Image
Our 2025 strategy
Committed to Growth, with Purpose
Our 2025 strategy is derived from our purpose, and sets out our roadmap to deliver sustainable value creation over the next five years for all our stakeholders.
Committed to Growth, with Purpose outlines our intention to deliver growth in partnership with our customers, achieve ambitious financial targets, while also making progress on our longer term purpose ambitions in the areas of creations, nature, people and communities.
This is supported by our ongoing journey to becoming a B Corp certified company, helping us to live up to the highest standards of being a responsible and sustainable business as we strive to be a force for good. Our certification will be the independently verified proof that we are acting on our purpose goals and successfully balancing people, planet and profit.
Our 2025 strategy is powered by three core growth drivers and four growth enablers, and supported by our focus on Excellence, Innovation, Simplicity in everything we do.
Givaudan, a high performing company that is acting as a force for good
GROWING TOGETHER WITH OUR CUSTOMERS At the core of our business is our relationship with our customers. Providing them with creative, innovative and sustainable solutions that are loved by consumers is what motivates us every day. Going beyond our current portfolio to further expand into nutrition, food ingredients and beauty. Maximise mature market opportunities at the same time as extending our high growth market leadership. Embracing opportunities in today’s more fragmented customer landscape and driving growth in the local and regional customer segment. Expanding strategic relationships with suppliers, start-ups and partners; enhancing co-creation with customers. Further embedding environmental sustainability in our product portfolio and continuing our efforts in sourcing responsibly. Nurturing a diverse and inclusive workforce; evolving workplace trends; caring for employee health and wellbeing. Bringing benefits to all communities that work with us, including the communities where we source and operate. Delivering the highest standards across our value chain, from operational and financial performance to the delivery of a superior customer experience.
CREATIONS
NATURE
PEOPLE
COMMUNITIES
Excellence, Innovation & Simplicity – in everything we do
ESG, an integral part of the business
Fully integrated in our 2025 strategy
Our 2021 key achievements
We’re expanding our traditional portfolio of flavours and fragrances, naturals and delivery systems into nutrition, food ingredients and beauty. This broader offering helps customers better respond to consumer demand for products that support health and wellbeing, positive ageing and changing lifestyles while meeting their expectations around ethical and responsible business issues. The trend for smaller and local brands is driving growth in the local and regional customer segment alongside a continued potential with larger international and global customers. We want to provide more tailored approaches to meet the wider range of customer needs in this rapidly changing and more fragmented landscape. We’re responding to growth forecasts in global consumption and investing in high growth markets to ensure greater proximity to our customers and develop further understanding of local consumer preferences. We plan to maximise mature market opportunities over the next five years and extend our high growth market leadership, particularly in China. From excellence in operational and financial performance to the delivery of a superior customer experience, we aim to deliver the highest standards across the value chain. Innovation is our lifeblood, from creating differentiating solutions that address our customers’ challenges to leading the way in areas such as biotechnology and digitalisation. At the centre of everything we do are our customers.
Expand the portfolio
Extend customer reach
Focussed market strategies
Excellence, Innovation & Simplicity – in everything we do
Tab Content
Our strategy in action
Image
Expanded our offerings for the consumer-packaged goods and luxury segments with the acquisition of 25% of B.Kolormakeup & Skincare of Italy (b.kolor).
Introduced Blossom Lab™, a fully equipped mobile laboratory to help create naturals extraction techniques directly in the field.
Acquired DDW, The Color House. This will reinforce our ability to create multi-sensorial food experiences with our customers and enables us to become the number two global player in natural colours.
Advanced the development of numerous biotechnology-based ingredients with external partners. A key ingredient, developed with Manus bio, will be launched in early 2022.
Tab Content
Our strategy in action
Image
Opened state-of-the-art product development facilities to accelerate innovation for customers (protein centres and the Nordic Experience centre in Malmö, Sweden).
Invested CHF 75 million to expand our fragrance production at Pedro Escobedo in Mexico, to open at the end of 2023, serving all customer segments in the Latin American key growth market.
Strengthened our e-commerce offering in China through the opening of a flagship business-to-business (B2B) store on China’s leading wholesale website, 1688.com.
Acquired Custom Essence to strengthen access to local and regional customers and expand capabilities in natural perfumery in North America.
Tab Content
Our strategy in action
Image
Planned greenfield production plant in India for fragrance speciality ingredients through a joint venture with Privi Speciality Chemicals.
Partnered with Tmall to launch T-Lab source innovation laboratory, leveraging our creative fragrance solutions and production capabilities in China.
Launched our unique Advanced Tools for Modelling which uses artificial intelligence to optimise food and flavour formulation and facilitate co-creation and collaboration with customers.
Tab Content
Our strategy in actions
Image
Good progress in integrating recently acquired companies on our platforms such as SAP and GBS, as well as on our creation, development and commercial systems. Key steps to support our strategy.
Launched the Aroma Kiosk, a new digital sensory insights tool, designed to connect with consumers directly, gather valuable consumer insights and recommend products in real time.
