As one board accepts a much-publicized resignation, another prepares to welcome two new members. Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) announced this morning that its board has nominated two additional independent directors. Shareholders will have a chance to vote on them at November's annual meeting.
Dr. Helmut Panke, chairman of the management board at German automaker BMW, will become Microsoft's first international director. Charles H. Noski, formerly AT&T's (NYSE:T) CFO and vice president, is also slated to join the board.
Having a European board member should be good for Microsoft. Hopefully, Panke will be able to help the company better deal with the European Union Commission, which still has an outstanding beef with Microsoft over antitrust concerns
The move expands Microsoft's board from eight members to 10, and comes as corporate governance is again making headlines. From its shift to stock grants from stock options, to its organizational retooling that ties management compensation more directly to performance, to its recent dividend increase, Microsoft has been making concerted efforts to become a more shareholder-friendly and responsible company.
Today's news that two more outside board members will be added continues this positive trend for the world's largest software firm. It will bring Microsoft's number of outside directors up from six to eight. Chief executive officer Steve Ballmer and founder and chairman Bill Gates are the two inside board members.
LouAnn Lofton owns shares of Microsoft.
