8-K

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

Form 8-K

CURRENT REPORT

Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934

Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported):  February 25, 2020

Piedmont Office Realty Trust, Inc.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

Commission File Number:  001-34626

Maryland	58-2328421
(State or other jurisdiction of	(IRS Employer
incorporation)	Identification No.)

5565 Glenridge Connector Suite 450

Atlanta, Georgia 30342

(Address of principal executive offices, including zip code)

(770) 418-8800

(Registrant's telephone number, including area code)

Not applicable

(Former name or former address, if changed since last report)

Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions:

☐   Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425)

☐   Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)

☐   Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))

☐   Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Title of each class	Trading Symbol	Name of each exchange on which registered
Common Stock, $0.01 par value	PDM	New York Stock Exchange

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth company as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933 (§230.405 of this chapter) or Rule 12b-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (§240.12b-2 of this chapter).

Emerging growth company ☐

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act.o

Item 5.02 Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers.

(d) Appointment of Glenn G. Cohen as Director

On February 25, 2020, the Board of Directors of Piedmont Office Realty Trust, Inc. (the "Registrant") appointed Glenn G. Cohen to serve as a director of the Registrant beginning on March 1, 2020.

Mr. Cohen will serve as a member of the Audit Committee. His compensation as a director will be provided on the same basis as that provided to the Registrant's other non-employee directors, described on page 46 of the Registrant's most recent Annual Proxy Statement as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 19, 2019, which description is incorporated herein by reference.

The press release issued by the Registrant on February 27, 2020 announcing Mr. Cohen's appointment is filed as Exhibit 99.1 hereto and incorporated herein by reference.

Item 9.01 Financial Statement and Exhibits.

(d) Exhibits.

Exhibit Number	Description
99.1	Press Release dated February 27, 2020

SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this Current Report on Form 8-K to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.

			Piedmont Office Realty Trust, Inc.
			(Registrant)
Dated:	February 27, 2020	By:	/s/    Robert E. Bowers
			Robert E. Bowers
			Chief Financial Officer and Executive Vice President

EX-99.1

Exhibit 99.1

Glenn G. Cohen Joins Piedmont Office Realty Trust’s

Board of Directors

Atlanta, February 27, 2020 – Piedmont Office Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:PDM) announced today that its Board of Directors has appointed Glenn G. Cohen, as member of the Board, effective March 1, 2020. Cohen will serve as an independent director of the Company and as a member of the Audit Committee of the Board.

Mr. Cohen is Executive Vice-President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer of Kimco Realty Corp. (NYSE: KIM), where he has been employed for the past 25 years, serving first as Director of Accounting and Taxation, then Treasurer and various other positions until his promotion to CFO in 2010. Mr. Cohen previously served as an independent director and member of the audit committee for Quality Care Properties, Inc. (previously NYSE: QCP) from 2016 until its acquisition by Welltower, Inc. (NYSE: WELL) in 2018. He is a CPA and member of National Assoication of Real Estate Investment Trusts (NAREIT) and International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC).

Commenting on the appointment, Frank C. McDowell, Chairman of Piedmont’s Board of Directors, said “We are very pleased to welcome Glenn to the Piedmont Board. His knowledge and experience as the CFO of another large, publicly-traded REIT makes him a great fit for our Board and Audit Committee.”

About Piedmont:

Piedmont Office Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE: PDM) is an owner, manager, developer, redeveloper, and operator of high-quality, Class A office properties located primarily in select sub-markets within seven major Eastern U.S. office markets. Its geographically-diversified, almost $5 billion portfolio is currently comprised of approximately 18 million

square feet. The Company is a fully-integrated, self-managed real estate investment trust (REIT) with local management offices in each of its major markets and is investment-grade rated by Standard & Poor's (BBB) and Moody's (Baa2). As of December 31, 2019, over 60% of the company’s portfolio was ENERGY STAR certified and approximately 35% was LEED certified. For more information, see www.piedmontreit.com.

Contact: Meredi Lee

Company: Piedmont Office Realty Trust

Phone: 1 770 418 8677

Email:Meredi.Lee@Piedmontreit.com

XML

Document	Feb. 25, 2020
Cover page.
Document Type	8-K
Document Period End Date	Feb. 25, 2020
Entity Registrant Name	Piedmont Office Realty Trust, Inc.
Entity File Number	001-34626
Entity Incorporation, State or Country Code	MD
Entity Tax Identification Number	58-2328421
Entity Address, Address Line One	5565 Glenridge Connector
Entity Address, Address Line Two	Suite 450
Entity Address, City or Town	Atlanta,
Entity Address, State or Province	GA
Entity Address, Postal Zip Code	30342
City Area Code	(770)
Local Phone Number	418-8800
Written Communications	false
Soliciting Material	false
Pre-commencement Tender Offer	false
Pre-commencement Issuer Tender Offer	false
Title of 12(b) Security	Common Stock, $0.01 par value
Trading Symbol	PDM
Security Exchange Name	NYSE
Entity Emerging Growth Company	false
Entity Central Index Key	0001042776
Amendment Flag	false