Item 10. DIRECTORS, EXECUTIVE OFFICERS AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE.

22K characters. Original on sec.gov · Markdown

Item 10. DIRECTORS, EXECUTIVE OFFICERS AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE.

Directors and Executive Officers

The following table sets forth for each director and executive officer of the Company his or her position with the Company as of January 16, 2017:

NameTitle
David J. AldrichChairman of the Board and Executive Chairman
David J. McLachlanLead Independent Director
Liam K. GriffinPresident, Chief Executive Officer and Director
Kevin L. BeebeDirector
Timothy R. FureyDirector
Balakrishnan S. IyerDirector
Christine KingDirector
David P. McGladeDirector
Robert A. SchriesheimDirector
Bruce J. FreymanExecutive Vice President, Worldwide Operations
Peter L. GammelChief Technology Officer
Laura A. GaspariniVice President, Human Resources
Kris SennesaelSenior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Robert J. TerryVice President, General Counsel and Secretary

Directors

David J. Aldrich, age 59, has served as Chairman of the Board and Executive Chairman since May 2016. Previously, he served as Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer from May 2014 to May 2016 and as President and Chief Executive Officer and as a director from April 2000 to May 2014. From September 1999 to April 2000, Mr. Aldrich served as President and Chief Operating Officer. From May 1999 to September 1999, he served as Executive Vice President, and from May 1996 to May 1999, he served as Vice President and General Manager of the semiconductor products business unit. Mr. Aldrich joined the Company in 1995 as Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer. Prior to joining Skyworks, he held senior management positions at Adams-Russell Company and M/A-COM, Inc. Mr. Aldrich has also served since February 2007 as a director of Belden Inc. (a publicly traded designer and manufacturer of cable products and transmission solutions).

We believe that Mr. Aldrich is qualified to serve as a director because of his leadership experience, his strategic decision making ability, his knowledge of the semiconductor industry and his in-depth knowledge of Skyworks’ business. Mr. Aldrich brings to the Board of Directors his thorough knowledge of Skyworks’ business, strategy, people, operations, competition, financial position, and investors. Further, as a result of his service as a director for Belden Inc., a multinational public company, Mr. Aldrich provides the Board of Directors with another organizational perspective and other cross-board experience.

David J. McLachlan, age 78, has been a director since 2000 and Lead Independent Director since May 2014. He served as Chairman of the Board from May 2008 to May 2014. Mr. McLachlan served as a senior advisor to the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Genzyme Corporation (a publicly traded biotechnology company) from 1999 to 2004. He also was the Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Genzyme from 1989 to 1999. Prior to joining Genzyme, Mr. McLachlan served as Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Adams-Russell Company (an electronic component supplier and cable television franchise owner). He previously served as a director of Dyax Corp. until January 2016, when it was acquired by Shire plc.

We believe that Mr. McLachlan, the current Lead Independent Director, is qualified to serve as a director because he possesses a broad range of business experience as a result of his service as both chief financial officer and director for several public companies. In particular, Mr. McLachlan has in-depth experience handling complex accounting and finance issues for a broad range of companies. He has also served on the boards and audit and governance committees of other public companies (including as chairman of the audit committee), and serves as a designated “audit committee financial expert” for Skyworks’ Audit Committee.

Liam K. Griffin, age 50, is President and Chief Executive Officer and a director of the Company. Prior to his appointment as Chief Executive Officer and to the board of directors in May 2016, he had served as President since May 2014. He served as Executive Vice President and Corporate General Manager from November 2012 to May 2014, Executive Vice President and General Manager, High Performance Analog from May 2011 to November 2012, and Senior Vice President, Sales and Marketing from August 2001 to May 2011. Previously, Mr. Griffin was employed by Vectron International, a division of Dover Corp., as Vice President of Worldwide Sales from 1997 to 2001 and as Vice President of North American Sales from 1995 to 1997. His prior experience included positions as a Marketing Manager at AT&T Microelectronics, Inc. and Product and Process Engineer at AT&T Network Systems. Mr. Griffin also serves as a director of Vicor Corp. (a publicly traded designer, developer, manufacturer and marketer of modular power components and complete power systems).

We believe that Mr. Griffin is qualified to serve as a director because of his breadth of leadership experience and in-depth understanding of Skyworks’ business gained through serving in several different executive positions at Skyworks over the past 15 years. Mr. Griffin brings to the Board of Directors strong relationships with Skyworks’ key customers, investors, employees, and other stakeholders, as well as a deep understanding of the semiconductor industry and its competitive landscape. His service as a director for Vicor Corp. gives Mr. Griffin added perspective regarding the challenges confronting public technology companies.

