Holcim took the next steps towards the planned listing of its North American business by designating its future board members. The board will comprise 10 members and will become effective following the execution of the planned spin-off, expected by the end of the first half 2025, subject to shareholder and customary approvals.
Jan Jenisch was appointed as the designated chairman and CEO of the planned North American company. Currently chairman of Holcim, Jenisch is leading the planned listing of the North American company and previously served as Holcim’s CEO from 2017 to 2024. He will continue to serve as chairman of Holcim until its Annual General Meeting on May 14, 2025.
The Holcim board appointed nine designated independent directors to serve on the North American company’s board of directors, including Theresa Drew, Nicholas Gangestad, Dwight Gibson, Holli Ladhani, Michael E. McKelvy, Jürg Oleas, Robert S. Rivkin, Katja Roth Pellanda and Cristina A. Wilbur.
These future board members are highly experienced executives with deep expertise across key sectors including construction, manufacturing, industrial operations and financial services. They have led companies as CEOs, presidents, partners, CFOs, chief legal officers and chief people officers, and all bring significant expertise in the North American market.
“Today is an important milestone as we prepare Holcim’s North American business to become an independent public company,” Jenisch said. “The designated members of the board of directors collectively bring impressive track records and a best-in-class mix of domain expertise, diverse perspectives, and leadership experience. Together, we will deliver strong governance and support the company’s priorities of market leadership and superior value creation for shareholders, customers, employees and all stakeholders.”
The designated board of directors for the planned North American company will be comprised of:
- Theresa Drew had a 40-year career at Deloitte & Touche LLP where she most recently served as managing partner of the Carolinas Practice. She currently serves on the board of directors for Sonoco Products Co. and The Cato Corp.
- Nicholas Gangestad most recently served as CFO of Rockwell Automation Inc. and previously served as CFO of the 3M Company. He serves on the board of directors for Nucor Corp. and Genpact Limited.
- Dwight Gibson is an operating partner and member of the Investment Committee at Pritzker Private Capital. He previously served as president, CEO and a member of the board of directors of BlueLinx Holdings Inc., a wholesale distributor of building and industrial products in the United States. He serves on the board of directors of Interface, Inc.
- Jan Jenisch has been a member of the Holcim board of directors since 2021 and has served as its chairman since 2023 and as its CEO from 2017 to 2024. Before joining Holcim, Jenisch was CEO of Sika AG from 2012 to 2017.
- Holli Ladhani was president, CEO and a member of the board of directors of Select Energy Services, Inc. and previously served as chairman and CEO of Rockwater Energy Solutions, Inc. She serves on the board of directors of Quanta Services Inc.
- Michael E. McKelvy is president, CEO and a member of the board of directors of McDermott International Ltd, an engineering and construction solutions provider to the energy industry. He previously served as president and CEO of Gilbane Building Co. and held executive roles at CH2M HILL Companies Ltd.
- Jürg Oleas has been a member of the Holcim board of directors since 2016 and also from 2014 to 2015 and currently serves on its Audit Committee and Nomination, Compensation & Governance Committee. He was CEO of GEA Group AG and held leadership positions at ABB and the Alstom Group.
- Robert S. Rivkin is senior vice president and chief legal officer for United Airlines Holdings Inc. Previously, Rivkin served as deputy mayor of the City of Chicago, as deputy general counsel of Delta Air Lines Inc. and as general counsel for the U.S. Department of Transportation.
- Katja Roth Pellanda is group general counsel for Zurich Insurance Co. Ltd and serves on the board of directors for Farmers Group Inc. and Zurich Italy Bank, S.p.A., both privately-held subsidiaries of Zurich Insurance. She previously held legal and corporate governance roles at Novartis AG.
- Cristina A. Wilbur is the chief people officer and head of group human resources for F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd., a global healthcare company. She has held several human resources leadership roles at Roche, EG&G Inc. and PerkinElmer Optoelectronics.