Listed companies are indicated by an asterisk (*).
Benoît POTIER
Chairman of the Board of Directors
Nationality: French Born on September 3, 1957
Date of first appointment: May 2000
Start of current term: May 2022
End of current term: 2026 (General Meeting to approve the financial statements for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2025)
Number of shares owned as of December 31, 2023: 615,648
CAREER
A graduate of École centrale de Paris, Benoît Potier joined Air Liquide in 1981 as a Research and Development engineer. After serving as a Project Manager in the Engineering & Construction Division, he was made Vice President of Energy Development in the Large Industries business line. In 1993, he became Director of Strategy & Organization and, in 1994, was put in charge of the Chemicals, Metal & Steel, Oil and Energy Markets. He was made an Executive Vice President of Air Liquide in 1995 with additional responsibilities over the Engineering & Construction Division and the Large Industries operations in Europe. Benoît Potier was appointed Chief Executive in 1997. He was appointed to the Board of Directors in 2000 and became Chairman of the Management Board in November 2001. He was Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of L’Air Liquide S.A. from May 2006 to May 2022. Benoît Potier brought about an in-depth transformation of the Air Liquide group, which more than doubled in size during his term of office, while its capitalization was multiplied by five. He consolidated the Group’s international expansion, notably through the acquisition and integration of Airgas in 2016, and positioned it at the heart of tomorrow’s markets – healthcare, digital and the energy and environmental transition, including notably hydrogen. Benoît Potier has been Chairman of the Board of Directors since June 1, 2022 and, as part of his duties, supports the management transition. He represents Air Liquide within organizations that work on subjects of particular relevance to the Group, with a focus on sustainable development and the energy transition, and more specifically hydrogen.
POSITIONS AND ACTIVITIES HELD DURING THE 2023 FISCAL YEAR
FUNCTIONS WITHIN THE AIR LIQUIDE GROUP
- Chairman of the Board of Directors: L’Air Liquide S.A. (since June 1, 2022)
POSITIONS OR ACTIVITIES OUTSIDE THE AIR LIQUIDE GROUP
- Member of the Supervisory Board: Siemens AG* (member of the Appointments Committee)
- Member: The Hydrogen Council (since June 1, 2022)
- Co-Chair: Conseil National de l’Hydrogène (since January 11, 2021)
- Member: European Round Table of Industrialists (ERT)
- Member: Asia Business Council
- Member of the Strategic Orientation Committee: Paris- Saclay University
- Member: Singapore International Advisory Panel on Energy (since January 1, 2021)
- Member of the Advisory Board: Temasek European Advisory Panel (since January 1, 2022)
François JACKOW
Director – Chief Executive Officer
Nationality: French Born on June 12, 1969
Date of first appointment: May 2022
Start of current term: May 2022
End of current term: 2026 (General Meeting to approve the financial statements for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2025)
Number of shares owned as of December 31, 2023: 53,591
CAREER
François Jackow has a dual scientific and managerial education acquired in France and in the United States. A graduate from the École normale supérieure of Paris, he also holds a Master’s degree in Chemistry from Harvard University in the United States and an MBA from the Collège des ingénieurs. He joined the Air Liquide Group in 1993. After a very international career started in the United States and in the Netherlands, which led him to successively hold responsibilities in sales, marketing, and engineering & construction, François Jackow worked for two years alongside Benoît Potier, Chief Executive of the Group at that time. In 2002, he was appointed Vice President of Innovation, supervising Research & Development activities as well as Advanced Technologies for the Group. Starting 2007, he undertakes the responsibility of Chief Executive Officer for Air Liquide Japan, based in Tokyo, before being appointed Group Vice President of the Large Industries Business Line in 2011. In 2014, François Jackow joined the Executive Committee and was designated as the Group’s Strategy Vice President. In this role, he oversees the development of the NEOS strategic plan and contributes to the Airgas acquisition in 2016. A member of the Executive Committee, François Jackow has been the Group’s Executive Vice President supervising notably Europe Industries, Europe Healthcare as well as the Africa, Middle East & India hubs, also in charge of the Healthcare World Business Line, the Innovation & Technologies, Digital & IT functions also reported to him, as well as the Customer Division, which he created in 2014. François Jackow was appointed as a Director by the General Meeting of shareholders of May 4, 2022. Since June 1, 2022, he has been Chief Executive Officer of L’Air Liquide S.A. As such, he leads in particular the ADVANCE strategic plan that is structured around four priorities: (i) delivering a strong financial performance, (ii) decarbonizing the planet and affirming the Group’s leading role in the decarbonization of industry and the advent of a low-carbon society, (iii) technological innovation to open up new markets, and (iv) acting for all, by integrating the interests not only of its direct stakeholders, but also those of society as a whole.
POSITIONS AND ACTIVITIES HELD DURING THE 2023 FISCAL YEAR
FUNCTIONS WITHIN THE AIR LIQUIDE GROUP
- Director: L’Air Liquide S.A.* (since May 4, 2022)
- Chief Executive Officer: L’Air Liquide S.A.* (since June 1, 2022)
- Chairman and Chief Executive Officer: Air Liquide International (since June 24, 2022); Air Liquide International Corporation (since July 21, 2022)
- Director: American Air Liquide Holdings (since June 22, 2022); The Hydrogen Company (since June 27, 2022)
- Director: Air Liquide Foundation
POSITIONS OR ACTIVITIES OUTSIDE THE AIR LIQUIDE GROUP
- Member of the Management Committee: Atelier de Constructions Mécaniques de la Marne (ACMM)