Kevin L. Beebe, age 57, has been a director since January 2004. Since November 2007, he has been President and Chief Executive Officer of 2BPartners, LLC (a partnership that provides strategic, financial, and operational advice to private equity investors and management). In 2014, Mr. Beebe became a founding partner of Astra Capital Management (a private equity firm based in Washington, D.C.). Previously, beginning in 1998, he was Group President of Operations at ALLTEL Corporation (a telecommunications services company). From 1996 to 1998, Mr. Beebe served as Executive Vice President of Operations for 360° Communications Co. (a wireless communication company). He has held a variety of executive and senior management positions at several divisions of Sprint, including Vice President of Operations and Vice President of Marketing and Administration for Sprint Cellular, Director of Marketing for Sprint North Central Division, Director of Engineering and Operations Staff and Director of Product Management and Business Development for Sprint Southeast Division, as well as Staff Director of Product Services at Sprint Corporation. Mr. Beebe began his career at AT&T/Southwestern Bell as a Manager. Mr. Beebe also serves as chairman of the board of directors of NII Holdings, Inc. (a publicly traded provider of wireless telecommunications services in Latin America), and as a director for SBA Communications Corporation (a publicly traded operator of wireless communications towers in North, South, and Central America), Syniverse Technologies, Inc. (a privately held provider of support services for wireless carriers), and Logix Communications (a privately held provider of facilities-based communications services).

We believe that Mr. Beebe is qualified to serve as a director because of his two decades of experience as an operating executive in the wireless telecommunications industry. For example, as Group President of Operations at ALLTEL, he was instrumental in expanding ALLTEL’s higher margin retail business, which significantly enhanced ALLTEL’s competitive position in a dynamic, consolidating industry. In addition, as Chief Executive Officer of 2BPartners, LLC, Mr. Beebe continues to gain a broad range of business experience and to build business relationships by advising leading private equity firms that are transacting business in the global capital markets. Mr. Beebe provides cross-board experience by serving as a director for several public and private companies (including service on both audit and governance committees). Further, Mr. Beebe has served as a director of Skyworks since 2004 and has gained significant familiarity with Skyworks’ business.

Timothy R. Furey, age 58, has been a director since 1998. He has been Chief Executive Officer of MarketBridge (a privately owned digital marketing software and services firm) since 1991. MarketBridge provides digital marketing, predictive analytics, and sales effectiveness solutions to Fortune 1000 companies in the software, communications, financial services, life sciences, and consumer products sectors. Mr. Furey also serves as Managing Partner of the Technology Marketing Group (which advises and invests in emerging growth companies in the social media, mobile, and marketing automation markets). Prior to 1991, Mr. Furey worked with the Boston Consulting Group, Strategic Planning Associates, Kaiser Associates, and the Marketing Science Institute.

We believe that Mr. Furey is qualified to serve as a director because his experience as Chief Executive Officer of MarketBridge, as well as his engagements with MarketBridge’s clients (many of which are Fortune 1000 companies), provide him with a broad range of knowledge regarding business operations and growth strategies. In addition, Mr. Furey has extensive knowledge regarding Skyworks’ business, which he has acquired through over 18 years of service on the Board of Directors.

Balakrishnan S. Iyer, age 60, has been a director since June 2002. He served as Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Conexant Systems, Inc., from October 1998 to June 2003. Prior to joining Conexant, Mr. Iyer served as Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of VLSI Technology Inc. Prior to that, he was Corporate Controller for Cypress Semiconductor Corp. and Director of Finance for Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. Mr. Iyer serves on the boards of directors of Power Integrations, Inc., and IHS Markit Ltd. (each a publicly traded company). He served as a director of Conexant from February 2002 until April 2011, as a director of Life Technologies Corp. from July 2001 until February 2014, when it was acquired by Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., as a director of IHS Inc. from December 2003 until July 2016, when it completed a merger with Markit Ltd., and as a director of QLogic Corporation from June 2003 until August 2016, when it was acquired by Cavium, Inc.

We believe that Mr. Iyer is qualified to serve as a director because his experience as an executive officer of companies in the technology industry provides him with leadership, strategic, and financial experience. Through his experiences as a director at the public companies listed above (including as a member of certain audit, governance, and compensation committees) he provides the Board of Directors with significant financial expertise as a designated “audit committee financial expert” for Skyworks’ Audit Committee, bringing specific application to our industry, as well as a broad understanding of corporate governance topics.

