Directors report that they are stepping down in order to support their boards’ aims to refresh the board composition. While mandatory retirement age is still a main driver of board turnover, some directors are leaving their board seats because it’s “simply the right time.”

Sandra Beach Lin, chair of the nominating and governance committee on the Wesco International board, informed the board last month that she would retire. Beach Lin has served as a director for 17 years, including 10 as nom-gov chair.

“I joined the board when I was in my forties, and so the mandatory retirement age of 72 wasn’t really a factor for me in this decision,” she writes in an e-mail. “I’m proud of the work that our nominating and governance committee has done to refresh the board and add members (i.e. one earlier this year and two others within the last five years), and we continue recruiting with that in mind.”