Executive Remuneration

Managing Guide Dogs – our Executive Directors

Guide Dogs’ Executive Team is accountable for our vision and strategy. It is responsible for the day-to-day management of Guide Dogs, acting under delegated authority given to it by the Board. It is important for Guide Dogs to have a highly effective leadership team in these senior roles. The members of the Executive Team as of October 2018 are:

Tom Wright CBE, Chief Executive
Deirdre Evans, Chief Financial Officer
Emma Foulds, Director of Marketing, Digital and Influencing
Maria Novell, Director of Fundraising
Wendy Rankin, Director of Operations
Kathryn Ward, Director of People and Performance
Guy Butler, Transformation Director

Our policy on Executive pay

Guide Dogs is committed to greater transparency about voluntary sector pay and supports the recommendations in the National Council of Voluntary Organisations’ (NCVO) Report of the Enquiry into Charity Senior Executive Pay. To reflect this, we are publishing information on our pay policy and the pay of our chief officers in this annual report and on our website.

The current pay and terms and conditions for our Executive Officers were introduced in 2011 and are determined by our Remuneration Committee. This pay policy forms part of the contracts of employment of our Chief Executive and Executive Directors.

The policy aims to:

• Develop and sustain a culture of high performance standards from the top of Guide Dogs.
• Recruit and retain talented people to maintain or improve Guide Dogs’ already high standards of performance and lead the organisation through the challenging changes we are facing.
• Recognise Executive Officers for their personal contributions.

A number of principles underpin the Board’s approach to Executive Officers’ pay:

• The amount paid should reflect the market for comparable jobs in comparable organisations, the performance of the organisation and the skills and contribution of the individual performing the role.
• Increases to pay are ‘at risk’ because they depend on delivering results; this means it is a performance related pay scheme.
• Performance is defined in a rounded way, including not only achievement of annual targets but also leadership and other behaviours, as well as success in developing Guide Dogs’ services in the longer term.

Salary ranges

We allocate salaries to our Executive roles based on factors such as the level of knowledge, skills and experience required and the responsibilities and accountabilities associated with the position. The Hay Group assesses the scope of each Executive role and each Executive Officer is paid within a salary range applicable to their post. Progression within that range is dependent on their performance.

We review salary ranges annually and any decision to change them is taken by the Remuneration Committee. As part of the review, the Committee considers the level of pay in the sector using benchmark data collected by the Hay Group.

Other benefits

Benefits for Executive Officers are in line with those available to all staff. This includes a flexible benefits allowance of up to 3% of their salary.

Employer’s pension contributions are conditional on employee contributions and the same as equivalent contribution levels for all staff. Across Guide Dogs as a whole, the ratio between median salary and the highest salary at the end of 2018 was 1 : 6.41 (2017: 1 : 4.71).

Executive Directors: remuneration in 2018

The total basic salaries for the key management personnel of the Charity for the financial year ended 31 December 2018 are as follows:

Employee involvement and employing people with disabilities

We are committed to transparency in our work and to involving employees in our decisions. We communicate with employees through day-to-day line management, team meetings, management visits to Guide Dogs’ offices, conferences and away days. We also communicate regularly through our intranet, internal publications and email. In addition, employees can raise any concerns they may have with the Consultation Partnership Group which encourages a flow of information up and down the organisation.

Guide Dogs has been awarded the Two Ticks symbol by Jobcentre Plus. The symbol identifies employers who have undertaken to meet five commitments on the employment, retention, training and career development of employees with disabilities. We apply the same principles to anyone who becomes disabled while employed by Guide Dogs.