CTS CORP 10-K

Item 1A. Risk Factors The following are certain risk factors that could affect our business, financial condition and operating results. These risk factors should be considered in connection with evaluating forward-looking statements contained in this Annual Report on Form 10-K or in any other reports filed or furnished by us, because these factors could cause our actual results and financial condition to differ materially from those projected in any such forward-looking statements. Before you invest in us, you should know that making such an investment involves risks, including the risks described below. Although the risks are organized by headings, and each risk is discussed separately, many are interrelated. You should not interpret the disclosure of any risk factor to imply that the risk has not already materialized. The risks that are highlighted below are not the only ones that we face. If any of the following risks occur, our business, financial condition and operating results could be negatively affected. Risks Related to Our Business and Industry Because we currently derive a substantial portion of our revenues from a small number of customers, any decrease in orders from these customers could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition and operating results. We depend on a small number of customers for a substantial portion of our business, and changes in the level of our customers' orders have, in the past, had a significant impact on our results of operations. If a major customer significantly delays, reduces, or cancels the level of business it does with us, there could be an adverse effect on our business, financial condition and operating results. Significant pricing and margin pressures exerted by a major customer could also materially adversely affect our operating results. In addition, we generate significant accounts receivable from sales to our major customers. If one or more of our major customers were to become insolvent or otherwise unable to pay or were to delay payment for our products, our business, financial condition and operating results could be materially adversely affected. Our customers may cancel their orders, change production quantities or locations or delay production. We generally receive volume estimates, but not firm volume commitments from our customers, and may experience reduced or extended lead times in customer orders. Customers may cancel orders, change production quantities and delay production for a number of reasons. Uncertain economic and geopolitical conditions may result in some of our customers delaying the delivery of some of the products we manufacture for them and placing purchase orders for lower volumes of products than previously anticipated. Cancellations, reductions or delays by a significant customer or by a number of customers may harm our results of operations by reducing the volumes of products we manufacture and sell, as well as by causing a delay in the recovery of our expenditures for inventory in preparation for customer orders, or by reducing our asset utilization, resulting in lower profitability. CTS CORPORATION 8 Table of Contents In addition, customers may request that manufacturing of their products be transitioned from one of our facilities to another to achieve cost reductions and other objectives. Such transfers may result in inefficiencies and costs due to resulting excess capacity and overhead at one facility and capacity constraints and the inability to fulfill all orders at another. In addition, we make key decisions based on our estimates of customer requirements, including determining the levels of orders that we will seek and accept, production schedules, component procurement commitments, personnel needs and other resource requirements. Changes in demand for our customers’ products may reduce our ability to estimate future customer requirements accurately. This may make it difficult to schedule production and maximize utilization of our manufacturing capacity. Anticipated orders may not materialize and delivery schedules may be deferred as a result of changes in demand for our products or our customers' products. We often increase staffing and capacity, and incur other expenses to meet the anticipated demand of our customers, which causes reductions in our gross margins if customer orders are delayed or canceled. On occasion, customers may require rapid increases in production, which may stress our resources and reduce margins. We may not have sufficient capacity at any given time to meet our customers' demands. In addition, because many of our costs and operating expenses are relatively fixed over the short-term, a reduction in customer demand could harm our gross margin and operating income until such time as adjustments can be made to activity and operating levels or to structural costs. We sell products to customers in cyclical industries that are subject to significant downturns that could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and operating results. We sell products to customers in cyclical industries that have experienced economic and industry downturns. The markets for our products have softened in the past and may again soften in the future. We may face reduced end-customer demand, underutilization of our manufacturing capacity, changes in our revenue mix and other factors that could adversely affect our results. We are susceptible to trends and factors affecting industries that we serve. Factors negatively affecting the industries we serve and the demand for their products could negatively affect our business, financial condition and operating results. Any adverse occurrence, including among others, industry slowdown, recession, public health crisis, political instability, costly or constraining regulations, increased tariffs, reduced government budgets and spending, armed hostilities, terrorism, excessive inflation, including the current high inflationary environment, prolonged disruptions in one or more of our customers' production schedules or labor disturbances, that results in a decline in the volume of sales in these industries, or in an overall downturn in the business and operations of our customers in these industries, could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and