Board of Directors

Ramesh Jayaraman serves as President and Chief Executive Officer of Daktronics, bringing more than two decades of global leadership experience across technology-driven industrial sectors, audiovisual, and integrated solutions, as well as global manufacturing and services businesses. He has built his career across Asia Pacific, Europe, and the United States. He has a strong track record of driving transformational change, delivering significant organic growth, and successfully leading organizations through a strategic focus, operational execution, customer-centric innovation, and high-performance team development.

Ramesh most recently served as Senior Vice President and Americas Integration Leader for Bosch Home Comfort. Throughout his career, he has led large-scale businesses and global teams through major strategic shifts, enhancing financial and operational performance while driving enterprise-wide value creation initiatives.

During his tenure at Bosch, Ramesh held several senior leadership roles across the company’s global Energy & Building Technologies portfolio, driving major strategic initiatives across business units. Earlier in his career, he led the Asia Pacific business for Harman Professional Solutions, served as Managing Director for Ariston Thermo Group’s APAC operations, and held a series of commercial, operational, and strategy roles at Tyco/ADT. He began his career in consulting and business analysis before moving into operational leadership.

Known as a relationship-driven, people-first leader, Ramesh believes great teams achieve great things together. His leadership philosophy centers on customer focus, open communication, collaborative decision making, and empowering teams to think big. He is passionate about developing talent and enabling others to grow, a mindset shaped through years of global leadership and his personal commitment to coaching and mentoring.

Ramesh brings a global outlook to Daktronics’ next chapter. He is energized by the opportunity to guide the company’s transformation, expanding how the company defines its impact in the world through experiential and critical communications solutions. He believes in focusing on what matters most, aligning teams around shared priorities, and driving progress through disciplined execution.

Ramesh serves on the Board of Directors for Rain Bird Corporation and participates in several professional and community initiatives. He serves on the advisory council for an international organization helping youths from deeply disadvantaged backgrounds as they prepare to leave their homes and orphanages and enter the world of work.

He considers himself a foodie who enjoys nature, walking, volunteering, his Christian faith, and coaching youth activities. Ramesh enjoys spending time and sharing experiences with his four children. He graduated from the Delhi College of Engineering with a BS in mechanical engineering and earned an MBA from the University of Illinois Chicago.

John P. Friel (70) has been a Director of the Company since September 2015 and has served on the Audit Committee since September 2015 and on the Compensation Committee of the Board since October 2016. Mr. Friel was named Compensation Committee Chair on September 1, 2020. Mr. Friel served for 30 years in various capacities at MEDRAD, Inc., a global company that designs, develops, manufactures, sells, and supports medical devices. MEDRAD is an affiliate of Bayer, AG. He joined MEDRAD in the accounting area and earned a promotion to Treasurer and Vice President of Corporate Planning in 1986 and Vice President of Business Development in 1987. He served as Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing from 1989 to 1995, Senior Vice President and General Manager from 1995 to 1998, and President and Chief Executive Officer from 1998 to 2010. MEDRAD received the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award twice during his tenure, once in 2004 and again in 2010. Mr. Friel retired as Chief Executive Officer of Vascor, Inc. in December 2019, and he has served as a member of its board of directors since June 2016. Vascor is a pre-clinical medical device development company. He also is currently a Director at Preservation Technologies L.P. and a Director at American Productivity and Quality Center ("APQC"). Mr. Friel is the Principal and Founder of Five Radicals, which focuses on Baldrige Performance Excellence, strategic planning, general business consulting to entrepreneurial medical device companies, and private equity business development opportunity search efforts. Mr. Friel is a director of Magvation, Inc., a medical device development company. Mr. Friel is a Senior Partner of the Mikan Group, a general management consulting company. He holds a Master of Arts in Law and Diplomacy from Tufts University and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Bachelor of Science in Accounting from Pennsylvania State University. Mr. Friel brings to the Board extensive global general management knowledge and practice. He has strong experience in building and growing businesses, especially in technical product development and global expansions, which align with many of the Company's initiatives and strategies.

