Corporate Governance

Aisha M. Barry has been a director since 2020. Ms. Barry currently serves as President of Advanced Sterilization Products (ASP), a global leader in infection prevention, owned by Fortive Corporation.

Ms. Barry is an experienced professional with a strong background of strategic business leadership and technology innovation. Prior to joining ASP, she was with Koninklijke Philips N.V., a global health technology company, serving as Vice President and General Manager, Patient Monitoring Category Leader. In this role, Ms. Barry was responsible for operations of the Acute Care Monitoring and Information Systems segments. Prior to joining Philips, Ms. Barry was with Medtronic where she was Vice President and General Manager of the Patient Management business within the Cardiac Rhythm and Heart Failure category. Joining Medtronic in 2016, she led the transformation of remote monitoring for patients with implanted cardiac devices, towards an integrated digital health care platform, including the launch of the MyCareLink Heart™ patient app and the SmartSync Device Manager™. Earlier, Ms. Barry worked at Procter and Gamble for 13 years where she held key product development and marketing positions. She later joined Deere and Company where she held positions of increasing responsibility in operations.

Ms. Barry earned a BS degree in Chemical Engineering from The Ohio State University and an MBA from the Tuck School of Business, Dartmouth College.

A. William Higgins has been a director since 2009. He has been the President and Chief Executive Officer of Albany International Corporation, a global advanced textiles and materials processing company, since January 2020, serving on its board of directors since 2016, and as chairman of its board of directors from February 2019 until January 2020. He previously served as the Chairman, CEO, and President of CIRCOR International, Inc., a global diversified manufacturing company that designs, manufactures, and supplies valves and related products and services to OEMs, processors, manufacturers, and military utilities that rely on fluid control to accomplish their missions. He served in those positions from March 2008 until his retirement in December 2012. Mr. Higgins previously served as Chief Operating Officer and Executive Vice President of CIRCOR, and prior to joining CIRCOR, he spent 13 years in a variety of senior management positions at Honeywell International and Allied Signal.

Mr. Higgins previously served as a director at Bristow Group Inc., a leading provider of industrial aviation services. Leslie Controls, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of CIRCOR (and an entity for which Mr. Higgins previously served as a director and Vice President) filed for bankruptcy protection in July 2010 to eliminate certain asbestos litigation liabilities. The subsidiary successfully emerged from bankruptcy the following year.

Mr. Higgins’ professional background provides the Board with an additional perspective on talent development, international operations and global strategic development, lean manufacturing and continuous improvement processes, the aerospace and defense industries, and acquisitions.

Scott Kuechle has been a director since 2013. He is a former Chief Financial Officer of Goodrich Corporation, a worldwide supplier of aerospace components, systems, and services to the commercial and general aviation airplane market which was acquired by United Technologies Corporation in 2012. Mr. Kuechle served as CFO of Goodrich from August 2005 until his retirement in July 2012. He previously served as Vice President and Controller from 2004 to 2005, Vice President and Treasurer from 1998 to 2004, and in various other financial leadership roles during his 29-year tenure.

Mr. Kuechle also previously served as a director of Esterline Corporation, a specialty manufacturer serving the global aerospace and defense markets and Wesco Aircraft Holdings, Inc., a provider of comprehensive supply chain management services to the global aerospace industry. His extensive background and experience within the aerospace and defense industry, coupled with his financial expertise and past experience as a Chief Financial Officer, provide the Board with a powerful skill set upon which to draw as Kaman continues to execute its strategic plan. This type of expertise and experience was particularly important to the Board as a means of providing additional depth to the Audit Committee, to which Mr. Kuechle was appointed upon his election to the Board. His background also provides the Board with an additional perspective on international operations, financial management, acquisitions, and other finance related matters.

