| Anti-pledging | true |
Equity grants and outstanding awards
Grants of plan-based awards — fiscal year 2025
| Executive | Award | Grant date | Threshold | Target | Granted | Maximum | Grant-date fair value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Micah Chen | RSU | 2025-03-17 | — | — | 4,620 | — | $191,869 |
| Creighton Early | PSU | 2025-03-17 | — | 5,940 | — | 14,850 | 246,688 |
| Micah Chen | PSU | 2025-03-17 | — | 5,940 | — | 14,850 | 246,688 |
| Creighton Early | RSU | 2025-03-17 | — | — | 4,620 | — | 191,869 |
| Michael Bieber | PSU | 2025-03-17 | — | 24,750 | — | 61,875 | 1,027,868 |
| Michael Bieber | RSU | 2025-03-17 | — | — | 19,250 | — | 799,453 |
Vehicle mix — grant-date fair value by award type
| Named executive officer | Time-vested (RSU) | Performance-vested (PSU) | Options / SARs | % performance-vested |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Micah Chen | $191,869 | $246,688 | $0 | 56.2% |
| Creighton Early | 191,869 | 246,688 | 0 | 56.2% |
| Michael Bieber | 799,453 | 1,027,868 | 0 | 56.2% |
% performance-vested = PSU grant-date fair value ÷ (RSU + PSU + Options), a computed value with the derivation shown in the register.
Outstanding equity awards at fiscal year-end 2025
| Executive | Award | Shares unvested | Exercise price | Market value unvested |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Micah Chen | RSU | 934 | — | $16,653 |
| Creighton Early | RSU | 2,800 | — | 77,140 |
| Micah Chen | RSU | 2,800 | — | 77,140 |
| Creighton Early | PSU | 3,960 | — | 70,607 |
| Micah Chen | PSU | 3,960 | — | 70,607 |
| Michael Bieber | RSU | 4,434 | — | 79,058 |
| Creighton Early | RSU | 4,620 | — | 191,869 |
| Micah Chen | RSU | 4,620 | — | 191,869 |
| Creighton Early | RSU | 7,600 | — | 135,508 |
| Creighton Early | PSU | 9,720 | — | 267,786 |
| Micah Chen | PSU | 9,720 | — | 267,786 |
| Michael Bieber | RSU | 11,667 | — | 321,416 |
| Creighton Early | PSU | 14,850 | — | 616,721 |
| Micah Chen | PSU | 14,850 | — | 616,721 |
| Michael Bieber | PSU | 18,810 | — | 335,382 |
| Michael Bieber | RSU | 19,250 | — | 799,453 |
| Michael Bieber | PSU | 40,500 | — | 1,115,775 |
| Michael Bieber | PSU | 61,875 | — | 2,569,669 |
Director compensation
| Director | Cash fees | Stock awards | Option awards | Non-equity incentive | All other | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thomas D. BrisbinNot independent · Board Chair | $65,000 | $100,003 | $0 | — | $303,000 | $468,003 |
| Steven A. CohenIndependent · Lead Independent Director | 93,000 | 100,003 | 0 | — | 0 | 193,003 |
| Cynthia A. DownesIndependent | 77,500 | 100,003 | 0 | — | 0 | 177,503 |
| Dennis V. McGinnIndependent | 77,000 | 100,003 | 0 | — | 0 | 177,003 |
| Mohammad ShahidehpourIndependent | 75,500 | 100,003 | 0 | — | 0 | 175,503 |
| Wanda K. RederIndependent | 73,500 | 100,003 | 0 | — | 0 | 173,503 |
| Michael A. BieberEmployee director | — | — | — | — | — | 0 |
Board fee structure and ownership guideline
| Annual cash retainer | $50,000 |
|---|---|
| Annual equity retainer | $100,000 |
| Per board meeting fee | — |
| Committee chair fees (audit / comp / nom-gov) | 20,000 / 15,000 / 12,000 |
| Stock ownership guideline | $115,000 |
Total cost of the board
| Component | FY2025 |
|---|---|
| Cash retainers and fees | $461,500 |
| Equity awards (grant-date value) | $600,018 |
| All other compensation | $303,000 |
| Total cost of the board | $1,364,518 |
Computed as the sum of the director compensation table rows above; inputs and formula shown in the register.
