Lawrence
Kurzius to become next Chairman of the Board
GREENFIELD, Ind., Jan. 2, 2024
/PRNewswire/ -- Elanco Animal Health Incorporated (NYSE: ELAN)
announced today that the Board of Directors has named Lawrence E. Kurzius as its next Chairman of the
Board, effective at the conclusion of the Company's 2024 Annual
Meeting of Shareholders. Mr. Kurzius, a member of the Elanco
Board since 2018, will succeed current Chairman, R. David Hoover, who will remain on the Board as
an independent director.
"It has been a privilege to serve as Chairman of Elanco's Board
to help guide the Company through its first five years as an
independent public company," said R. David
Hoover. "In that period, we have transformed Elanco into a
diversified, durable animal health leader with greater global
scale, a more balanced product mix and a strong omnichannel
presence in the pet health industry. The Board has had an
intentional plan to evolve our governance and leadership over time
as the Company has matured, including the initiation of our
leadership succession plan which began this past summer. With the
standup and the successful integration of Bayer Animal Health
behind us and an exciting future of long-term value creation
expected ahead with anticipated blockbuster innovation launches, it
is the right time to execute our plans. We are fortunate to have
Lawrence in place to assume the role of Chairman. He has a valuable
mix of global business expertise, brand building insights, a track
record of value creation, and significant corporate governance
experience. I look forward to continuing to work closely with him
and our colleagues on the Board and management team to guide the
Company's future success."
Elanco previously announced its plan to amend the Company's
corporate governing documents with proposals to be presented at the
2024 Annual Meeting of Shareholders, including beginning a process
to declassify the Board of Directors, providing shareholders the
right to amend the Company's Bylaws and enabling shareholders,
under certain circumstances, to call special meetings. Elanco is
also announcing it intends to seek shareholder approval to modify
the voting standard for uncontested director elections from a
plurality standard to a majority of votes cast.
Following the 2024 Annual Meeting, the Board plans to rotate
committee leadership with Michael
Harrington assuming the role of Chairman of the Corporate
Governance Committee and Kirk
McDonald serving as Chairman of the Compensation and Human
Capital Committee.
"On behalf of the entire Board, I want to thank Dave for his
dedication to Elanco during his tenure as Chairman," said
Lawrence E. Kurzius. "The Board has
benefitted greatly from Dave's leadership skills, industry
knowledge and financial and strategic acumen, and we expect to
continue to benefit from his guidance as an independent member of
our Board."
Mr. Kurzius continued, "I am honored to be designated as the
next Chairman of the Board. Today's announcement, including Board
and committee leadership rotation and enhanced shareholder rights,
reflects our commitment to robust corporate governance and
shareholder engagement. The Board and the Company's leadership team
remain laser focused on advancing our strategy, and I remain
confident in our ability to realize the benefits of our scale,
portfolio diversity, product mix and innovation delivery to drive
sustainable growth and long-term value for shareholders."
About Lawrence E.
Kurzius
Lawrence E.
Kurzius has served as Executive Chairman of McCormick &
Company, Inc., a global food company, since 2017. Mr. Kurzius also
served as Chief Executive Officer of McCormick from 2016 to 2023
and President from 2015 to 2022. He held roles of increasing
responsibility at the company beginning in 2003, including
President and Chief Operating Officer (from 2015 to 2016),
President of the company's global consumer business (from 2013 to
2016), Chief Administrative Officer (from 2013 to 2015) and
President of EMEA (from 2007 to 2008). Prior to joining McCormick,
Mr. Kurzius served as Chief Executive Officer of Zatarain's, a
spice company, from 1991 to 2003. Earlier in his career, he was a
marketing executive with the Quaker Oats Company and Mars Inc.'s
Uncle Ben's Company. Mr. Kurzius also currently serves on the board
of The Cooper Companies, Inc., a global medical device company.
About Elanco
Elanco Animal Health Incorporated (NYSE:
ELAN) is a global leader in animal health dedicated to innovating
and delivering products and services to prevent and treat disease
in farm animals and pets, creating value for farmers, pet owners,
veterinarians, stakeholders, and society as a whole. With nearly 70
years of animal health heritage, we are committed to helping our
customers improve the health of animals in their care, while also
making a meaningful impact on our local and global communities. At
Elanco, we are driven by our vision of Food and Companionship
Enriching Life and our Elanco Healthy Purpose™ Sustainability
Pledges –all to advance the health of animals, people, and the
planet. Learn more at elanco.com.
Forward Looking Statements
This press release may
include certain statements concerning expectations for the future,
include expectations for innovation and product launches, that are
forward-looking statements as defined by federal securities law.
Such forward-looking statements are subject to a variety of known
and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors that are
difficult to predict and many of which are beyond management's
control. These risks and assumptions are described in Elanco's
annual reports on Form 10-K, quarter reports on Form 10-Q and other
reports that are available from the U.S. Securities and Exchange
Commission. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on
forward-looking statements, which reflect our view only as of the
date made. We undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking
statement, except as otherwise required by law.
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SOURCE Elanco Animal Health