operating results. These industries may be unionized and some of our customers have experienced labor disruptions in the past. Furthermore, these industries can be highly cyclical in nature and sensitive to changes in general economic conditions, consumer preferences and interest rates. The insolvency of customers that we serve may result in the failure to receive payment in full for products sold in the past and an abrupt reduction in demand for certain products. Weakness in demand, the insolvency of customers that we serve or their suppliers, and constriction of credit markets may negatively and materially affect our facility utilization, cost structure, financial condition, and operating results. Our operating results may vary significantly from period to period. We experience fluctuations in our operating results. Some of the principal factors that contribute to these fluctuations are: changes in demand for our products; our effectiveness in managing manufacturing processes, costs and timing of our component purchases so that components are available when needed for production, while mitigating the risks of purchasing inventory in excess of immediate production needs; the degree to which we are able to utilize our available manufacturing capacity; changes in the cost and availability of components, which often occur in the electronics manufacturing industry and which affect our margins and our ability to meet delivery schedules; general economic and served industry conditions; and local conditions and events that may affect our production volumes, such as labor conditions or political instability. We may experience shortages and increased costs of raw material and required electronic components. Unanticipated raw material or electronic component shortages may prevent us from making scheduled shipments to customers. Our inability to make scheduled shipments could cause us to experience a shortfall in revenue, increase our costs and adversely affect our relationship with affected customers and our reputation as a reliable supplier. We may be required to pay higher prices for raw materials or electronic components in short supply and order these raw materials or electronic components in greater quantities to compensate for variable delivery times. We may also be required to pay higher prices for raw materials or electronic components due to inflationary trends regardless of supply, including the current high inflationary environment. We are also dependent on our suppliers' ability to supply and deliver raw materials on a timely basis at negotiated prices. Any delay or inability to deliver raw materials by our suppliers may require that we attempt to mitigate such failure or fail to make deliveries to our customers on a timely basis. As a result, raw material or electronic component shortages, price increases, or failure to perform by our suppliers could adversely affect our operating results for a particular period due to the resulting revenue shortfall and/or increased costs. CTS CORPORATION 9 In particular, the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent supply chain uncertainties have had a significant negative impact on the global economy in 2020 and 2021, including negatively impacting the global supply chain and increasing the cost of materials and operations, particularly within the global automotive industry. Key semiconductor chip and other critical part shortages continue to force original equipment manufacturers (“ OEMs ”) to shut down production, often on short notice. With customers changing orders on short notice, we run the risk of carrying excess inventory in these situations. In addition, the supply chain shortages have negatively impacted, and could continue to negatively impact, our manufacturing costs and logistics costs and, in turn, our gross margins. We may pursue acquisition opportunities that complement or expand our business as well as divestitures that could impact our business operations. We may not be able to complete these transactions, and these transactions, if executed, may pose risks that could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and operating results. On an ongoing basis we explore opportunities to buy other businesses or technologies that could complement, enhance or expand our current business or product lines or that might otherwise offer us growth opportunities. We may have difficulty finding suitable opportunities or, if we do identify these opportunities, we may not be able to complete the transactions for any number of reasons including a failure to secure financing. In addition, we may not be able to successfully or profitably integrate, operate, maintain and manage our newly acquired operations or employees. Any transactions that we are able to identify and complete may involve a number of risks, including: the diversion of management's attention from our existing business to integrate the operations and personnel of the acquired or combined business; possible adverse effects on our operating results during the integration process; difficulties managing and integrating operations in geographically dispersed locations; increases in our expenses and working capital requirements, which could reduce our return on invested capital; exposure to unanticipated liabilities of acquired companies; and our possible inability to achieve the intended objectives of the transaction. Even if we are initially successful in integrating a new operation, we may not be able to maintain uniform standards, controls, procedures and policies, and this may lead to operational inefficiencies. In addition, future acquisitions may result in dilutive issuances of equity securities or the incurrence of additional debt. These and other factors could harm our ability to achieve anticipated levels of profitability from acquired operations or realize other anticipated benefits of an acquisition and could adversely affect our business and operating results. We have in the past, and may in the future, consider divesting certain business operations. Divestitures may involve a number of risks, including the diversion of management's attention, significant costs and expenses, the loss of customer relationships and cash flow, and the disruption of operations in the affected business. Failure to