Peer group, and who names Willdan as a peer
Companies that benchmark against WLDN
5 companies name WLDN as a compensation peer
- Ameresco, Inc.AMRCFY2025
- DLH Holdings Corp.DLHCFY2025
- Limbach Holdings, Inc.LMBFY2025
- Onterris, Inc.ONTFY2025
- RESOURCES CONNECTION, INC.RGPFY2026
Each company listed discloses WLDN in its own benchmarking peer group, as disclosed in each company's most recent proxy statement within the last two proxy seasons. Two companies are therefore absent by design: one that named WLDN in an earlier year and no longer does, and one whose own most recent disclosure is older than the last two seasons.
Disclosed peer group — fiscal year 2025
The compensation peer group as the company disclosed it in its own proxy — the reference set behind the percentile above.
Peer reciprocity
Of the companies Willdan Group, Inc. names as compensation peers, which name it back in their own disclosed peer groups. A peer set the market reciprocates reads differently from one selected in a single direction.
Reciprocity shown where the peer’s own current proxy has been read — each mark is cited in the register to that peer’s filing. A dash means the peer’s current proxy was read and names no reciprocal group including Willdan Group, Inc..
Chief executive pay against the peer group
Most recent fiscal-year chief executive compensation at each disclosed peer, taken from that company’s own proxy statement.
| Rank | Company | FY | Chief executive | Salary | Stock awards | Option awards | Non-equity incentive | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | American Superconductor Corporation | 2025 | Daniel McGahn | $715,769 | $5,644,800 | $0 | $1,149,125 | $7,529,025 |
| 2 | Huron Consulting Group, Inc. | 2025 | C. Mark Hussey | 1,021,875 | 4,612,525 | 0 | 1,515,975 | 7,198,354 |
| 3 | ICF International, Inc. | 2025 | John Wasson | 1,003,096 | 4,715,918 | 0 | 1,122,332 | 6,857,678 |
| 4 | LSI Industries Inc. | 2022 | Joseph Saffire | 740,000 | 3,645,433 | 0 | 1,332,000 | 5,722,466 |
| 5 | CRA International, Inc. | 2025 | Paul Maleh | 900,000 | 2,099,925 | 0 | 1,125,000 | 4,156,568 |
| 6 | Exponent, Inc. | 2025 | Catherine Ford Corrigan | 970,000 | 1,120,164 | 678,510 | 0 | 3,736,574 |
| 7 | Willdan Group, Inc. | 2025 | Michael Bieber | 606,241 | 1,827,320 | 0 | 0 | 3,637,831 |
| 8 | Ameresco, Inc. | 2025 | George Sakellaris | 1,500,000 | 155,100 | 1,385,999 | 0 | 3,339,804 |
| 9 | CECO Environmental Corporation | 2024 | Todd Gleason | 717,383 | 1,627,505 | 289,575 | 382,656 | 3,051,771 |
| 10 | Limbach Holdings, Inc. | 2025 | Michael McCann | 800,000 | 1,192,150 | 0 | 741,306 | 2,759,456 |
| 11 | Thermon Group Holdings, Inc. | 2025 | Bruce Thames | 715,035 | 1,299,963 | 0 | 543,620 | 2,579,122 |
| 12 | Bowman Consulting Group Ltd. | 2025 | Gary Bowman | 739,892 | 1,609,784 | 0 | 0 | 2,404,863 |
| 13 | TIC Solutions | 2025 | Benjamin Heraud | 232,692 | 750,005 | 0 | 0 | 986,249 |
Each peer’s compensation is from its most recently filed proxy; fiscal years differ by company. Each peer’s figures come from its own filings; the subject company is highlighted. Peers whose chief executive compensation is outside our coverage universe are stated as such, never left blank.