Christine King, age 67, has been a director since January 2014. Ms. King served as Executive Chairman of QLogic Corporation (a publicly traded developer of high performance server and storage networking connectivity products) from August 2015 until August 2016, when it was acquired by Cavium, Inc. Previously, she served as a director and as Chief Executive Officer of Standard Microsystems Corporation (a publicly traded developer of silicon-based integrated circuits utilizing analog and mixed-signal technologies) from 2008 until the company’s acquisition in 2012 by Microchip Technology, Inc. Prior to Standard Microsystems, Ms. King was Chief Executive Officer of AMI Semiconductor, Inc., a publicly traded company, from 2001 until it was acquired by ON Semiconductor Corp. in 2008. From 1973 to 2001, Ms. King held various engineering, business, and management positions at IBM Corp., including Vice President of Semiconductor Products. Ms. King currently serves as a director of Cirrus Logic, Inc., and IDACORP, Inc. (each a publicly traded company), and as a director of Idaho Power Company (a subsidiary of IDACORP). She previously served as a director of QLogic Corporation, Analog Devices, Inc., and Atheros Communications, Inc., prior to its acquisition by Qualcomm, Inc.

We believe that Ms. King is qualified to serve as a director because of her extensive management and operational experience in the high tech and semiconductor industries. In particular, through her experience as Executive Chairman of QLogic and as Chief Executive Officer of Standard Microsystems and AMI Semiconductor, as well as her service as a director of other public companies, Ms. King provides the Board of Directors with significant strategic, operational, and financial expertise.

David P. McGlade, age 56, has been a director since February 2005. He has served as Executive Chairman of Intelsat S.A. (a publicly traded worldwide provider of satellite communication services) since April 2015, prior to which he served as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. Mr. McGlade joined Intelsat in April 2005 and was the Deputy Chairman of Intelsat from August 2008 until April 2013. Previously, Mr. McGlade served as an Executive Director of mmO2 PLC and as the Chief Executive Officer of O2 UK (a subsidiary of mmO2), a position he held from October 2000 until March 2005. Before joining O2 UK, Mr. McGlade was President of the Western Region for Sprint PCS.

We believe that Mr. McGlade is qualified to serve as a director because of his 32 years of experience in the telecommunications business, which have allowed him to acquire significant operational, strategic, and financial business acumen. Most recently, as a result of his work as the Chief Executive Officer of Intelsat, Mr. McGlade gained significant leadership and operational experience, as well as knowledge about the global capital markets.

Robert A. Schriesheim, age 56, has been a director since May 2006. He served as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Sears Holdings from August 2011 to October 2016. From January 2010 to October 2010, Mr. Schriesheim was Chief Financial Officer of Hewitt Associates, Inc. (a global human resources consulting and outsourcing company that was acquired by Aon Corporation). From October 2006 until December 2009, he was the Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Lawson Software, Inc. (a publicly traded ERP software provider). From August 2002 to October 2006, he was affiliated with ARCH Development Partners, LLC (a seed stage venture capital fund). Before joining ARCH, Mr. Schriesheim held executive positions at Global TeleSystems, SBC Equity Partners, Ameritech, AC Nielsen, and Brooke Group Ltd. Mr. Schriesheim currently serves as a director of Houlihan Lokey Inc. (a publicly traded financial services firm) and NII Holdings, Inc. (a publicly traded provider of wireless telecommunications services in Latin America), and previously served as a director of Lawson Software until its sale in July 2011. In addition, from 2004 until 2007, he was also a director of Dobson Communications Corp. (a former publicly traded wireless services communications company that was acquired by AT&T Inc.) and from 2007 until 2009 he served as a director of MSC Software Corp. (a former publicly traded provider of integrated simulation solutions for designing and testing manufactured products that was acquired by Symphony Technology Group).

We believe that Mr. Schriesheim is qualified to serve as a director because of his extensive knowledge of the capital markets, experience with corporate financial capital structures, and long history of evaluating and structuring merger and acquisition transactions within the technology sector. Mr. Schriesheim also has significant experience, as a senior executive and director in both public and private companies in the technology sector, leading companies through major strategic and financial corporate transformations while doing business in the global marketplace. He also serves as a designated “audit committee financial expert” for Skyworks’ Audit Committee.

In addition to the information presented above regarding each director’s specific experience, qualifications, attributes and skills that led our Board of Directors to conclude that he or she should serve as a director, we also believe that each of our directors has a reputation for integrity, honesty and adherence to high ethical standards. They have each demonstrated business acumen, an ability to exercise sound judgment, and a commitment of service to Skyworks. Each of our directors will serve until the 2017 Annual Meeting of stockholders and until their successors are elected and qualified or until their earlier resignation or removal.