timely complete or consummate a divestiture may negatively affect valuation of the affected business or result in restructuring charges. We may restructure our operations or fail to execute capital projects as planned, which may materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and operating results. We have announced and initiated restructuring plans or capital projects at various times in the recent past designed to revise and consolidate certain aspects of our operations for the purpose of improving our cost structure and operational efficiency. We may incur restructuring and impairment charges in the future if circumstances warrant. Additionally, if we are unsuccessful in implementing restructuring plans or in executing capital projects, we may experience disruptions in our operations and higher ongoing costs, which may materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and operating results. We may be unable to compete effectively against competitors. The industries in which we operate are highly competitive and characterized by price erosion and rapid technological change. We compete against many domestic and foreign companies, some of which have substantially greater manufacturing, financial, research and development, and marketing resources than we do. If any customer becomes dissatisfied with our prices, quality, or timeliness of delivery, among other things, it could award business to our competitors. Moreover, some of our customers could choose to manufacture and develop particular products themselves rather than purchase them from us. Increased competition could result in price reductions, reduced profit margins and loss of market share, each of which could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and operating results. These developments also may materially adversely affect our ability to compete successfully going forward. We cannot assure you that our products will continue to compete successfully with our competitors' products. We may be unable to keep pace with rapid technological changes that could make some of our products or processes obsolete before we realize a return on our investment. The technologies relating to some of our products have undergone and are continuing to undergo changes. End markets for our products are characterized by technological change, frequent new product introductions and enhancements, changes in customer requirements, and emerging industry standards. The introduction of products embodying new technologies and the emergence of new industry standards could render our existing products obsolete and unmarketable before we can recover any or all of our research, development and commercialization expenses, or our capital investments. Furthermore, the life cycles of our products and the products we manufacture for others vary, may change, and are difficult to estimate. CTS CORPORATION 10 Table of Contents We may experience difficulties that could delay or prevent the successful development, introduction and marketing of new products or product enhancements and our new products or product enhancements may not adequately meet the requirements of the marketplace or achieve market acceptance. If we are unable, for technological or other reasons, to develop and market new products or product enhancements in a timely and cost-effective manner, our business, financial condition and operating results could be materially adversely affected. Products we manufacture may contain design or manufacturing defects that could result in reduced demand for our products or services and liability claims against us. Despite our quality control and quality assurance efforts, defects may occur in the products we manufacture due to design or manufacturing errors, supplier quality issues, or component failure. Product defects could result in delayed shipments and reduced demand for our products. We may be subject to increased costs due to warranty claims on defective products. Product defects could result in product liability claims against us where defects cause, or are alleged to cause, property damage, bodily injury or death. As we grow our business, the risk of exposure to product liability litigation increases. We may be required to participate in a recall involving products which are, or are alleged to be, defective. We carry insurance for certain legal matters involving product liability; however, costs related to product defects and the costs of such claims, including costs of defense and settlement, may exceed our available coverage. Accordingly, our results of operations, cash flow and financial position could be adversely affected. We are subject to government regulations, including environmental, health, and safety laws and regulations, that expose us to potential financial liability. Our operations are regulated by a number of federal, state, local and foreign government regulations, including those pertaining to environmental, health, and safety (“EHS”) that govern, among other things, air and water emissions, worker protection, and the handling, storage and disposal of hazardous materials. Compliance with EHS laws and regulations is a major consideration for us because we use hazardous materials in our manufacturing processes. If we violate EHS laws and regulations, we could be liable for substantial fines, penalties, and costs of mandated remedial actions and we could suffer reputational damages due to any such violations. Our environmental permits could also be revoked or modified, which could require us to cease or limit production at one or more of our facilities, thereby materially adversely affecting our business, financial condition and operating results. EHS laws and regulations have generally become more stringent over time and could continue to do so, imposing greater compliance costs and increasing risks and penalties associated with any violation, which also could materially affect our business, financial condition and operating results. We have been notified by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, state environmental agencies and, in some cases, groups of potentially responsible parties, that we are potentially liable for environmental contamination at several sites currently and formerly owned or operated by us, including sites designated as