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Harris Corporation Announces Chief Executive Officer Succession Plan
Posted on Tuesday, May 24, 2011

 

 

Howard L. Lance will Continue as Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer Pending Identification of a Successor

MELBOURNE, FL, May 23, 2011 — Harris Corporation (NYSE:HRS), an international communications and information technology company, today announced that it is implementing a CEO succession plan after Howard L. Lance, its chairman, president and CEO, advised the Board of Directors that he would like to retire at the end of the next fiscal year in June 2012, or such time as a suitable successor can be identified. The Board has engaged an executive search firm to assist in the process of contacting and evaluating external and internal candidates. Lance, 55, will remain in his present positions pending the appointment of his successor as chief executive officer, and will continue as chairman should the Board request that he stay for an additional period in order to facilitate the transition. Lance joined Harris in January 2003 as president and chief executive officer and was appointed chairman of the board in June 2003.

Lewis Hay III, lead independent director of the Harris Board of Directors, said, "Howard has been an outstanding leader since he joined the company in 2003. Under his stewardship, Harris has posted steady and strong top-line and bottom-line growth, with eight-year CAGRs of 16 and 24 percent respectively, and he has led the transformation of Harris into the leading international technology company it is today. While we would be pleased if he would continue as CEO well into the future, the Board respects his desire to achieve other personal goals and, with Howard's encouragement, decided that it made sense to immediately proceed with implementation of a succession plan. We are delighted that Howard is equally committed to assuring the success of this effort and is willing to remain through a smooth transition to new leadership."

Said Lance, "We have accomplished a tremendous amount over the past eight years, and I am very proud of our entire team. We continue to post solid financial results and are well positioned across our diversified served markets with strong customer relationships, leading technologies and deep management talent. Our guidance for fiscal 2012, along with the potential for double digit earnings growth identified through fiscal 2014, creates excellent momentum going forward. With Harris on such strong footing, I believe that this is the right time for me to move on to the next chapter of my life. I am confident the Board will select a world-class leader to continue to grow the company and build on the strong base we have in place today. I remain fully committed to ensuring that we don't miss a beat during the succession process."

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