Charles O. Holliday
Chair
Tenure
Appointed Chair May 19, 2015
Appointed a Director September 1, 2010
Board Committee membership
Chair of the Nomination and Succession Committee
Outside interests/commitments
Presiding Director of HCA Holdings, Inc. Director of Deere & Company. Member of the Critical Resource’s Senior Advisory Panel. Member of the Royal Academy of Engineering.
Age
Born 1948
Nationality
US Citizen
Career
Charles (Chad) Holliday was appointed Chair of the Board of Royal Dutch Shell plc with effect from May 19, 2015.
He was Chief Executive Officer of DuPont from 1998 to 2009, and Chairman from 1999 to 2009. He joined DuPont in 1970 after receiving a BS in industrial engineering from the University of Tennessee and held various manufacturing and business assignments, including a six-year Tokyo-based posting as President of DuPont Asia/Pacific.
He has previously served as Chairman of the Bank of America Corporation, The Business Council, Catalyst, the National Academy of Engineering, the Society of Chemical Industry (American Section) and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development. He is a founding member of the International Business Council.
Relevant skills and experience
Chad has a distinguished track record as an international businessman. He was originally appointed to the Board as a Non-executive Director in September 2010 and, prior to his May 2015 appointment as Chair of the Board, served as Chair of the Safety, Environment and Sustainability Committee and Member of the Remuneration Committee.
He has a deep understanding of international strategic, commercial and environmental issues, and gained extensive experience in the areas of safety and risk management during his time with DuPont. In his role as Chair, Chad is committed to developing and maintaining a strong dialogue with investors and other key stakeholders and ensures that their views are considered during Board discussions and decision-making. He has also demonstrated a strong commitment to ensuring that the highest standards of corporate governance, safety, ethics and compliance are maintained. Chad is a particularly avid advocate of greater diversity, which is reflected in the Board’s current diversity mix and increased diversity goals across the Shell Group.
Chad’s performance was evaluated by the other Directors, led by Gerard Kleisterlee, Deputy Chair and Senior Independent Director, in 2019. More information on the external board evaluation process can be found on page 114 of the 2019 Annual report.
Euleen Goh
Deputy Chair and Senior Independent Director
Tenure
Appointed a Director September 1, 2014
Board Committee membership
Member of the Nomination and Succession Committee and Member of the Remuneration Committee
Outside interests/commitments
Chairman of SATS Ltd. Non-executive Director of DBS Bank Ltd and DBS Group Holdings Ltd. Trustee of the Singapore Institute of International Affairs Endowment Fund. Chairman of the Governing Council of the Singapore Institute of Management and Non-executive Director of Singapore Health Services Pte Ltd, both of which are not-for-profit organisations.
Age
Born 1955
Nationality
Singaporean
Career
Euleen is an Associate of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, a Fellow of the Singapore Institute of Chartered Accountants and has professional qualifications in banking and taxation. She has held various senior management positions within Standard Chartered Bank and was Chief Executive Officer of Standard Chartered Bank, Singapore, from 2001 until 2006. She is also a Fellow of the Singapore Institute of Directors.
She has also held non-executive appointments on various boards including Aviva plc, MediaCorp Pte Ltd, Singapore Airlines Ltd, Singapore Exchange Ltd, Standard Chartered Bank Malaysia Berhad, Standard Chartered Bank Thai plc, CapitaLand Ltd and Temasek Trustees Pte Ltd. She was previously Non-executive Chairman of the Singapore International Foundation, and Chairman of International Enterprise Singapore and the Accounting Standards Council, Singapore.
Relevant skills and experience
Euleen’s current roles as Chair of the Board of Directors of various international companies provide significant experience in the area of strategy development and international businesses. She is a champion of diversity and constructively challenges the Board and management to continue to progress in this area.
Based in Singapore and as Chair of the Risk Committee of the largest bank in south-east Asia, Euleen is close to key emerging/growth markets for our business. Euleen’s risk management expertise has elevated the Board’s deep deliberations around risk governance. Her extensive travel around the world, through her various executive and non-executive roles, has equipped her with broad geopolitical insight and significant knowledge of operating in the Asian region.
Euleen uses her financial acumen to pose probing and insightful questions, both in and beyond the boardroom. This contributes to well-rounded and incisive Board discussions.