National Priorities List sites under the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Superfund program. Superfund liability is joint and several and we may be held responsible for more than our share of contamination at a site. Although we estimate our potential environmental liability and reserve for such matters, we cannot assure you that our reserves will be sufficient to cover the actual costs that we incur as a result of these matters. Future events, such as the notification of potential liability at new sites, the discovery of additional contamination or changes to an approved remedy at existing sites, changes to existing EHS laws and regulations or their interpretation, and more rigorous regulatory action by government authorities, may require additional expenditures by us, which could have a negative impact on our operations. In addition, we could be affected by future laws or regulations imposed in response to climate change concerns. Such laws or regulations could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and results of operations. Climate change initiatives may result in significant operational changes and expenditures, reduce demand for our products and adversely affect our business. We recognize that climate change is a global environmental concern. Continuing political and social attention to the issue of climate change has resulted in both existing and pending international agreements and national, regional or local legislation and regulatory measures to limit greenhouse gas emissions. These agreements and measures may require equipment modifications, operational changes, taxes, or purchase of emission credits to reduce emission of greenhouse gases from our operations, which may result in substantial capital expenditures and compliance, operating, maintenance and remediation costs. Regulatory initiatives to reduce greenhouse gas usage may also adversely impact some of the industries we serve and our supply chain, adversely impacting our sales and the value of our business. Regulations related to conflict minerals could adversely impact our business. The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act contains provisions to improve transparency and accountability concerning the supply of certain minerals, known as conflict minerals, originating from the Democratic Republic of Congo ("DRC") and adjoining countries. As a result, the SEC adopted annual disclosure and reporting requirements for those companies who may use conflict minerals mined from the DRC and adjoining countries in their products. There have been and will continue to be costs associated with complying with these disclosure requirements, including diligence costs to determine the sources of minerals used in CTS CORPORATION 11 our products and other potential changes to products, processes or sources of supply to the extent necessary as a consequence of such verification activities. These rules could adversely affect the sourcing, supply and pricing of materials used in our products. As there may be only a limited number of suppliers offering conflict-free minerals, we cannot be sure that we will be able to obtain necessary conflict-free minerals from such suppliers in sufficient quantities or at competitive prices. Also, we may face reputational challenges if we determine that certain of our products contain conflict minerals or if we are unable to sufficiently verify the origins for all minerals used in our products through the procedures we may implement. Negative or unexpected tax consequences could adversely affect our results of operations. We operate globally and changes in tax laws could adversely affect our results. The international tax environment continues to change as a result of both coordinated actions by governments and unilateral measures enacted by individual countries, such as the comprehensive tax reform enacted in the U.S. in 2017, which could significantly impact our effective tax rate, tax liabilities, and ability to utilize deferred tax assets. Adverse changes in the underlying profitability and financial outlook of our operations in several jurisdictions could lead to changes in our valuation allowances against deferred tax assets and other tax accruals that could materially and adversely affect our results of operations. In addition, acquisitions or divestitures may cause our effective tax rate to change. We base our tax positions upon the anticipated nature and conduct of our business and upon our understanding of the tax laws of the various countries in which we have assets or conduct activities. However, our tax positions are subject to review and possible challenge by taxing authorities and to possible changes in law, which may have a retroactive effect. Future dividends on our common stock may be restricted or eliminated. Dividends are declared at the discretion of our Board of Directors, and future dividends will depend on our future earnings, cash flow, financial requirements and other factors. Our ability to pay cash dividends on our common stock is limited under the terms of our credit agreements. Under the most restrictive terms of our credit agreements, our ability to pay cash dividends on our common stock is limited, as described under “Risks Related to Indebtedness and Financing.” There can be no assurance that we will continue to pay dividends in the future. Risks Related to Indebtedness and Financing Our indebtedness may adversely affect our financial health. Our indebtedness could, among other things: increase our vulnerability to general economic and industry conditions, including recessions; require us to use cash flow from operations to service our indebtedness, thereby reducing our ability to fund working capital, capital expenditures, research and development efforts and other expenses; limit our flexibility in planning for, or reacting to, changes in our business and the industries in which we operate; place us at a competitive disadvantage compared to competitors that have less indebtedness; or limit our ability to borrow additional funds that may be needed to operate and expand our business. Our credit facility contains provisions that could materially restrict our business. Our revolving credit facility contains restrictions limiting our ability to: dispose of assets; incur