ATG Announces Results of Independent Governance Reviews; Company Further Enhances Corporate Governance Practices.CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- ATG ATG antithymocyte globulin. lymphocyte immune globulin (antithymocyte globulin equine, ATG, ATG equine, LIG) Atgam Pharmacologic class: Immunoglobulin Therapeutic class: Immunosuppressant (Art Technology Group, Inc., NASDAQ NASDAQ in full National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations U.S. market for over-the-counter securities. Established in 1971 by the National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD), NASDAQ is an automated quotation system that reports on : ARTG ARTG Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods ), the software provider behind the most consistent and relevant marketing, commerce, and service experiences, today announced the results of independent reviews of the company's corporate governance Corporate Governance The relationship between all the stakeholders in a company. This includes the shareholders, directors, and management of a company, as defined by the corporate charter, bylaws, formal policy, and rule of law. practices. In December 2004, ATG's board of directors engaged three highly respected independent corporate governance experts, the Corporate Governance Center at Kennesaw State University Kennesaw State University, commonly known as Kennesaw State, is a public, coeducational university and is part of the University System of Georgia. It is located in Kennesaw, an unincorporated community in Cobb County, Georgia, United States, approximately 20 miles north of , the corporate governance advisory firm Board Assets, Inc. and the law firm of Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz to evaluate ATG's corporate governance structure, policies and procedures Policies and Procedures are a set of documents that describe an organization's policies for operation and the procedures necessary to fulfill the policies. They are often initiated because of some external requirement, such as environmental compliance or other governmental . In the executive summary of their joint report, the Corporate Governance Center at Kennesaw State University and Board Assets, Inc. wrote, "In our opinion ATG has excellent corporate governance policies, procedures and practices. We believe that the ATG directors are committed to considering the long-term success of ATG and do what they believe is in the best interests of the corporation and its shareholders. In addition, ATG has governance processes and procedures in place designed to help ensure that the right mix of directors is involved in decision making. They make decisions with quality information and work in an environment and culture that is highly functional and effective. In summary, in our opinion, ATG has an efficient and well functioning board." In its separate report, Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz noted, "We believe that the Company has generally adopted state-of-the-art corporate governance programs, and that the Company's takeover defenses are consistent with sound governance and a commitment to stockholders." Paul Shorthose, Chairman of ATG's board of directors, stated, "These independent reports reaffirm our belief that ATG's board is adhering to corporate governance best practices. The board remains committed to continuing to strengthen its governance practices, providing quality oversight to ATG, and ensuring that the company continues to build value for its shareholders." Based in part on recommendations in these reports, ATG's board of directors has undertaken the following initiatives, among others, to further enhance the company's corporate governance practices. The ATG board will refine the process for establishing and measuring long-term strategic goals, formalize a management succession plan, consider a policy requiring ownership of the company's shares by directors, and review and clarify the process by which the company's stockholders can contact the board. The board amended the company's stock option plans to remove provisions that would permit loans to any officers or directors. The board also reviewed the company's anti-takeover measures and determined, consistent with the reports of the independent consultants, that these provisions are reasonable and strengthen the board's ability to make decisions in the best interest of all stockholders. The board intends to review these provisions annually to determine whether they continue to support the board's efforts to carry out its responsibilities to the company's stockholders. ATG is actively searching for an additional independent director to join its board of directors and has engaged a search firm to assist it in that process. The new director, who will be appointed as a Class I director, will be selected by the board with input from several of its larger stockholders. About ATG ATG (Art Technology Group, Inc., NASDAQ: ARTG) delivers innovative software to help high-end consumer-facing companies create a richer, more adaptive interactive experience for their customers and partners online, via email and messaging, and through contact centers. ATG has delivered category-leading commerce, marketing and customer service solutions to hundreds of the world's best-known brands including A&E Networks, Airbus, American Airlines American Airlines Major U.S. airline. American was created through a merger of several smaller U.S. airlines and incorporated in 1934. It continued to buy the routes of other airlines, becoming an international carrier in the 1970s; its routes include South America, the , American Eagle Outfitters, AT&T Wireless, Best Buy, Boeing, France Telecom, Friends Provident Friends Provident plc (LSE: FP.) manages a life assurance business mainly based in the United Kingdom and with offices throughout the world. Friends Provident is a financial services group and a member of the FTSE100 Index. , GE, Hewlett-Packard, HSBC HSBC Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation HSBC Humane Society of Broward County (Florida) HSBC Humane Society of Bay County (Bay County, Michigan) , InterContinental Hotels Group InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) (LSE: IHG NYSE: IHG) is a multinational company which operates several hotel brands. The largest hotel company by number of rooms (556,000 as of March 2007 [1]), its headquarters are in Windsor just outside Greater London and , Kingfisher, Merrill Lynch, Neiman Marcus, Philips, Procter & Gamble, SBC (1) (SBC Communications Inc., San Antonio, TX, www.sbc.com) A large, national telecommunications company that grew from a multitude of local and regional companies, including Southwestern Bell, Pacific Bell and Nevada Bell, into a single, unified brand by 2002. , Target, T- Mobile, US Army, US Federal Aviation Administration Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), component of the U.S. Department of Transportation that sets standards for the air-worthiness of all civilian aircraft, inspects and licenses them, and regulates civilian and military air traffic through its air traffic control , Warner Music, Wells Fargo and Yahoo!. The company is headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, with additional locations throughout North America, Europe, and Asia. For more information about ATG, please visit www.atg.com. |
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