Board/Management Information • Jan 20, 2022
Board/Management Information
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January 2022
Atlantia S.p.A. ("Atlantia" or the "Company") applies the Corporate Governance Code of Borsa Italiana (the "Code"), whose Art. 4, Principle XIII, Recommendation 23, also in consideration of the requirements of the Principles in art. 2, recommends that the Boards of Directors of listed companies, when close to the termination of its office, should provide the Shareholders with the guidelines on the optimal qualitative and quantitative composition of the new board, taking into account the outcome of the selfevaluation process.
Atlantia's Board of Directors, whose office expires with the approval of the 2021 financial statement, and in the light of the opinion issued by the Nomination, Remuneration and Human Capital Committee, has drafted the following guidelines on the future qualitative and quantitative composition of the board to be provided to the Shareholders in view of the upcoming Shareholders' Meeting. The Meeting will be called to vote on, inter alia, the appointment of the new board of directors for the period 2022 to 2024.
In drafting this guidelines (the "Guidelines"), Atlantia's Board has considered:
The Guidelines covers the management and professional profiles and the expertise of future members of the board, based on:
In accordance with the Board of Directors' Terms of Reference adopted on 18 February 2021 (the "Board Terms of Reference"), the Board thus invites Shareholders who submit their list of candidates for the appointment of the board of directors to ensure that such lists enclose all the necessary information in order to allow the other Shareholders to consciously vote, including the indication of candidates' eligibility to be qualified as independent, pursuant to the Legislative Decree 58/98 and/or the Recommendation 7 of the Code, as reported in art. 5 of the Board Terms of Reference.
Furthermore, in compliance with the Recommendation 23 of the Code, the Board also invites the Shareholders submitting a list containing a number of candidates higher than half of the members to be elected:
| Preamble 2 | |
|---|---|
| Table of contents 3 | |
| Quantitative composition 4 | |
| Qualitative composition 5 | |
| 1. General and personal attributes 5 |
|
| 2. Board Skills Matrix 5 |
|
| 3. Required commitment for the office 7 |
|
| 4. Key officers 8 |
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| Chair of the Board of Directors 8 | |
| Chief Executive Officer 8 | |
| Board committees 9 | |
| The filing of lists of Board candidates 9 |
Article 19 of Atlantia's Articles of Association provides that the Company shall be managed by a board of directors composed by not less than seven and no more than fifteen members.
In accordance with the best corporate governance standards, the number of members of the board of directors must be commensurate with the size and complexity of the company's organisational structure, in order to ensure that the same board is capable to effectively run all areas of the company's business and activities, in terms of management and operational oversight.
The right size of the board of directors also depends on the number and composition of the Board Committees, in which all the board members are required to take part, avoiding an excessive accumulation of offices and ensuring an adequate presence of independent Directors. In this regard, it should be noted that: (i) in the Committees recommended by the Corporate Governance Code the majority of members shall be independent, and the relevant chair shall be appointed among its independent members; (ii) pursuant to art. 12.3 of the Board's Terms of Reference, no Directors may be appointed as member of more than two Committees.
In this regard, it should be noted that Atlantia has established the following 4 Board Committees, approving the relevant terms of reference: (i) the Control, Risk and Corporate Governance Committee; (ii) the Nomination, Remuneration and Human Capital Committee; (iii) the Sustainability Committee; and (iv) the Committee of Independent Directors with responsibility for Related Party Transactions. The members of all the Committees are Independent Directors.
Please also note that the Shareholders' Meeting held on 18 April 2019 confirmed that the number of Directors should be fifteen, in line with the quantitative composition recommended by the Board in its "Guidelines on the appointment of the Board of Directors for the three-year period 2019-2021".
The self-evaluation conducted at the end of the three-year office highlighted the positive performance of the current Board of Directors, consisting of fifteen members. The self-evaluation also revealed that the majority of Directors – also in light of the outcome of a benchmarking exercise concerning the composition of the boards of directors of international peers – indicated that a board consisting of 13 Directors could be better to address the challenges to be faced in the next three years. The Board, however, highlighted that it had performed extremely well also in its current size of 15 Directors.
