William R. Krieble
About William R. Krieble
William R. Krieble (age 77) is an independent director of First Financial Corporation (THFF) who joined the Board in 2009. He retired after 41 years with the State of Indiana, most recently as Program Director for the Division of Disability and Rehabilitative Services, and holds B.S. and M.S. degrees from Indiana State University. He was nominated at the 2025 annual meeting for a term expiring in 2028. The Board has determined he is independent under NASDAQ rules.
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| State of Indiana, Division of Disability and Rehabilitative Services | Program Director | 41 years | Provides political and governmental perspective to the Board and experience addressing human service issues for disabled and disadvantaged populations. |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Charitable and human service organizations | Board/advocacy roles (not individually enumerated) | Not disclosed | Extensive history of service on human service issues (disabled and disadvantaged). |
Board Governance
- Committee memberships (Corporation): Compensation & Employee Benefits; Directors’ Enterprise Risk Management; Enterprise Risk Management; Cybersecurity. He is not a committee chair.
- Committee memberships (Bank): Compensation & Employee Benefits; Cybersecurity; Directors’ Enterprise Risk Management; Enterprise Risk Management; Loan; Community Reinvestment Act.
- Enterprise risk oversight: Member of Directors’ Enterprise Risk Management Committee (management of credit, interest rate, liquidity, compliance, technology, reputation, strategic risks).
- ESOP voting oversight: As a member of the Compensation & Employee Benefits Committee, helps direct ESOP trustee to vote uninstructed shares proportionally.
- Independence and attendance: Independent; Board met 17 times in 2024; each director attended >75% of Board and committee meetings; all directors attended the 2024 Annual Meeting. Independent directors met four times in 2024.
- Lead Independent Director: Ronald K. Rich; executive sessions are held; Board leadership split from CEO in 2024.
Fixed Compensation
| Component (FY 2024) | Amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Corporation annual retainer | $40,000 | Non-employee director retainer. |
| Bank annual retainer | $5,000 | Non-employee director retainer. |
| Board meeting fee (Corp/Bank) | $750 per meeting | Applies to each board meeting attended. |
| Committee meeting fees (Corp) | Audit $1,000; Compensation $1,000; Governance & Nominating $1,000 | Per meeting attended. |
| Committee meeting fees (Bank) | Loan Committee $500 | Per meeting attended. |
| 2024 cash compensation (Corp) | $81,000 | Fees earned or paid in cash (Corporation summary table). |
No director equity grant program is disclosed for 2024; the published director compensation table shows cash-only compensation categories.
Performance Compensation
| Category (FY 2024) | Terms |
|---|---|
| Performance-based cash | None disclosed for directors; compensation structured as retainers and meeting/committee fees. |
| Equity grants to directors | None disclosed in the director compensation table for 2024. |
| Clawback/hedging/pledging | Company-wide clawback policy for executives; directors prohibited from hedging or pledging company stock per policy. |
Other Directorships & Interlocks
- Other public company boards: None disclosed for Krieble.
- Compensation Committee interlocks: None; no member was an officer/employee of THFF and no cross-board interlocks with companies employing committee members.
- Prior public company boards: Not disclosed for Krieble.
Expertise & Qualifications
- Education: B.S. and M.S., Indiana State University.
- Government experience: 41 years of service to State of Indiana; brings political/governmental perspective to Board deliberations.
- Risk and technology oversight: Active on Enterprise Risk Management and Cybersecurity committees (corporate and bank level).
Equity Ownership
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Beneficial ownership | 5,945 shares (less than 1% of outstanding). |
| Shares outstanding | 11,853,489 (as of Feb 28, 2025). |
| Ownership guidelines | Directors must own stock equal to 3x annual Corporation retainer; disposal restrictions until guidelines met. |
| Compliance status | All non-employee directors (except Ms. Jensen, who is within her 5-year compliance window) have met guidelines—Krieble compliant. |
| Hedging/pledging | Prohibited for directors under Insider Trading Policy. |
| Delinquent 16(a) filings | None disclosed for Krieble in 2024. |
Governance Assessment
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Strengths
- Independent director with long tenure and deep public-sector leadership; broad oversight across Compensation, ERM, Cybersecurity, and CRA committees.
- Positive alignment policies: director stock ownership guidelines; anti-hedging/anti-pledging; regular executive sessions and lead independent director structure.
- Shareholder support backdrop: say‑on‑pay approval ~94% in 2024, signaling overall investor confidence in governance and pay practices.
-
Potential investor watchpoints
- Limited disclosure of director-specific equity or performance-linked pay; alignment primarily via ownership guidelines rather than annual equity grants.
- No specific related-party transactions naming Krieble are disclosed; continue monitoring for any future transactions or committee influence via ESOP voting directions.
No conflicts, related-party transactions, or attendance concerns specific to Krieble were disclosed in the latest proxy.