Complementing competencies
Emílio Odebrecht – Chairman of the Board of Odebrecht S.A.

When the organization adopted measures that led to the improvement of the Odebrecht Group’s corporate governance system, the Board of Directors of Odebrecht S.A. took on fresh challenges suited to the establishment of a new strategic direction and the complexity of the businesses and the world scene, as we forge ahead on the path to growth.

To bolster the Board’s competencies when taking on these challenges, one of the decisions taken at the time was to expand the Board to include Members from outside the Group.

This issue of Odebrecht Informa contains an article on the subject, because in November 2004, the Shareholders of Odebrecht S.A. decided to bring Rubens Ricupero, Pedro Mariani and Luiz Almeida onto the Board (see pages 34 and 35).

The line of entrepreneurship linking Shareholders and Clients is the starting point for conceptualizing our organization and consequently mobilizing Entrepreneur-Partners and their teams.

The Board of Directors of Odebrecht S.A. stands at one extremity of the entrepreneurship line, representing Shareholders (the Client stands at the other extremity). The Board is a deliberative, non-executive body that focuses on political and strategic decisions, strategic direction and interaction with the President and CEO of Odebrecht S.A., primarily with a view to adding tangible and intangible values and ensuring that our entrepreneurial philosophy is applied throughout the organization. The Board’s decisions have an extensive impact because they set precedents and give rise to values, concepts and policies.

The Board deals with issues related to the Group’s culture, strategic direction, macrostructure, performance, investments, the designation of people responsible for key positions, our code of behavior, social and environmental responsibility, image and corporate safety. The Board Members always deliberate on these issues from a long-term perspective, while concentrating on opportunities instead of problems.

Therefore, the requirements for joining our Board include keen judgment, a strong sense of responsibility and the utmost probity. In addition to these qualities, our new Members are bringing an outside perspective and unique experiences to the Board that will certainly enrich the deliberative process of a group that already includes people who not only have the above qualities but an extensive track record of important and varied experiences built up during their tenure as Odebrecht Group executives.

The new members of the Board of Directors bring
an outside perspective and unique experiences

By bolstering the new corporate governance system introduced in 2001, which is more advanced and tailored to the organization’s current size, challenges and corporate structure, while also bolstering the process of renewing the leadership of our businesses, bringing new Members onto the Board is yet another step on our journey towards Survival, Growth and Perpetuity.

It is opportune to underscore the importance of balancing the line of entrepreneurship that unites the Group’s Shareholders and Clients, because every link in the chain must be equally strong.

This means that, now more than ever, our Clients need to be competitive in order to survive, grow and perpetuate themselves. Therefore, everyone in the Group, from the Entrepreneur-Partner directly responsible for satisfying Clients and ensuring their competitiveness to the Shareholders represented by the Board of Directors, must pay special attention to the chain of production of which they form part.

Thorough knowledge of this chain is a requisite for making an effective contribution. And making an effective contribution will be the key to the survival, growth and perpetuity of each link in the chain, and consequently, of the Odebrecht Group.