Adecco Group Ag Unsp/Adr

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the ADECO Q2 Results 2024 Conference Call and Live Webcast. For operator assistance, please press star and zero. The conference must not be recorded for publication or broadcast. At this time, it's my pleasure to hand over to Benita Barret, the Head of Investor Relations. Please go ahead, madam.

Good morning, and thank you for joining the ADECO Group's conference call today. I'm Benita Barreto, the Group's Head of Investor Relations, and with me are the ADECA Group CEO, Denny Machuel, and CFO, Coram Williams. Before we begin, we want to draw your attention to the disclaimer on slide two. Today's presentation will reference GAAP and non-GAAP financial results and operating metrics. This conference call will include forward-looking statements. These statements are based on assumptions as of today and are therefore subject to risks and uncertainties. Let me now hand over to Denny and the results report.

Thank you, Benita, and a warm welcome to all of you who've joined the call today. Let's turn to slide three, which provides an overview of the quarter. The group delivered 5.8 billion euros in revenues, 2% lower on an organic training days-adjusted basis. We delivered another quarter of strong share gains and clear outperformance in challenging markets. The group grew 375 basis points ahead of its key competitors on top of 775 basis points in the Q2 period last year. The gross margin of 19.4% was 70 basis points lower year-on-year. It is a robust result that reflects the current business mix and firm pricing. We've delivered an above-target 162 million euros of G&A savings run rate. And in Q2, G&A expenses were 19% lower than the 22% baseline. supporting the group's EBITDA of 179 million euros and 3.1% margin. Adjusted EPS was 0.64 cents, 1% lower year-on-year on a constant currency basis. Net debt to EBITDA ended the quarter at three times, a 0.2 times reduction compared to the prior year's period. Cash performance improved, driven by good working capital management. Cash flow from operations was plus 162 million euros, better by 82 million euros year on year, and the cash conversion ratio was 84%. As part of the group's ongoing commitment to sustainable growth, we are pleased to announce that the Science-Based Target Initiative has approved our 2030 and 2050 net zero emission targets, including detailed year-on-year reduction paths. Let's now move to slide four in our strategic progress. We've consistently delivered against the simplify, execute, and grow plan, which was established to drive better, faster execution, and improve financial performance. So, to highlight a few achievements, the group has made significant strategic investment over the last two years, gaining substantial market share and positioning itself close to leading the market in revenue terms. These investments include, for example, adding capacity to consistently capture growth opportunities in ADECO, APAC, or Southern Europe, as well as the latest technologies, such as AI-assisted coaching in ESRA. We've also protected capacity in more talent markets, where appropriate, ensuring we are well-positioned to capitalize swiftly on a future recovery. By simplifying the way we work with strong execution, we have delivered 162 million euros in GNS savings, net and in run rate terms above the 150 million euros target. In gross terms, this is an absolute reduction in spending of over 200 million euros and over 20%. The organization has been right-sized The move to shared service centers accelerated and procurement policies tightened. Within strengthened group guardrails, we've empowered decision-making and accountability by those closest to customers at the GBU and local levels. We have activated a value-driving tech roadmap with clear architecture, project prioritization, and balance between global and local needs. With this, We plan to simplify the group's system landscape and increase capacity for innovation and disruptive technologies, harnessing data and AI to enhance our competitive edge. Last but not least, in HR, we are driving a group-wide values and culture initiative to support a collaborative, transparent, and high-performance culture with an absolute focus on clients, and candidates moving now to slide five and more color on the gna savings program since announcing the 150 million euros net target in q4 2022 the group has methodically worked to achieve it supported by the task force which has worked with the gbus countries and functions to identify actions and improve the speed of delivery this disciplined execution has enabled us to overachieve. As of mid 2024, we've delivered 162 million euros in savings, net and in runway terms, versus the 2022 baseline. 109 million euros of savings have come from simplifying and consolidating corporate and enabling functions, including by shifting administrative tasks to offshore shared service centers for finance and HR. 53 million euros of savings have been delivered from GBU and country structures, mainly by eliminating duplication and reducing the number of organizational layers. G&A headcount has decreased by 12%, while non-personal costs cuts have driven 66 million euros of savings. For the Q2 period, G&A savings represent a 19% reduction versus the 2022 baseline, bringing G&A expenses to 3.4% of revenues. Looking forward, we have a clear plan to sustain G&A expenses below 3.5% of revenues per annum. Let me now hand over to Colin, who will provide details on the Q2 results.