Company: STAA
Filing Date: 2025-04-24
Form Type: DEF 14A
Source: 0000950170-25-058174
Chunk: 24

Company: STAAR SURGICAL CO
Filing Date: 2025-04-24
Form: DEF 14A
Chunk 24
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 performance if the candidate is a candidate for re-election, and generally considers the candidate’s ability to contribute to the success of STAAR. The Nominating and Governance Committee believes that differences in background, professional experiences, education, skills and viewpoints will enhance the performance of the Board of Directors. Accordingly, the Nominating and Governance Committee considers the appropriate balance of experience, skills and characteristics required of the Board, including that which is complementary to the experience, skills and characteristics of other Board members, so that an appropriate balance on the Board can be achieved and maintained. The Nominating and Governance Committee assists the Board in determining the appropriate director selection criteria for potential director candidates, including any specialized experience, such as public-company experience, medical device industry experience, other similar regulated industry experience, and financial and accounting experience. The Board believes that it is also important to consider a potential director candidate’s contribution to overall Board diversity,

| 2025 Proxy Statement | – 17 – |

#### ––Corporate Governance––
including diversity of occupational and personal backgrounds, perspectives, and experiences, and ultimately selects director candidates based on merit. Further, the Nominating Committee will consider the issue of continuing director tenure and take appropriate steps to ensure that the Board maintains an openness to new ideas and a willingness to critically re-examine the status quo.

Of the four new directors that joined our Board within the last two years, Ms. Zhou was identified as a potential director nominee by Company shareholders, and each of Messrs. Butcher and Jiang was identified as a potential director nominee by a third-party search firm. Mr. Silverman was known to our Board as a result of his prior service as a director from 2014 to 2022. The Nominating and Governance Committee and the Board discussed and considered each director candidate’s integrity, experience and expertise, and independence. In 2025, the Board determined that it would benefit from expanding the size of the Board and recruiting a director with executive leadership experience, with a focus on financial and operating rigor. In addition, given that Mr. Farrell stepped down from the Audit Committee and Nominating and Governance Committee in February 2025 in connection with his appointment as Chief Executive Officer, the Board sought out director candidates with skills and experience that would contribute to the effectiveness of the Audit Committee and the Nominating and Governance Committee. After considering Mr. Silverman as a director candidate, the Nominating and Governance Committee recommended, and the Board approved, the appointment of Mr. Silverman to join the Board