Dr. José-Marie Griffiths (70) has been a Director of the Company since September 2020. She is president of Dakota State University, a public university, in Madison, South Dakota and has served in such capacity since July 2015. President Griffiths has spent her career in research, teaching, public service, corporate leadership, economic development, and higher education administration. She has served in presidential appointments to the National Science Board, the U.S. President’s Information Technology Advisory Committee, and the U.S. National Commission on Libraries and Information Science. In 2018, she was appointed as a member of the National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence, part of the John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act for 2019. She has led projects for over 28 U.S. federal agencies, such as the National Science Foundation, NASA, the Department of Energy, and various intelligence and military agencies, and over 20 major corporations, such as AT&T Bell Laboratories and IBM, in over 35 countries, and she has worked with seven major international organizations, including NATO and the United Nations. Dr. Griffiths has received over 20 significant awards in science, technology, teaching and the advancement of women in these fields. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree and a Doctor of Philosophy in Physics and Information Science from the University College London ("UCL"). She was a Post-Doctoral Fellow in Computer Science and Statistics and was recently awarded a Doctor of Science honoris causa from UCL. Dr. Griffiths brings to the Board expertise in a variety of new and emerging technologies including cybersecurity and artificial intelligence, along with significant experience with both military and civilian federal agencies.

Lance D. Bultena (62) has been a Director of the Company since September 2021 and has served on the Nominating Committee and the Audit Committee since September 2021. He chaired the Nominating Governance Committee from July 2022 until August 2024 when he became the chair of the newly formed Strategy and Risk Committee. Mr. Bultena is the Global Director of Thought Leadership at Hogan Lovells, a global law firm, where he is currently a senior counsel after serving as a partner for many years. He has been at the firm (and its predecessor Hogan & Hartson) since 1999. He was Counsel to the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation from 1995 to 1999. He received a doctorate (D. Phil) in Politics and a masters (M. Phil) in Economics from Oxford University which he attended as a Rhodes Scholar. He received a law degree (J.D.) from Harvard Law School and did his undergraduate study at the University of South Dakota. Dr. Bultena brings to the Board significant experience in helping businesses evaluate and address the challenges of technological change and public policy developments.

Andrew Siegel has been a Director of the Company since 2022 and serves on the Nominating and Governance Committee of the Board. On November 30, 2023, Mr. Siegel was named by the Board as the Lead Independent Director. Andrew Siegel currently manages TLI Bedrock, LLC, a private multi-strategy investment firm.
While in that role, he co-founded and served as Executive Chairman of 4Q Systems, an enterprise financial technology company which was sold to Blackline, Inc. (NASDAQ:BL) in January 2022.

He was Founding Partner of Advance Venture Partners, the investment fund of global media company Advance Publications, Inc. He joined Advance in 2010, and as Executive Vice President, Strategy and Corporate Development, was responsible for growth initiatives at the holding company and its operating units including Conde Nast. He oversaw The Sports Business Journal/SBD until December 2019. Andrew joined Advance from Yahoo! Inc., where he led the digital media company’s corporate development team. He previously was an executive with General Electric and its financial arm GE Capital. He joined GE upon its $902 million acquisition of InVision Technologies (NASDAQ: INVN), where he had served as an executive officer since 2001. He began his career as a corporate lawyer at Skadden, Arps in New York City.

Andrew received a BA from the Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University, an MS from the Jewish Theological Seminary and a JD from New York University School of Law. He serves on the boards of the Park Avenue Synagogue and the Ashley Hope Foundation as well as those of the private companies Gaming Society, Next League, Strategic Financial Solutions and Copyleaks.

Howard Atkins has been a Director of the Company since 2022 and, as of March 2025, is filling the role of CFO and Chief Transformation Officer at Daktronics. Howard is a seasoned financial executive who currently owns and operates a consulting company that helps businesses improve their operating margins and develop/execute company-specific growth strategies.

He is a former Chief Financial Officer of Wells Fargo where he helped successfully lead the bank through the 2008 financial crises and where he organized the acquisition of Wachovia Bank, creating the most prominent coast-to-coast bank in the US at that time.

