Boardroom

Kevin Bohl discusses his approach to board evaluations Governance Intelligence recently presented our 17th annual Corporate Governance Awards at a gala event in New York. We spoke with several distinguished attendees on the red carpet before the ceremony, among them Kevin Bohl, senior vice president, deputy general counsel and assistant corporate secretary for Ventas. Bohl was named governance professional of the year (large cap) at the awards. Before the ceremony we asked him about some of the challenges he’s faced this year and his achievements. Among other things, he leads the board’s annual self-evaluation, a task gaining increasing attention in…

Meighan McGowan talks about some of the governance themes from 2024 – The Wall Street Journal (paywall) reported that activist investor Barington Capital has built a position in Macy’s and is pressing the company to make changes to boost its stock – including the creation of a separate real-estate unit within the firm. Barington disclosed its position in a PowerPoint presentation to Macy’s shareholders. Barington has teamed up with property-owner Thor Equities on its investment, according to the presentation. Barington and Thor also want their representatives added to Macy’s board, the presentation said. Macy’s said in a statement that it…

Thomas Germinario talks about 2024’s high-profile activist campaigns Governance Intelligence recently presented our 17th annual Corporate Governance Awards at a gala event in New York. We spoke with several distinguished attendees on the red carpet before the ceremony, including Thomas Germinario, senior managing director for proxy solicitation at DF King. Governance Intelligence asked Germinario about the governance lessons boards and their governance teams can learn from some of 2024’s high-profile activist campaigns. He also spoke about some of the key proxy solicitation issues governance teams and their boards should be thinking about for 2025. The awards celebrate outstanding achievements by…

Making sure you’re appreciated was on the agenda at recent Governance Intelligence event Experts on a panel at Governance Intelligence’s recent Corporate Governance Forum in New York looked at the evolving role of the corporate secretary, which has come a long way – though perhaps not far enough to warrant a change in title. The workload of corporate secretaries has expanded significantly in recent years as they ensure the smooth and effective functioning of the board and, through that, the company at large. Richard Gluckselig, associate general counsel and assistant corporate secretary at Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, noted that the position had…

Emerging technologies will feature high on 2025’s proxy statements Cooley will be hosting two webinars in December 2024 and January 2025 to help companies prepare for the upcoming proxy season: Hot governance and engagement proxy tips you need to know, on December 12, featuring Cooley partner Beth Sasfai, special counsel Michael Mencher, corporate governance senior strategic advisor Broc Romanek, and co-founder and CEO of Proxy Analytics Steve Pantina. Proxy season preview (including ISS and Glass Lewis policy updates), on January 15, 2025, featuring Cooley partners Ali Murata and Brad Goldberg, along with Compensia principal Mark Borges. In advance of these webinars,…

Getting ready for the next proxy season is all about preparing well At the recentCorporate Reporting Forumin New York, Governance Intelligence and IR Magazine spoke to Ron Schneider, director of corporate governance services at DFIN, who spoke on one of the day’s panels. Schneider’s session looked deeply into the potential impacts of the SEC’s rulemaking agenda and trends in investor voting policies and proxy adviser recommendations as we head into 2025. He tells Governance Intelligence that AI and cyber-security disclosures will take central prominence as we head into next year and companies work to understand the impacts of emerging technology…

Data from responses to generate benchmarking insights for governance teams in 2025 Lockheed Martin has recruited Kevin O’Connor as the company’s incoming senior vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary, effective January 13. O’Connor will succeed Maryanne Lavan, who is retiring. Lavan will be a strategic adviser through the first quarter of 2025 to help with the transition. O’Connor is joining Lockheed Martin having most recently been senior vice president and chief legal officer (CLO) for refrigeration and heating, ventilation and air conditioning company Carrier. In that role he has overseen the company’s global legal and compliance issues and has…

It could be a good time to get planning for your 2025 assessment Ryan Brown has stepped down from his role as Sarepta Therapeutics’ executive vice president and chief general counsel, effective November 26, according to an SEC filing from the company. Sarepta states in the Form 8K that Cristin Rothfuss, the company’s senior vice president and deputy general counsel, succeeds Brown as executive vice president and general counsel. According to the filing, Brown will continue as a non-executive employee of the company until around May 9, 2025 to support the transition. Requests for comment from the company and Brown…

Winners of Governance Intelligence’s 17th annual Corporate Governance Awards announced at gala ceremony in New York Nasdaq and Regions Financial Corporation last night won two of the top categories at Governance Intelligence’s 17th annual Corporate Governance Awards. Nasdaq was named governance team of the year (large cap) and Regions Financial was named governance team of the year (small to mid-cap). The companies were presented with their awards at a gala event in New York. The ceremony capped two days of events hosted by Governance Intelligence at Governance Live: the Corporate Reporting Forum and the Corporate Governance Forum. The Corporate Governance…