When Robert Arzbaecher steps down from the board in January, it will be the first time since Actuant Corp. began trading he won’t be an executive or director.
The company announced Friday both Arzbaecher and Thomas Fischer will not stand for re-election at the company’s next annual meeting.
Actuant also announced executive vice president and chief financial officer Andrew Lampereur would be leaving his position after the company reports earnings on Dec. 21. Rick Dillon, currently executive vice president and chief financial officer at Chicago-based Century Aluminum Co., will take his position. Lampereur will provide ongoing consulting support to the company.
Arzbaecher had been on the board since the company was formed after Applied Power spun off its electronics business as APW Ltd. in 2000.
He joined Applied Power in 1992 and was chief financial officer from 1994 until the spinoff. He was president and chief executive officer of Actuant from 2000 until early 2014. He returned to the CEO role on an interim basis in August 2015 and stepped aside when the company hired current CEO Randy Baker.
“Both Bob and Tom have added tremendous value to the board during their tenure,” said Robert Peterson, Actuant chairman. “Bob built the organization, strategy and business model from the ground up and his passion and institutional knowledge of the enterprise will be greatly missed.”
Dillon joined Century Aluminum in 2014 after working at Milwaukee-based Joy Global for five years. He will have a base salary of $450,000, an increase over his 2015 base pay of $400,000 at Century Aluminum. He is receiving a $300,000 cash signing bonus and is eligible for Actuant’s annual bonus and long-term incentive programs.
“We are extremely pleased to have a person of Rick’s caliber and talent joining Actuant,” Baker said “I worked with him for a number years at Joy Global Inc. and believe his skills and experience will be a real asset as we work together to implement the company’s strategic growth plan.”
Lampereur, like Arzbaecher, had been with Actuant since its founding and was with the predecessor company since 1993. He’s receiving $490,000 over 12 months as part of a separation agreement, along with a $85,750 transition completion bonus and other benefits.
In connection with the departures of Lampereur and Arzbaecher, the company said it would record approximately $8 million in pre-tax non-cash stock compensation expense during the first quarter that was not included in previous guidance. Actuant said the expense was the result of accelerated vesting of previously issued equity awards for Lampereur and Arzbaecher.