Introduced PlanetCaps™, enabling customers to solve the complex feasibility equation between greenness and performance in fabric softeners. This cutting-edge technology will be expanded to other categories to boost sustainability.
Partnered with BASF to launch the world’s first toxicology testing strategy without animal testing.
Started a ‘silver lining’ project to find positive opportunities from the difficult pandemic situation. Five areas have been identified that will contribute to enhancing our work life and how we serve customers. Work is underway to define key initiatives and guidance that will be rolled out in the short and long term.
GOVERNANCE
At the forefront of animal-free testing
explore
Compensation and governance
explore
Compensation
Our compensation policies are an essential component of our employee value proposition and a key driver of both individual and business performance
The ability to attract, motivate and retain the right talented employees globally is key to the continued success of Givaudan. Our competitive remuneration policy supports this ambition and is based on the following principles:
- Pay for performance
- Alignment of interests
- External competitiveness
- Internal consistency and fairness.
Total compensation in 2021 is composed of the following elements:
- Base salary for all employees.
- Benefits for all employees (including retirement, insurance and health care plans).
- Cash-based Profit Sharing Plan for approximately 12,000 non-management employees based on Group financial objectives.
- Cash-based Annual Incentive Plan for around 5,000 managers and executives.
- Equity-based Performance Share Plan (PSP) for the top 500 employees.
The Performance Share Plan (PSP) is designed to reward executives and key talent who significantly influence the long-term success of the business and our purpose ambitions. From 1 January 2021, a new PSP aligned with the Givaudan purpose was introduced. The financial metrics of sales and free cash flow traditionally used to calculate the PSP are retained, and are complemented by non-financial criteria linked to three of the four focus areas of the Givaudan purpose:
- Creations: Financial targets of sales and free cash flow
- Nature: Environmental targets of net GHG emissions reduction (scope 1, 2 and 3)
- People: Social targets of senior leader diversity (women and high growth market representation) and employee safety
Performance Share Plan for top 500 employees
|
Image
 |
Compensation of the Board of Directors
The compensation paid to the Board members for the period between the 2020 and 2021 Annual General Meetings, CHF 3,280,206, is again within the amount approved by shareholders at the 2020 Annual General Meeting CHF 3,400,000. Amounts approved at the 2021 Annual General Meeting CHF 3,250,000 will be paid by the end of the year in office and validated in the 2022 Compensation report. Such approved and paid amounts may differ from those shown in the Board compensation summary table which, according to the OaEC, must include compensation paid in the reporting year.
Board of Directors compensation summary
| in Swiss francs | Year |
Director fees 3 |
Committee fees 3 |
Total fixed (cash) |
Number of RSUs granted 4 |
Value at grant4 |
Total compensation |
| Calvin Grieder, Chairman 1 | 2021 | 400,000 | 65,000 | 465,000 | 169 | 580,566 | 1,045,566 |
| 2020 | 400,000 | 65,000 | 465,000 | 208 | 581,256 | 1,046,256 | |
| Victor Balli 1 | 2021 | 100,000 | 72,500 | 172,500 | 42 | 144,283 | 316,783 |
| 2020 | 100,000 | 50,000 | 150,000 | 52 | 145,314 | 295,314 | |
| Prof.Dr-Ing. Werner Bauer 1 | 2021 | 100,000 | 65,000 | 165,000 | 42 | 144,283 | 309,283 |
| 2020 | 100,000 | 65,000 | 165,000 | 52 |
145,314 |
310,314 | |
| Lilian Biner 1 | 2021 | 100,000 | 25,000 | 125,000 | 42 | 144,283 | 269,283 |
| 2020 | 100,000 | 25,000 | 125,000 | 52 | 145,314 | 270,314 | |
| Michael Carlos 1 | 2021 | 100,000 | 65,000 | 165,000 | 42 | 144,283 | 309,283 |
| 2020 | 100,000 | 65,000 | 165,000 | 52 | 145,314 | 310,314 | |
| Ingrid Deltenre 1 | 2021 | 100,000 | 50,000 | 150,000 | 42 | 144,283 | 294,283 |
| 2020 | 100,000 | 50,000 | 150,000 | 52 | 145,314 | 295,314 | |
| Thomas Rufer 1,6 | 2021 | 25,000 | 13,750 | 38,750 | 13 | 36,329 | 75,079 |
| 2020 | 100,000 | 55,000 | 155,000 | 52 | 145,314 | 300,314 | |
| Olivier Filiol 1,7 | 2021 | 100,000 | 50,000 | 150,000 | 42 | 144,283 | 294,283 |
| 2020 | 75,000 | 37,500 | 112,500 | 39 | 108,986 | 221,486 | |
| Sophie Gasperment 1,8 | 2021 | 100,000 | 25,000 | 125,000 | 42 | 144,293 | 269,283 |
| 2020 | 33,333 | 8,333 | 41,666 | 17 | 47,507 | 89,173 | |
| Total compensation 2 | 2021 | 3,183,126 | |||||
| Total compensation 2 | 2020 | 3,138,799 |
- The function of each member of the Board of Directors is indicated on pages 7-9 in both the 2020 Governance report and the 2021 Governance Report.