Previously, he was CFO of New York Life Insurance Company, where he helped identify and acquire non-US insurance organizations as part of NYLife’s international expansion strategy, CFO of Midlantic Bank which successfully completed a top-to-bottom financial restructuring, and Corporate Treasurer of Chase Manhattan Bank where he was responsible for several of that Bank’s markets businesses in the US, Europe and Asia. 

Howard has extensive experience as a Board member, having served as a Director of Occidental Petroleum (a large energy exploration and carbon sequester company), Ingram Micro (the world’s largest tech distributor), and Express Scripts (the country’s largest pharmacy benefits manager).

Entering his 11th year as President of the Milwaukee Bucks, and seventh year as President of the world-class Fiserv Forum, Peter Feigin brings more than two decades of dynamic corporate leadership to Milwaukee’s sports and entertainment scene. His talents, hard work and dedication are the driving force behind the transformational vision for not only the Milwaukee Bucks and Fiserv Forum, but for the city of Milwaukee and state of Wisconsin.

Since taking over as president of the team in October of 2014, Peter has completely reimagined, rebuilt and reenergized the team’s business operations, resulting in substantial increases in attendance, ticket revenue, merchandise revenue, partnership sales and TV viewership. He has assembled a top-flight management team and has nurtured a corporate culture marked by accountability, collaboration and fun. The Bucks were named one of Milwaukee’s best places to work in 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019, and Peter’s inspired leadership was recognized when he was named the Milwaukee BizTimes 2015 CEO of the Year and a Milwaukee Business Journal Power Broker in 2018, 2019 and 2020.

Peter’s vision was instrumental in the financing, planning, design and development of Milwaukee’s new 30-acre Deer District, which is anchored by Fiserv Forum, a $524 million, 17,341-seat sports and entertainment venue in downtown Milwaukee that opened on Aug. 26, 2018, as well as the Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin Sports Science Center, the Bucks’ training facility. Continued development of best-in-class real estate developments, including a popular entertainment block with restaurants, bars, a hotel and an upcoming apartment building, and two music venues is seamlessly linking Fiserv Forum to existing infrastructure to create a vibrant, urban community. Peter has worked tirelessly to ensure that this historic project contributes to the overall evolution of the city of Milwaukee and state of Wisconsin.

Throughout his time in Milwaukee, Peter has devoted significant energy and effort to working within the Milwaukee community to accomplish important social and economic goals. Beyond spearheading the development and launch of the Milwaukee Bucks Foundation, he serves on the boards of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Milwaukee, the Milwaukee Public Museum, the Milwaukee Public Schools Foundation and City Year Milwaukee, while co-chairing the African American Chamber of Commerce and the COA Parents of the Year. In 2017, Peter served as the chairman of the American Heart and Stroke Association’s annual campaign. Peter also joined the board of CEOs Against Cancer’s Wisconsin chapter.

Peter’s experience cuts across a wide spectrum of business and entertainment corporations, from the NBA to private aviation, and from digital media and motion pictures to theme parks. Prior to joining the Bucks, Peter served as the Chief Marketing and Revenue Officer of Deluxe Entertainment Services Group, a major international entertainment company, where he managed global business units and handled branding and business development. Prior to joining Deluxe, Peter was the President and Chief Operating Officer of Marquis Jet Partners Inc./NetJets, the world’s leading private aviation company. Peter was integral in Berkshire Hathaway’s NetJets acquisition of Marquis Jet in 2010 and played a central role in the integration of the two companies. After transitioning post-merger to the same responsibilities at NetJets, he led the company to significant revenue growth.

From 1998 to 2004, Peter worked for the New York Knicks in a variety of roles, culminating in his position as Vice President of Marketing. Under Peter’s leadership, profits, season subscriptions and suite revenues increased significantly. From 1993 to 1998, he held sales and marketing positions with Six Flags Theme Parks, which was then a Time Warner company.

Peter is a native New Yorker. He and his wife, Natalia, have two children, Alexandra and Thomas. He holds a bachelor’s degree from Franklin and Marshall College, from which he also received an honorary doctorate in 2022. Peter also earned an Honorary Doctor of Business from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 2023 and previously completed the University of Chicago Booth School of Business’ Financial Executive Program.

