Compensation architecture for the CEO and members of the Executive Committee

Compensation principles

The compensation of the Executive Committee is driven by the main principle of pay‑for‑performance. The compensation policy and programs are designed to reward performance, sustainable growth and long-term shareholder value creation, while offering fair and competitive compensation to be able to attract and retain highly qualified employees. The compensation principles are:

Method of determining compensation: benchmarking

To ensure compensation levels that are competitive and in line with market practice, the compensation of the members of the Board of Directors and of the Executive Committee is benchmarked against that of similar roles in comparable companies every one to two years.

The RC regularly reviews the composition of the peer group, which is applied for benchmarking purposes. In 2021, the RC decided to revise the composition of the peer group from 2022 onward. Twelve industrial companies of comparable size and complexity from the Swiss market form the peer group, which is used to derive the compensation levels for the Board of Directors and for the Executive Committee. The revised benchmarking peer group maintained its comparability requirements and was utilized again in 2023.

Compensation benchmark

The comparison group reflects Sulzer’s ambitious business strategy:

The intention is to pay target compensation around the median of the relevant market. Nevertheless, compensation is not granted based on benchmark results alone. The role, responsibility, experience and, in particular, the difference between a new entrant to a role and someone with experience who has already demonstrated his or her impact in a similar role, are also criteria in determining compensation. A globally applied job-grading methodology fosters internal equity.

The compensation of the Executive Committee is governed by internal regulations such as the bonus plan, the performance share plan and the benefits plans. The compensation of the Executive Committee is reviewed by the RC annually and, if necessary, is adjusted and approved by decision of the Board of Directors based on a proposal of the RC. The compensation of the Executive Committee is summarized as follows:

Compensation elements for the members of the Executive Committee

The compensation of the Executive Committee contains fixed, performance-independent elements to provide a secure income and to ensure that no unreasonable risks are taken. In order to create reasonable incentives for the Executive Committee, to align the interests of the Executive Committee and shareholders, to ensure pay-for-performance and implement the company’s strategy in the Executive Committee’s compensation, it also contains short‑ and long‑term performance‑dependent elements: 

In line with the pay-for-performance principle, a significant portion of the compensation of the CEO (64%) and the other members of the Executive Committee (55%) consists of variable incentives based on performance. Furthermore, the compensation structure ensures sustainable long-term growth, as the long-term variable compensation makes up the largest portion of the target total compensation (see “Overview of compensation elementsˮ).

Base salary (fixed, in cash)

The base salary is determined at the discretion of the Board of Directors based on the market value of the respective position and the incumbent’s qualifications, skillset and experience and is paid out in cash. An internal job-grading methodology provides orientation and fosters internal equity.

Benefits

Members of the Executive Committee participate in the regular employee pension fund applicable to all employees in Switzerland. The retirement plan consists of a basic plan that covers annual earnings up to CHF 152’868 per year and a supplementary plan in which income over this limit, up to the ceiling set by law, is insured (including variable cash remuneration). The contributions are age‑related and are shared between the employer and the employee.

Furthermore, each member of the Executive Committee is entitled to a representation allowance in line with the expense regulations for all members of management in Switzerland and approved by the tax authorities.

Bonus (variable, performance-based, cash remuneration)

The bonus rewards the financial performance of the company and/or its businesses, as well as the achievement of individual performance objectives over one calendar year. Performance objectives are defined at the beginning of the year during annual target setting. Achievement is assessed against each of those objectives after year-end and directly influences the variable incentive payouts.

The target bonus is expressed as a percentage of annual base salary. It amounts to 90% for the CEO and to 60% for the other members of the Executive Committee. For the CEO and the other members of the Executive Committee, 70% of the bonus is based on the achievement of financial objectives at company and/or division level, and 30% is based on the achievement of individual objectives as described below:

For each financial objective, the following parameters are set upfront:

Between threshold and target, as well as between target and cap, the payout factor is interpolated linearly.

In order to measure individual performance, each Executive Committee member is given different personal objectives for each of the four individual performance categories (“Cost-effectiveness,ˮ “Growth initiatives,ˮ “Faster and betterˮ and “Sustainable Sulzerˮ) at the beginning of the financial year. The CEO reviews the individual performance based on the personal objectives of each Executive Committee member, which in turn is reviewed by the RC. The CEO’s individual performance is assessed by the RC.

“Cost‑effectivenessˮ, for example, includes objectives like cost-saving (travel spend reduction, real estate cost reduction, etc.), whereas objectives for the category “Faster and better” consider, among others, on-time delivery percentage improvement. “Growth initiatives” include, for example, successful completion of M&A project or sales growth in specific countries.

The “Sustainable Sulzerˮ criteria used to assess the performance of the Executive Committee are structured around the three major priorities of Sulzer’s sustainability plan, namely minimizing our carbon footprint, enabling a low‑carbon society and engaging our employees and communities. The following topics are examples that could be considered for the Executive Committee:

Sulzer strives for transparency in relation to pay-for-performance. However, further disclosure of financial and individual objectives may create a competitive disadvantage to the company, because it would reveal sensitive insights into Sulzer’s strategy. To ensure transparency while avoiding competitive risk, Sulzer provides a general performance assessment for each financial objective as well as the aggregated individual performance at the end of the performance cycle (see chapter “Compensation of the Executive Committee for 2023”).

