Boardrooms Are Expanding: BofA to 14 Directors, L3Harris and FMC Add Seats

BofA's two new directors

Bank of America increased the size of its board from 12 directors to 14, effective October 21, 2026, and appointed James Fitterling and William Thomas to serve immediately. Fitterling is executive chairman of Dow Inc.'s board and its former president, and he will sit on the Enterprise Risk and Compensation and Human Capital committees. Thomas is the former global chairman and chief officer of KPMG International Limited, and he will sit on the Audit and Corporate Governance committees. Both will be compensated under the corporation's existing non-employee director program. m:…9068

The committee assignments are the substance. A former Dow chief executive going to Enterprise Risk and Compensation, and a former KPMG global chairman going to Audit and Governance, is a board staffing itself for the regulatory and talent questions large banks actually face. Two directors added at once, rather than one replacement, is expansion for a reason, and the reason is usually workload. m:…9068

L3Harris and FMC

L3Harris Technologies increased the authorized number of directors from eleven to twelve and appointed Kimberly Fields as an independent director effective October 21, 2026. Fields has served as president and CEO of ATI, Inc. since July 2024, and her initial term expires at the 2027 annual meeting of shareholders. The filing notes there are no reportable related-party transactions involving Fields. Adding a sitting industrial CEO as an independent director is the defense contractor's version of buying operational credibility. m:…3262

FMC Corporation increased its board from 9 to 10 members on October 21, 2026 and appointed Luc Tack as a director, with a seat on the Sustainability and Innovation Committee. Tack has been chief officer of Tessenderlo Group NV since December 2013. The appointment follows a June 30, 2026 stock purchase agreement under which FMC sold 30,319,166 shares of common stock to Tessenderlo Group NV at $13.30 per share, an aggregate $403,244,907.80, with the transaction closing September 23, 2026. Tack will receive cash in lieu of restricted stock units for his director compensation because of share acquisition restrictions. Reasoning: a $403 million strategic investor gets a board seat as a matter of course; the interesting part is that it sits on Sustainability and Innovation, which tells you what the investor wants to talk about. m:…9406

The orderly handoffs

Dell Technologies disclosed that Richard Rothberg, executive vice president, general counsel and secretary, notified the company on October 19, 2026 of his decision to retire, effective February 1, 2027. The board appointed Christopher Garcia to succeed him as chief legal officer, also effective February 1, 2027. Garcia has been senior vice president of corporate legal and assistant secretary since 2022, and joined Dell in 2006. Rothberg will remain employed to provide transitional assistance through April 30, 2027, a three-month handoff that suggests the general counsel's office is not where Dell wants surprises. m:…1988

Frequency Electronics elected Allen Kaplan as its officer effective November 1, 2026, succeeding Steven L. Bernstein, who notified the company of his intention to retire as officer, secretary and treasurer the same day. The company plans a one-year consulting agreement with Bernstein for transition services, reimbursed relocation up to $75,000 for Kaplan, and disclosed his package: a $280,000 base salary, a $37,500 supplemental bonus payable in May 2027, and a new-hire equity award of 5,000 restricted stock units plus 5,000 performance stock units. The company also reaffirmed its previously announced fiscal year 2029 financial targets. Small-cap governance filings rarely disclose this much pay detail in the 8-K itself; the transparency is a small positive signal. m:…9401