Board of Directors
& Corporate Governance
Board of Directors
The Board is responsible for establishing broad corporate policies, setting strategic direction, and overseeing management, which is responsible for Altria’s day-to-day operations. In fulfilling this role, each director must exercise his or her good faith business judgment in the best interests of the company.
The Board holds regular meetings typically in January, February, May, August, October and December and special meetings when necessary. The organizational meeting follows the Annual Meeting of Shareholders.
Board Committees
The Board has established committees to help it perform its responsibilities.
The Board designates committee members and committee chairs at its annual organizational meeting following the Annual Meeting of Shareholders based on the recommendations of the Nominating, Corporate Governance and Social Responsibility Committee. The Board has adopted charters for each of these committees.
Independence of Directors
The Board is comprised of a substantial majority of directors that meet the independence requirements under New York Stock Exchange listing standards.
The Board has affirmatively determined that: John T. Casteen III, Dinyar S. Devitre, Thomas F. Farrell II, Debra J. Kelly-Ennis, W. Leo Kiely III, Kathryn B. McQuade, George Muñoz, Mark E. Newman, Nabil Y. Sakkab, Virginia E. Shanks and Ellen R. Strahlman are independent because each has no material relationship with the company. To assist it in making these determinations, the Board has adopted categorical standards of director independence.
Corporate Governance
Good corporate governance is a cornerstone of strong business performance and operating with integrity. Our governance practices are intended to serve the best interests of the company and its shareholders through vigorous internal controls and decision making processes and promoting a culture of compliance and integrity. We further advance our corporate governance through a focus on board independence and board and employee diversity; a commitment to stakeholder engagement, responsiveness and transparency; financial accountability and policies aligned with our sustainability goals and initiatives.