On the basis of this performance assessment, a payout factor is determined for each financial objective as a result of the actual performance. The weighted average of the resulting payout factors on each performance metric will be multiplied by the target bonus amount to derive the actual bonus, which will be paid out in March of the following year.

The objectives for the bonus plan are linked to Sulzer’s strategic goal of promoting the sustainable and profitable growth of the company. They are chosen to provide different incentives for growth and shareholder value creation.

Strategic link of bonus plan

Performance share plan (variable, performance-based, share-based remuneration)

The long-term shareholder orientation and value creation is incentivized by a performance share plan (PSP) granting performance share units (PSUs) to the members of the Executive Committee. PSUs are a conditional right to a certain number of shares of the company, subject to ongoing employment and to the achievement of strategic/financial performance targets at Group level over the three-year performance period. The PSP is based on the performance of the company over three years and aligns the interests of the participants with those of the shareholders by delivering a substantial portion of the compensation as company equity. This emphasizes and supports Sulzer’s focus on pay-for-performance and sustainable growth, with a long-term perspective and additional retention effect on employees.

The PSP is a plan with annual grants and is available exclusively to the members of the Executive Committee and of the Sulzer Management Group. The grant value is determined based on the level of the executive’s role and amounts to kCHF 1’000 for the CEO, Suzanne Thoma, and to between kCHF 330 and kCHF 400 (determined by the Board of Directors) for the other members of the Executive Committee. The number of PSUs granted is calculated by dividing the grant value by the three-month volume-weighted average share price before the grant date (units prorated as per entry date into employment).

The key performance criteria measured over the three-year performance period of PSUs are:

Peer group for relative TSR performance of PSP 2023

International peers

The Board of Directors can alter the composition of the peer group if deemed necessary, such as in the case of a merger or acquisition or any other change leading to a delisting or a fundamental change in the scope of the business of a peer group company. In such a situation, the Board will select new peer companies. There is a predefined successor list of companies to support the Board of Directors in the selection process.

The threshold, target and maximum for the relative TSR in the international peer group remained unchanged.

For each performance condition of the PSP, a threshold, target and cap performance level are determined, which in turn determine the achievement factor. Sulzer strives for transparency in relation to pay-for-performance and discloses all information whose exposure cannot lead to strategic disadvantages.

Disclosure of internal financial objectives may create a competitive disadvantage for the company because it could reveal sensitive insights into Sulzer’s strategy. To ensure transparency while avoiding competitive risk, Sulzer provides a general performance assessment for each performance criterion at the end of the performance cycle based on the following metric (see chapter “Compensation of the Executive Committee for 2023”).

On the vesting date, the number of vested PSUs is calculated by multiplying the initial number of PSUs granted by the weighted average of the achievement factor of each performance condition. For each vested PSU, a Sulzer share will be delivered to the participant.

However, while the above-mentioned performance assessment impacts the number of PSUs vested and, consequently, the number of shares delivered, there might also be an increase in value per share over the three-year performance period, which may have a relevant impact on the total value delivered after three years. Therefore, the number of vested PSUs is subject to an absolute value cap representing, in each case, 2.5 times the original grant value.

The objectives for the PSP are linked to Sulzer’s strategic goal of promoting the sustainable and profitable growth of the company. They are chosen to provide different incentives for growth and shareholder value creation.

Strategic link of PSP

In the event of termination of employment, the following provisions apply:

Upon the occurrence of a change of control, PSUs will vest immediately on a pro rata basis, subject to a performance assessment by the Board of Directors. In such a case, the Board of Directors may also determine a cash settlement of the awards.

Malus and clawback

The Board of Directors may determine that variable compensation is forfeited in full or in part (malus) or that a vested award will be recovered in full or in part (clawback) in situations of material misstatement of the financial results, an error in assessing a performance condition or in the information or assumptions on which the award was granted or vested, serious reputational damage to the company, gross negligence, or willful misconduct on the part of the participant. Sulzer may recover in full or in part any variable compensation from Executive Committee members in situations of material misstatement of the financial results, an error in assessing a performance condition or gross misconduct of the participant.

Further information on share-based compensation can be found in note 31 to the consolidated financial statements of Sulzer.

Contracts of employment

The employment contracts of the Executive Committee are of undetermined duration and have a notice period of a maximum of 12 months. Members of the Executive Committee are not entitled to any impermissible severance or change of control payments. The employment contracts of the Executive Committee may include non-competition agreements with a time limit of one year and with maximum total compensation not to exceed the last total annual target compensation such member was entitled to prior to termination and in no event to exceed the average of the compensation of the last three financial years.

Shareholding requirements

Shareholding requirements for members of the Executive Committee were introduced with effect from 2020. According to these share ownership guidelines (SOGs), the members of the Executive Committee are obliged to hold part of their shares until the end of their service period. The value of the shares to be held is set at 200% of the annual gross base salary for the CEO and 100% of the annual gross base salary for the other members of the Executive Committee.

Compensation governance and principles

Compensation of the Executive Committee for 2023