Transforming Kimball International, Inc. (A)

Name: Transforming Kimball International, Inc. (A) (English version)
SKU: 322083

Paine, Lynn Sharp; Hurwitz, Will

Product #:322083

Supplier:Harvard Business School

Discipline:Strategy

Setting:United States, 2021

Details:Case (PDF) • 33 pages • 2022-03-16 (Rev: 2022-10-11)

Subjects:

Change management Corporate governance Decision making Executive compensation Family businesses Organizational behavior Strategy Succession planning Target markets Business management Decision making and problem solving Compensation and benefits Business structures Organizational culture Boards Marketing Strategy

Geography:

United States North America

Your Price:

$12.40

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Kimball International, Inc. (KII), led by CEO Kristie Juster, and its board of directors, chaired by Kim Ryan, faced critical questions about KII's future in the spring of 2021. Two years earlier, the board had appointed Juster as the new CEO of KII, a publicly traded, small cap maker of commercial office furniture based in Jasper, Indiana. Juster had set in motion a major organizational transformation aimed at putting KII on a higher-growth trajectory. Under her leadership, the company had examined its purpose, adopted a new strategy, revised its compensation plan, and undergone a major restructuring. And then, COVID-19 hit. The company adapted quickly, but the pandemic had a significant impact on KII's profitability and stock price, and on executive pay which was significantly tied to both. As the pandemic dragged on, the board had to decide how to design an executive compensation plan that would be fair to employees, fair to shareholders, and meaningful to executives in a highly competitive labor market, while also aligning with KII's purpose and strategy, and driving its ongoing transformation.

Learning Objectives

Students will gain an understanding of the board's role in effecting a corporate transformation-from CEO selection, purpose formulation, and strategy development, to M&A, executive compensation design, and execution oversight. In particular, the case provides an opportunity to consider the various factors that go into the design of executive compensation in the context of a transformation and to examine the role of the compensation committee in that process. The case also allows students to explore issues relating to corporate purpose, ESG, and the transition from family-control to a fully diversified investors base.