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From the entrance, the tone was set, Monday, May 4 early in the afternoon, at the general meeting of shareholders of Sanofi: an employee , the CGT union, sported small posters on which was written: “Bye, € 4.5 million” and “Hello, € 4 M” . Two little phrases that reference check from Chris Viehbacher, the former general manager of the pharmaceutical group, thanked earlier this year, and the arrival of the check (“golden hello”) by Olivier Brandicourt, his replacement appointed mid-February and early April arrived.
Sanofi employees were not the only ones to be “reassembled” against these benefits. The ISS shareholder advisory group and the dispute also invited to vote against. ISS was not fully followed by the shareholders, but they have nevertheless showed their irritation by adopting the compensation of Mr. Viehbacher to 61% (with some “ooh” of discontent in room at the announcement of the result) and the “package” of M Brandicourt to 64%.
Now in AG, a resolution that gets less than 80% of the vote is considered disputed, given the capital structure and the participation rate.
As a gift, the shareholders, in any case, received a … umbrella. A look at clien “golden umbrella” Mr. Brandicourt?
“Sanofi must offer salaries comparable to those proposed by the competing groups. We do not invent! Of course, the group must also consider their social acceptability. We must find our way amidst this contradiction “, was held to explain, before the vote, Serge Weinberg, Chairman of the Board of Directors.
This issue of compensation of the old and new operational pattern of group “is a sensitive issue and I’ll try to give you all the information you can find” , had, meanwhile, said Gérard Van Kemmel, who heads the Remuneration Committee.
In seeking to justify the amounts paid to Mr. Viehbacher and Mr Brandicourt, Van Kemmel explained that Mr. Viehbacher Sanofi and disagreed on the amount of severance check and that the committee had decided to avoid “an adverse litigation”. “It was better to reach a deal to protect the interests of Sanofi” , he said, the Sanofi board who also sent a letter to shareholders to denounce the ” error analysis by ISS ‘.
“Poor”
Mr. Viehbacher particular received € 2.4 million in respect of his compensation for 2014. Given a little less than what he could have claimed since it had not achieved one of the objectives included in the calculation of the variable part (up to 15%): the organization of the group and the succession plan
The group, which was not agreed to pay for two years of compensation. starting claimed by Mr Viehbacher said he had found to the wall as the contract of the former CEO did not include any clause of confidentiality or non-compete clause.
The group s’ is therefore resolved to pay a year’s salary and a sum of 246,750 euros a month. “It will not receive any retirement” , added Van Kemmel. “The poor,” said, echoing a shareholder, while a commotion agitated the room.
Mr Brandicourt arrival package has also , was (re) Detailed: the person who left the leadership of the health division / pharmacy Bayer, received € 2 million during his inauguration at Sanofi and receive additional 2 million in January 2016 s it is still in office at that time.
His fixed salary is 1.2 million. Sore point: he will receive a bonus of ten years of service in calculating its complementary retirement, provided it remains in the group until then. A favor which will cost several million to the group if necessary.
“This compensates lost what Olivier Brandicourt leaving Bayer. It is however not possible to detail we list these lost benefits because Bayer did not disclose the “, said Mr. Van Kemmel
A shareholder asking. ” Mr. Brandicourt should he renounce his golden hello? “, Weinberg replied that ” it will be for Olivier Brandicourt to decide “.
2014″ year of rebound “Compensation
This issue of executive pay has hosted a number of other shareholders’ meetings in recent weeks – more than half of the CAC 40 has already held its annual meeting. So that “after several years of decline,” in 2014 was a “rebound year in executive compensation” , as summarized Loic Dessaint, CEO of Proxinvest these “benefits” are increasingly challenged by the shareholders
Read also:. Your boss is it too paid?
It should be said that since last year, the subject is now subject to a vote at general meetings – this is the so-called “say on pay”. This vote is only advisory. It does not oblige companies.
Last week, two leaders, not least, have thus suffered a serious setback. The package Franck Riboud, Danone (€ 6,075,000), has won the support of only 53% of shareholders is the worst score so far.
One of Carlos Ghosn, Renault (7.2 million), which has tripled in a year, for its part, has collected 58% of votes
Read also:. At Renault, the state imposes its law
Before Renault and Danone, the shareholders had also expressed annoyance at Vinci (63%), Veolia (70.8%), Safran (66.8%) or Schneider Electric (71.9%).
The focus is on the pay-performance link
“What we want to know now, is whether these leaders really amounts allocated to remunerate their performance “, explains Cédric laundry, at Amundi
A requirement for all investors. ” In 2014, investors voted on transparency. This year, the link between pay and performance leader who is the object of their attention “, confirms Helen Solignac, board governance expert with Sodali.
Introduced by AFEP MEDEF code, the “say on pay” made its debut in 2014. Without that shareholders in then grab to challenge the pay of the bosses.
This year, they show less lenient, considering that the performance criteria which accompany the variable pay should be better clarified.
“The French do not know that the big bosses work three times 35 hours per week” sweeps Xavier Fontanet, former head of Essilor.
“The priority is the launch”
The new CEO of Sanofi, Olivier Brandicourt, arrived at the head of the pharmaceutical company early April, priorities for new products and research, after a first quarter in which sales increased but net income declined. At a shareholder who pointed out to him, Monday, May 4 at the general meeting of the group, that “Sanofi is stopped, the group is even a prey” , Mr. Brandicourt replied: “you did not think I was going to give you a well-crafted vision in four weeks. Since I arrived, I mostly spent time with the teams. I can give you a strategic vision beginning in November. Today the priority is the launch. “
Mr. Brandicourt has also recognized that the “we can ask questions about the group’s diversification level” . “This will be the subject of reflection” , he added. A review of activities will be conducted in the coming months. The result will probably be presented in the fourth quarter.
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