Kimball announces lead independent director & other governance changes

Jasper, ind.--(business wire)--kimball international, inc. (nasdaq: kbal), today announced that the board of directors (the “board”) of kimball international, inc. (the “company”), at its february 17, 2015 meeting, elected thomas tischhauser to the newly created position of lead independent director. in this role, mr. tischhauser will chair non-management executive sessions of the board, act as a liaison between the board and executive management of the company, assist in setting meeting agendas, assist the chairman in board and board member performance assessments, and act as chairman in the event the current chairman is unavailable. mr. tischhauser, a former executive at motorola, is currently a consultant to leading public companies. he has served on the board of kimball international since 2008, including serving on the audit committee and the compensation and governance committee. the board also approved the addition of several important policies to the company’s corporate governance principles. in particular, the board established a requirement that any board member that is not elected by a majority of shareholder votes cast in an uncontested election would submit their resignation; implemented restrictions on hedging or pledging of company shares held by board members and executives; and approved a new tool in its executive incentive compensation strategy utilizing the relative total shareholder return metric as a measure for the award of performance shares to key senior-level executives. this new compensation tool provides a strong correlation between the performance of the company’s stock and the compensation of key decision-makers. these governance changes follow a series of key events for kimball international beginning on october 31, 2014 with the spin-off of its electronic manufacturing services segment, the concurrent retirement of the company’s former ceo/president and chairman, and the equalization of its two classes of stock. since the spin-off, the company has taken significant steps to grow shareholder value as a furniture-focused company, including an announced restructuring resulting in the eventual closing of its post falls manufacturing facility, following transition of work to company-owned facilities in southern indiana, as well as the sale of a corporate jet focused on management usage. kimball international ceo and chairman, bob schneider stated, “the new executive team and the board are excited to be leading kimball international in this new chapter of its existence. i am very proud of the best practice governance actions our board has adopted and the decisive steps taken by our management team to improve share owner value. it clearly is a “new day” at kimball international.” about kimball international: kimball international, inc. is a leading manufacturer of design driven, technology savvy, high quality furnishings sold under the company’s family of brands, national office furniture, kimball office and kimball hospitality. our diverse portfolio provides solutions for the workplace, learning, healing and hospitality environments. customers can access our products globally through a variety of distribution channels. recognized with a reputation for excellence and a recipient of the forbes 2014 america’s most trustworthy companies designation, kimball international is committed to a high performance culture that is committed to sound ethics, continuous improvement and social responsibility. to learn more about kimball international, inc. (nasdaq: kbal) visit www.kimball.com. “kimball international … we build success!”
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