[A] On January 29, 2020, the Board appointed Euleen Goh as Deputy Chair and Senior Independent Director with effect from May 20, 2020.
Ben van Beurden
Chief Executive Officer
Tenure
Appointed Chief Executive Officer January 1, 2014
Board Committee membership
N/A
Outside interests/commitments
No external appointments
Age
Born 1958
Nationality
Dutch
Career
Ben was Downstream Director from January to September 2013. Before that, he was Executive Vice President Chemicals from 2006 to 2012. In this period, he also served on the boards of a number of leading industry associations, including the International Council of Chemicals Associations and the European Chemical Industry Council. Prior to this, he held a number of operational and commercial roles in both Upstream and Downstream, including Vice President Manufacturing Excellence. He joined Shell in 1983, after graduating with a Master’s Degree in Chemical Engineering from Delft University of Technology, the Netherlands.
Relevant skills and experience
Ben has more than 35 years of Shell experience and has built a deep industry understanding and proven management experience across the technical and commercial roles which he has undertaken over his career.
Since 2016, Ben has led Shell to deliver strong financial results, total shareholder returns and earnings per share. He also led Shell through ending the scrip dividend and the start of a $25 billion share buyback programme. Under his leadership Shell New Energies has been established and Shell has announced industry-leading initiatives in response to the global challenge of the energy transition to a lower-carbon future, including the introduction of Shell’s Net Carbon Footprint ambition. Shell is now at the forefront of a cross-industry push to reduce the greenhouse gas impact of natural gas with the Methane Guiding Principles.
Ben led the Company through the acquisition and integration of BG Group, executed an impressive reshaping of our portfolio and completed a divestment programme of $30 billion of non-core assets, making the Shell Group simpler.
Jessica Uhl
Chief Financial Officer
Tenure
Appointed Chief Financial Officer March 9, 2017
Board Committee membership
N/A
Outside interests/commitments
No external appointments
Age
Born 1968
Nationality
US Citizen
Career
Jessica was Executive Vice President Finance for the Integrated Gas business from January 2016 to March 2017. Previously, she was Executive Vice President Finance for Upstream Americas from 2014 to 2015, Vice President Finance for Upstream Americas Unconventionals from 2013 to 2014, Vice President Controller for Upstream and Projects & Technology from 2010 to 2012, Vice President Finance for the global Lubricants business from 2009 to 2010, and Head of External Reporting from 2007 to 2009. She joined Shell in 2004 in finance and business development, supporting the Renewables business.
Prior to joining Shell, Jessica worked for Enron in the USA and Panama from 1997 to 2003 and for Citibank in San Francisco, USA, from 1990 to 1996. She obtained a BA from UC Berkeley in 1989 and an MBA at INSEAD in 1997.
Relevant skills and experience
Jessica is a highly regarded executive with a track record of delivering key business objectives, from cost leadership in complex operations to mergers and acquisitions delivery. Jessica’s extensive experience combines an external perspective with more than 15 years of Shell experience: she has held finance leadership roles in Europe and the USA, in Shell’s Upstream, Integrated Gas and Downstream businesses, as well as in Projects & Technology and Corporate.
Jessica’s tenure as CFO has also been impressive. She was appointed not long after the BG acquisition, when Shell’s debt, gearing and development costs were high and when the oil price was still recovering from the lower levels in 2016.
In these challenging conditions, but with great enthusiasm, clarity and discipline, Jessica has overseen Shell’s delivery of industry leading cash flow from operating activities (for the 14th consecutive quarter at the end of 2019) and shareholder distributions ($25 billion in 2019). Jessica has also been a leading force for transparency in the energy industry, including on taxes and climate change. Under her tenure, Shell has continued to expand and enhance disclosures related to climate change in line with the Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures principles. Most recently, under her guidance, Shell published the Tax Contribution Report, which includes country-by-country report data, a standard set by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
Dick Boer
Independent Non-executive Director
Tenure
Appointed a Director May 20, 2020
Board Committee membership
Member of the Audit Committee
Outside interests/ commitments
Non-executive Director for Nestlé and SHV Holdings; Chairman of the Advisory Board for G-Star RAW; member of the Supervisory Board of Royal Concertgebouw; Chairman of Rijksmuseum Fonds; Board member of Curatorium and Founding Member of NL2025
Age
Born 1957
Nationality
Dutch
Career
Dick was President and Chief Executive Officer of Ahold Delhaize from 2016 to 2018. Prior to the merger between Ahold and Delhaize, he served as President and CEO of Royal Ahold from 2011 to 2016. From 2006 to 2011 he was a member of the Executive Board of Ahold and served as Chief Operating Officer of Ahold Europe from 2006 to 2011.
