CEO of GrifolsThomas Glanzman defended that the company could not have predicted the “unprovoked and blatantly false” attack on Gotham City. He said this in front of nearly 200 shareholders who attended the company’s general meeting on Friday at the company’s Sant Cugat headquarters, and this was the first meeting held since the bearish fund accused the Catalan multinational of manipulating accounts.
In his letter, Glanzmann said Grifols would next week close the sale of 20% of Shanghai Raas for $1,600 million, and noted that the “priority” currently was improving free cash flow. In a meeting with reporters, company managers ruled out divestments in the next four to five years. At the same time, they also ruled out making industrial investments and corporate operations in the medium term.
The General Assembly of Shareholders approved all items on the agenda except for the last item due to the lack of a sufficient number of attendees. The last point suggested delegating powers to formalize and implement the agreements adopted by the General Meeting. The green light has also been given to a $1.5 million bonus for the new CEO, Nacho Appiah. Spbre this issue has been speculated upon and disputed among some contributors.
In his letter, Glanzman defended the company’s “swift and decisive” response to the Gotham City attack. He stressed that they are working “tirelessly” to deal with the situation. “I feel it was an undeserved and unjustified test of our strength,” the coach said. The CEO, who has been with the Catalan multinational for just over a year, started out in Spanish, but soon after changed to English. “I had to stop Spanish lessons after an unexpected start to the year,” he joked.
Reducing debt and improving liquidity, priorities
In turn, CEO Nacho Appiah identified the company’s “key areas” in the short term, among which he pointed to reduced debt and improved free cash flow. Appiah explained that they also want to work on business expansion, talent assessment and streamlining processes and structures.
When asked about these questions in the meeting with reporters, the manager denied that they were preparing layoffs – last year they laid off more than 2,000 employees in the United States as part of a cost-saving plan. Appiah attributed this to the adjustments made to restructure the company after the impact of the pandemic. Now, he has confirmed that no “serious restructuring” is expected in the coming years. Grifols has 24,000 employees worldwide and 13 production centres.
This 2024 general shareholders’ meeting will also be marked by being the first in which the Grifols family – Raimon Grifols and Victor Grifols – do not have executive functions. Raymond Grifols, Sunday’s advisor and vice president, addressed those present and assured them, visibly moved, that from now on, the family would continue to “give all its support and cooperation” to the company. Glanzman’s work has also been highlighted in recent months. “It was necessary,” he said. He added: “Now daily matters are in the hands of a highly prepared and expert management team.”
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