Annual Report 2021

Annual Report 2021

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4. Group Executive Board

4.1/4.2 Members of the Group Executive Board

At the end of 2021, the Group Executive Board was composed of six members (see also: new CFO Tobias Knechtle).

Christian Buhl (1973)

  • Chairman of the Group Executive Board (CEO) since 2015
  • Member of the Group Executive Board since 2015
  • With Geberit since 2009
  • Swiss citizen
  • No external Board of Directors’ mandates
Christian Buhl, Chairman of the Group Executive Board (CEO)

Christian Buhl studied physics (Dipl. Phys. ETH) at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) in Zurich (CH) before undertaking his doctorate (Dr. oec. HSG) in financial market research at the University of St. Gallen (CH). From 2000 to 2003, he worked in research and as a teaching assistant at the University of St. Gallen and at the University of Basel (CH). From 2004 to 2008, Christian Buhl worked at McKinsey & Company, Zurich (CH), where he undertook projects for various Swiss and international industrial companies. He joined Geberit in 2009 as Head Strategic Planning, before taking over responsibility for the Geberit AquaClean shower toilet business in 2011. From 2012 to 2014, Christian Buhl was responsible for the German sales company at Geberit. He has been the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Geberit Group since 2015; see also Management structure.

Roland Iff (1961)

  • Head of Group Executive Area Finance (CFO)
  • Member of the Group Executive Board since 2005
  • With Geberit since 1993
  • Swiss citizen
  • Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors VZ Holding AG, Zurich (CH)
  • Member of the Board of Directors Bauwerk Group AG, Wallisellen (CH)
Roland Iff, Head of Group Executive Area Finance (CFO)

Roland Iff studied economics at the University of St. Gallen (CH) and graduated with the degree of lic. oec. (major: accounting and finance) in 1986. He started his professional career in 1987 as internal auditor with the American Mead Corporation in Zurich (CH) and at the company’s headquarters in Dayton (US). Subsequently he worked on different market development projects in Brussels (BE) before he was appointed Chief Financial Officer of Mead’s Italian subsidiary in Milan (IT) in 1990. In 1993, Roland Iff joined Geberit as Head of Corporate Development. In 1995, he became Head of Group Controlling. In 1997, he served as Head of Group Treasury. Roland Iff has been Head of Group Executive Area Finance (CFO) of the Geberit Group since 2005; see also Management structure.

Martin Baumüller (1977)

  • Head of Group Executive Area Marketing & Brands
  • Member of the Group Executive Board since 2016
  • With Geberit since 2011
  • Swiss citizen
  • No external Board of Directors’ mandates
Martin Baumüller, Head of Group Executive Area Marketing & Brands

Martin Baumüller completed his Master’s degree in International Management at the University of St. Gallen (CH) and an MBA at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore (SG) in 2001. In 2005, he received his doctorate from the University of Bern (CH) with his dissertation on “Managing Cultural Diversity”. He began his career as a freelance consultant for strategy and market expansion projects from 2001 to 2003. From 2005 to 2010 he worked for McKinsey & Company in Zurich (CH), first on various projects for pharmaceutical, chemical and transportation clients and later as Engagement Manager responsible for global projects in various industries and as a member of the Strategy & Corporate Finance team. He joined Geberit as Head Strategic Planning in 2011. From 2012 to 2016, he was responsible as Head of Geberit AquaClean for the management and development of the entire shower toilet business of the Geberit Group. He has been Head of Group Executive Area Marketing & Brands since 2016; see also Management structure.

Clemens Rapp (1981)

  • Head of Group Executive Area Sales Europe
  • Member of the Group Executive Board since April 2020
  • With Geberit since 2009
  • Austrian citizen
  • No external Board of Directors’ mandates
Clemens Rapp, Head of Group Executive Area Sales Europe

Clemens Rapp completed his Master’s degree in International Business at the Leopold-Franzens University of Innsbruck (AT) in 2005. He started his career in 2006 at Hilti, first as sales consultant, then as Product Manager Installation Systems and afterwards as Key Account Business Development Manager for Central and Eastern Europe. In 2009, he joined Geberit as Head of Technical Sales at its Austrian sales company, before taking over as Managing Director here in 2012. From January 2015 to March 2020, he was Managing Director of the German sales company – the most important sales unit within the Geberit Group. Since 1 April 2020, Clemens Rapp has been Head of Group Executive Area Sales Europe; see also Management structure.

