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Governance: Leadership for High Performance
Strong corporate governance is an essential foundation for delivering high performance over the long term – performance that endures.
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| John Deere's Board of Directors reflects the company’s complexity and its global presence. Board members come from a variety of countries, professions, and cultures. Board members are, from left, Antonio Madero B., Vance D. Coffman, Dipak C. Jain, Crandall C. Bowles, T. Kevin Dunnigan, Robert W. Lane, Arthur L. Kelly, Thomas H. Patrick, Richard B. Myers, Joachim Milberg and Aulana L. Peters. |
A diverse and independent board of directors provides rigorous and diligent oversight and expectations of high performance. It also brings expertise, business skills, and strategic global perspectives to guide the company's growth while maintaining its values, stewardship, and contribution to human flourishing.
Recognizing that the company would be better able to serve shareholders in an era of global growth and increasingly complex business requirements if it changed its board composition, John Deere moved to an independent board of directors more
than a decade ago.
Since then, the board has been able to attract top talent from business, academia and government. It has also adopted policies and practices aimed at deep understanding, effective oversight, and inspired business guidance for Deere & Company's diverse businesses, markets, and growth opportunities.
Important policies include:
- To provide board members with detailed knowledge about the company, the board holds its meetings at various company locations and requests presentations on major projects and strategies.
- A majority of directors must be independent. Deere & Company Chief Executive Officer Robert W. Lane is the Chairman of the Board and currently the only member who is an employee of the company.
- Board policy calls for many of the conventional functions of the chairman, such as setting agendas for board and committee meetings, to be shared by all directors.
- The board makes extensive use of the "presiding director" concept for executive sessions and for specific subjects, such as succession planning.
- The independent directors annually review the performance of the chief executive officer on business results, execution of strategies and development of employees.
- To further align board members and shareholders' interests, a significant portion of directors' compensation is paid in restricted Deere & Company stock.
- The board has five chartered committees, Corporate Governance, which includes an environment, health, safety, and climate program review, Audit Review, Compensation, Pension Plan Oversight, and Executive.
By charter, the Corporate Governance, Audit Review, and Compensation committees are made up of independent directors.
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