Composition of the Supervisory Board
The composition of DSM’s Supervisory Board is diverse in terms of gender, nationality, background, knowledge and experience. The Board comprises four men and four women. Two members are Dutch, one American, one Dutch-American, one British, one Singaporean, one Australian and one Belgian. The Board’s current members are Thomas Leysen (Chair), John Ramsay (Deputy Chair), Eileen Kennedy, Carla Mahieu, Erica Mann, Frits van Paasschen, Pradeep Pant and Corien Wortmann-Kool. For detailed information on their backgrounds, see the company website and Supervisory Board and Managing Board Royal DSM.
Following best practice 2.1.10 of the Dutch Corporate Governance Code, the Supervisory Board establishes that its members are able to act critically and independently of one another, the Managing Board and any particular interests involved. To safeguard this, the Supervisory Board is composed in such a way that all its members are independent in the meaning of best practice 2.1.8 of the Dutch Corporate Governance Code.
The targeted profile of the Supervisory Board is described on the company website under ‘Supervisory Board’ and is reflected in the company’s regulations. The size, composition and qualities of the Supervisory Board as a whole should be in keeping with the company’s size, portfolio, nature, culture, geographical spread and its status as listed company. The Supervisory Board should be diverse in its composition and possess knowledge and experience in the fields as listed under ‘DSM Supervisory Board: key competences’ below. Members of the Supervisory Board should represent certain qualities, among others, integrity and the ability to operate independently and critically vis-à-vis the other members and the Managing Board members. The Supervisory Board has four committees to cover key areas in greater detail: Audit, Nominations (to the Supervisory Board and Managing Board), Remuneration (of the Supervisory Board and Managing Board) and Sustainability. Information on these committees is given elsewhere in this section. The charters of the committees are published on the company website under ‘Supervisory Board’.