Executive Officers (other than Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer)

Bruce J. Freyman, age 56, joined the Company in May 2005 and has served as Executive Vice President, Worldwide Operations since May 2014. He also served as Senior Vice President, Worldwide Operations from November 2010 to May 2014 and as Vice President, Operations from May 2005 to November 2010. Previously, he served as President and Chief Operating Officer of Amkor Technology and also held various senior management positions, including Executive Vice President of Operations from 2001 to 2004. Earlier, Mr. Freyman spent 10 years with Motorola managing their semiconductor packaging operations for portable communications products.

Peter L. Gammel, age 56, joined the Company in June 2011 in connection with the Company’s acquisition of SiGe Semiconductor Inc. and has served as Chief Technology Officer since March 2013. He served as Vice President and General Manager, Mobile Connectivity from October 2011 to March 2013, and Vice President, Engineering from June 2011 to October 2011. At SiGe, he served as Chief Technology Officer and Vice President of Engineering from June 2007 to June 2011. His prior experience included positions as Vice President of Engineering at Renaissance Wireless, Chief Technology Officer at AdvanceNanotech, Inc., and Chief Technology Officer for the Analog Products Business of Agere Systems Inc.

Laura A. Gasparini, 66, is Vice President, Human Resources of the Company, a position she has held since July 2015. Previously, Ms. Gasparini served as a Senior Director within the Company’s human resources department from October 2002 to July 2015. She first joined the Company in 1989, and rejoined in 1998 following a brief tenure with Unitrode Corporation from 1995 to 1998.

Kris Sennesael, age 48, joined the Company in August 2016 and is Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. Previously, Mr. Sennesael served as Chief Financial Officer for Enphase Energy, Inc. (a semiconductor-based renewable energy solutions provider), from September 2012 to August 2016. Earlier, he served as Chief Financial Officer for Standard Microsystems Corporation (a global fabless semiconductor company) from January 2009 to August 2012, prior to which he held financial positions at ON Semiconductor Corp., AMI Semiconductor, Inc., and Alcatel Microelectronics.

Robert J. Terry, age 50, joined the Company in 2003 and has served as Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary since November 2016. He previously served as Vice President, Associate General Counsel and Assistant Secretary from June 2011 to November 2016. Before joining Skyworks, he served as General Counsel and Secretary for Day Software, Inc. (an enterprise content management software company), from July 2001 to February 2003. Prior to joining Day Software, Mr. Terry was in private practice, focusing on corporate and securities matters, mergers and acquisitions, and general business litigation.

Audit Committee: We have established an Audit Committee consisting of the following individuals, each of whom qualifies as independent within the meaning of the applicable Listing Rules of the NASDAQ Stock Market LLC (the “NASDAQ Rules”) and meets the criteria for independence set forth in Rule 10A-3(b)(1) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (“Exchange Act”): Robert A. Schriesheim (Chairman), Kevin L. Beebe, Balakrishnan S. Iyer and David J. McLachlan.

Audit Committee Financial Expert: The Board of Directors has determined that each of Messrs. Schriesheim (Chairman), Iyer and McLachlan meets the qualifications of an “audit committee financial expert” under SEC Rules and the qualifications of “financial sophistication” under the applicable NASDAQ Rules, and qualifies as “independent” as defined under the applicable NASDAQ Rules.

Code of Ethics

We have adopted a written code of business conduct and ethics that applies to our directors, officers and employees, including our principal executive officer, principal financial officer, principal accounting officer or controller, or persons performing similar functions. We make available our code of business conduct and ethics free of charge through our website at http://www.skyworksinc.com. We intend to disclose any amendments to, or waivers from, our code of business conduct and ethics that are required to be publicly disclosed by posting any such amendment or waivers on our website pursuant to SEC requirements and NASDAQ Rules.

Section 16(a) Beneficial Ownership Reporting Compliance

Section 16(a) of the Exchange Act requires our directors, executive officers and beneficial owners of more than 10% of our equity securities to file reports of holdings and transactions in securities of Skyworks with the SEC. Based solely on a review of Forms 3, 4, and 5 and any amendments thereto furnished to us, and written representations provided to us, with respect to our fiscal year ended September 30, 2016 (“fiscal year 2016”), we believe that all Section 16(a) filing requirements applicable to our directors, executive officers and beneficial owners of more than 10% of the Company’s common stock with respect to such fiscal year were timely made, with the exception of one late Form 4 filed by Mr. Gammel on May 18, 2016, to report a transaction dated as of May 5, 2016.

Previous: Cover and table of contents · Next: Item 11. EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION.