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LOGO



LOGOIQVIA HOLDINGS INC.
83 Wooster Heights Road
Danbury, Connecticut 06810

Message from our
Chairman and CEO

 

 

Ari Bousbib

Chairman and
Chief Executive Officer

February 26, 2021

28 , 2022

IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.

83 Wooster Heights Road

Danbury, CT 06810

Dear Stockholder:

You are cordially invited to attend the 20212022 Annual Meeting of Stockholders of IQVIA Holdings Inc. on Tuesday, April 13, 2021,12, 2022, at 9:00 am E.D.T. at the Ethan Allen Hotel, 21 Lake Avenue Extension,Hilton Garden Inn Danbury, 119 Mill Plain Road, Danbury, Connecticut. The Notice of 20212022 Annual Meeting of Stockholders and the Proxy Statement accompanying this letter describe the business to be conducted at the meeting and provide further information about IQVIA.

We started 2020 firmlyAt IQVIA, we remain keenly focused on our missionpurpose of enabling clients to accelerateaccelerating the advancement of innovative medical treatments that improve healthcare outcomes for patients. Whenpatient lives. This past year marked five years since the global COVID-19 pandemic disruptedformation of IQVIA, the world, we faced unprecedented challenges to our mission, forcing us to adapt quickly to a new environment. I am pleased to report that we navigated these challenges successfully and delivered solid financial results and attractive returns for our shareholders.

At the onset of the pandemic, our immediate priorities focused on the safety and wellness of our employees, customers, suppliers, patients and healthcare professionals with whom we frequently interact, as well as ensuring continuity of our global clinical and commercial operations. As business activity slowed in the second quarter, we took a long-term view of the pandemic and made decisions to avoid the large-scale job restructuring and compensation reductions that would have helped us achieve short-term financial targets. In addition, executive leadership across our company volunteered to forgo a portion of their pay to fund IQVIA Cares, a program that provided financial aid to more than 2,200 employees around the world who had suffered personal hardship as a result of the pandemic. These actions to support our employees atmerger between IMS Health and Quintiles in 2016. During this time, we built a timetruly unique organization with over 79,000 employees, a global client base of unprecedented crisis strengthened our culture, increased engagement, fostered loyalty and positioned the Company for a strong rebound as the business environment began to stabilize into the fourth quarter.

We also took early actions to preserve liquidity, strengthen our balance sheet and stabilize the Company’s financial position. We issued term loans to pay down our revolving credit facility, extended maturities on our senior notes, secured interest rate swaps to lock-in record low rates, reduced acquisition spending and share repurchases, and focused the organization on cash collections to drive strong free cash flow. As a result, we closed the year with a strong balance sheet andover $3.310,000 billion of liquidity. While doing this, we continued to invest for future growth, increasing capital and software development spending by 6 percent to $616 million.

IQVIA is in a unique position to help the world manage through this pandemic. Throughout the crisis, we engaged weekly with life sciences companies, healthcareregulators, payers and providers, in 100 countries,and government bodiesan unmatched set of technology & analytics capabilities.

Since forming IQVIA, our goals have been ambitious. For the first three years following the merger, we focused on integrating our capabilities and applying them to provide advice, analysisimprove the clinical trial process. In 2019, we launched our Vision22 strategy to accelerate growth and resourcesprofitability by the end of 2022, and we are on track to help manage and planachieve these goals as we begin the final year of this strategic plan.

We are now at another inflection point in IQVIA’s journey. This past year our management team began to work on the strategy for the pandemic.next phase of our growth. We deployedcall this new strategic plan 20by25, which alludes to our field-based resources and lab facilitiesgoal of accelerating innovation-led growth to support large-scale diagnostic testing and patient monitoring. To-date, our clinical teams have been involveddouble digits annually, resulting in more than 300 clinical trials for COVID-19 treatments and vaccines, including four of five vaccines fundedIQVIA becoming at least a $20 billion revenue company by the U.S. government which madeyear 2025. This is an ambitious target given our existing large global scale, but through our unique capabilities and expansive customer base, we believe these goals are achievable.

IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement1

2021Financial&OperationalHighlights

This year, COVID-19 continued to surge across many parts of the world, however, it did not have a material impact on our operations, as we have learned to work through phase III trials.these challenges. In total, IQVIA has recruited nearly 100,000 patients into COVID-19 clinical trials.

Throughout 2020,fact, in 2021, we endeavored to be as transparent as possible by providing visibility to our expected financial performance. Whileaccelerated the pandemicpace of investment across the business and significantly impacted our results in the second and third quarters, we closed the year with a very strong fourth quarter, delivering double-digit growth acrossexceeded all key financial metrics. For the full year,and strategic goals. Reported revenue grew to$13.9 billion, representing22.1% year-over-year growth. Our Research and Development Solutions (R&DS) and Technology and Analytics Solutions (T&AS) segments contributed significantly to our financial performance was solid, with revenue of results, delivering$11.4 billion31.2%, and13.9% growth, respectively. Adjusted EBITDA of grew26.8% to$2.43 billion billion and Adjusted Diluted Earnings per Share (EPS) of$9.03 increased40.7%. Our Free Cash Flow continued its substantial improvement trend and increased to$2.3 billion. Our investor base continued to expand and to respond accordingly: our share price performance provided a total stockholder return of $6.4257.5%.

Our strong balance sheet, flexible capital structure and strong Free Cash Flow performance enabled key investments to further drive innovation, as well as to return cash to shareholders. We invested $640million in new product development and technology infrastructure. During 2021, we also completed a number of strategic acquisitions across our portfolio of businesses. In R&DS, we purchased the remaining non-controlling interest in our lab joint venture from Quest Diagnostics, and we acquired MyriadRulesBasedMedicine to bolster our bio-marker lab testing capabilities in key therapeutic areas. In T&AS, we strengthen our position in the digital omnichannel marketing space with the acquisition of DMDMarketingSolutions. We also returned $395million to shareholders through the repurchase of 1.7million shares.


In addition to these solid financialThese strong results 2020 includedwere driven by numerous strategicoperational achievements across our organization:

organization, as we:

Our Technology business hadDelivered a record 60 wins$10.1 with Orchestrated Customer Engagement (OCE)billion in 2020, bringingcontracted net new bookings and our total number of client wins to 140.

Our Research and Development Solutionsclinical development contracted backlog at December 31, 20202021 reached a record $22.624.8billion.

Expanded the uptake of our industry-leading Decentralized Clinical Trial (DCT) capabilities. We now have over 300 studies worldwide, enrolling more than 300,000 patients in 80 countries across more than 30 indications, using at least one of our DCT solutions.

Expanded the adoption of IQVIA technology platforms to over billion, growing 18.5% versus 2019.3,000customers, with over 350 clients adopting one or more applications on our OrchestratedCustomerEngagement(OCE) platform since launch.

As the pandemic accelerated the need for remoteLaunched new products in-line with our product strategy. This included IQVIANextBestAction, an artificial intelligence (AI)-driven technology and risk-based monitoring, we wonanalytics tool that provides alerts, triggers, and recommendations to sales teams to support customer engagement. In its first year, it has already been deployed by twotop-20pharmaceuticalclients across over 50 new studies40brands using our virtual trials solutions, including awards withand in five top 10 pharma clients30countries.

InBuilt on our leading position in Real World we launched CARE, our COVID Active Research Experience registry, to help communities and public health authorities better understandEvidence with the impactexpansion ofCOVID-19 on the population. The team continues to invest in our rich clinical data assets which now stand at to overone 1.2billion non-identified patients globally.

$13.9B

Revenue

 

$3.0B

Adjusted EBITDA

$9.03

Adjusted Diluted
Earnings per
Share

$2.3B

Free Cash
Flow


IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement2

2021ESGHighlights

We are proud of the many business accomplishments we had this past year, but it is especially meaningful to see how our approximately 79,000 employees have embraced our ambitious Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) goals and supported an expansion of these programs during 2021. As an organization, our commitment to these efforts is unwavering, and we will continue reporting progress with complete transparency. Below are selected examples of the significant progress we made towards advancing our ESG goals:

Increased ESG transparency through adoption of globally recognizedTaskforce for Climate-related Disclosures(TCFD), Global Reporting Initiative(GRI) and Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) reporting standards

Increaseddisclosuresonthegenderandracial/ethnicdiversity of our workforce through publication of our Employee Information Report (EEO-1) report

Increasedthegenderandracial/ethnicdiversityofourBoard with recent director appointments — currently 4 of our 11 directors are women

Increasedthegenderandracial/ethnicdiversityprofileofourworkforce:

60% of our global workforce and 51% of our manager-level employees globally are women

46% of new hires in the U.S. identify as non-white, including 13% who identify as Black or African American, which is significant because as a group new hires were more diverse than our overall U.S. workforce in 2021, confirming that we are recruiting racially and ethnically diverse candidates at a rate that outpaces the diversity of our current U.S. workforce

ExpandedtheEmployeeResourceGroup(ERG)program with two new groups and increased total employee participation in these programs

Reducedourtotalandper-employeeGreenhousegas(GHG)emissionsyear-over-year beyond our expectations

Transitionedto100%renewableenergysupply at our Scotland Laboratory and initiated efforts for other facilities to achieve the same over time

Committedtosettingascience-basedtarget by end of 2023 to reduce our carbon emissions

The events of the past few years highlighted the critical role we play in healthcare. Throughout 2021, we continued to make progress advancing global healthcare and improving outcomes for populations around the world. Our industry-leading DCT platform brings the clinical trial to the patient rather than the patient to the trial. This significantly reduces the burden for patients enrolled in clinical trials and allows IQVIA to increase patient recruitment among historicallyunderservedandmorediversepopulations.These solutions were critical to the development of COVID-19 vaccines and treatments. Additionally, COVID-19 trials required broader testing, including, critically, in diverse populations. Our innovations allowed COVID-19 vaccine trials supported by IQVIA to achieve diversity enrollment rates 1.7xbetterthan other comparable COVID-19 vaccine trials. We also expanded the reach of our patient registry technology to 80+clinicalprograms.These programs have enrolled morethan21millionpatients.These solutions capture critical information about diagnosis, treatment, and outcomes for a range of disease areas. This data is used by government and academic research organizations and patient advocacy groups to inform new research and treatment protocols that have a tangible impact on patient lives.

We were particularly inspired and honored to collaborate with a wide range of stakeholders to strengthen public health system foundations and address key barriers to access across more than 200+ healthcare facilities across Sub-SaharanAfricaand to support a variety of nonprofits and programs in Indiathat focus on health, women, and education.

With the support of our employees, customers, partners, and stockholders, we will continue to build on our leading position within life sciences and global healthcare. For the fifth consecutive year, IQVIA was named to FORTUNE’slistofWorld’sMostAdmiredCompanies.In addition, we earned a first-placeranking in FORTUNE’s Healthcare:PharmacyandOtherServicescategory of its World’s Most Admired Companies list. Our commercial technology solutions were recognized as a LeaderinBPOSolutionsforPharmaceuticalSalesandMarketing for a fourth consecutive year,by International Data Corporation (IDC)’s 2021MarketScapeTM, and we received six HumanCapitalManagementExcellenceAwards from the Brandon Hall Group recognizing our Electronic Clinical Outcomes Assessment platform (eCOA) was awarded the Fierce Innovation Award for most innovative digital health solution in 2020 and two female executive leaders were named to the 2020 Pharma VOICE 100 list of most influential and inspiring leaders in the life sciences industry.global talent development programs.

Despite the many challenges of 2020, IQVIA remainsOur differentiated capabilities uniquely positionedposition IQVIA to address some of healthcare’s most complex problems.challenges. We will continue to focus oninvest and innovate to advance patient outcomes and deliver value to our mission of improving healthcare outcomes for patients around the world through our strategy of intelligently connecting our unparalleled healthcare information, analytics, technology and scientific expertise to accelerate the clinical development and commercialization of innovative medical treatments.shareholders.

 

 

LOGO

AriBousbib

ChairmanandChiefExecutiveOfficer


IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT  
IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement3

 

NOTICE

of 2022 Annual
Meeting of
Stockholders

AGENDA

Proposal1:

Elect the four Class III director nominees named in the accompanying Proxy Statement for a three-year term

Proposal2:

Approve our Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation to declassify the Board of Directors over time and provide for the annual election of all directors

Proposal3:

Approve an advisory (non-binding) resolution to approve executive compensation (say-on-pay)

Proposal4:

Consider a stockholder proposal, if properly presented

Proposal5:

Ratify our Audit Committee’s appointment of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP as our independent registered public accounting firm for 2022

Other business, if properly raised

 

By Order of the Board of Directors,

 

Notice of 2021 Annual MeetingEric M. Sherbet
Executive Vice President,
General Counsel and Secretary
February 28 , 2022
Danbury, Connecticut

of Stockholders

 

2021 ANNUAL MEETING INFORMATIONTime, Date & Location

Time and Date:

9:00a.m.E.D.T.,

Tuesday, April 13, 202112, 2022

Place:Hilton Garden Inn Danbury

Ethan Allen Hotel

21 Lake Avenue Extension119 Mill Plain Road

Danbury, Connecticut 06811

TheBoardofDirectorsrecommendsthatyouvoteRecord Date:FOReachdirectornomineeincludedinProposal1andFORProposals2,3and5.TheBoardrecommendsthatyouvoteAGAINSTProposal4.ThefulltextoftheseproposalsappearsintheaccompanyingProxyStatement.RegisteredstockholdersoftheCompanyatthecloseofbusinessontherecorddateareeligibletovoteatthemeeting.

February 12, 2021We recommend that you review the information on the process for, and deadlines applicable to, voting, attending the meeting and appointing a proxy under “About the 2022 Annual Meeting” on page 107 of the Proxy Statement.

Important Notice Regarding

YOUR VOTE IS IMPORTANT

To make sure your shares are represented, please cast your vote as soon as possible in one of the Availability of Proxy Materials for the 2021 Annual Meeting of Stockholders to Be Held April 13, 2021:following ways:

INTERNET

Go to the website shown on your proxy card and follow the instructions

TELEPHONE

Use the toll-free number shown on your proxy card or voting instruction form

MAIL

Mark, sign and date your proxy card and return it in the postage-paid envelope

ImportantNoticeRegardingtheAvailabilityofProxyMaterialsforthe2022AnnualMeetingofStockholderstoBeHeldApril12,2022:

Our Notice of Meeting, Proxy Statement, Form of Proxy Card and 2020& 2021 Annual Report are available at: https://materials.proxyvote.com/46266C


IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement4

IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement5

Back to Contents

Proxy Statement Summary

This Proxy Statement Summary highlights information contained elsewhere in this Proxy Statement, which is first being sent or made available to stockholders on or about February 28 , 2022. This summary does not contain all of the information you should consider, so please read the entire Proxy Statement carefully before voting.

Matters to Be Voted Upon

The following table summarizes the proposals to be voted upon at the 2022 Annual Meeting of Stockholders of IQVIA Holdings Inc. to be held on Tuesday, April 12, 2022 (the “2022 Annual Meeting”) and the voting recommendations of the Company’s Board of Directors (the “Board”) with respect to each proposal.

Proposals

Required

Approval

Board

Recommendation

Page

Reference

Election of Directors

Plurality of votes cast

FOR

17

Amendment to Certificate of Incorporation to declassify the Board over time and provide for the annual election of all directors

Majority of shares present in person or represented by proxy at the meeting and entitled to vote on the matter

FOR

24

Advisory (non-binding) vote to approve executive compensation (say-on-pay)

Not applicable(1)

FOR

48

Stockholder proposal, if properly presented

Not applicable(1)

AGAINST

98

Ratification of independent auditor

Majority of votes cast

FOR

100

(1)

Because this is an advisory vote, there is no required approval threshold.

 

YOUR VOTE IS IMPORTANT

To make sure your shares are represented, please cast your vote as soon as possible in onePlease register for e-delivery of proxy materials Scan the following ways:QR Code or visit www.proxyvote.com

INTERNET

 

Go to the website shown on your proxy card and related instructions

LOGO

TELEPHONE

Use the toll-free number shown on your proxy card or voting instruction form

LOGO

MAIL

Mark, sign and date your proxy card and return it in the postage-paid envelope

LOGO

AGENDA

Proposal 1: Election of three Class II director nominees named in the accompanying Proxy Statement for a three-year term

Proposal 2: Advisory (non-binding) vote on the frequency of future stockholder advisory votes to approve executive compensation

Proposal 3: Amendment of IQVIA Holdings Inc.’s Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation to remove supermajority voting standards applicable to the following actions:

 

 a.

amending the Bylaws of the Company

b.

removing, for cause only, a director or the entire Board of Directors from office

Proposal 4: Ratification of our Audit Committee’s appointment of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP as our independent registered public accounting firm for 2021

Other business, if properly raised

The Board of Directors recommends that you vote “FOR” each director nominee included in Proposal 1 and “FOR” Proposals 3 and 4. The Board of Directors is not making any recommendation for Proposal 2. The full text of these proposals is set forth in the accompanying Proxy Statement. Registered stockholders of the Company at the close of business on the record date are eligible to vote at the meeting.

We recommend that you review the information on the process for, and deadlines applicable to, voting, attending the meeting and appointing a proxy under “About the 2021 Annual Meeting” on page 126 of the Proxy Statement.

By Order of the Board of Directors,

LOGO

Eric M. Sherbet

Executive Vice President,

General Counsel and Secretary

February 26, 2021

Danbury, Connecticut


IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT  |  i 

Table of ContentsIQVIA HOLDINGS INC.


IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT  |  1


Back to Contents

Who We Are

 

 

Proxy

Statement Summary

This Proxy Statement Summary highlights information contained elsewhere in this Proxy Statement, which is first being sent or made available to stockholders on or about February 26, 2021. This summary does not contain all of the information you should consider, so please read the entire Proxy Statement carefully before voting.

MATTERS TO BE VOTED UPON

The following table summarizes the proposals to be voted upon at the 2021 Annual Meeting of Stockholders of IQVIA Holdings Inc. (“IQVIA”, the “Company”, “we” or “our”) to be held on April 13, 2021 (the “2021 Annual Meeting”) and voting recommendations of the Board of Directors of the Company (the “Board”) with respect to each proposal.

ProposalsRequired Approval

Board

Recommendation

Page

Reference

Election of DirectorsPlurality of votes castFOR15
Advisory vote on frequency of say-on-pay1Majority of votes castN/A50
Amendments to Certificate of IncorporationMajority of shares present in person or presented by proxy at the meeting and entitled to vote on the subject matterFOR116
Ratification of independent auditorMajority of votes castFOR118

1

In response to stockholders requesting that we further consider the frequency of our say-on-pay vote, our Board has proposed a say-on-frequency vote earlier than required and committed to implementing the majority view even though this is an advisory vote and is not binding on the Company. The Board is not making a recommendation on the advisory vote on frequency of say-on-pay.