certain additional debt; repay other debt or amend subordinated debt instruments; create liens on assets; make investments, loans or advances; make acquisitions or engage in mergers or consolidations; engage in certain transactions with our subsidiaries and affiliates; repurchase stock; or make dividend payments above a certain amount. The restrictions contained in our credit facility could limit our ability to plan for or react to changes in market conditions or meet capital needs or could otherwise restrict our activities or business plans. These restrictions could adversely affect our ability to finance our operations, make strategic acquisitions, fund investments or other capital needs or engage in other business activities that could be in our interest. Further, our ability to comply with our loan covenants may be affected by events beyond our control that could result in an event of default under our credit facility, or documents governing any other existing or future indebtedness. A default, if not cured or waived, may permit acceleration of our indebtedness. In addition, our lenders could terminate their commitments to make further extensions of credit under our credit facility. If our indebtedness is accelerated, we cannot be certain that we will have sufficient funds to pay the accelerated indebtedness or that we will have the ability to refinance accelerated indebtedness on terms favorable to us, or at all. The discontinuation of London Interbank Offered Rate (“LIBOR”) and the replacement of LIBOR with an alternative reference rate may negatively impact our liquidity, financial condition, and results of operations. CTS CORPORATION 12 Table of Contents Borrowings under our amended and restated unsecured Revolving Credit Facility may bear interest, at our election, at a rate per annum that is based upon the Secured Overnight Financing Rate (“SOFR”). Although SOFR has been endorsed by the Alternative Reference Rates Committee as its preferred replacement for LIBOR, it remains uncertain whether or when SOFR or other alternative reference rates will be widely accepted by lenders as the replacement for LIBOR. This may, in turn, impact the liquidity of the SOFR loan market, and SOFR itself. Since the initial publication of SOFR, daily changes in the rate have, on occasion, been more volatile than daily changes in comparable benchmark or market rates, and SOFR over time may bear little or no relation to the historical actual or historical indicative data. Additionally, our Revolving Credit Facility includes a credit adjustment on SOFR due to LIBOR representing an unsecured lending rate while SOFR represents a secured lending rate. The possible volatility of and uncertainty around SOFR as a LIBOR replacement rate and the applicable credit adjustment could result in higher borrowing costs for us, which would adversely affect our liquidity, financial condition, and results of operations. In addition, our Revolving Credit Facility provides the ability to borrow in alternative currencies to the us dollar. These borrowings would also be at alternative reference rates to LIBOR that, in some cases, are still being developed. In each case, the funds are subject to an applicable rate as well as an applicable credit adjustment. If funds are drawn under these currencies, it may also result in higher borrowing costs for us, which would adversely affect our liquidity, financial condition, and results of operations. Risks Related to COVID-19 Pandemic and Other External Factors Public health issues such as the COVID-19 pandemic have adversely affected, and could in the future, adversely affect our business or financial results. Any outbreaks of contagious diseases and other adverse public health developments in countries where we operate could have a material and adverse effect on our business, operations, financial condition, liquidity and results of operations. For example, the COVID-19 pandemic has affected our offices and manufacturing facilities throughout the world, as well as the facilities of our suppliers, customers and their customers. The COVID-19 pandemic caused widespread disruptions to our Company during the first half of 2020, and to a lesser extent, those disruptions continued during the second half of 2020 and throughout all of 2021. As of December 31, 2021, we continue to experience some disruptions, and at a minimum, particularly given the surge of COVID-19 cases resulting from the Omicron variant, we expect those disruptions to continue into 2022 and potentially beyond. These disruptions have included and may continue to include government regulations that inhibit our ability to operate certain of our facilities in the ordinary course, travel restrictions, supplier constraints, supply-chain interruptions, logistics challenges and limitations, labor disruptions and reduced demand from certain customers. During 2021 and into 2022, there have been resurgences in COVID-19 cases in several regions around the world, particularly related to new variant strains, including Delta and Omicron. The extent to which the COVID-19 pandemic will continue to impact our business and financial results going forward will be dependent on future developments such as the length and severity of the crisis, the impact of the recent resurgence of the crisis due to the Omicron variant, as well as any additional future resurgences from known or new variants, future government regulations and actions in response to the crisis, the timing, availability, effectiveness and adoption rates of vaccines and treatments, and the overall impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the global economy and capital markets, among many other factors, all of which remain highly uncertain and unpredictable. In addition, the COVID-19 pandemic could impact the health of our management team and other employees. Given these uncertainties, we expect the pandemic to continue to have an impact on our business, operations, financial condition, liquidity and results of operations in 2022 and potentially beyond. There can be no assurance that the COVID-19 pandemic will not have a material and adverse effect on our business, operations, financial condition, liquidity and results of operations in the future. In addition, the COVID-19 pandemic has and continues