Smith+Nephew (LSE: SN, NYSE: SNN), the global medical technology company (the Company), is pleased to announce that Rupert Soames OBE will succeed Roberto Quarta as Chair of the Company. Mr Quarta has reached the end of his tenure and will retire as Chair and Non-Executive Director in 2023.
Mr Soames will be appointed as an Independent Non-Executive Director at the Company's Annual General Meeting on 26 April 2023, subject to shareholder approval, and will succeed Mr Quarta as Chair with effect from 15 September 2023. Mr Quarta has agreed to continue as Chair to ensure a smooth transition and will put himself forward for re-election as a Non-Executive Director on 26 April 2023 on this basis.
Mr Soames has extensive global leadership experience in both executive and non-executive roles. Most recently he served as Chief Executive Officer of Serco Group plc, the global outsourced services provider, between 2014 and 2022 where he led the successful turnaround. He was Chief Executive of Aggreko plc, the support services company (2003-2014) and also served as a Non-Executive Independent Director at both DS Smith, the sustainable packaging business (2019-2022) and support services company Electrocomponents plc (2007-2016) (now RS Group). On joining the Board, Mr Soames will be appointed to the Nomination & Governance Committee and the Remuneration Committee.
Marc Owen, Senior Independent Director, who along with the Nomination Governance Committee led the Chair search process, commented:
The Board conducted an extensive search for a new Chair and we are delighted to welcome Rupert to the Board. We believe that Rupert's extensive track record of value creation in global companies and deep understanding of corporate governance will help Deepak Nath and his team deliver on their existing plans to grow the business and to improve its operational performance. I would like to thank Roberto for his unwavering commitment and support to the Board and for his contribution and service to the Company during his tenure.
Rupert Soames said: "Smith+Nephew is a leader in the medical technology sector with a 167-year history of supporting patients to return to health. I am honoured to be the next Chair of the Board, and look forward to working with Deepak, the Smith+Nephew organisation and the Board to deliver on Smith+Nephew’s great potential. No further disclosure obligations arise under paragraphs (1) to (6) of LR 9.6.13 R of the UK Listing Authority's Listing Rules in respect of this appointment."
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About Smith+Nephew
Smith+Nephew is a portfolio medical technology company that exists to restore people's bodies and their self-belief by using technology to take the limits off living. We call this purpose 'Life Unlimited'. Our 18,000 employees deliver this mission every day, making a difference to patients' lives through the excellence of our product portfolio, and the invention and application of new technologies across our three global franchises of Orthopaedics, Sports Medicine & ENT and Advanced Wound Management.
Founded in Hull, UK, in 1856, we now operate in more than 100 countries, and generated annual sales of $5.2 billion in 2021. Smith+Nephew is a constituent of the FTSE100 (LSE:SN, NYSE:SNN). The terms 'Group' and 'Smith+Nephew' are used to refer to Smith & Nephew plc and its consolidated subsidiaries, unless the context requires otherwise.
For more information about Smith+Nephew, please visit www.smith-nephew.com and follow us on Twitter, Linkedin, Instagram and Facebook
Forward-looking Statements
This document may contain forward-looking statements that may or may not prove accurate. For example, statements regarding expected revenue growth and trading margins, market trends and our product pipeline are forward-looking statements. Phrases such as "aim", "plan", "intend", "anticipate", "well-placed", "believe", "estimate", "expect", "target", "consider" and similar expressions are generally intended to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from what is expressed or implied by the statements. For Smith+Nephew, these factors include: risks related to the impact of COVID, such as the depth and longevity of its impact, government actions and other restrictive measures taken in response, material delays and cancellations of elective procedures, reduced procedure capacity at medical facilities, restricted access for sales representatives to medical facilities, or our ability to execute business continuity plans as a result of COVID; economic and financial conditions in the markets we serve, especially those affecting health care providers, payers and customers (including, without limitation, as a result of COVID); price levels for established and innovative medical devices; developments in medical technology; regulatory approvals, reimbursement decisions or other government actions; product defects or recalls or other problems with quality management systems or failure to comply with related regulations; litigation relating to patent or other claims; legal compliance risks and related investigative, remedial or enforcement actions; disruption to our supply chain or operations or those of our suppliers (including, without limitation, as a result of COVID); competition for qualified personnel; strategic actions, including acquisitions and dispositions, our success in performing due diligence, valuing and integrating acquired businesses; disruption that may result from transactions or other changes we make in our business plans or organisation to adapt to market developments; and numerous other matters that affect us or our markets, including those of a political, economic, business, competitive or reputational nature. Please refer to the documents that Smith+Nephew has filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission under the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, including Smith+Nephew's most recent annual report on Form 20-F, for a discussion of certain of these factors. Any forward-looking statement is based on information available to Smith+Nephew as of the date of the statement. All written or oral forward-looking statements attributable to Smith+Nephew are qualified by this caution. Smith+Nephew does not undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement to reflect any change in circumstances or in Smith+Nephew's expectations.
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