Sector Remuneration Benchmarks
How does your CEO compare? Director fees and executive pay across NZX sectors.
Remuneration varies dramatically across sectors. Financial services directors earn multiples of what their counterparts in technology or healthcare receive. This analysis benchmarks director fees and CEO compensation across 11 NZX sectors using 2,261+ data points from annual reports.
Director Fee Benchmarks by Sector
Average and median director fees across NZX sectors (FY2022+)
| Sector | Avg Fee | Median Fee | Chair Premium | Companies | Directors | Range (P25–P75) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 Materials | $162,737 | $140,000 | 1.2x | 8 | 47 | $85,625 – $211,594 |
2 Communication Services | $150,153 | $139,215 | — | 4 | 28 | $118,250 – $176,350 |
3 Utilities | $149,320 | $143,750 | 1.6x | 7 | 61 | $116,000 – $179,750 |
4 Healthcare | $133,538 | $124,135 | 1.8x | 11 | 74 | $67,500 – $184,210 |
5 Consumer Discretionary | $131,660 | $90,500 | 1.6x | 15 | 99 | $63,400 – $145,033 |
6 Industrials | $123,803 | $114,920 | 1.1x | 21 | 143 | $74,000 – $150,000 |
7 Information Technology | $112,295 | $78,000 | — | 6 | 43 | $40,000 – $129,334 |
8 Energy | $111,289 | $115,000 | — | 1 | 11 | $89,375 – $125,000 |
9 Financials | $109,869 | $76,000 | 1.0x | 16 | 131 | $45,833 – $123,938 |
10 Consumer Staples | $99,700 | $77,500 | 1.3x | 12 | 103 | $50,511 – $117,167 |
11 Real Estate | $94,955 | $92,250 | 1.5x | 14 | 89 | $62,543 – $113,670 |
CEO / Chief Executive Compensation by Sector
Total compensation for CEO-level executives (base + STI + LTI). Outliers above $50M excluded.
| Sector | Median | Average | Range | Execs | Top CEO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 Utilities | $1,874,667 | $1,740,031 | $255,903 – $3,885,000 | 35 | MCY Rhys Jones(MCY) |
2 Energy | $1,259,986 | $1,243,227 | $377,293 – $2,181,000 | 8 | CHI Naomi James(CHI) |
3 Materials | $1,226,000 | $1,286,110 | $420,000 – $4,683,628 | 15 | FBU Ross Taylor(FBU) |
4 Communication Services | $1,127,573 | $1,481,876 | $149,794 – $4,172,365 | 13 | SPK Simon Moutter(SPK) |
5 Industrials | $1,127,000 | $1,477,158 | $206,159 – $5,128,874 | 111 | DOW G Knox(DOW) |
6 Real Estate | $1,096,113 | $1,163,365 | $222,000 – $2,288,022 | 51 | PCT Scott Pritchard(PCT) |
7 Healthcare | $1,055,781 | $1,477,287 | $39,313 – $5,607,341 | 68 | FPH Lewis Gradon(FPH) |
8 Financials | $1,041,000 | $1,264,674 | $47,790 – $6,018,824 | 49 | WBC Chris de Bruin(WBC) |
9 Consumer Discretionary | $945,408 | $1,069,975 | $432,000 – $4,220,000 | 63 | WHS Nick Grayston(WHS) |
10 Consumer Staples | $764,028 | $883,958 | $30,000 – $8,320,406 | 71 | FCG Chief Executive Officer(FCG) |
11 Information Technology | $433,602 | $679,836 | $40,000 – $1,869,839 | 38 | GTK Gary Miles(GTK) |
Sector Deep Dive
Detailed remuneration profile for each NZX sector
Materials
Communication Services
Utilities
Healthcare
Consumer Discretionary
Industrials
Information Technology
Energy
Financials
Consumer Staples
Real Estate
Key Sector Remuneration Insights
Sector Matters More Than Size
The highest-paying sector (Materials) averages $162,737 per director, while the lowest (Real Estate) averages $94,955 — a 1.7x difference.
CEO Pay Dispersion Is Wide
CEO compensation ranges from under $500,000 at small-cap companies to over $5 million at major corporates. The median CEO earns $1,000,000, but averages are pulled up significantly by a few outliers.
Chair Premiums Vary by Sector
Board chairs typically earn 1.5–2.5x the base director fee. Some sectors (particularly financial services and utilities) offer higher chair premiums due to regulatory complexity and stakeholder engagement requirements.
STI/LTI Make or Break CEO Pay
Short-term incentives (STI) and long-term incentives (LTI) can double or triple a CEO's base salary. Companies with strong performance-linked pay typically have higher total compensation but better alignment with shareholder returns.
How to Research Remuneration on NZXplorer
- Company Profiles: Visit any company page to see director fees and executive compensation in the remuneration tab.
- Director Pay Analysis: See our Director Pay guide for an overview of board fees across all NZX companies.
- Pay for Failure: Check our Pay for Failure analysis to see if executive pay aligns with company performance.
- Governance Scores: View GRS rankings to see how remuneration disclosure affects overall governance scores.
Last updated: 10 March 2026. Data covers 115 companies across 11 sectors.
Related Insights
Disclaimer
Data sourced from NZX company annual reports. Our datasets may not be complete and we are continuously updating and adding more data to the platform. Executive compensation figures include base salary, short-term incentives (STI), and long-term incentives (LTI) where disclosed. Automated analysis can produce errors — compensation components may be categorised differently across companies.
If you believe any data on this page is incorrect, please contact us at hello@nzxplorer.co.nz and we will review and correct it promptly.
This analysis is provided for informational and educational purposes only. Nothing on this page constitutes financial, investment, legal, or tax advice. Always conduct your own research and consult with qualified professionals before making any investment decisions.