Dick joined Ahold in 1998 as CEO of Ahold Czech Republic and was appointed President and CEO of Albert Heijn in 2000. In 2003, he also became President and CEO of Ahold’s Dutch businesses.
Prior to joining Ahold, Dick spent more than 17 years in various retail positions for SHV Holdings N.V. in the Netherlands and abroad and for Unigro N.V.
Relevant skills and experience
Dick is a highly regarded recently retired Chief Executive, who has a deep understanding of brands and consumers, and extensive knowledge of the US and European markets, from his time leading one of the world’s largest food retail groups. He brings a career’s worth of experience at the forefront of retailing and customer service which extended in more recent years to e-commerce and the digital arena. This experience is most timely as Shell focuses on the growth of our marketing businesses and increasing consumer choices in energy products.
Dick is a balanced leader with sound business judgement and proven track record in strategic delivery, evidenced from the bringing together of two former competitor companies. In addition, he has a genuine passion for sustainability and is well aware of the importance of the varying stakeholder interests in this area.
Neil Carson OBE
Independent Non-executive Director
Tenure
Appointed a Director June 1, 2019
Board Committee membership
Member of the Safety, Environment and Sustainability Committee and Chair of the Remuneration Committee
Outside interests/commitments
Non-executive Chairman of Oxford Instruments plc and TT Electronics plc [A]
Age
Born 1957
Nationality
British
Career
Neil is a former FTSE 100 chief executive. After completing an engineering degree, Neil joined Johnston Matthey in 1980 where he held several senior management positions in both the UK and the US, before being appointed Chief Executive Officer in 2004. Since retiring from Johnston Matthey in 2014, Neil has focused his time on his non-executive roles.
Relevant skills and experience
Neil is highly experienced, has a broad industrial outlook and a highly commercial approach with a practical perspective on businesses. He brings a track record of strong operational exposure, familiarity with capital-intensive business and a first-class international perspective on driving value in complex environments. Neil was awarded an OBE for services to the chemical industry in 2016. Neil has leveraged upon his current and past experience in non-executive positions and, despite being new to the Shell Board, he has already made significant contributions to Board discussions. He has also provided valuable insight based on his former executive position and operational experience.
[A] On December 9, 2019 TTE plc announced Neil’s intention to step down as Non-executive Director and Chair of TTE plc, once his successor has been found.
Ann Godbehere
Independent Non-executive Director
Tenure
Appointed a Director May 23, 2018
Board Committee membership
Chair of the Audit Committee and Member of the Safety, Environment and Sustainability Committee
Outside interests/commitments
Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Professional Accountants and a Fellow of the Certified General Accountants Association of Canada.
Age
Born 1955
Nationality
Canadian and British
Career
Ann started her career with Sun Life of Canada in 1976 in Montreal, Canada, and joined M&G Group in 1981, where she served as Senior Vice President and Controller for both life and health, and property and casualty businesses throughout North America. She joined Swiss Re in 1996, after it acquired the M&G Group, and served as Chief Financial Officer from 2003 to 2007. From 2008 to 2009, she was interim Chief Financial Officer and an Executive Director of Northern Rock bank in the initial period following its nationalisation.
Ann has also held several non-executive director positions at Prudential plc, British American Tobacco plc, UBS AG, and UBS Group AG. Most recently, and until May 2019, Ann served as a Non-executive Director of Rio Tinto plc and Rio Tinto Limited. She was also Senior Independent Director of Rio Tinto plc.
Relevant skills and experience
Ann is a former CFO, a Fellow at the Institute of Chartered Professional Accountants, and has more than 25 years of experience in the financial services sector. She has worked her entire career in international business and has lived in or served on boards in nine countries. Ann makes significant contributions and adds exceptional value by bringing both her extensive experience and a new perspective to Board discussions.
