STEWARDSHIP : THE ENGINE THAT DRIVES GOVERNANCE
By Sarah Starkey , Chief Legal Officer
Since the company ’ s founding by Larry and Gail Miller in 1979 , corporate governance has been thoughtfully formed and directed to ensure the family-owned business will be sustained for generations to come , and will continue to enrich the lives of the dedicated employees and communities in which we do business .
First and foremost , the Larry H . Miller Company is a corporation . Most employees work for one of the corporate entities within the Larry H . Miller Company structure . Some of these entities are corporations and some are limited liability companies . Each of these entities are provided management services by the Larry H . Miller Company .
In the early days , each of the companies that comprised the Larry H . Miller group of companies had two shareholders : Larry and Gail Miller . They were also the company ’ s two directors and officers of the corporation . Larry
LHM company board of directors
Steve Miller Board Chair
W . Steve Albrecht
Beryl Raff
Greg Miller Vice-Chair
Lee Bird
Robert Restrepo Jr
Gail Miller Immediate Past Chair
Debbie Brown
Mary Lee Schneider
was the secretary , and Gail was the president of virtually every corporation . Gail assumed full ownership of the company with the passing of Larry Miller in 2009 .
In 2015 , Gail Miller , asked Denny Haslam , who is a lifelong friend of Larry and Gail ’ s and who also served as a long-time attorney and executive from the company , if he would help her create a new board of directors to help guide the corporation into the future . Gail ’ s goal was to create a board that could provide independent , experienced advice , similar to a public company board , but with unique attributes to complement the family business . The resulting governance structure is comprised of four Miller family members , the CEO , six independent directors , and one gray director ( the gray director is not a family member , not an employee , but also not independent – this is Denny Haslam ).
Today , the board is chaired by Steve
Miller with Greg Miller serving as vice chair . The board of directors meet quarterly to provide direction to company leadership , vote on matters of company business , and
Brilliant Miller to meet as committees to guide current and future company business and growth . Board members provide valuable direction , experience and stewardship
Dennis Haslam along with transparent leadership in helping the company achieve its objectives .
Steve Starks
WELCOMING DEBBIE BROWN TO THE LARRY H . MILLER COMPANY BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Debbie S . Brown joined the Larry H . Miller Company Board of Directors in October 2022 and brings a wealth of experience guiding multi-generational family businesses . She is currently the board chair of Laird Norton Company , a 167-yearold , seventh-generation family business with a diverse portfolio of investments in real estate , wealth management and consumer products .
In addition to her involvement with Laird Norton , Debbie has served as an independent director for other family-owned companies . She also previously served as a director of the North America chapter of the Family Business Network ; a not-for-profit network of family businesses committed to enhancing family governance and generational success .
Debbie ’ s leadership and experience will be a great asset to the Miller family and the Larry H . Miller Company .
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