to increase the likelihood and potential severity of other risks (some discussed separately within this Item 1A. Risk Factors ), including but not limited to, the following: • Our efforts to comply with any legally required vaccine mandates amongst some or all of our employees, could lead to increased labor attrition, along with potential difficulties in attracting and recruiting personnel, which could have a negative impact on our business and operations. In addition, employees in certain geographies could choose to take legal action against the Company if we institute vaccine mandates. • A scarcity of resources or other hardships caused by the COVID-19 pandemic may result in increased nationalism, protectionism and political tensions which may cause governments and/or other entities to take actions that may have a significant negative impact on the ability of the Company, its suppliers and its customers to conduct business. • Certain subsets of our employee population continue to work in a “hybrid” or remote work environment in an effort to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. This change may exacerbate certain risks to our business, including an increased demand for information technology resources, an increased risk of phishing and other cybersecurity attacks, and an increased risk of unauthorized dissemination of sensitive personal information or proprietary or confidential information. • Travel restrictions to certain countries have limited our executive management’s ability to visit certain operations during the last two years and such restrictions could remain in place for all of 2022 and beyond. • Given the current inflationary wage environment and strong demand for skilled labor in many of the countries and regions in which we operate, the ability to identify and attract new talent, as well as retain existing talent, may prove to be difficult. In CTS CORPORATION 13 particular, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, many workers around the world have re-assessed their career plans and priorities, which could lead to increased difficulty of the Company in retaining its experienced team members. • If there is a general market downturn and continued high degree of volatility in the financial markets, we may experience a material re-valuation and non-cash charge to our income statement relating to any of our critical accounting estimates, including, but not limited to, our inventory reserves or goodwill and long-lived assets. Natural disasters and adverse weather conditions may adversely impact our capability to supply product to our customers. Natural disasters, such as storms, flooding and associated power outages, and adverse weather conditions (including that caused by climate change) occurring at any of our locations or supplier locations may lead to disruption of our manufacturing operations and supply chain, adversely impacting our capability to supply product to our customers. In the event of a natural disaster or adverse weather conditions, it may not be possible for us to find an alternate manufacturing location for certain product lines, further impacting our capability to recover from such a disruption. Climate related events and climate change legislation could adversely impact our business. The effects of climate change and the ongoing efforts to mitigate its impact, including through climate change-related legislation and regulation, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and results of operations. The physical effects of climate change, including extreme weather and natural disasters (including those risks discussed under the heading “ Natural disasters and adverse weather conditions may adversely impact our capability to supply products to our customers ”) may disrupt our operations and those of our customers and suppliers. In addition, changes to laws or regulations enacted to address the potential impacts of climate change could have a material adverse impact on our business, financial condition, and results of operations. For example, continuing political and social attention to the issue of climate change has resulted in both existing and pending international agreements and national, regional, or local legislation and regulatory measures to limit greenhouse gas emissions. Any future increased regulation concerning greenhouse gas emissions and other climate-change related laws and regulations, may require equipment modifications, operational changes, taxes, or the purchase of emission credits to reduce the emission of greenhouse gases from our operations, which may result in us incurring substantial capital expenditures and compliance, operating, maintenance and remediation costs. In addition, any such future regulatory changes could result in transition risks to our business, including but not limited to (i) the nature and timing of any requirement to lower greenhouse gas emissions and adopt more energy-efficient energy use, which could result in changes or disruptions to the way we operate our business, (ii) the risk of lower demand for our products related to customers who experience business declines or disruptions due to the impact of any requirement to lower greenhouse gas emissions, (iii) financial risks where compliance with such regulations requires unforeseen capital expenditures, (iv) legal risks associated with the implementation of any new technologies required to comply with such regulations, which could impede our ability to innovate new products, meet customer and market demand or compete on pricing and quality in the market, and/or (v) reputational risks associated with our customers’ and investors’ perceptions of our business. We are not able to predict how any future definitive agreements, pacts and/or regulations, if and when they are adopted and required, and the commitments necessary to comply with such requirements, will affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations. General Risk Factors We face risks relating to our international operations. Because we have significant international operations, our operating results and financial condition could be materially adversely affected by economic, political, health, regulatory and other factors existing in foreign countries in which we operate. Our international operations