The Code recommends that the management body is composed by executive and non-executive directors, a significant number of whom should be independent, all of them shall have professional skills and expertise appropriate to their assigned duties. The Code also stresses that the number and expertise of non-executive directors should be such as to ensure that they have significant influence on the board's decisions, guaranteeing effective management oversight.
According to the Code, the issuers shall apply the diversity criteria, including gender quota, for the composition of their boards of directors, without prejudice of the primary goal of ensuring the expertise and professional skills of the members of the board.
Furthermore, for the purposes of the filing of Telepass S.p.A., in which Atlantia holds the 51% of the corporate capital, on the Register of Electronic Money Institutions as a hybrid electronic money institution, the candidates for the office as director shall meet the integrity requirements provided for in art. 148, paragraph 4 of Legislative Decree 58/1998 and art. 2 of Justice Ministry Decree 162/2000 – as referred to in art. 147-quinquies of Legislative Decree 58/1998 – as well as the requirements of integrity, fairness and professionality expertise set out in Legislative Decree 385/1993, and in the Bank of Italy decision of 23 July 2019 "Supervisory provisions for payment institutions and electronic money institutions" and in the Circular 288 of 3 April 2015, "Supervisory provisions for financial intermediaries".
With regard to the general and personal attributes of the members of Atlantia's Board of Directors, the expiring Board highlights the importance of:
The Board of Directors hopes that, in drafting their lists of candidates for the 2022-2024 office, Atlantia's Shareholders:
Based on the experience accrued during the current office term, the Board of Directors has decided also to provide the Shareholders with their Guidelines on the knowledge, expertise and experience that should characterize the best qualitative
composition of the next managing body. Such Guidelines has been drafted on the basis of the Board's perception of the managerial skills needed, based on Atlantia's growth strategy and sustainability roadmap.
The expiring Board of Directors has classified this experience, knowledge and expertise in a proposed matrix, showing the ideal breadth and balance of individual experience within the Board of Directors as a whole.
Knowledge of the transport infrastructure and services businesses and the related regulatory framework, providing an understanding of the activities, risks and opportunities linked to emerging scenario changes in the infrastructure and mobility sectors in which the Company operates.
International experience and exposure that, in view of the Company's global footprint, can provide an understanding of global market trends. In this regard, this international experience and exposure should enable the Board to gain insights into the social and political situations of the countries in which Atlantia has a strategic presence;
Experience in management, gained in top management roles within Italian or foreign companies of significant size and complexity, leading strategy activities, the growth/transformation of a business or of a strategic unit;
Financial expertise and experience of managing an investment portfolio, accrued in contexts characterized by significant growth through extraordinary transactions, and accrued in top management roles in international complex companies, including those of a financial nature, leading strategic evaluation and development of the investment portfolio and/or M&A activity.
Experience in compliance and risk management gained in leadership roles such as Chief Risk Officer, Chief Internal Auditor, Chief Compliance Officer, or significant experience within risk and/or audit committees and/or experience as a statutory auditor in complex businesses, preferably listed.
Financial and audit expertise gained preferably through senior roles in finance, administration, planning and control within highly complex Italian or international companies or within an academic environment.
Expertise in Information Technology/Digital, Cyber Security and Innovation, accrued within organisations where technology played a key role in both the core business and as a means of transforming the business, acquired through experience in senior management roles within technology-driven companies or in positions such as Chief Information Officer (CIO) or Chief Technology Officer (CTO) within highly complex Italian or international businesses.
Expertise in Sustainability/ESG, with particular regard to the issue of climate change, accrued within ESG-driven organisations where such aspects play a key role in achieving the sustainable long-term success of the business, gained through experience in leadership roles within companies operating in a range of sectors or at government or academic level or as a consultant if closely linked to issues surrounding sustainability.
In addition, the following expertise would further enrich the expertise of the Board:
The Board recommends that all the above skills are represented within the Board of Directors, as the availability of different experiences and skills ensures the complementary of the professional profiles and promote the mix of viewpoints during discussions and the efficient functioning of the board.