LOGO

Your Vote is Important

Please register for e-delivery of proxy materials

visit: www.proxyvote.com


2  |  Proxy Statement SummaryIQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT

WHO WE ARE

IQVIA is a leading global provider of advanced analytics, technology solutions and clinical research services to the life sciences industry. IQVIA creates intelligent connections across all aspects of healthcare through its analytics, transformative technology, big data resources and extensive domain expertise. IQVIA Connected Intelligence delivers powerful insights with speed and agility — enabling customers to accelerate the clinical development and commercialization of innovative medical treatments that improve healthcare outcomes for patients. With approximately 70,000 employees, we conduct operations in more than 100 countries.

We have one of the largest and most comprehensive collections of healthcare information in the world, which includes more than one billion comprehensive, longitudinal, non-identified patient records spanning sales, prescriptions, promotions, medical claims, electronic medical records, genomics, and social media. We standardize, curate, structure and integrate this data by applying our sophisticated analytics and leveraging our global technology infrastructure. This helps our clients run their organizations more efficiently and make better decisions to improve their clinical, commercial and financial performance.

We are a global leader in protecting individual patient privacy. We use a wide variety of privacy-enhancing technologies and safeguards to protect individual privacy while generating and analyzing information on a scale that helps healthcare stakeholders identify disease patterns and correlate with the precise treatment path and therapy needed for better outcomes.

LOGO


IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENTProxy Statement Summary  |  3

OUR PURPOSE AND STRATEGY

Our Company’s purpose is to enable life sciences clients and broader healthcare stakeholders to accelerate the clinical development and commercialization of innovative medical treatments that improve healthcare outcomes for patients. We believe we are well positioned for continued growth across the markets we serve. Our strategy for achieving growth includes:

LOGO

Innovate by making intelligent connections across our unparalleled information assets, advanced analytics, technology solutions and deep scientific expertise

LOGO

Build upon our relationships with over 10,000 clients

LOGO

Expand the penetration of our offerings to the broader healthcare marketplace

LOGO

Leverage our global scale and presence in over 100 countries to expand our offerings in local markets

LOGO

Expand our portfolio through effective capital deployment, including strategic tuck-in acquisitions


4  |  Proxy Statement SummaryIQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

2020 Key Performance Metrics

We have one of the largest and most comprehensive collections of healthcare information in the world, including more than 1.2 billion comprehensive, longitudinal, non-identified patient records spanning sales, prescriptions, promotions, medical claims, electronic medical records, genomics, and social media secured by a wide variety of privacy-enhancing technologies and safeguards. With our sophisticated analytics and global technology infrastructure, we help our clients use this data to run their organizations more efficiently and make better decisions.

 

 

Revenue

$11.4Bn

Adjusted EBITDA1

$2.4Bn

 

Adjusted Diluted Earnings Per Share1

$6.42

Free Cash Flow

$1.34Bn

Technology & Analytics Segment Revenue

$4.9Bn

Research & Development Services Segment Revenue

$5.8Bn

Contract Sales & Medical Solutions Segment Revenue

$741M

1 See reconciliation of non-GAAP items in the Appendix

 2020 Capital Deployment

Cash Returned to Stockholders

$423M

Cash Repatriation

$1.0Bn

Investments in Product Development & Technology

$616M

Investments in Acquisitions

$177M

 2020 Business Highlights

Clinical Development Net Book-to Bill Ratio

1.53x

Clinical Development Contracted Backlog

$22.6Bn

COVID-19 Treatment and Vaccine Awards

300+

New OCE Technology Customer Wins

60


IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENTProxy Statement Summary  |  5 

COVID-19IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.  PANDEMIC RESPONSE HIGHLIGHTS  2022 Proxy Statement7


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Financial Highlights

At the onset of the
COVID-19IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.  pandemic, we instituted a crisis management response effort to ensure alignment on priorities across the organization. The senior leadership team met daily, allowing for an agile and decisive response to the crisis, and the Board maintained close oversight of management’s pandemic response efforts through multiple briefings and special meetings. Across the organization, we were focused on the following priorities:  2022 Proxy Statement8


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IQVIA’s 20by25 Strategy

When we formed IQVIA in 2016, we were focused on bringing analytics and technology to the clinical trial process. We worked for three years to fully integrate these capabilities and begin to realize the full value of the merger between IMS Health and Quintiles (the “Merger”). In 2019, we launchedVision 2022, a strategy to fully leverage our newly-combined assets to accelerate our growth beyond our post-Merger achievements. Since that launch, we have invested heavily in the use of technology, information, and analytics to expand our portfolio of offerings and further improve performance for ourselves and our customers. As Vision 2022 comes to a very successful conclusion, the next inflection point in our growth trajectory is what we call20by25, which represents our goal to realize at least $20 billion in revenue by 2025. This target reflects an acceleration of our innovation-led annual growth rate to at least double digits, which—given the scale of our revenues—represents a formidable challenge. Nevertheless, we believe that this goal is supported by a large, growing business opportunity that we are uniquely positioned to capture a greater share of through our differentiated capabilities and our expansive customer base.

 

Implement Safety First

We are excited about where IQVIA is today and look forward to what it will become in the future.

Develop COVID-19 Treatments/Vaccines

 Added bandwidth and VPN capacity to enable 95% of employees at the peak of the pandemic to work remotely while maintaining our rigorous cybersecurity standards

 No international travel; essential domestic travel only

 Provided PPE to field-based employees

 Awarded over 300 COVID-19 treatment and vaccine programs, including 4 of 5 trials that reached phase III and were funded by the U.S. government, providing full clinical trial services for 2 of them

 Created online platform to match individuals to specific COVID-19 studies

 Launched IQVIA CARE registry, which leverages our rich longitudinal data to better understand COVID-19 patient data

 

IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement9

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Commitment to Public Health

We intend to achieve our corporate purpose of advancing healthcare outcomes for patients by overcoming some of the biggest challenges facing global health through collaborations with numerous stakeholders in the healthcare ecosystem. We are passionate about helping clients pursue this goal, and we continuously push ourselves to do more to advance public health efforts and improve health for all.

