Governance: principles and responsibilities in setting compensation

The guiding principles for the remuneration of the Board of Directors and the Corporate Executive Committee as well as the responsibilities for the remuneration system of Galenica are defined in the Articles of Association of Galenica. They include the provisions on the Remuneration Committee (Article 21 of the Articles of Association) and remuneration (Article 22 of the Articles of Association).

Each year, the Board of Directors submits the maximum remuneration of the Board of Directors and the Corporate Executive Committee to the Annual General Meeting for binding approval. Such approval is prospective for the next financial year following the Annual General Meeting. In addition, the Annual General Meeting holds a consultative vote on the Remuneration report for the year under review (Article 22 (1) of the Articles of Association).

On the basis of the Articles of Association and the decisions of the Annual General Meeting, the remuneration strategy and the related remuneration system for the members of the Board of Directors and the Corporate Executive Committee are determined by the Board of Directors based on a proposal from the Remuneration Committee. The Board of Directors also decides on an annual basis on the individual remuneration of the Chair of the Board of Directors and the CEO. The remuneration of members of the Board of Directors is determined by the Board of Directors based on a proposal from the Remuneration Committee within the limits set by the Annual General Meeting.

Remuneration Committee

The Remuneration Committee consists of four members of the Board of Directors, all of whom are independent from Galenica and are elected annually by the Annual General Meeting. At the 2023 Annual General Meeting, Bertrand Jungo (Committee Chair), Pascale Bruderer and Solange Peters were newly elected as members of the Remuneration Committee while Andreas Walde was re-elected.

The Remuneration Committee reviews and approves the remuneration principles and programmes of Galenica, including the design of the incentive plans, determines the performance indicators and targets for the CEO and the other members of the Corporate Executive Committee at the beginning of the financial year and assesses the extent to which these targets have been achieved at year end. The Remuneration Committee is responsible for setting the individual target remuneration of the members of the Corporate Executive Committee and proposes the CEO’s target remuneration to the Board of Directors in consultation with the Chair of the Board of Directors.

Responsibility for the remuneration process

Activities of the Remuneration Committee during the year

In 2023, the Remuneration Committee held three ordinary meetings according to the annual schedule, and no ad hoc meeting.

In 2023, all members attended all meetings, which corresponds to an attendance rate of 100%.

At each meeting of the Board of Directors, the Chair of the Remuneration Committee reports on the Remuneration Committee’s current topics of discussion and decisions. The minutes of the meetings are made available to the members of the Board of Directors.

The Chair of the Board of Directors is invited to all meetings of the Remuneration Committee (right of attendance, no voting rights), except those dealing with his own remuneration. The CEO is invited to attend discussions on a case-by-case basis, but not to discussions that concern his performance or remuneration.

In the reporting year, the Remuneration Committee performed its regular duties, in particular setting performance targets and evaluating their achievement, determining the remuneration of the members of the Board of Directors and the Corporate Executive Committee and preparing the Remuneration report and the Annual General Meeting. In addition, the Remuneration Committee conducted a self-assessment of its functioning. It rated its discussions and decision-making as efficient and appropriate, and the support of the Board of Directors in matters of remuneration as effective.

Further details on the Remuneration Committee can be found in the Corporate Governance section (Chapter Remuneration Committee).

Benchmarking and external advisors

In order to ensure its continued attractiveness as an employer, Galenica regularly compares its remuneration system and levels with those of relevant peers. In terms of remuneration levels, Galenica considers a positioning at market median as being competitive.

The Remuneration Committee carried out a benchmarking analysis of the remuneration levels of the Corporate Executive Committee back in 2021. For this purpose, Klingler Consultants provided benchmarking data based on two different peer groups: a peer group of 21 Swiss listed companies of comparable size and a peer group of 25 private companies in the healthcare, retail and logistic sectors. The companies included in the peer groups are disclosed below. Overall, the benchmark study showed that the remuneration of the Corporate Executive Committee is below market levels when comparing with the Swiss listed peers and above market levels when comparing with the sector-based peers. This result can be explained by the fact that the sector-based peers do not offer a long-term incentive component, while Swiss listed peers typically do. Further, most Swiss listed peers have an international organisation. This is not the case at Galenica and could be a factor driving lower remuneration levels compared to other Swiss listed companies.

Peer groups to benchmark the remuneration levels of the Corporate Executive Committee

Those companies were selected by the Remuneration Committee as the most relevant for Galenica.

The remuneration structure and levels of the Board of Directors were reviewed in 2022. The market comparison was carried out by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC). The same 21 Swiss listed companies mentioned above were used as peer group. While the overall structure and levels of remuneration were considered in line with market practice, the Remuneration Committee proposed to express the remuneration of the Board of Directors in gross terms, rather than in net terms, as of the Remuneration report 2022. This was not a change of the remuneration system or levels but an improvement in terms of disclosure and transparency.

The Remuneration Committee may decide to consult external advisors on specific remuneration matters. In 2023, PwC provided services related to executive compensation. PwC provides other services to Galenica and there are clear rules in place to ensure the independence of PwC consultants. No other external advisors were consulted on remuneration matters in the reporting year.