Incentive design against the same peers
| Company | Annual incentive payout | Long-term vehicle mix | PSU measures include TSR | Compensation consultant |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Willdan Group, Inc. | not disclosed | PRSU 55 · RSU 45 | not disclosed | Pearl Meyer |
| Ameresco, Inc. | 95% | not disclosed | No | FW Cook |
| American Superconductor Corporation | 159% | RSU 50 · PSU 50 | No | Compensia, Inc. |
| Bowman Consulting Group Ltd. | not disclosed | not disclosed | not disclosed | PricewaterhouseCoopers |
| CECO Environmental Corporation | 40% | PSU 75 · Options 25 | No | Meridian Compensation Partners LLC |
| CRA International, Inc. | not disclosed | PRSU 60 · RSU 40 | not disclosed | Semler Brossy |
| Exponent, Inc. | not disclosed | not disclosed | not disclosed | Compensia |
| Huron Consulting Group, Inc. | not disclosed | PSU 70 · RSU 30 | not disclosed | Mercer (US) LLC |
| ICF International, Inc. | 86.41% | PSU 50 · RSU 50 | No | Aon Human Capital Solutions Practice |
| Limbach Holdings, Inc. | not disclosed | PRSU 67 · RSU 33 | not disclosed | CAP |
| LSI Industries Inc. | 180% | PRSU 50 · RSU 50 | Yes — Relative TSR | NFP |
| Thermon Group Holdings, Inc. | 76% | not disclosed | No | Mercer |
| TIC Solutions | not disclosed | not disclosed | not disclosed | Mercer and Aon |
Read from each company’s Compensation Discussion and Analysis: annual incentive payout as a percentage of target, the disclosed long-term vehicle mix, whether performance-share measures include a total shareholder return component, and the retained compensation consultant. “Not disclosed” appears only where the company’s filing does not state the item.
Say-on-pay history and pay ratio
| Meeting year | Meeting date | For | Against | Abstain | Support | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 2026-06-17 | 8,650,776 | 409,216 | 217,303 | 93.25% | Passed |
| 2025 | 2025-06-12 | 8,555,301 | 860,644 | 15,703 | 90.71% | Passed |
| 2024 | 2024-06-13 | 6,339,272 | 3,684,400 | 5,718 | 63.21% | Passed |
| 2023 | 2023-06-08 | 4,082,317 | 5,121,812 | 132,572 | 43.72% | Failed |
| 2022 | 2022-06-09 | 6,045,808 | 4,518,181 | 20,601 | 57.12% | Passed |
| 2021 | 2021-06-10 | 7,794,668 | 1,400,764 | 38,654 | 84.41% | Passed |
Rows are labeled by annual-meeting year, with the meeting date beside each; the vote held in a given year acts on the prior fiscal year’s compensation.
Say-on-pay — history, company’s computation
| Meeting year | Meeting date | Approval — company’s computation |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 2026-06-17 | 93.25%a |
| 2025 | 2025-06-12 | 90.71%b |
| 2024 | 2024-06-13 | 63.21%c |
a. Approved under the standard stated in the filing — “2, 3, and 4, abstentions will have the same effect of a vote "AGAINST" such proposal.”.
b. Approved under the standard stated in the filing — “2, 3, and 5, abstentions will have the same effect of a vote "AGAINST" such proposal.”.
c. Approved under the standard stated in the filing — “2, 3, and 4, abstentions will have the same effect of a vote "AGAINST" such proposal.”.
Approval percentages are the company’s own reported computations under its own stated standard, not recomputed by Velarion. Where a company does not state a standard, none is assumed.
