The Committee’s terms of reference, which can be found on the Group’s website and can be obtained from the Company Secretary, deal with such issues as membership and frequency of meetings, together with the requirements for quorum and notice procedure and the right to attend meetings. The responsibilities of the Committee covered in its terms of reference include reviewing Board composition, appointing new Directors, re-appointment and re-election of existing Directors, succession planning taking into account the skills and expertise that will be needed on the Board in the future, reviewing time required from Non-executive Directors, determining membership of other Board Committees and ensuring external facilitation of the evaluation of the Board. As part of its activities the Committee also considers the diversity of the Board.
The Code recommends that a majority of the members of the Nomination Committee should be independent Non-executive Directors. The Committee is chaired by me, and its other members are Jemima Bird and William Tuffy who are independent Non-Executive Directors, and the Chief Executive Officer, Rob Pitcher. Accordingly, the Committee complies with the Code recommendation. By invitation, the meetings of the Committee may be attended by the Chief Financial Officer, although this did not occur during the year under review.
During the 52 weeks ended 29 June 2019, the Nomination Committee met formally on one occasion with all members attending the meetings. The Committee will continue to meet formally at least once a year and at such other times as the Board or the Committee Chairman requires. The Committee has access to sufficient resources to carry out its duties, including the services of the Company Secretary. Independent external legal and professional advice can also be taken by the Committee if it believes it is necessary to do so.
On the recommendation of the Committee and in line with the Code, all of the Group’s Directors will stand for election at the forthcoming AGM and will subsequently offer themselves for re-election on an annual basis.
The biographical details of the Directors are set out on pages 34-35. Following performance evaluations conducted during the year, the Committee is satisfied that the Directors who served during the 52 weeks ended 29 June 2019 performed effectively and demonstrated a commitment to their roles. Annual performance reviews will continue going forward.
We pride ourselves on being a diverse and inclusive business. All employees are welcomed and treated with respect, regardless of their background. We remain committed to offering equal opportunities for colleagues to develop, progress and grow.
The Committee supports the recommendations outlined in the Hampton-Alexander Review “FTSE Women Leaders” and is aware of the need to increase the number of women on the Board, and in other senior management positions, to which it is committed over time. Within this overriding commitment, we will make appointments based on merit and against objective criteria to ensure we appoint the best individual for each role. The Committee and the Board understand the importance of a diverse Board membership and throughout the senior management team. The Committee also recognises that diversity encompasses not only gender but also background, ethnicity and disability. The Committee believes that all appointments should be made on merit, the key criterion being whether or not the appointee can add to or complement the existing range of skills and experience of the relevant team.
Our commitment to supporting diversity has been demonstrated by being regularly represented at and actively participating in “Women in Hospitality, Travel and Leisure”, which is a forum for organisations in our industry sector to collaborate and work up tangible actions to improve diversity and inclusion across the sector. We have also provided support in the form of hosting facilities, including free food and drink, for five Plan B mentoring events. Plan B is an initiative organised by a small number of female hospitality executives, including Ann Elliott of Elliotts Marketing agency and Kate Nicholls of UK Hospitality, to prepare senior women executives for Board level positions in our sector.
Jemima Bird is the only woman on the Company’s Board in 2019 and two of the seven members of the senior management team are women (29 per cent up from 25 per cent in 2018). Across our business of over 3,300 employees, female employees represented approximately 44 per cent of the workforce as at 29 June 2019 (30 June 2018: 44 per cent). The Group is committed to continuing to develop the potential of its female employees through its training programmes and its corporate development pipeline.
In accordance with statutory requirements, the Group published its gender pay reporting by the due date. More information on our support of gender equality can be downloaded from our corporate website at www.revolutionbarsgroup.com
I look forward to meeting with shareholders at the AGM to answer any questions on the work of the Nomination Committee.
Keith Edelman
Chairman of the Nomination Committee
1 October 2019