We are committed to doing our part by harnessing our resources and expertise to identify, understand, and address unmet public health needs. We believe that by unleashing the power of Human Data Science—the integration of the study of human science with breakthroughs in data science and technology—we can reimagine ways to address the most complex global health challenges.

We do not undertake these challenges alone. Working in partnership with life science companies, medical researchers, government agencies, payers, nonprofit organizations, and other healthcare stakeholders, we deliver insights and solutions that make meaningful differences in global public health.

Creating a Healthier World

We are on the frontlines of the global public health conversation through ongoing work with nonprofit organizations, government agencies, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), patient advocacy groups, and other healthcare stakeholders. We are setting the agenda for public discussion of healthcare topics—ranging from biosimilar sustainability to orphan drug development and biopharmaceutical innovation—by regularly publishing original, independent reports.

Accesstoinfrastructureandstandards. IQVIA is a preferred provider to a consortium of 14 global health Product Development Partnerships, funded in part by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. By partnering with the consortium members, IQVIA provides access to our global clinical development infrastructure and standards, particularly in the areas of infectious diseases such as HIV, malaria and tuberculosis.

Patientempowerment. We have a long-standing commitment to pursue patient engagement strategies to better educate and include patients in the evolving clinical research environment. This important work is enabling people to receive health services, clinical trial education and active connections to clinical research programs across the globe.

Improvingoutcomesforpatientsandpopulations. We dedicate a significant amount of time and resources to working alongside governments, NGOs, and academia to enable faster and more robust approaches to tackling some of the world’s most pressing health challenges. We have joined numerous organizations to help develop, enhance and optimize patient registries, which are collections of data related to patients with a specific diagnosis or condition that play an important role in healthcare. For example, in one consortium, after initiating a registry focused on colectomy patients, we saw a 30% reduction in urinary tract infections and a 22% reduction in surgical site infections following colectomy surgeries. In another partnership, we developed an algorithm using AI to identify misdiagnosed adult type 1 diabetes (T1D) patients. A third partnership created a network of clinical sites and patient advocacy partnerships that will share non-identified electronic health record (EHR) data.

Diversityinclinicaltrials. Through industry partnerships and internal initiatives, IQVIA is a leader in driving increased diversity in clinical trials, which is essential to improve understanding of potential sources of outcome variability in trials and to creating equality in the broader healthcare system. Across our COVID-19 vaccine trials, for example, we achieved 1.7 times higher enrollment of diverse populations versus our peers.

Regulatoryevolution. IQVIA works alongside regulators and policymakers to foster a regulatory environment that advances human health and the conduct of clinical trials. We were the only company in our industry to actively participate in the development and passage of the 21st Century Cures Act, including testifying before the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee on the topic of “Modernizing of Clinical Trials.”

IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement10

Help Clients Manage Outbreak


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Combating COVID-19

In 2021, we continued to devote substantial resources to COVID-19-related efforts, including our work with clients, governments and public health agencies. We responded quickly to the call to leverage our capabilities and expertise to help contribute to the global understanding of the virus and its ongoing implications.

Mitigate Clinical Trial Disruption

 AI forecasting tools deployed to track disease progression

 Helped governments and healthcare systems manage capacity

 Leveraged analytics to monitor supply chain

 Accessing patients and health care providers remotely through remote monitoring, virtual trials enabled by StudyHub, and televisits

Transparency to Investors

Protect and Support Employees

 Issued updated full-year 2020 financial guidance in April 2020 when other full-service CROs withdrew

 Provided detailed quarterly updates on site accessibility and our liquidity position

 Provided 2021 financial guidance a quarter earlier than in prior years

 Preserved employment and maintained base compensation throughout the year, keeping a focus on the well-being of employees and the Company’s long-term strategic objectives rather than prioritizing dramatic cuts and restructurings to achieve pre-pandemic short-term targets

 Our directors and senior executives voluntarily elected to forgo portions of their pay to provide over $1 million in financial aid to over 2,200 employees experiencing financial hardship

 Accelerated roll-out of our Employee Assistance Program, a free service that offers confidential mental and emotional well-being support, to our entire global workforce

Preserve Capital and Maximize Liquidity

 Paid down our revolving credit facility to zero, ensuring $1.5 billion short-term borrowing capacity

 Suspended share repurchases and launched successful programs to manage receivables, which contributed to our record level of $1.8 billion in cash at year end

 Refinanced senior notes due 2024 to extend their maturity by four years, reducing our nearest-term debt load by approximately 30%

Advising Healthcare Actors


6  |  Proxy Statement SummaryIQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT

Implement Safety First. The safety of employees, patients, healthcare professionals, customers and suppliers with whom we frequently interact was our highest priority as COVID-19 spread across the globe. To limit exposure, we substantially restricted travel, supplied personal protective equipment to field-based employees, closed facilities and asked most of our staff to work remotely. On short notice, we added bandwidth and VPN capacity to enable 95% of our employees at the peak of the pandemic to work remotely and avoid service disruptions. At the same time, we continued to maintain and enhance our cybersecurity protections, which included completing the global roll-out of our core Endpoint Detection & Response solution to all workstations, thus protecting them from cyber threats regardless of the location and network status (on or off VPN) and accelerating the deployment of an Advance Response tool to enable bulk remediation of vulnerabilities on remote workstations.

Develop COVID-19 Treatments/Vaccines. We joined the global response to the crisis and deployed our capabilities to support its resolution. We have been involved in more than 300 clinical trials and studies for COVID-19 vaccines and therapies, including four of the five COVID-19 vaccine trials that reached phase III and were funded by the U.S. government, providing full clinical trial services for two of these.

DuringThroughout the pandemic, we continued to innovate. Our R&D Solutions team launched the first technology-enabled COVID-19 Trial Matching Solution. The online platform connected at-risk individuals and researchers to ongoing COVID-19 clinical research projects within the U.S. In addition, the Real World Evidence team launched the IQVIA CARE Project registry. The platform applied our vast experiencehave maintained regular dialogue with registries and analytics to help connect stakeholders and advance information sharing to better understand how to treat and prevent COVID-19.

Help Clients Manage Outbreak. To help our clients, as well as governments, regulators, payers and other organizations managelife sciences companies, providing them with up-to-date insights on the spread and plan forimpact of COVID-19, including from our AI-based disease trackers and prediction models.

