REG - YouGov PLC - Board Succession Planning

YouGovAnnouncement

11/10/2022 07:16

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RNS Number : 4113C  YouGov PLC  11 October 2022

11 October 2022

YouGov plc

 

("YouGov" or "the Group" or "the Company")

 

Board Succession Planning

 

YouGov, the international online research data and analytics technology group,
is pleased to provide an update on Board succession planning in relation to
the previously announced planned retirement of the Non-Executive Chair, Roger
Parry. This announcement supplements the disclosures regarding Board
succession included in the Company's Preliminary Results Announcement for the
year to 31 July 2022 which was released today.

 

Over the last 12 months, the Board's Nomination Committee, with support from
leading international executive search firm Egon Zehnder, has conducted a
rigorous assessment of the Board's composition and the skills, experience,
structure and roles that are needed to support the Company's next phase of
growth and ensure continued, effective leadership of the Group. As part of
this process, the Committee identified the criteria required for the role of
future Chair of YouGov to continue the delivery of the Company's long-term
vision to become the world's leading market research platform.

 

During this assessment Stephan Shakespeare, YouGov's co-founder and current
Chief Executive Officer, indicated to the Committee his desire to assume a
more strategic, non-executive leadership role within the Group, allowing him
to shift focus from day-to-day operational oversight to more long-term
development and governance once the next phase of the Group's growth strategy
had been set out.

 

After an extensive assessment process, the Board unanimously agreed that it is
in the best interests of the Company's long-term stability for Stephan to take
over the role of Chair when Roger steps down. Consequently, Stephan has been
appointed as YouGov's Non-Executive Chair Designate.

 

Stephan will assume the Chair role upon a new CEO commencing in post,
currently anticipated to be on 1 August 2023 which is the start of the next
financial year. The search for a new CEO has been launched and the Nomination
Committee is currently considering a wide variety of both external and
internal candidates as part of an international search process. The
appointment of the CEO Designate is expected in the spring of 2023 to allow
sufficient time for a hand-over period. To ensure an orderly transition and
allow adequate time to recruit the right candidate for the CEO position, Roger
will be put forward for re-election at the upcoming AGM (8 December 2022) with
the underlying expectation that he shall retire on 1 August 2023.

 

As previously announced, Nick Prettejohn joined the Board in June 2022 as a
Non-Executive Director. It is intended that Nick will take on the role of
Senior Independent Director ("SID") at the same time as Stephan's transition
to Chair. Rosemary Leith, the current SID, will stay on the Board following
this planned transition and will continue as Chair of the Remuneration
Committee. In her role as SID, Rosemary led discussions within the Nomination
Committee about the succession of the Chair.

 

To further strengthen the Board and maintain the highest levels of corporate
governance, it is also planned that a new independent Non-Executive Director
will be appointed in the short term and this search is currently underway.
Adding this new Non-Executive role, in addition to Nick, ensures a majority of
independent members on the Board following the Chair transition, while
bringing further skills and diversity to the boardroom, and it is commensurate
to the Company's current size and growth plans.

 

The Company will provide updates in respect of the CEO and NED searches in due
course.

 

Regarding the Chair succession plan, Rosemary Leith, SID, commented: "After a
series of detailed discussions and exploration of various options for the
Chair succession, the Nomination Committee, and subsequently the full Board,
unanimously agreed that no other candidate could match the qualities which
Stephan will bring to the role. As founder of the Company, he is uniquely
positioned due to his extensive knowledge of the business, his in-depth
understanding of investor and other stakeholder expectations, and his role in
shaping the strategic direction of the Company. The planned changes, with
Stephan at the helm as Chair, will result in a Board that is very well placed
to lead the next phase of growth for YouGov."

 

Roger Parry, Non-Executive Chair, commented: "As CEO, Stephan has been an
exceptional leader of the business and under his tenure as sole CEO since 2010
YouGov has grown top-line more than fivefold. The Board is cognisant of the
potential challenges of a Founder & CEO moving to Chair and we have put in
place protocols and resources to set the transition up for success. I have
full confidence in Stephan as the next Chair and I look forward to supporting
with the ongoing succession planning activities leading up to the planned
handover."

 

Stephan Shakespeare, Founder & CEO and Non-Executive Chair Designate,
commented: "It will be an honour to step into the role of Chair and continue
my journey with the company I co-founded in 2000. I am hugely excited by the
opportunity to lead the Board and to provide continuity and stability to
YouGov as we continue our evolution into a platform business under the
leadership of the next CEO. With the Nomination Committee's work on succession
and composition, we have a strong governance model for this next phase of our
growth.

 

"As I prepare to transition from my current role as CEO, I am immensely proud
of the business we have built over the last 22 years and motivated for the
journey ahead. I am confident that I will be handing over the reins with the
Group in its strongest ever position and a clear strategy to realising our
vision of building the world's leading market research platform. In the
meantime, I am fully engaged in my position as CEO and focussed on the current
year."

 

Enquiries

 

 YouGov plc

 Tilly Heald / Hannah Jethwani                                  020 7012 6000

 FTI Consulting

 Charles Palmer / Tom Blundell / Jemima Gurney                  020 3727 1000

 Numis Securities (NOMAD and Joint Broker)

 Nick Westlake / Iqra Amin                                      020 7260 1000

 Berenberg (Joint Broker)

 Mark Whitmore / Richard Andrews / Alix Mecklenburg-Solodkoff   020 3207 7800

 

This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of
Regulation (EU) No 596/201 as it forms part of UK domestic law by virtue of
the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 ("MAR"). Upon the publication of this
announcement via a Regulatory Information Service this inside information is
now considered to be in the public domain. The person responsible for
arranging release of this announcement on behalf of the Company is Tilly
Heald, Company Secretary of the Company.

 

About YouGov

 

YouGov is an international online research data and analytics technology
group.

 

Our mission is to offer unparalleled insight into what the world thinks.

 

Our innovative solutions help the world's most recognised brands, media owners
and agencies to plan, activate and track their marketing activities better.

 

With operations in the UK, the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, India and
Asia Pacific, we have one of the world's largest research networks.

 

At the core of our platform is an ever-growing source of consumer data that
has been amassed over our twenty years of operation. We call it Living Data.
All of our products and services draw upon this detailed understanding of our
22+ million registered panel members to deliver accurate, actionable consumer
insights.

 

As innovators and pioneers of online market research, we have a strong
reputation as a trusted source of accurate data and insights. Testament to
this, YouGov data is regularly referenced by the global press, and we are the
second most quoted market research source in the world.

 

YouGov. Living Consumer Intelligence.

 

For further information, visit business.yougov.com
(http://business.yougov.com/)

 

 

 

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