Ronald van Triest (1969)

  • Head of Group Executive Area Sales International
  • Member of the Group Executive Board since 2015
  • With Geberit since 2015
  • Dutch citizen
  • No external Board of Directors’ mandates
Ronald van Triest, Head of Group Executive Area Sales International

Ronald van Triest completed his Master’s degree in Management and Organisation at the University of Groningen (NL) in 1996. He started his career at Royal Philips, where he held various roles until 2006. These were initially in the areas of marketing and sales, before a second phase where he took on wide-ranging responsibilities in the areas of product management, M&A and executive management. He operated predominantly from Singapore and Hong Kong. From 2007 to 2009, he was General Manager Sales at China Electronics Corporation in Shenzhen (CN), where he was responsible for sales, marketing, service and logistics and managed staff in China, Singapore, Russia and Turkey. From 2010 to 2015, he worked for Ellipz Lighting in Singapore. As CEO and Managing Director, he was responsible for setting up and developing the Asian business. Among other things, he established a joint venture in Beijing, set up the local production, R&D and sales, and created sales channels in Southeast Asia and the Middle East, as well as a joint venture in India. Since 2015, Ronald van Triest has been Head of Group Executive Area Sales International of the Geberit Group; see also Management structure.

Martin Ziegler (1969)

  • Head of Group Executive Area Products & Operations
  • Member of the Group Executive Board since 2018
  • With Geberit since 1995
  • Swiss citizen
  • Member of the Board of Directors Piancabo SA, Agarone (CH)
Martin Ziegler, Head of Group Executive Area Products & Operations

Martin Ziegler completed his Master’s degree in Industrial Engineering at ETH Zurich (CH) in 1994. Following his time as an assistant at ETH, he joined the Geberit Group in 1995. He initially worked for Geberit as a project manager in a German production plant before later becoming Head of Quality Management for the Group and working as Managing Director of the piping production plant in Givisiez (CH). From 2003, he headed up the Piping Systems product area at Group level for ten years – with the exception of one year where he worked in Shanghai (CN) as Head of Operations and Product Manager for the Asia/Pacific region. From 2012 to the end of 2017, he was responsible for the Group’s EFA (Extrusion, Forming, Assembly) production plants. From 2018 to March 2020, he was Head of Group Executive Area Operations, and since April 2020 for the new Products & Operations Group Executive Area created from the two merged Group Executive Areas Operations and Product Management & Innovation; see also Management structure.

The Board of Directors of Geberit AG has appointed Tobias Knechtle as the new Head of Group Executive Area Finance (CFO) and as a member of the Group Executive Board with effect from 1 January 2022. Tobias Knechtle joined the company on 1 November 2021 and replaces Roland Iff, who retired at the end of 2021 following 17 years as CFO at Geberit.

For former members of the Group Executive Board who have left the Board during the past five years, please refer to the following links:

4.3 Regulations in the Articles of Incorporation concerning the number of permissible activities in accordance with Art. 12 Para. 1 Clause 1 OaEC

Members of the Group Executive Board may hold up to two mandates in profit-oriented legal entities and up to four mandates in non-profit-oriented legal entities or charitable legal entities outside the Geberit Group.

Mandates of a member of the Group Executive Board in legal entities which are controlled by the company, or which control the company, as well as mandates held by such member in their capacity as a member of the Group Executive Board of the company, or held by order and on behalf of the company or legal entities controlled by it, shall not count as mandates in legal entities outside the Geberit Group.

Mandates of a member of the Group Executive Board of the company in legal entities outside the Geberit Group which are under common control, as well as mandates held by such member in their capacity as a member of the supreme governing body or of the group management of a legal entity outside the Geberit Group or held by order and on behalf of such legal entity or legal entities controlled by it, shall be deemed one mandate outside the Geberit Group.

The acceptance of mandates from members of the Group Executive Board in legal entities outside the Geberit Group must be approved in advance by the Board of Directors or, if delegated to it, the Nomination and Compensation Committee.

Mandates in the sense of Art. 24 of the Articles of Incorporation (www.geberit.com/downloadcenter-en) of Geberit AG are mandates in supreme governing bodies or in an advisory board of legal entities that are required to be recorded in the Commercial Register or in a corresponding foreign register.

The current Articles of Incorporation can be viewed online at www.geberit.com/downloadcenter-en.

4.4 Management contracts

The Group has not entered into any management contracts with companies (or natural persons) outside the Geberit Group.

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