Ducks Unlimited CEO salary and executive pay
Ducks Unlimited paid its CEO, Adam Putnam, $722,570 for the fiscal year ending June 2025. That is up $124,496 (20.8%) from the fiscal year ending June 2024. Total revenue on that return was $380,340,506, down 14.3% from $443,553,486 for the fiscal year ending June 2024. Ducks Unlimited has 4 Form 990 returns on record, for fiscal years ending 2022 to 2025.
Last updated from IRS e-file data. EIN 13-5643799, Memphis, TN.
CEO, fiscal year ending June 2025
$722,570
- Total revenue
- $380,340,506
- CEO pay vs. peers
- Higher than 14%
Source: Form 990, fiscal year ending June 2025, IRS object ID 202601339349300105.View the filing
Peers: the 207 other organizations on this site with revenue of $50 million to $500 million. Ranked 177th of 208 by top pay as a share of revenue. Pay is 0.19% of revenue, our calculation from the same return. Revenue is Part I, line 12; peers are compared on their latest full-year returns.
Highest-paid people on the latest return
On the latest return, 2 people were paid more than $500,000, none of them more than $1 million.
| Name and title | Total |
|---|---|
| Adam Putnam CEO Chief Executive Officer | $722,570 |
| E Nichols WileyChief Operating Officer | $548,742 |
| Karen Waldrop PhDChief Conservation Officer | $441,256 |
| Richard B SmithChief Development Officer | $431,471 |
| Chad ManloveNational Director of Development | $407,491 |
Also paid on the latest return: Daniel Thiel (Executive Secretary, DUI and WAT), $400,950; David Schuessler (Chief Event Fundraising Officer), $400,309; Darin R Blunck (Chief Financial Officer & Asst. Treasurer), $386,156; Doug Barnes (Chief Brand Officer), $352,838; David A Marrone (General Counsel & Asst. Secretary), $348,040; Arnie Matson (Chief Information Officer), $338,933; Cici Ebersole (Chief Talent Officer), $336,063; Zachary Hartman (Chief Policy Officer), $335,486.
Also listed in Part VII of the latest return, with no pay reported: Bob Hester (Secretary), Bob Spoerl (President), Chuck Smith (Chairman of the Board), Rex Schulz (First Vice President), William C Ansell (Treasurer), Brad Hempkins (Regional Vice President - Region 8), Brian Garrels Jr (Flyway SVP - Region 5), Bridger Pierce (At-Large Director), Connie Parker (Advisory SVP - Volunteer Engagement), Dave Bowers (Regional Vice President - Region 3), David Keller (At-Large Director), Don Marold (Regional Vice President - Region 5), Doug Burch (Emeritus Board), Doug D Frey Jr (At-Large Director), Doug Schoenrock (Past President), Dr Christine Thomas (Advisory SVP - Conservation), Edward May (Regional Vice President - Region 1), Ellen Wehr (At-Large Director), Eric Demers MD (At-Large Director), Greg Meissner (Regional Vice President - Region 3), Jack Hole (DUMAC), Jack Witt (At-Large Director), James Vachris (Flyway SVP - Region 6), Jan Young (Regional Vice President - Region 1), Jared Brown (At-Large Director), and 43 more.
CEO pay by year
Each row is the CEO on that year's return.
| Fiscal year ending | Name and title | Total | Revenue | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 2025 | Adam Putnam CEO Chief Executive Officer | $722,570 | $380,340,506 | Filing |
| Jun 2024 | Adam Putnam CEO Chief Executive Officer | $598,074 | $443,553,486 | Filing |
| Jun 2023 | Adam Putnam CEO CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER | $662,899 | $302,178,704 | Filing |
| Jun 2022 | Adam Putnam CEO CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER | $538,303 | $339,454,630 | Filing |
How this pay was reported
The parts of each total, as reported on the return for the fiscal year ending June 2025.
Source: Form 990, fiscal year ending June 2025, IRS object ID 202601339349300105.View the filing
| Part VII | Schedule J | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name and title | From org | Other | Base | Bonus | Other | Deferred | Nontaxable | Total |
| Adam PutnamChief Executive Officer | $688,752 | $33,818 | $462,234 | $225,000 | $1,518 | $22,110 | $11,708 | $722,570 |
| E Nichols WileyChief Operating Officer | $516,769 | $31,973 | $358,840 | $153,573 | $4,356 | $20,265 | $11,708 | $548,742 |
| Karen Waldrop PhDChief Conservation Officer | $407,043 | $34,213 | $313,641 | $91,884 | $1,518 | $22,505 | $11,708 | $441,256 |
| Richard B SmithChief Development Officer | $390,674 | $40,797 | $300,735 | $87,101 | $2,838 | $29,089 | $11,708 | $431,471 |
| Chad ManloveNational Director of Development | $375,114 | $32,377 | $293,533 | $42,204 | $39,377 | $20,669 | $11,708 | $407,491 |
These figures come from Ducks Unlimited's Form 990 returns, as the IRS publishes them. The methodology page explains how they're chosen. To report an error, email corrections@ceopaycheck.com.
How Ducks Unlimited compares
Not in a ranking yet. See every ranking on this site.
Closest in revenue among organizations in the same revenue band:
Mercy Corps$601,632 (CEO), fiscal year ending Jun 2025
North East Medical Services$1,950,174 (CEO), fiscal year ending Dec 2024
Marin Community Foundation$732,783 (CEO), fiscal year ending Jun 2025
Feed the Children$530,257 (CEO), fiscal year ending Jun 2025
California Community Foundation$731,053 (CEO), fiscal year ending Jun 2025
Common questions
Adam Putnam (Chief Executive Officer) was paid $722,570 for the fiscal year ending June 2025: $688,752 from Ducks Unlimited and $33,818 in other compensation (Part VII columns D and F).
The CEO, Adam Putnam, was the highest-paid person on the latest return, at $722,570.
Ducks Unlimited paid its CEO, Adam Putnam, $722,570 for the fiscal year ending June 2025. That is up $124,496 (20.8%) from the fiscal year ending June 2024. The earliest return on record is for the fiscal year ending June 2022, when the CEO was Adam Putnam, paid $538,303. By fiscal year end: June 2022, $538,303 (Adam Putnam); June 2023, $662,899; June 2024, $598,074; June 2025, $722,570.
Ducks Unlimited's return for the fiscal year ending June 2025 reports total expenses of $386,688,706 and total revenue of $380,340,506 (Part I, lines 18 and 12), so expenses exceeded revenue by $6,348,200. Expenses were $318,202,052 for the fiscal year ending June 2024, so they rose 21.5%. The CEO's pay of $722,570 equals 0.19% of expenses, our calculation.
From the 4 Form 990 returns Ducks Unlimited filed with the IRS for fiscal years ending 2022 to 2025. The latest full-year return was filed on May 13, 2026. Schedule J of the fiscal year ending June 2025 return breaks down pay for all 5 people in the pay breakdown above.