Ann’s long international business career brings with it an invaluable global perspective and understanding, which is reflected in the insights and constructive challenges she brings to the boardroom. Ann was appointed Chair of the Audit Committee on July 1, 2019, and has made significant contributions in this role. Her highly relevant skills, particularly in investment appraisal and financial risk management, have been a welcome addition to our Board and Audit Committee.
Catherine J. Hughes
Independent Non-executive Director
Tenure
Appointed a Director June 1, 2017
Board Committee membership
Member of the Safety, Environment and Sustainability Committee and member of the Remuneration Committee
Outside interests/commitments
Non-executive Director of SNC-Lavalin Group Inc.
Age
Born 1962
Nationality
Canadian and French
Career
Catherine was Executive Vice President International at Nexen Inc., from January 2012 until her retirement in April 2013, where she was responsible for all oil and gas activities including exploration, production, development and project activities outside Canada. She joined Nexen in 2009 as Vice President Operational Services, Technology and Human Resources.
Prior to joining Nexen Inc., she was Vice President Oil Sands at Husky Oil from 2007 to 2009 and Vice President Exploration & Production Services, from 2005 to 2007. She started her career with Schlumberger in 1986 and held key positions in various countries, including France, Italy, Nigeria, the UK and the USA, and was President of Schlumberger Canada Ltd for five years. She was a Non-executive Director of Statoil from 2013 to 2015.
Relevant skills and experience
Catherine contributes her industry knowledge and ease of engagement with other Directors and managers in the boardroom. With her 30 years of oil and gas sector experience, she brings a geopolitical outlook and deep understanding of the industry. An engineer by training, she has also spent a significant part of her career working in senior human resources roles. The Board highly regards her perspectives on our industry and our most important asset, our people.
Catherine has a strong track record of executing operational discipline with a focus on performance metrics and a continual drive for excellence. Her knowledge of the technology underpinning oil and gas operations, logistics, procurement and supply chains benefits the Board greatly as it considers various projects and investment or divestment proposals.
She also uses her industry knowledge – combined with her commitment to the highest standards of corporate governance and safety, ethics and compliance – in her membership of our Safety, Environment and Sustainability Committee, while using her human resources experience in her membership of the Remuneration Committee.
Martina Hund-Mejean
Independent Non-executive Director
Tenure
Appointed a Director May 20, 2020
Board Committee membership
Member of the Audit Committee
Outside interests/ commitments
Non-executive Director of Prudential Financial, Inc, Colgate-Palmolive Company and Truata Ltd. (a privately held company providing data anonymization solutions)
Age
Born 1960
Nationality
German and US Citizen
Career
Martina was Chief Finance Officer of Mastercard Inc from 2007 to 2019. From 2002 to 2007 she was Senior Vice President, Corporate Treasurer at Tyco International Ltd and from 2000 to 2002 she was Senior Vice President, Treasurer at Lucent Technologies.
Prior to this Martina spent 12 years with General Motors undertaking a number of senior roles within their finance operations.
Relevant skills and experience
Originally from Germany, Martina has spent 30 years in the United States and is an experienced global executive. Her financial and operational leadership of technology-focused companies is extremely relevant as Shell explores new technology-enabled business models. Martina also brings diverse sector experience to the Board, most recently from operating at a large global organisation in the highly regulated finance industry.
Martina is known for her straight-forward and direct approach. She maintains the highest standards of leadership, strategic thinking and financial stewardship, and beyond the financial results and accolades, she has also left a legacy of integrity, mentorship and the promotion of diversity.
Martina’s deep financial knowledge will enable her to make robust, demanding and constructive challenge to our investment considerations and help ensure that our projects are aligned with our strategic intent.
Sir Nigel Sheinwald GCMG
Independent Non-executive Director
Tenure
Appointed a Director July 1, 2012
Board Committee membership
Chair of the Safety, Environment and Sustainability Committee and Member of the Nomination Committee
Outside interests/commitments
Non-executive Director of Invesco Ltd and Raytheon UK. Senior Adviser to Tanium Inc. and to the Universal Music Group. Visiting Professor and Council Member of King’s College, London.