Mark recently retired as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer at Cox Automotive Inc. (“Cox Automotive”), a role he held from 2017 to 2023, a global automotive services and software company whose vision is to transform the way the world buys, sells and owns cars. Cox Automotive is a subsidiary of family-owned Cox Enterprises, Inc. Mr. Bowser joined Cox in 2006 as vice president of Cox Business where he was responsible for overseeing the commercial services division of Cox Communications. In this role, he provided leadership to develop and serve a $7 billion market of diverse business customers. Prior to joining Cox Automotive, Mr. Bowser was vice president of Dell’s Large Corporate Accounts business division where he was responsible for providing computing solutions to Fortune 1000 customers. Prior to Dell, Mr. Bowser served as president of Sprint’s $3.5 billion Enterprise Markets division providing integrated telecommunications solutions to Fortune 500 companies, and as senior vice president of Sprint’s business sales. He has held an extensive number of senior-level financial positions including accounting, financial analysis, and mergers and acquisitions at various companies. Mr. Bowser earned a bachelor’s degree in Finance and Accounting from Pennsylvania State University. He has been a board member for the STARTLIGHT Foundation and Ronald McDonald House charities. Additionally, Mr. Bowser is on the Penn State Shrayer Honors College Board and the Reynold Wellness Board. In 2012, he was named a Penn State Alumni Fellow. Over his 30-year career, Mr. Bowser has been responsible for a portfolio of diverse strategic areas including finance, operations, sales, marketing and business development for several Fortune 500 companies.

Neil has been a senior executive, board director, and strategic advisor with experience in sports, media, hospitality, and technology. During his career, he has led and shaped high-profile organizations, scaled businesses, encouraged innovation, and accelerated growth through strategy, operating expertise, and strong execution. Mr. Glat is chair of the board of Evolv Technology (NASDAQ: EVLV), a leader in AI-based weapons detection. He has been on the board since July 2021 and chair of the board since November 2023. He currently serves on its Investment and Nominating and corporate governance committees. Mr. Glat has also been on the board of Fubo (NYSE: FUBO), a sports-centric over-the-top streaming content distributor, since March 2024. He chairs its compensation committee and serves on its nominating and corporate governance committee. Mr. Glat previously served on the board of NewHold Investment Corp. I, a publicly-traded SPAC, from July 2020 to July 2021, and NewHold Investment Corp. II, a publicly-traded SPAC, from October 2021 to April 2023. In addition, Mr. Glat was, from 2019 to 2024, on the board of ASM Global, a privately held company which was sold in August 2024 and is the world’s largest venue management company. From September 2019 to present, Mr. Glat has been the Managing Member of NG Strategies, LLC and has been providing strategic advice to private equity firms and emerging companies in sports, media, and technology businesses. From April 2012 through August 2019, Mr. Glat served as President of the New York Jets, and, from September 2019 to March 2020, he was a Senior Advisor to the New York Jets. As president, Mr. Glat was responsible for all team business operations. Prior to that, Mr. Glat held senior leadership positions at the National Football League for 15 years from June 1997 to April 2012, where he oversaw corporate development, strategy, stadium development, and club business growth. More recently, Mr. Glat was appointed in December 2021 as Co-President, Americas for SPORTFIVE, a private equity-owned global sports marketing agency, and remained with SPORTFIVE until February 2024. Mr. Glat led the strategic direction and day-to-day management of the U.S. operations and the commercial sales, digital, experiential & production, gaming, esports, creator, and media businesses, as well as overseeing finance, legal, HR, and communications. Mr. Glat has been a Senior Advisor for Arctos Sports Partners, a private equity platform focused on the professional sports industry, and H.I.G. Capital, a private equity firm with over $60 billion under management. Earlier in his career, Mr. Glat worked in management consulting at McKinsey & Company and investment banking at Dillon, Read & Co. Mr. Glat is actively involved with nonprofit and charitable organizations, including serving on the Board of Advisors for the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Social Policy & Practice.