- Represents total compensation of the Board of Director paid in respect of the reporting year, reported in accordance with the accrual principle.
- Represents Director and Committee fees paid in respect of the reporting year, reported in accordance with the accrual principle.
- 2021 RSUs blocking period end on 15 April 2024; 2020 RSUs end on 15 April 2023.
- Economic value at grant according to IFRS methodology, with no discount applied for the blocking period.
- Thomas Rufer retired at the AGM in March 2021.
- The 2020 figures represent compensation from April to December 2020.
- The 2020 figures represent compensation from September to December 2020.
Estimated social security charges based on 2021 compensation amounted to CHF 263,416 (2020: CHF 259,320).
Compensation of the Executive Committee
Total Executive Committee (EC) compensation reported in 2021 remained stable compared to 2020, representing full year compensation for seven members (including the CEO). The compensation paid is within the amounts approved by shareholders at the respective Annual General Meeting. The fixed and long term variable compensation approved for 2021 was CHF 15,400,000 (2020: CHF 15,300,000). The annual incentive, short term variable compensation amount for 2021 was CHF 5,461,355 and will be submitted for approval at the 2022 Annual General Meeting (2020: CHF 4,812,783).
Executive Committee (EC) compensation summary
| in Swiss francs | Year |
Base salary |
Pension benefits 2 |
Other benefits 3 |
Total fixed compensation |
Annual incentive 4 |
Number of performance shares granted 5 |
Value at grant 6 |
Total variable compensation |
Total compensation |
Employer social security 7 |
| Gilles Andrier, CEO | 2021 | 1,221,418 | 578,371 | 141,079 | 1,940,868 | 1,862,933 | 728 | 2,500,898 | 4,363,831 | 6,304,699 | 525,879 |
| 2020 | 1,211,084 | 574,237 | 145,344 | 1,930,665 | 1,636,536 | 895 | 2,501,078 | 4,137,614 | 6,068,279 | 504,728 | |
| EC, excluding CEO 1 | 2021 | 3,228,752 | 1,086,554 | 388,786 | 4,704,092 | 3,598,422 | 1,688 | 5,798,786 | 9,397,208 | 14,101,300 | 1,073,231 |
| 2020 | 3,336,973 | 1,036,769 | 433,184 | 4,806,926 | 3,176,247 | 2,077 | 5,804,177 | 8,980,424 | 13,787,350 | 1,029,178 | |
| Total: EC, including CEO | 2021 | 4,450,170 | 1,664,925 | 529,865 | 6,644,960 | 5,461,355 | 2,416 | 8,299,684 | 13,761,039 | 20,405,999 | 1,599,110 |
| 2020 | 4,548,057 | 1,611,006 | 578,528 | 6,737,591 | 4,812,783 | 2,972 | 8,305,255 | 13,118,038 | 19,855,629 | 1,533,906 |
- Represents full year compensation of six Executive Committee members.
- Company contributions to broad-based pension and retirement savings plans and annualised expenses accrued for supplementary executive retirement benefit.
- Represents annual value of health and welfare plans, international assignment benefits and other benefits in kind.
- Annual incentive accrued in reporting period based on performance in the reporting period.
- 2021 Performance Shares vest on 15 April 2024, 2020 Performance Shares vest on 15 April 2023.
- Value at grant calculated according to IFRS methodology and based on 100% achievement of performance targets.
- 2021 estimated social security charges based on 2021 compensation; 2020 estimated social security charges based on 2020 compensation.
Ownership of Givaudan securities
As per 31 December 2021, the Chairman and other Board members, including persons closely connected to them held 6,813 Givaudan shares in total, the Chief Executive Officer and other members of the Executive Committee, including persons closely connected to them, held 8,053 Givaudan shares. Oner person closely connected to a member of the Executive Committee owned 184 unvested Performance Shares as at 31 December 2021.
Board of Directors: ownership of Givaudan securities
| 2021 in numbers |
Shares | Blocked RSUs |
| Calvin Grieder, Chairman | 947 | 629 |
| Victor Balli | 248 | 157 |
| Prof. Dr-Ing. Werner Bauer | 1,428 | 157 |
| Lilian Biner | 735 | 157 |
| Michael Carlos | 1,260 | 157 |
| Ingrid Deltenre | 365 | 157 |
| Olivier Filliol | 1,200 | 94 |
| Sophie Gasperment | - | 72 |
| Total 2021 | 6,183 | 1,580 |
| Total 2020 | 6,501 | 1,962 |
Executive Committee: ownership of Givaudan securities
| 2021 in numbers |
Shares | Unvested Performance Shares |
| Gilles Andrier, CEO | 4,600 | 2,715 |
| Tom Hallam | 278 | 1,141 |
| Louie D'Amico | 525 | 1,270 |
| Maurizio Volpi | 801 | 1,357 |
| Simon Halle-Smith | 706 | 815 |
| Willem Mutsaerts | 434 | 815 |
| Anne Tayac | 525 | 815 |
| Total 2021 | 7,869 | 8,928 |
| Total 2020 | 6,312 | 10,937 |
Download centre
explore