Our Groupe’s financial results are among the best in the industry, if not the best: a strong balance sheet, sound management of our resources, a prudent debt structure within reasonable limits, and good cash flow generation.
On this occasion, the Supervisory Board stated that it was very impressed by the exceptional mobilization of the teams around the world, the impetus of solidarity and the spirit of collaboration at all levels, and it wished to express its warmest thanks and assure the Chairman of the Directoire and the Groupe’s management teams of its full support.
In the face of this crisis unprecedented in its scope, the Supervisory Board endorsed the Directoire decision to ask shareholders to make an effort to show solidarity with the Groupe, by reducing the dividend by 50% to 1.15 euro, compared to the 2.30 euro per share initially planned, by postponing its payment from the beginning of July to September 28, 2020, and, finally, by inviting shareholders to use the option of payment in shares in order to reinvest their dividends in the Company.
In addition, individual and voluntary decisions of temporary compensation reduction were taken by Arthur Sadoun, Chairman of the Management Board, to reduce his fixed remuneration for the second and third quarters by 30% and by Anne-Gabrielle Heilbronner, Steve King and the members of the Management Committee to reduce their fixed remuneration by 20% for the second and third quarters of 2020. For my part, I will reduce my annual remuneration by 30%.
However, since we still need to talk about the 2019 business activity, which is the subject of this document, let us return our attention to the 2019 financial year. A few years ago, we initiated an essential transformation of our organization and our way of working to adapt to the upheavals in our industry as a result of digital technology and innovation in order to better meet the needs of our customers.
Through Sapient, we have acquired skills in technology and consulting to prepare our customers for their own transformation.
More recently, we completed the construction of the assets essential to meet the challenges of the future with the acquisition of Epsilon, the world leader in data. I believe that there is no need to stress the major role that data and artificial intelligence play in the management of communication today and even more so tomorrow.
The Directoire has carried out the necessary reforms and restructurings so that we can implement one organization per country and so that our Power Of One concept benefits all our clients.
CThis transition period has resulted in a double cost: that of restructuring and that of lost growth opportunities that penalized us.
As a result, in 2019, our growth was at half mast, but at the same time we began to reap the benefits of our transformation through brilliant victories in new business, placing our Groupe at the top of the world rankings for the second consecutive year. These successes prove the relevance of our strategy, the quality of our assets and the talent of our teams, as well as the determination of our managers
Our Groupe’s financial results are among the best in the industry, if not the best: a strong balance sheet, sound management of our resources, a prudent debt structure within reasonable limits, and good cash flow generation. All of this is no accident but the result of considerable work carried out by all of the Groupe’s teams in all areas and in keeping with a well-established culture of performance. Unfortunately, these successes and efforts are not yet reflected in our share price, but I have no doubt that, once the current crisis is overcome, Publicis will demonstrate its fundamental qualities through performance and that these will be rightly appreciated by the markets.
I have every confidence in the ability of our teams at all levels to cope with the most unexpected situations and to come out of them stronger.
The Supervisory Board is made up of a great diversity and richness of personalities from different backgrounds and has been enriched this year by the arrival of Suzi LeVine, Antonella Mei-Pochtler and Enrico Letta. It held eight meetings, including two days spent in New York to review the Groupe’s strategy in detail, with operations in the USA accounting for more than 50% of the Groupe’s revenue. The Board was unanimously convinced of the quality of Publicis’ unique model and of the actions implemented to execute, with determination, the strategy proposed by the Directoire and its Chairman, Arthur Sadoun, to whom the Board gives its full support. I would like to thank the members of the Board who work with dedication, rigor, high standards and efficiency in perfect harmony with the Directoire.
I have spoken about our financial results and our achievements, and I would like at this point to express my warm and sincere thanks to all our employees and clients, as well as, of course, to the Groupe’s management team. I would like to express to you, our shareholders, all my confidence, and that of the Board’s, in our ability to make the right choices.
The results for the first quarter of 2020 show that before the spread of the pandemic and the various confinement measures put in place, the challenge this year is no longer simply to prove that we have the right model, as was demonstrated in January and February, but to demonstrate our resilience and our ability to rebound in a world that will be increasingly difficult. I have every confidence in the ability of our teams at all levels to cope with the most unexpected situations and to come out of them stronger.