are subject to inherent risks, which may materially adversely affect us, including: political and economic instability in countries in which our products are manufactured; expropriation or the imposition of government controls; changes in government regulations; export license requirements; trade restrictions; earnings repatriation and expatriation restrictions; exposure to different legal standards, including related to intellectual property; health conditions and standards; currency controls; fluctuations in exchange rates; increases in the duties and taxes we pay; inflation or deflation; greater difficulty in collecting accounts receivable and longer payment cycles; changes in labor conditions and difficulties in staffing and managing our international operations; limitations on insurance coverage against geopolitical risks, natural disasters, and business operations; and communication among and management of international operations. In addition, these same factors may also place us at a competitive disadvantage compared to some of our foreign competitors. We may face risks associated with violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and similar anti-bribery laws (collectively, "Anti-Bribery Laws"). Anti-Bribery Laws generally prohibit companies and their intermediaries from making improper payments to government officials for the purpose of obtaining or retaining business. Our Code of Ethics mandates compliance with these Anti-Bribery Laws. We operate in many parts of the world where strict compliance with Anti-Bribery Laws may conflict with local customs and practices. We cannot assure you that our internal controls and procedures always will protect us from the detrimental actions by our employees or agents. If we are found to be liable for violations of Anti-Bribery Laws (either due to our own acts or CTS CORPORATION 14 Table of Contents inadvertence or due to the acts or inadvertence of others), we could suffer from criminal or civil penalties or other sanctions, which could have a material adverse effect on our business. Public health or safety concerns and governmental restrictions, including measures implemented in response to the global COVID-19 pandemic, that impact the availability of raw materials, labor, or the movement of goods in some of the countries in which we operate could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and operating results. We are exposed to fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates that may adversely affect our business, financial condition and operating results. We transact business in various foreign countries. We present our consolidated financial statements in U.S. dollars, but a portion of our revenues and expenditures are transacted in other currencies. As a result, we are exposed to fluctuations in foreign currencies. Additionally, we have currency exposure arising from funds held in local currencies in foreign countries. Volatility in the exchange rates between the foreign currencies and the U.S. dollar could harm our business, financial condition and operating results. Furthermore, to the extent we sell our products in foreign markets, currency fluctuations may result in our products becoming too expensive for foreign customers. If we are unable to protect our intellectual property or we infringe, or are alleged to infringe, on others' intellectual property rights, our business, financial condition and operating results could be materially adversely affected. The success of our business depends, in part, upon our ability to protect trade secrets, trademarks, copyrights and patents, obtain or license patents and operate without infringing on the intellectual property rights of others. We rely on a combination of trade secrets, copyrights, patents, nondisclosure agreements and technical measures to protect our proprietary rights in our products and technology. The steps we have taken to prevent misappropriation of our technology may be inadequate. In addition, the laws of some foreign countries in which we operate do not protect our proprietary rights to the same extent as do the laws of the United States. Although we continue to evaluate and implement protective measures, there can be no assurance that these efforts will be successful. Our inability to protect our intellectual property rights could diminish or eliminate the competitive advantages that we derive from our technology, cause us to lose sales or otherwise harm our business. We believe that patents will continue to play an important role in our business. However, there can be no assurance that we will be successful in securing patents for claims in any pending patent application or that any issued patent will provide us with any competitive advantage. We also cannot provide assurance that the patents will not be challenged by third parties or that the patents of others will not materially adversely affect our ability to do business. We may become involved in litigation in the future to protect our intellectual property or because others may allege that we infringed on their intellectual property. These claims and any resulting lawsuit could subject us to liability for damages and invalidate our intellectual property rights. If an infringement claim is successfully asserted by a holder of intellectual property rights, we may be required to cease marketing or selling certain products, pay penalties and spend significant time and money to develop a non-infringing product or process or to obtain licenses for the technology, process or information from the holder. We may not be successful in the development of a non-infringing alternative, or licenses may not be available on commercially acceptable terms, if at all, in which case we may lose sales and profits. In addition, any litigation could be lengthy and costly and could materially adversely affect us even if we are successful in the litigation. Loss of our key management and other personnel, or an inability to attract key management and other personnel, could materially affect our business. We depend on our senior executive officers and other key personnel to run our business. We do not have long-term employment contracts with our key personnel. The loss of any of these officers or other key personnel could adversely affect our