Insider trades since the proxy
No insider equity transactions reported since the proxy statement.
Sources (46 citations)
Each figure is listed with the filing it comes from, where it appears in that filing, and the value as printed. Any figure can be independently confirmed against the source.
- Section 01, Michael Bieber. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-24. Section “Executive Compensation”. As printed: 3,637,831. View filing ↗
- Section 01, Creighton Early. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-24. Section “Executive Compensation”. As printed: 1,409,166. View filing ↗
- Section 01, Micah Chen. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-24. Section “Executive Compensation”. As printed: 1,363,799. View filing ↗
- Section 03, Micah Chen RSU. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-24. Section “Grants of Plan-Based Awards in Fiscal Year 2025” · grants of plan-based awards table. View filing ↗
- Section 03, Creighton Early PSU. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-24. Section “Grants of Plan-Based Awards in Fiscal Year 2025” · grants of plan-based awards table. View filing ↗
- Section 03, Micah Chen PSU. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-24. Section “Grants of Plan-Based Awards in Fiscal Year 2025” · grants of plan-based awards table. View filing ↗
- Section 03, Creighton Early RSU. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-24. Section “Grants of Plan-Based Awards in Fiscal Year 2025” · grants of plan-based awards table. View filing ↗
- Section 03, Michael Bieber PSU. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-24. Section “Grants of Plan-Based Awards in Fiscal Year 2025” · grants of plan-based awards table. View filing ↗
- Section 03, Michael Bieber RSU. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-24. Section “Grants of Plan-Based Awards in Fiscal Year 2025” · grants of plan-based awards table. View filing ↗
- Section 08, Thomas D. Brisbin. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-24. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 468,003. View filing ↗
- Section 08, Steven A. Cohen. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-24. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 193,003. View filing ↗
- Section 08, Cynthia A. Downes. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-24. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 177,503. View filing ↗
- Section 08, Dennis V. McGinn. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-24. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 177,003. View filing ↗
- Section 08, Mohammad Shahidehpour. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-24. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 175,503. View filing ↗
- Section 08, Wanda K. Reder. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-24. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 173,503. View filing ↗
- Section 08, Michael A. Bieber. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-24. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 0. View filing ↗
- Section 06, 2026 vote. Form 8-K, filed 2026-06-18. Item 5.07 · say-on-pay result. As reported: 93.25% (votes for as printed: 8,650,776). View filing ↗
- Section 06, 2025 vote. Form 8-K, filed 2025-06-13. Item 5.07 · say-on-pay result. As reported: 90.71% (votes for as printed: 8,555,301). View filing ↗
- Section 06, 2024 vote. Form 8-K, filed 2024-06-14. Item 5.07 · say-on-pay result. As reported: 63.21% (votes for as printed: 6,339,272). View filing ↗
- Section 01 trend, Δ column (computed). Computed. Δ = current-FY total − prior-FY total per named officer.
- Section 03b vehicle mix (computed). Computed. RSU / PSU / Options grant-date fair values summed per officer from the grants table; % performance-vested = PSU ÷ (RSU+PSU+Options).
- Section 09b board cost (computed). Computed. Cash 461,500 + equity 600,018 + all other 303,000 = 1,364,518, summed across the director compensation table rows.