Michelle J. Lohmeier has been a director since 2020. Ms. Lohmeier recently retired from Spirit Aerosystems, Inc. effective April 30, 2021. She most recently served as a consultant for Spirit AeroSystems Inc. and senior advisor to the CEO. She was also the Senior Vice President and General Manager of Airbus Programs at Spirit AeroSystems. Prior to joining Spirit AeroSystems, Ms. Lohmeier held several positions of increasing responsibility during a 30-year career at the Raytheon Company, her last position being Vice President of the Land Warfare Systems product line at Raytheon Missile Systems. In that position, Ms. Lohmeier had responsibility for the development and production of all Army and U.S. Marine Corps missile programs. Previously, Ms. Lohmeier was the program director for the design, development and production implementation of the Standard Missile-6 weapon system for the U.S. Navy. She began her career with Hughes Aircraft Company as a system test engineer. She also serves as a director of Mistras Group, a global provider of technology-enabled asset protection solutions, and Nammo Defense Systems, Inc., a provider of ammunition and rocket motors for both military and civilian customers.

Ms. Lohmeier earned a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree in systems engineering from the University of Arizona.

Jennifer Pollino has been a director since 2015 and assumed the role of Lead Independent Director in 2021. She currently serves as an Executive Coach and Consultant at JMPollino LLC, a leadership development, talent management, and succession planning firm she founded upon her retirement from Goodrich Corporation in July 2012. She previously served as Executive Vice President, Human Resources and Communications, at Goodrich from February 2005 to July 2012, when Goodrich was acquired by United Technologies Corporation. Prior to that, she served as President and General Manager of the Aircraft Wheels & Brakes Division of Goodrich Corporation from September 2002 to February 2005, President and General Manager of the Turbomachinery Products Division of Goodrich Corporation from December 2001 to August 2002, and in various other positions of increasing responsibility during her 20-year tenure at Goodrich.

Ms. Pollino also serves as a director of Crane Co., a diversified manufacturer of highly engineered industrial products, and Wesco Aircraft Holdings, Inc., a provider of comprehensive supply chain management services to the global aerospace industry. The Board believes that these positions demonstrate an extensive history of senior executive and oversight roles which provide operational insight, particularly with regards to human resources and government contracting. The Board also values her prior experience in finance and accounting gained as Vice President – Finance and Controller of two Goodrich divisions, Controller of a savings and loan association, Field Accounting Officer with Resolution Trust Corporation, and as a certified public accountant.

Niharika Taskar Ramdev joined Kaman Corporation’s Board of Directors in June 2022. She is a seasoned finance executive with global experience and has worked in the United States, India, China and Singapore. She spent over two decades of her career with General Motors, having served as Chief Financial Officer of the Global Cadillac division from 2018 to 2019, Chief Financial Officer of General Motors International from 2015 to 2018, Vice President, Finance and Treasurer from 2014 to 2015 and Chief Financial Officer for Global Purchasing and Supply Chain from 2011 to 2014. Ms. Ramdev currently serves as a director of Triton International Limited. She previously served as a director of Renewable Energy Group and XL Fleet. She received her M.B.A. from Harvard Business School.

Ian K. Walsh jointly serves as Chairman of the Board of Directors, President and Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Walsh has served as Kaman’s President and Chief Executive Officer since joining the Company on September 8, 2020. He previously served as Chief Operating Officer REV Group, Inc., a leading designer, manufacturer, and distributor of specialty vehicles and related aftermarket parts and services. Prior to joining REV Group, he worked at Textron, Inc., where he most recently served as President and Chief Executive Officer of TRU Simulation and Training. His career with Textron began in 1999 at Bell Helicopter and progressed through leadership roles of increasing responsibility, including Senior Vice President and General Manager of Lycoming Engines and Senior Vice President and General Manager of Textron’s Weapon & Sensor Systems business. He is a certified Six Sigma Black Belt and achieved the prestigious International Shingo Silver Medallion for Operational Excellence for his work at Lycoming Engines. Prior to joining Textron, he served as an officer and naval aviator in the U.S. Marine Corps.

Mr. Walsh holds a bachelor’s degree from Hamilton College, a Master of Public Administration from Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government, and a Master of Business Administration from Harvard Business School.