Age
Born 1953
Nationality
British
Career
Sir Nigel was a senior British diplomat who served as British Ambassador to the USA from 2007 to 2012, before retiring from the Diplomatic Service. Prior to this, he served as Foreign Policy and Defence Adviser to the Prime Minister and as British Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the European Union in Brussels. He joined the Diplomatic Service in 1976 and served in Brussels, Moscow, Washington and in a wide range of policy roles in London. Since 2012, he has taken on a number of international business roles, and has supported organisations involved in higher education and international affairs.
Relevant skills and experience
Sir Nigel’s distinguished track record including three of the most senior international roles in British public service has given him broad geopolitical and public policy experience, as well as knowledge of regulatory issues, communications and stakeholder management. He has a global and strategic outlook which enables him to identify emerging issues that could present geopolitical or reputational challenges.
Sir Nigel brings a unique government policy perspective to our strategic discussions particularly on topics such as the energy transition, that are strongly influenced by the views of governments and a complex range of interested parties. His many contributions to the Board on this and other strategic and operational topics often reflect the interconnections between geopolitics, business and external stakeholder engagement.
He is used to operating in challenging environments and is committed to active external engagement. This, and his understanding of public policy and regulatory issues through his career in government service and membership of think tank and university boards, makes him well suited to the role of Chair of our Safety, Environment and Sustainability Committee.
Gerrit Zalm
Independent Non-executive Director
Tenure
Appointed a Director January 1, 2013
Board Committee membership
Member of the Audit Committee and member of the Remuneration Committee
Outside interests/commitments
Director of Moody’s Corporation inc and Danske Bank A/S
Age
Born 1952
Nationality
Dutch
Career
Gerrit was an adviser to PricewaterhouseCoopers during 2007, Chairman of the Trustees of the International Accounting Standards Board from 2007 to 2010, and an adviser to Permira from 2007 to 2008. He was Chief Economist of DSB Bank from July 2007 to January 2008, Chief Financial Officer from January 2008 to December 2008, and Chairman of the Managing Board of ABN AMRO Bank N.V. from 2010 to 2016. He was Minister of Finance of the Netherlands, twice, from 1994 to 2002 and from 2003 to 2007. In between, he was Chairman of the parliamentary party of the VVD.
Prior to 1994, he was head of the Netherlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis, a professor at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, and held various positions at the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Economic Affairs. He studied general economics at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, from where he also received an honorary doctorate in economics.
Relevant skills and experience
An economist by background, Gerrit’s distinguished 12-year service as the Minister of Finance to the Netherlands, coupled with his experience gained from his time with ABN AMRO Bank, brings a deep and valuable understanding of Dutch politics and financial markets to the Board. His international financial management expertise and strategic development experience also benefits the Audit Committee.
A highly regarded and seasoned leader in both the public and private spheres, his significant experience in analysing financial commitments from a wider public stakeholder and a global business standpoint serves the Board well, particularly when considering investment proposals. Gerrit consistently and concisely articulates the logic and reasoning behind his views, benefiting the Board and management. His questions often trigger other analytical questions from fellow Directors, which serves to deepen and widen Board discussions.
Linda M. Coulter
Company Secretary
Tenure
Appointed Company Secretary January 1, 2017
Board Committee membership
n/a
Outside interests/ commitments
Age
Born 1967
Nationality
US Citizen
Career
Linda was General Counsel of the Upstream Americas business and Head of Legal US, based in the USA, from 2014 to 2016. Previously, she was Group Chief Ethics & Compliance Officer based in the Netherlands from 2011 to 2014. Since joining Shell in 1995, she has also held a variety of legal positions in the Shell Oil Company in the USA, including Chemicals Legal Managing Counsel and other senior roles in employment, litigation, and commercial practice.
Relevant skills and experience
Linda is our Company Secretary and plays an important role as Shell’s General Counsel Corporate, overseeing corporate legal teams in Belgium, Canada, the Netherlands, Switzerland, the UK and the USA.
The various legal roles Linda has undertaken at our headquarters, and in supporting both the Upstream and Downstream businesses, have provided her with a strong understanding of our global operations and people. Her experience of engaging with the Board in previous roles, coupled with her broad understanding and engagement across Shell’s businesses and functions, helps to ensure that the right matters come to the Board at the right time.