The issue of soft skills was also specifically addressed by the current Board, which believes the following attributes to be of major importance, also within the future Board:
The adequate availability of time and energy to dedicate to the office, in view of its nature, quality and complexity, is a key requirement that board candidates must guarantee, also in connection to the activities related to the participation to the board committee of which they may be members.
In addition, the commitment necessary for the preparation for the meetings and the attendance to the induction meetings and training initiatives organised for the directors, should be taken into account. So far, four induction meetings have been scheduled for 2022.
The Board recommends that candidates accept their appointment when they believe that they are able to dedicate sufficient time to the diligent fulfilment of their office. This should happen taking into account their work commitments as well as the overall number of directorships and oversight offices they hold in other companies listed in regulated Italian and foreign markets, or in Companies of Significant Size, and the related commitment, including with regard to membership of board committees. Reference should also be made to the rules in the Board Terms of Reference governing the cumulative number of offices held by Directors.
In order to allow the Shareholders to evaluate the amount of time that Board candidates must commit to, and to allow such candidates to evaluate whether or not they are able to prepare for and take part in the meetings, the expiring Board of Directors has prepared a table showing the number of meetings and commitments in terms of time for members of the Board and Board Committees, based on the 2021 data:
| BODY | NUMBER OF MEETINGS | AVERAGE DURATION OF MEETINGS |
|---|---|---|
| Board of Directors | 27 | 4 hours |
| Control, Risk and Corporate Governance Committee | 16 | 3 hours |
| Nomination, Remuneration and Human Capital Committee | 12 | 3 hours |
| Sustainability Committee | 6 | 2 hours |
| Committee of Independent Directors with responsibility for Related Party Transactions |
6 | 1 hour |
In addition, based on the calendar of meetings for 2022, Atlantia's Board of Directors has also estimated the minimum time needed to play an effective role in meetings, as summarised in the following table.
| Chair of the Board | 2/3 days a week |
|---|---|
| Chief Executive Officer | Full time |
| Chair of a Board Committee | 2 days to prepare for and take part in each Committee meeting |
| Non-executive Director | 24 days a year, relating only to activities connected with Board of Directors' meetings |
|---|---|
| Member of the Control, Risk and Corporate Governance Committee | 12 days a year |
| Member of the Nomination, Remuneration and Human Capital Committee |
8 days a year |
| Member of the Sustainability Committee | 8 days a year |
| Member of the Committee of Independent Directors with responsibility for Related Party Transactions |
6 days a year |
In view of the significance of certain offices within the Board of Directors, Atlantia's Directors have also indicated the main attributes that the officers holding such roles must possess.
In addition to the attributes required for all the Directors, the Board deems it advisable that the Chair not hold significant delegated powers and must:
In addition to the attributes required for all the Directors, the Board deems it advisable that the Chief Executive Officer must:
In terms of relations between the Chair and the Chief Executive Officer, the Board wishes to highlight the need for the two roles to complement each other, in order for the Board and, more generally, the Company's governance to function properly. The Board also recommends that the Chair of Atlantia's Board of Directors should have a non-executive role and not hold significant delegated powers. The Chair should not, even on a de facto basis, have an operational role, unless the case of standing in for the Chief Executive Officer in the event of absence or impediment.
With reference to the Committees, the Board considers that the existing framework and structure, already subject to a review during the current office term, shall be retained. Furthermore, it suggests to assign the responsibility for "Corporate Governance" matters to another Committee in order to lighten the workload of the Control and Risk Committee.
It should also be noted that, in accordance with the Board Terms of Reference, Directors may only be members of up to two Committees, so that they can dedicate sufficient time to the related activities.
In order to provide the Shareholders with sufficient time to submit lists of candidates for the appointment as to Atlantia's Directors and to evaluate such lists before being asked to vote on them, the Board of Directors decided to publish the Guidelines hereby in appropriate advance to the Shareholders' Meeting to be called to appoint the new Company's Board of Directors. The Board hopes that the Shareholders intending to submit a list will file it earlier than the 25-days term provided by law.
In filing the lists, Shareholders are invited to bear in mind the recommendation in the Preamble regarding the information and documentation to be provided.
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