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Following the lead of several Fortune 500 companies, RailAmerica Inc. has separated chairman and president/chief executive officer duties. On March 12, the short-line holding company named Vice Chairman William Pagonis chairman, stripping the title from Gary Marino, who will continue to serve as president and CEO.

Marino had served as chairman since RailAmerica was formed in 1992. He has served as CEO since 1994 and president since 1996.

"The board of directors has determined that separation of the offices of chairman and CEO is an important element in developing an effective corporate governance system," said Pagonis in a prepared statement.

The separation will enable Marino to focus on RailAmerica's day-to-day operations and Pagonis, the company's big picture, says RailAmerica spokeswoman Susan Wright Greenfield.

"The chairman is responsible for overseeing management, and if you're the chairman, president and CEO, it's difficult to oversee yourself," she says, declining to characterize Marino's reaction to or knowledge of the separation. "From an investor's standpoint, it's better to have an outside director setting the board's agenda and watching over the ship."

A RailAmerica board member since February 2000, Pagonis serves Sears Logistics Services Inc. as senior vice president-head of supply chain.

RailAmerica also named Charles Swinburn chairman of the company's Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee, and John Sullivan, member of the Compensation Committee to succeed Pagonis, who resigned from both committees.

— Jeff Stagl