IQVIA COVID-19 Active Cases Curve Simulator

We developed a first-in-kind data model that presents real-time simulations of active cases in countries and regions around the outbreak, we deployed our unique capabilities. We leveraged our people, data and technologyworld to bring AI and other valuable insightssupport public health decisions. The simulator focused on total active cases, rather than hospitalizations or deaths, as a metric that spoke to help our clients track the progression of the disease, manage capacity and monitor supply chains. We also actively engaged with clients and other stakeholders through regular executive briefings, free weekly market tracking reports, white papers, thought leadership pieces, and webinars to help them understand the rapidly evolving dynamics of the outbreak to help them predict how the virus will develop and theoverall impact to their business from the pandemic.

Mitigate Clinical Trial Disruption. As clinics and hospitals became inaccessible and as it became unsafe or difficult for patients to travel, we did everything in our power to mitigate disruptions to clinical trials and ensure patient safety. Wherever possible we transitioned to remote monitoring, withCOVID-19 was having. The simulation showed the number of remote monitoring visits reaching five times the level they were prior to the pandemic. We also leveraged our existing drug delivery and home-health services for activities such as at-home lab draws. Wherever possible, we transitioned portionsactive cases (per population), shape of clinical trials to Study Hub, our virtual trials platform, where we were also able to utilize telehealth visits to ensure continuity of contact between investigator, patients and contract research associates (CRAs).

Transparency to Investors.At the onsetincrease of the COVID-19 outbreak, stockholders expressed concerns that the pandemic would bring clinical development to a halt, resulting in severe disruptions in the CRO industry. There was great uncertainty whether clinical trials would continue and whether CRAs and other CRO personnel would have access to clinical sites. As a result of this uncertainty, all of our full-service CRO peers withdrew their full-year 2020 financial guidance. We provided assurance, clarity and certainty to investors regarding the financial and operational healthcurve, timing of the CRO industry by releasing a detailed update on business conditions on April 2, 2020, including revised first quarter financial guidance to reflect the impactapex of the pandemic, and then, later in April, by issuing updated full-year 2020 financial guidance. As the year progressed,curve, and the full impactshape and timing of the pandemic and our responsedecline from the apex.


IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENTProxy Statement Summary  |  7 

became more visible, we provided more transparency by updating financial guidance in July 2020 and again in October 2020. Furthermore, we provided additional detailed disclosure regarding site accessibility and our liquidity position in response to investor queries. At that time, we provided further assurance to investors by committing to accelerate our planning process in order to provide a view of 2021 financial guidance earlier than in past years. We fulfilled this commitment by issuing 2021 financial guidance in October 2020, a quarter earlier than in prior years.

Protect and Support Employees. As a company, we also did our best to support our employees, preserve employment and maintain base compensation throughout the year. We kept a focus on the well-being of our employees and the Company’s longer-term strategic objectives rather than prioritizing dramatic cuts and restructurings to achieve pre-pandemic short-term targets. In addition, following the onset of the pandemic, we saw an urgent need to address and assist all employees in helping them build resilience in response to the ongoing crisis and so accelerated roll-out of our Employee Assistance Program, a free service that offers confidential mental and emotional well-being support, to our entire global workforce, which had already been available to approximately 70% of our employees.

In addition, we launched the IQVIA Cares program to provide over $1 million of financial aid to more than 2,200 employees around the world who had suffered personal hardship as a result of the pandemic. This program was entirely funded by our directors, senior leaders and other employees from around the world voluntarily forgoing a portion of their pay for a period of time. We continued to build a strong supportive culture around values of mutual respect and pride in the important work we do. This will endure far beyond the crisis.

Preserve Capital and Maximize Liquidity. As financial volatility increased dramatically and capital markets tightened following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, we took various actions to preserve cash and liquidity, including: refinancing our senior notes due 2024 to extend their maturity by four years, which reduced our nearest-term debt load due in 2024 by approximately 30%; syndicating an $800 million term loan A with a four-year maturity that enabled us to pay down our revolving credit facility to zero by June 2020, thus ensuring $1.5 billion of short-term borrowing capacity was available; suspending share repurchases and launching successful programs to manage receivables, all of which helped conserve cash and contributed to our record level of $1.8 billion in cash at year end and $3.3 billion of total liquidity, including our undrawn revolving credit facility.


8  |  Proxy Statement SummaryIQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT

SUSTAINABILITY AND CORPORATE CITIZENSHIP 2020 HIGHLIGHTS

Honesty, integrity and ethical conduct are our guiding principles. Now more than ever these principles have also become critical business drivers: sustainability and citizenship are imperative to our organization. Our employees want to work for a company that considers its impact on the planet, including the communities where we operate; our customers want a partner that conducts business ethically and responsibly; and investors want to understand how we manage the opportunities and risks associated with running our Company in order to help ensure sustainable growth.

This year it became even more clear that the earth’s future is dependent not only on a healthy environment, but also on a thriving population. We are in the business of helping our customers improve patient outcomes and have a role to play in ensuring the well-being of people all over the world — both in prosperous and challenging times — and it is a responsibility we do not take lightly. Below are highlights of the steps we took in 2020:

UN Global Compact

Clinical Trial Diversity

 We became a member of the United Nations (UN) Global Compact, the world’s largest corporate sustainability initiative, committed to four UN Sustainable Development Goals: Good Health & Well Being, Gender Equality, Responsible Consumption & Production, and Climate Action and made a statement of commitment for each of these goals

 We actively engaged with industry stakeholders and Advocacy Groups to influence regulatory guidance and initiated development of clinical trial sites that serve underrepresented populations

2020 Employee Engagement Survey

Black Community Outreach & Engagement Initiative

 Completed employee engagement survey, with 81% of respondents indicating a favorable view of the Company’s employee engagement, a 13-point increase from our 2018 survey and better by 4-points than our Fortune 500 peer benchmark

 Launched initiative to develop recommendations focusing on three pillars of support for IQVIA’s Black employee community: awareness and dialogue; mentorship; and representation

Reduction of Environmental Impact

Equitable Access to Clinical Trials

 Decreased our total Greenhouse Gas Emissions (GHG) per employee by approximately 18% in 2019 compared to 2018 and overall emissions by approximately 8%, or 14,293 metric tons equivalent

 Provided financial support to each of Lazarex Cancer Foundation’s IMPACT program and the National Collaborative for Health Equity to help eliminate discrimination in healthcare and ensure equitable access to clinical trials

Reduction of Health Disparities

Top-Down Diversity and Inclusion Training

 Founding member of Preparedness & Treatment Equity Coalition that is dedicated to reducing inequities in pandemic preparedness by studying and identifying health system reforms to reduce health disparities in underserved communities

 In 2020, our Chief Executive Officer and his direct leadership team, along with other members of senior management, renewed their commitment to diversity and inclusion by participating in a new training program, which we have begun rolling out to the next levels of our Company


IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENTProxy Statement Summary  |  9

Below are key 2020 highlights across our commitment to People, Public and Planet.

