
Corporate Governance Guidelines
Board Composition and Selection of Directors
- Size of the Board. The size of the Board shall be set from time to
time by the Board upon the recommendation of the Corporate Governance and
Nominating Committee.
- Composition of Board. The Board should be composed of Directors chosen
on the basis of their integrity, judgment, background and experience of
particular relevance to the Company and its future prospects. In addition,
Directors should have experience with businesses or other organizations of a
comparable size. Finally, Directors should represent the balanced, best
interest of the stockholders as a whole rather than special interest groups
or constituencies. Each Director must have the ability to work well with
others and have sufficient time available to carry out the responsibilities
of a Director.
- Proportion of Independent Directors. The Board believes that most
of the Board should consist of Directors who meet the criteria for
independence required by applicable listing standards. The Board also
believes that the Chief Executive Officer should be a member of the
Board.
- Selection of New Directors. The Corporate Governance and
Nominating Committee is responsible for nominating individuals to present to
the Board as candidates for Board membership both in connection with the
Company’s annual meeting of stockholders and to fill Board vacancies. The
Board has delegated to the Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee the
screening process for identifying possible candidates.
Board Procedures
- Selection of Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. The Board of
Directors shall select and appoint the Chief Executive Officer and the
Chairman of the Board.
- Lead Outside Director. At each regularly scheduled Board meeting
and any separate meeting of Outside Directors, the Outside Directors shall
designate a lead Director to coordinate among the other Outside Directors for
purposes of facilitating the closed session among Outside Directors. If the
Chairman of the Board is present at such meeting and he or she is an Outside
Director, he or she shall be the lead Director.
- Attendance at Board Meetings. The Board currently has four
regularly scheduled meetings each year, plus special meetings as required.
Each Board member shall make every effort to attend each Board meeting,
preferably in person but in special circumstances via telephone conference
call or other electronic means.
- Time Commitment and Board Service. Each Board member is expected
to ensure that his or her other existing and planned future commitments do
not materially interfere with such member’s service on the Company’s Board.
- Closed Sessions Among Outside Directors. At each regularly
scheduled Board meeting, the Outside Directors shall have the opportunity to
meet separately without the other Directors and without management
present.
- Conflicts of Interest. All Directors shall inform the Chairman of
the Board and the Company’s Secretary of any activity that may rise to the
level of a material conflict of interest, such as an affiliation with a
competitor or supplier of Company.
- Director Conflicts of Interest. On an annual basis, each
Board member will complete an independence questionnaire that is
designed to affirmatively determine independence and identify any
conflicts of interest that may be material.
- Senior Executive Conflicts of Interest. On an annual
basis, each Officer of the Company will complete a conflict of
interest questionnaire to determine if a conflict or potential
conflict exists. The Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee
shall be responsible for evaluating and, if appropriate, approve any
contemplated waiver of a provision of the Company’s code of conduct
relating to a Director or Officer.
- Auditor Independence. The Board is responsible for making
appropriate inquiries and receiving appropriate assurances necessary
to assess the independence of the Company’s auditors. The Board has
delegated this task to the Audit Committee.
- Governance Guidelines. The Board shall annually review these
Guidelines. The Board has delegated this responsibility to the Corporate
Governance and Nominating Committee.
Board Committees
- Nature of Committees. The purpose of Board Committees is to help
the Board effectively and efficiently fulfill its responsibilities, although
they do not displace the oversight responsibilities of the Board as a whole.
Committees will report the results of their significant activities to the
full Board or make recommendations to the full Board as appropriate.
- Number and Composition of Committees. The Company’s Board
currently has three committees: Audit; Compensation; and Corporate Governance
and Nominating. From time to time the Board may form a new committee or
disband a current committee depending upon the circumstances. Committee
composition shall conform to the requirements of any applicable rules and
regulations, as they may be amended from time to time. Specifically, the
Company’s Audit Committee, Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee, and
Compensation Committee shall consist solely of Independent Directors.
- Appointment and Term of Service of Committee Members. The
Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee shall recommend Directors to
the Board to serve as Committee members, who shall, if appointed by the
Board, serve until their resignation or until the Board appoints a
successor.
- Committee Proceedings. Committee proceedings shall conform to the
requirements of The Nasdaq Stock Market (or other listing standards that may
be applicable) and other applicable regulations, as they may be amended from
time to time. The Company’s Committees shall be governed by written charters
approved by the Board. All Board members are welcome to attend committee
meetings. The Committees shall periodically report to the Board on
significant matters discussed by the Committees.
Board and Committee Access to Outside Advisors and Management
- Availability of Outside Advisors. The Board and each of its
Committees may retain outside advisors - legal, accounting, investment
banking, and any others as the Board or such Committee deems necessary or
appropriate - of its choosing, at the Company’s expense. The Board and/or
Committee need not obtain management’s consent to retain outside
advisors.
- Access to Information and Employees. The Board and each of its
Committees shall have complete, unfettered access to any information about
the Company that it deems necessary or appropriate to carry out its duties.
This includes, among other things, access to the Company’s employees (senior
management, in particular), documents and the Company’s facilities.
Board Compensation
The Compensation Committee shall be responsible for
determining Board compensation. In reviewing and determining appropriate Board
compensation, the Compensation Committee should consider the compensation of
board members of similarly situated U.S. companies.
Self-Evaluation
The Board will annually discuss the report of the
Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee concerning the performance of the
Board, its Committees and their respective members.
Amendment
Recognizing that best practices for corporate
boards, and practical considerations, will change over time, the Board will
monitor developments in these areas, and will amend these Guidelines as it deems
appropriate.
Definitions
- Independent Director. An “Independent Director” means one who
satisfies the listing standards of the Nasdaq Stock Market (or other
applicable listing standards) for independent directors, as they may be
amended from time to time.
- Officer. An “Officer” means an individual who is deemed an
executive officer as defined in Rule 3b-7 of the Securities Exchange Act of
1934.
- Outside Director. An “Outside Director” means any director who is
not currently an employee of the Company
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