Effective and transparent Corporate Governance fosters the confidence of our shareholders, international investors, the financial markets, our business partners, employees and the public in the management and supervision of the Group.
The Board of Directors and the Executive Committee play a key role in managing and monitoring SOLVAY  in a responsible and value-driven manner.

• Board of Directors
• Executive Committee
• General Managers

Board of Directors

The Board of Directors is the highest management body of the company. It has reserved certain key areas for itself and has delegated the remainder of its powers to an Executive Committee.

Chairman	Aloïs Michielsen
Vice Chairman	Denis Solvay
Directors	Christian Jourquin Bernard de Laguiche Jean-Marie Solvay Chevalier Guy de Selliers de Moranville Nicolas Boël Whitson Sadler Jean van Zeebroeck Jean-Martin Folz Karel Van Miert Dr. Bernhard Scheuble Anton van Rossum Charles Casimir-Lambert Baron Hervé Coppens d'Eeckenbrugge Mme Petra Mateos-Aparicio Morales

Executive Committee

The Board of Directors defines the role and mission of the Executive Committee. The main discussion and decisions on this subject date back to December 14, 1998. There have been no significant changes since then.
The Executive Committee, as a group, has been assigned the following main tasks by the Board of Directors:

• day-to-day management of the company is delegated to it;
• it ensures that the company, its subsidiaries and its affiliatesare properly organized, through the choice of members of their governing bodies (boards of
  directors, etc.);
• it appoints senior managers (except to those functions where the decision lies with the Board of Directors);
• it supervises subsidiaries;
• it has delegated authority from the Board of Directors for investment and divestiture decisions (including acquisitions and sales of know-how) up to a ceiling of EUR 50 million. At each meeting, the Board of Directors is informed of and ratifies the Executive Committee’s decisions and recommendations in respect of investments of between EUR 3 and 50 million for the immediately preceding period;
• it sets Group policies, except for the most important ones, which it proposes to the Board of Directors;
• it sets executives’ compensation (except where the decision lies with the Board of Directors);
• it prepares and proposes to the Board of Directors, for its decision:
  • General strategies (including the effect of strategies on the budget and 5-year plan and the allocation of resources);
  • general internal organization;
  • major financial steps that have the effect of modifying the company’s financial structure;
  • the creation and termination of major activities, including the corresponding entities (branches, subsidiaries, joint ventures); and the company’s financial statements.
• it submits to the Board of Directors all questions lying within the latter’s competence, and reports to the Board on the exercise of its mission;
• it executes the decisions of the Board of Directors.
  

Christian Jourquin  - Chief Executive Officer
Bernard de Laguiche - Chief Financial Officer
Jacques van Rijckevorsel - Group General Manager of the Plastics Sector
Werner Cautreels - Group General Manager of the Pharmaceuticals Sector
Vincent De Cuyper - Group General Manager of the Chemicals Sector
Jean-Michel Mesland - Group General Manager of Technology, Research & Procurement
Roger Kearns - Region General Manager Asia Pacific

General Managers

 For more information & details on this organization: Corporate Governance part of the Annual Report.