- American Superconductor Corporation, Section 10b CEO total. DEF 14A, filed 2026-06-18. CEO total compensation as printed in American Superconductor Corporation's own proxy. As printed: 7,529,025. View filing ↗
- Huron Consulting Group, Inc., Section 10b CEO total. DEF 14A, filed 2026-03-20. CEO total compensation as printed in Huron Consulting Group, Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 7,198,354. View filing ↗
- ICF International, Inc., Section 10b CEO total. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-22. CEO total compensation as printed in ICF International, Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 6,857,678. View filing ↗
- LSI Industries Inc., Section 10b CEO total. DEF 14A, filed 2023-04-13. CEO total compensation as printed in LSI Industries Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 5,722,466. View filing ↗
- CRA International, Inc., Section 10b CEO total. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-24. CEO total compensation as printed in CRA International, Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 4,156,568. View filing ↗
- Exponent, Inc., Section 10b CEO total. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-20. CEO total compensation as printed in Exponent, Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 3,736,574. View filing ↗
- Willdan Group, Inc. (subject), Section 10b CEO total. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-24. CEO total compensation as printed in Willdan Group, Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 3,637,831. View filing ↗
- Ameresco, Inc., Section 10b CEO total. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-23. CEO total compensation as printed in Ameresco, Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 3,339,804. View filing ↗
- CECO Environmental Corporation, Section 10b CEO total. DEF 14A, filed 2025-04-10. CEO total compensation as printed in CECO Environmental Corporation's own proxy. As printed: 3,051,771. View filing ↗
- Limbach Holdings, Inc., Section 10b CEO total. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-23. CEO total compensation as printed in Limbach Holdings, Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 2,759,456. View filing ↗
- Thermon Group Holdings, Inc., Section 10b CEO total. DEF 14A, filed 2025-06-18. CEO total compensation as printed in Thermon Group Holdings, Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 2,579,122. View filing ↗
- Bowman Consulting Group Ltd., Section 10b CEO total. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-28. CEO total compensation as printed in Bowman Consulting Group Ltd.'s own proxy. As printed: 2,404,863. View filing ↗
- TIC Solutions, Section 10b CEO total. DEF 14A, filed 2026-05-21. CEO total compensation as printed in TIC Solutions's own proxy. As printed: 986,249. View filing ↗
- Section 10a, CRA International, Inc. reciprocity. DEF 14A. CRA International, Inc.'s most recent proxy was read; its disclosed peer group does not include Willdan Group, Inc.. View filing ↗
- Section 10a, TIC Solutions reciprocity. DEF 14A. TIC Solutions's most recent proxy was read; its disclosed peer group does not include Willdan Group, Inc.. View filing ↗
- Section 10a, American Superconductor Corporation reciprocity. DEF 14A. American Superconductor Corporation's most recent proxy was read; its disclosed peer group does not include Willdan Group, Inc.. View filing ↗
- Section 10a, Ameresco, Inc. reciprocity. DEF 14A. Ameresco, Inc. names Willdan Group, Inc. in its own disclosed peer group (read from its most recent proxy). View filing ↗
- Section 10a, Exponent, Inc. reciprocity. DEF 14A. Exponent, Inc.'s most recent proxy was read; its disclosed peer group does not include Willdan Group, Inc.. View filing ↗
- Section 10a, ICF International, Inc. reciprocity. DEF 14A. ICF International, Inc.'s most recent proxy was read; its disclosed peer group does not include Willdan Group, Inc.. View filing ↗
- Section 10a, Limbach Holdings, Inc. reciprocity. DEF 14A. Limbach Holdings, Inc. names Willdan Group, Inc. in its own disclosed peer group (read from its most recent proxy). View filing ↗
- Section 10a, Thermon Group Holdings, Inc. reciprocity. DEF 14A. Thermon Group Holdings, Inc.'s most recent proxy was read; its disclosed peer group does not include Willdan Group, Inc.. View filing ↗
- Section 10a, CECO Environmental Corporation reciprocity. DEF 14A. CECO Environmental Corporation's most recent proxy was read; its disclosed peer group does not include Willdan Group, Inc.. View filing ↗
- Section 10a, Huron Consulting Group, Inc. reciprocity. DEF 14A. Huron Consulting Group, Inc.'s most recent proxy was read; its disclosed peer group does not include Willdan Group, Inc.. View filing ↗
- Section 10a, LSI Industries Inc. reciprocity. DEF 14A. LSI Industries Inc.'s most recent proxy was read; its disclosed peer group does not include Willdan Group, Inc.. View filing ↗