Board of Directors

The Board of ArborGen Holdings consists of five directors:

David Knott - Chairman (who has a 28.28% relevant ownership interest in ArborGen Holdings) (appointed 19 August 2021)
George Adams (appointed 12 August 2019)
Thomas Avery (appointed 18 July 2018)
Ozey Horton (appointed 11 July 2018)
Paul Smart (appointed 21 August 2018)

Directors' biographies

David Knott - appointed 19 August 2021

Chairman
BA University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Dave is the Managing Member of Knott Partners who, with associated entities, is ArborGen’s largest shareholder. He has served as Managing Member of Knott Partners since March 2017. Dave is a board member of Daida LLC, and is on the Advisory Board of The HiGro Group.

The Board has determined that Mr Knott is not an Independent Director as defined under the NZX Listing Rules because he is a substantial product holder of the Company.

George Adams - appointed 12 August 2019
Independent Director
FCA (Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland), CMInstD (Chartered Member of the Institute of Directors), Diploma in Company Direction, University of Ulster

George, who is based in New Zealand, brings broad industry knowledge to the Board. His previous management positions include Managing Director of Coca-Cola Amatil in New Zealand, Financial Controller of British Telecom Northern Ireland and Group Finance Director of Molino Beverages based in Dublin. He is currently Chairman of Bremworth, Netlogix, Essano and New Zealand Frost Fans. In addition, Mr Adams is the Executive Chairman and co-founder of Apollo Foods and Insightful Mobility. George also chaired the Independent Forestry Safety Review in 2014 and is Chair of the Business Leaders’ Health and Safety Forum.

The Board has determined that Mr Adams is an Independent Director as defined under the NZX Listing Rules because he is not an executive of ArborGen and does not have any Disqualifying Relationships as defined in the NZX Listing Rules.

Thomas Avery - appointed 18 July 2018
Independent Director
MBA Harvard Business School; BSc Georgia Institute of Technology

Tom has nearly 40 years of investment banking and venture capital experience. He has served on numerous public and private company boards throughout his career, advising companies on the successful financing, planning and execution of growth strategies.

As an investment banker, Tom worked primarily with middle market growth companies in executing mergers and acquisitions, initial public offerings, and private placements of equity and debt. He served as a Managing Director at Raymond James & Associates from 2000-2014, which involved the management of the technology investment banking group and the financial sponsors’ efforts. Prior to that, Tom’s career saw him act as the head of the investment banking group at Interstate/Johnson-Lane, be a general partner at Summit Partners and at Noro-Moseley Partners, and work as a Senior Vice President at The Robinson-Humphrey Company. He currently has directorships at CRA International Inc, KIPP Metro Atlanta and PowerUP Scholarship, a non-profit organisation that gives disadvantaged Atlanta youth new opportunities for personal development.

The Board has determined that Mr Avery is an Independent Director as defined under the NZX Listing Rules because he is not an executive of ArborGen and does not have any Disqualifying Relationships as defined in the NZX Listing Rules.

Ozey Horton Jr - appointed 11 July 2018
Independent Director
MBA Harvard Business School; BSE Duke University

Ozey has extensive experience in global operations, strategic planning, merger and acquisition integration and change management.

He has been a Director Emeritus of McKinsey & Co., a business consulting organisation, since 2011 when he retired after nearly 30 years with the firm. At McKinsey, Ozey led various practice areas around the globe, including Pulp, Paper and Packaging, Industrial, Change Management, Global Operations in Energy and Materials, and Basic Materials. His McKinsey client service and practice leadership provided for considerable experience working in Europe, South America, India, and Asia. He is a faculty member for McKinsey’s leadership development programme, a Senior Advisor at McKinsey, and also serves as an independent business advisor.

He currently serves on the Boards of Worthington Industries and Louisiana–Pacific Corp, and the Advisory Board of Al Dabbagh Group. He also serves on the Advisory Board of the MUSC Hollings Cancer Center.

The Board has determined that Mr Horton is an Independent Director as defined under the NZX Listing Rules because he is not an executive of ArborGen and does not have any Disqualifying Relationships as defined in the NZX Listing Rules.

Paul Smart - appointed 21 August 2018
Independent Director
BBS, Finance Massey University; Chartered Accountant (CA); Chartered Member Institute of Directors (CMinstD)

Paul brings more than 30 years’ experience as a senior financial executive and professional director in local and international
markets, including listings on the NZX, ASX and NASDAQ.

As an executive, Paul’s key experiences were as CFO of NZ’s largest energy company, Meridian Energy and prior to that, founding CFO of Sky Television which during his tenure went on to become a top 10 listed company on the NZX. As a professional director Paul has variously acted as a director, audit and finance chair and board chair for a broad range of companies including listed, venture capital, high-net-worth family, and large private companies. These roles have included businesses in the energy, manufacturing, venture capital, transport and tourism and automation sectors in NZ, USA, Australia, Thailand, India, and Spain. He is currently a non-executive director of MHM Automation, Geo40, Vortex Power Systems, Argus Fire Systems and Genus ABS (NZ).

The Board has determined that Mr Smart is an Independent Director as defined under the NZX Listing Rules because he is not an executive of ArborGen and does not have any Disqualifying Relationships as defined in the NZX Listing Rules.