operations. Competition for qualified employees among companies that rely heavily on engineering and technology is at times intense, and has been particularly competitive during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the loss of qualified employees or an inability to attract, retain and motivate additional highly skilled employees required for the operation and expansion of our business could hinder our ability to conduct research and development activities and deliver marketable products successfully. Ineffective internal control over our financial reporting may harm our business. We are subject to the ongoing internal control provisions of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 ("Sarbanes-Oxley"). Our controls necessary for continued compliance with Sarbanes-Oxley may not operate effectively or at all times and may result in a material weakness. The identification of material weaknesses in internal control over financial reporting could indicate a lack of proper controls to generate accurate financial statements. Further, the effectiveness of our internal controls may be impacted if we are unable to retain sufficient skilled finance and accounting personnel, especially in light of the increased demand for such personnel among publicly traded companies. CTS CORPORATION 15 Global privacy, data protection and data security laws are highly complex, evolving rapidly, and may increase our costs to comply. To conduct our operations, we may need to move data across national borders, and consequently we are subject to a variety of continuously evolving and developing laws and regulations in the U.S. and abroad regarding privacy, data protection and data security. For example, the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”), which became effective in May 2018, the state of California’s California Consumer Privacy Act (“CCPA”), which became effective January 1, 2020, and more recently, the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress of the People’s Republic of China’s Personal Information Protection Law (“PIPL”), which became effective on November 1, 2021, impose significant requirements and additional obligations for companies on how they collect, process and transfer personal data by enacting consumer privacy rights and imposing significant fines for non-compliance. The potential for fines and other related costs in the event of a breach of or non-compliance with the GDPR, CCPA, PIPL or other existing or proposed data protection, data security and privacy laws and requirements may have an adverse effect on our financial results. We are exposed to, and may be adversely affected by, potential security breaches or other disruptions to our information technology systems and data security. We rely on our information technology systems and networks, including cloud-based systems, in connection with many of our business activities, some of which are managed directly by us, while others are managed by third-party service providers and are not under our direct control. Our operations routinely involve receiving, storing, processing and transmitting sensitive information pertaining to our business, customers, suppliers, employees, and other sensitive matters. We have both an increasing reliance on IT systems and an increasing digital footprint as a result of changing technologies, connected devices and digital offerings, as well as expanded remote work policies. If these technologies, systems, products or services are damaged, cease to function properly, are compromised due to employee or third-party contractor error, user error, malfeasance, system errors, or other vulnerabilities, or are subject to cybersecurity attacks, such as those involving denial of service attacks, unauthorized access, malicious software, or other intrusions, including by criminals, nation states or insiders, our business may be adversely impacted. The impacts of any such circumstances could include production downtimes, operational delays, and other impacts on our operations and ability to provide products and services to our customers; compromise of confidential, proprietary or otherwise protected information, including personal information and customer confidential data; destruction, corruption, or theft of data or intellectual property; manipulation, disruption, or improper use of these technologies, systems, products or services; financial losses from fraudulent transactions, remedial actions, loss of business or potential liability; adverse media coverage; and legal claims or legal proceedings, including regulatory investigations, actions and fines; and damage to our reputation. There has been a rise in the number of cyberattacks targeting confidential business information generally and in the manufacturing industry specifically. Moreover, there has been a rise in the number of cyberattacks that depend on human error or manipulation, including phishing attacks or schemes that use social engineering to gain access to systems or perpetuate wire transfer or other frauds. These trends increase the likelihood of such events occurring as well as the costs associated with protecting against such attacks. It is possible for vulnerabilities in our IT systems to remain undetected for an extended period of time up to and including several years. We, and the service providers that we depend on to support our systems and business operations, are regularly the target of, and periodically respond to, cyberattacks, including phishing and denial-of-service attacks. As a result, we continuously monitor our systems to protect our technology infrastructure and data from misappropriation or corruption. In addition, we further attempt to mitigate these risks by employing a number of other measures, including employee training, a breach response plan, and maintenance of backup and protective systems. In addition, while we maintain insurance coverage that is intended to address certain aspects of cybersecurity risks, such insurance coverage may not cover all losses or all types of claims that arise. Notwithstanding those measures, our systems, networks, products and services remain potentially vulnerable to known or unknown cybersecurity attacks and other threats, any of which could have a material adverse effect on our financial results.