Cognizant Names Betsy Atkins and John Dineen to Board of Directors

TEANECK, N.J., March 31, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Cognizant (NASDAQ: CTSH) today announced that Betsy S. Atkins and John M. Dineen have been elected to its Board as new independent directors, effective April 1, 2017.

Ms. Atkins, 63, has been the CEO of venture capital firm Baja LLC, a company she founded, and was previously Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Clear Standards, Inc., a provider of energy management and sustainability software and solutions.

Mr. Dineen, 53, previously served as CEO of GE Healthcare and held a number of senior executive roles in his 28 year career at General Electric. Since January 2015, he has served as Operating Advisor at private investment firm Clayton, Dubilier & Rice LLC.

"Both Betsy and John bring a wide range of expertise to the Cognizant Board," said Francisco D'Souza, Cognizant CEO. "In addition to leading several successful companies, Betsy has served on numerous boards across a range of global industries, is a recognized expert on corporate governance and brings a wealth of experience to Cognizant. John's extensive operating experience and leadership roles in healthcare and several other key industries and geographies we serve will provide us with a unique and valuable perspective. We are pleased to welcome both of these proven business leaders to our Board."

Cognizant today also announced that Lakshmi Narayanan and Thomas M. Wendel will not be seeking re-election at the Company's 2017 annual meeting. Mr. Narayanan has served as a Board member since 2003 and Mr. Wendel has served as a member of the Board since 2001.

John Klein, Cognizant's Chairman of the Board, added, "On behalf of the Board and our entire leadership team, I'd like to thank both Lakshmi and Tom for their many years of service and strategic counsel as members of our Board and for their role in helping to make Cognizant the leader it is today."

Biographies

Ms. Atkins is a three-time CEO and serial entrepreneur co-founding enterprise software companies in the energy, healthcare and networking industries. She scaled companies through hyper growth digital transformation, and has led companies through initial public offerings and acquisitions such as Clear Standards, Inc., which was purchased by SAP, and Ascend Communications, which was acquired by Lucent. Ms. Atkins has built three early stage funds at Baja LLC, making early investments in companies such as Yahoo, eBay and Selectica.

Ms. Atkins' publications on corporate governance have been included in The Conference Board, National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD), Business Insider, and Forbes. She is currently serving on three public company boards: HD Supply, Inc., SL Green Realty Corp. and Schneider Electric SE. She is also a member of the board of privately held Volvo Car AB as well as the advisory board of SAP. Ms. Atkins received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.

Mr. Dineen spent 28 years in leadership roles in several industries around the world working for GE. During the late 1990s and early 2000s, he held several international management roles while based in Asia and Europe. He then moved back to the U.S. as Vice President and General Manager of Plastics at GE Advanced Materials. In 2005, Mr. Dineen was named President and CEO of GE Transportation, a leader in railroad locomotive and train control technologies.

In 2008, Mr. Dineen was named CEO of London-based GE Healthcare, an enterprise with annual revenues in excess of $18 billion and over 50,000 employees around the world. During his six-year tenure, he expanded the unit's portfolio, increased revenues and strengthened its international reach. Mr. Dineen currently serves on the Board of Merrimack Pharmaceuticals, a Boston-based biotech focused on creating innovative cancer therapies and treatments. Mr. Dineen holds Bachelor of Science degrees in Biology and Computer Science from the University of Vermont.

About Cognizant

Cognizant (NASDAQ-100: CTSH) is one of the world's leading professional services companies, transforming clients' business, operating and technology models for the digital era. Our unique industry-based, consultative approach helps clients envision, build and run more innovative and efficient businesses. Headquartered in the U.S., Cognizant is ranked 230 on the Fortune 500 and is consistently listed among the most admired companies in the world. Learn how Cognizant helps clients lead with digital at www.cognizant.com or follow us @Cognizant.

SOURCE Cognizant