LOGO

LOGO

LOGO

PeoplePublicPlanet
Creating a workplace of highly engaged, safe and healthy employees who follow our Code of Conduct

Engaging consistently and transparently in a manner that inspires participation and demonstrates leadership in sustainability

Making a positive impact on the environments we work in

PEOPLE

Conducted global employee engagement survey, with 81% of respondents indicating a favorable view of the Company’s employee engagement, which represented a 13-point improvement from our 2018 survey and was 4 points better than our Fortunate 500 peer benchmark

Expanded our programs to foster a diverse and inclusive working environment through our policies and programs, including management training and our Employee Resource Groups

Launched the Black Outreach & Engagement Initiative to support our Black employee community through increased efforts around: awareness and dialogue; mentorship; and representation

Increased reach and programming for our five Employee Resource Groups, each of which promote a different facet of diversity and inclusion and provide a framework for employees to connect and collaborate with colleagues with similar interests

PUBLIC

Joined the global response to the COVID-19 crisis and deployed our capabilities to support its resolution, working on more than 300 clinical trials and studies for COVID-19 vaccines and therapies, including four of the five COVID-19 vaccine trials that reached phase III and were funded by the U.S. government, providing full clinical trial services for two of these

Protected our employees during the pandemic by upgrading our technology and cybersecurity infrastructure to enable 95% of our employees at the peak of the pandemic to work remotely and by distributing PPE to field-base employees

Created a task force dedicated to ensuring patient safety and trial continuity to help ensure our customers could continue their important research on disease

Became a founding member of The Preparedness and Treatment Equity Coalition

IQVIA was one of the founding members of the Preparedness and Treatment Equity Coalition (PTEC), an organization whose vision is to take a metrics-driven approach to close the gaps in pandemic care and services in underserved communitiescommunities.

Human Data Science Research Collaborative

We created the Human Data Science Research Collaborative, a program to support COVID-19 research activities related to health system issues through collaboration with the world’s leading academic researchers. In 2021, we supported eight publications from high-profile academics that covered drug shortages, pediatric medicine access, changes in patient-provider engagement, mental health, and opioids.

Developing Vaccines and Therapies

We worked on over 300 clinical trials and studies for COVID-19 vaccines and therapies, including four of the five trials that reached phase III and were funded by the U.S. government, providing full clinical trial services for two of them.

IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement11

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Sustainability and ESG Highlights

We are committed to continuing our leadership position in sustainable ESG practices that further our corporate purpose of helping our clients improve healthcare outcomes for patients. Our sustainable business practices are organized in this Proxy Statement under the three pillars of our ESG program — People, Publicand Planet.

As an industry leader, we continually look for ways to advance and strengthen our sustainability and citizenship efforts and report on our progress. You can find more details about all the topics below as well as other important information related to our sustainability efforts in our 2021 ESG Report, which is available on our website at https://www.iqvia.com/esg.

   2021 select highlights of our ESG-related accomplishments:

•  Aligned our 2021 ESG Report with TCFD, GRI and SASB ESG reporting frameworks

•  Published our EEO-1 report and also expanded disclosure of other workforce diversity demographics

•  Strengthened Board oversight of our ESG program by amending our Nominating and Governance (N&G) Committee charter to explicitly include responsibility for oversight of ESG-related matters

•  Enhanced Board oversight of cybersecurity matters by amending our Audit Committee charter to explicitly state that the Audit Committee has oversight over such matters

•  Further enhanced stockholder rights by proposing to declassify our Board

 

Fostered equitable access•  Enhanced the diversity of our Board through the appointment of two racially/ethnically diverse women as directors, and enhanced diversity disclosure for our Board

•  Strengthened our Diversity & Inclusion (D&I) efforts with the appointment of a senior leader of our D&I program, among other achievements

•  Racial, ethnic and gender diversity for 2021 new hires in the US exceeded the levels for the overall US workforce

•  Increased the frequency of employee engagement surveys to clinical trials through our support of the Lazarex Cancer Foundation’s IMPACT program and the National Collaborative for Health Equitytwice annually

 

Advanced a variety of public health efforts through numerous partnerships with government and non-governmental organizations

Upheld our responsibility as a global leader in protecting individual privacy and protecting the confidentiality, integrity and availability of data in IQVIA’s possession


10  |  Proxy Statement SummaryIQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT

PLANET

Joined the UN Global Compact and selected “Responsible Consumption and Production” and “Climate Action” as two of our Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and made a statement of commitment for each of these goals

Decreased•  Reduced our total Greenhouse Gas Emissions per employee by approximately 18% in 2019and per-employee GHG emissions compared to 2018the prior year beyond our expectations

•  Transitioned to 100% renewable energy supply in our Scottish laboratory and overall emissions by approximately 8%, or 14,293 metric tons equivalentinitiated efforts for other facilities to achieve the same over time

Deployed•  Removed all single-use plastics from our Supplier Code of Conduct to vendors and suppliers we work with, as part of our sustainable procurement program, to encourage adoption and implementation of our standards for conducting business with usoffice facilities worldwide

See pages 35-46 for more information regarding our sustainability and corporate citizenship

See pages 34-43 for more information regarding our sustainability and ESG program.


IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT Proxy Statement Summary  |  11 
IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement12

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Corporate Governance Highlights

We are committed to governance practices and policies that serve IQVIA’s long-term interests and contribute to the creation of stockholder value. Below are highlights of the advancements we made in our corporate governance practices and policies.

IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement13

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The following table summarizes certain highlights of our corporate governance practices and policies.

