There is an old saying about judging people and organizations by the company they keep. Using that saying as a metric has proven to be a pretty good indicator for business success. In fact, the quality of people with stewardship responsibilities of companies has always been an important consideration of investors. The makeup of the board of directors matters. This is true regardless of the stage of development of any organization.
The company members of the board of directors of customer interaction solutions provider Indianapolis, IN-based Interactive Intelligence Group will be keeping just became enhanced with the announcement of the election of former Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels to its board.
Daniels, a former businessman and public official who was Governor of Indiana from 2005 to 2013, today serves as President of Purdue University. Prior to his gubernatorial service, he worked for the Bush administration as Director of the U.S. Office of Management and Budget. Before that he held positions as President of North American Pharmaceutical Operations and Senior Vice President of Corporate Strategy and Policy at Eli Lilly and Company.
“Mitch’s many successes as Governor, combined with his experience as senior executive of a global business and recent achievements leading Purdue University make for an exceptional addition to our board,” said Dr. Donald E. Brown, Interactive Intelligence founder and CEO.
“I have long admired Interactive Intelligence as Indiana's flagship information technology company,” Daniels said. “Its founder is one of our state's true visionaries and I look forward to adding value to this great technology company with a tremendous history of innovation and success.”
Given all of the complexities of corporate governance—including navigating local, state, national and international regulations—having a seasoned politician on a corporate board is valuable. And, Governor Daniels has a wealth of experience as a manager and his political career which began in 1977 working with Richard Lugar as Chief of Staff in the Senate from where he then was Executive Director of the National Republican Senatorial Committee. Before that he was President of the Hudson Institute, and held positions as chief political adviser and liaison to President Ronald Regan.
Daniels is a graduate of Princeton University and received his Juris Doctor from Georgetown University Law Center.
In addition to Daniels, current Interactive Intelligence board members include Dr. Donald E. Brown, Dr. Edward L. Hamburg, Michael C. Heim, Mark E. Hill, and Richard E. Reck.