Board Moves: Longtime Board Members Say So Long

Several long-tenured directors will close 2017 by bidding farewell to board seats, according to data from public company intelligence provider MyLogIQ. Boards will also see a wave of incoming directors.

At medical technology company Stryker, Howard Cox, Jr., will retire from the board after 44 years with the company, which includes five years before it went public in 1979. Cox is a special limited partner with venture capital firm Greylock Partners, and Stryker praised his value as a board member with the ability to assess potential acquisitions. Cox will be named director emeritus, the company announced this week.

On Dec. 6, the Deere & Co. board announced that Crandall Bowles, a director for 21 years, had retired effective this month. Frank Newman, a board member at Jabil for more than 20 years, will step down in January 2018. Similarly, First Horizon National saw R. Brad Martin submit his resignation this month; Martin has served on the board for 23 years. Bernard Kasriel, former CEO of Paris-based Lafarge S. A. and a director on the Nucor board for the past 10 years, notified Nucor board members this month that he’ll be stepping down. Charles Pryor Jr., a director on the DTE Energy board, announced last month that he’ll retire in May after nearly 19 years on the board.