 

Lead Director, elected by the independent directors

 

 

STOCKHOLDER ENGAGEMENT 2020 HIGHLIGHTSStockholder proxy access

Our Board and management

All directors except our Chief Executive Officer are committedindependent

Director resignation policy that requires directors to regular engagement with our stockholders, and routinely meet with a significant portion of our investor base in any given year. In 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we further expanded these engagement efforts. We tooktender their resignation if they receive a number of actionswithhold votes that exceeds 50% of all votes cast

Regular Board and committee executive sessions of non-management directors

Our common stock is the only class of stock outstanding

Annual Board and committee self-assessments

Multi-year vesting requirements for performance share awards

Director retirement policy at age 74 to provide greater transparencyencourage board refreshment

Comprehensive whistleblower policy in place

Risk oversight by the Board and committees

Securities Trading Policy in place, including anti-hedging and anti-pledging terms

Audit Committee approval required for related party transactions

No supermajority voting requirement for stockholders

Formal director and CEO searches must include list of female and racially or ethnically diverse candidates

No “poison pill” (stockholder rights plan)

Share ownership guidelines for both directors and key executives

No excise tax gross-ups on how the pandemic was impacting our operations and financial results. Below are highlights of our pandemic-related 2020 stockholder engagement efforts:severance or change in control payments or benefits

See pages 25-45 for more information regarding our corporate governance.

Director Snapshot

The following table provides information about our Nominees, assuming they are reelected at the 2022 Annual Meeting, and continuing directors.

Director

Age

Term Ends

Independent

Audit

N&G

LDC

Director Since

John P. Connaughton

56

2025

Y

 

 

X

2008

John G. Danhakl

65

2025

Y

 

X

X

2016

James A. Fasano

52

2025

Y

Chair

 

 

2016

Leslie Wims Morris

51

2025

Y

 

X

 

2022

Ari Bousbib, Chairman and CEO

60

2024

N

 

 

 

2016

Carol J. Burt

64

2023

Y

X

 

X

2019

Colleen A. Goggins

67

2023

Y

X

X

 

2017

John M. Leonard, M.D.,

Lead Director

64

2024

Y

X

X

 

2015

Ronald A. Rittenmeyer

74

2023

Y

X

 

Chair

2016

Todd B. Sisitsky

50

2024

Y

 

Chair

X

2016

Sheila A. Stamps

64

2023

Y

X

 

 

2022

Provided Transparency and Visibility
Throughout the COVID-19 Pandemic

 

Expanded Investor Outreach to Update Impact
of the COVID-19 Pandemic on our Business

 We released a detailed update on business conditions on April 2, 2020 and revised our first-quarter financial guidance to reflect the impact of the pandemic, and, later in April, we became the only full-service clinical research organization to update our full-year 2020 financial guidance, while many other companies were withdrawing guidance, with the goal of maximizing transparency in the context of the pandemic

 At the height of the pandemic, we responded promptly to investor requests, holding meetings with over 300 current and potential stockholders to provide updates on business continuity. Throughout the year, we increased our investor outreach and also participated in large virtual meetings to maintain investor dialogue and continually provide COVID-19 related updates

Increased Disclosure of Cash Flow and Liquidity

Accelerated Disclosure of Full-Year 2021
Financial Guidance

 Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, in response to investor feedback, we increased disclosure of cash flow and liquidity measures, which included reporting debt covenants and related covenant thresholds

 We accelerated our planning process and issued financial guidance for fiscal year 2021 a quarter earlier than in prior years to provide our stockholders with insight into our expectations as early as possible, given the uncertainties caused by the COVID-19 pandemic

In addition, we undertook a significant proactive stockholder engagement effort in 2020 to solicit feedback from our investor base on our executive compensation and governance programs, among other matters, including our sustainability initiatives. Below are highlights of these efforts:

Proactively Solicited Feedback from a Large Portion
of our Investor Base

Advanced Sustainability Efforts and Initiatives

 We requested meetings with stockholders representing approximately half of our outstanding common stock, and participated in engagement meetings with stockholders representing 32% of our outstanding common stock

 Stockholders frequently inquired about our sustainability initiatives. As further described herein, we made several significant enhancements to our sustainability efforts, including joining the UN Global Compact and increased Board oversight of our sustainability initiatives

Accelerated Say-on-Frequency Vote

Updated Executive Compensation Program

 Our Board has proposed a say-on-frequency vote earlier than required and committed to implementing the majority view even though this is an advisory vote and is not binding on the Company

 As further described below, we updated our executive compensation program based on investor feedback

See pages 54-56 for more information regarding our stockholder engagement program.


12  |  Proxy Statement SummaryIQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT

CORPORATE GOVERNANCE 2020 HIGHLIGHTS

We have a history of strong corporate governance. We believe good governance is critical to achieving long-term stockholder value creation. We are committed to governance practices and policies that serve the long-term interests of the Company and its stockholders. Below are highlights of the advancements we made in 2020 in our corporate governance practices and policies:

Elimination of Supermajority Vote Standards

“Rooney Rule” for Director and CEO Searches

 Our Board has increased stockholder rights by endorsing and proposing that stockholders remove all supermajority vote standards for stockholder actions. See Proposal No. 3

 Our Board adopted a new policy to require an initial list of external candidates for new directors or the Chief Executive Officer position to include qualified female and racially or ethnically diverse candidates

Board Oversight of Sustainability Matters

Enhanced Stockholder Engagement

 Our Board designated Nominating and Governance Committee Member Colleen Goggins to coordinate the Committee’s oversight of our sustainability matters and initiatives

 We requested meetings with stockholders representing approximately half of our outstanding common stock, and participated in engagement meetings with stockholders representing 32% of our outstanding common stock

Enhanced Ethics and Compliance Programs

 We strengthened our ethics and compliance program in several ways, including: enhanced compliance policies; quarterly management certification of compliance; affirmation of commitment to ethics and compliance by all employees as part of our customized Code of Conduct training; and compliance-based performance objectives for all employees worldwide

See pages 24-34 for more information regarding our corporate governance.


IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENTProxy Statement Summary  |  13 

EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION PRACTICES 2020 HIGHLIGHTSIQVIA HOLDINGS INC.

The Leadership Development and Compensation (LDC) Committee of the Board oversees the design and administration of our executive compensation program. The executive compensation program is designed and administered in a manner that appropriately manages risk to safeguard the interests of our stockholders, as well as our employees. Below are highlights of the advancements we made to our short-term incentive award compensation program this year in response to the feedback received from our stockholder engagement program:    2022 Proxy Statement

14

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Board Diversity

The following graphics provide information about the diversity of our Board.

 

Revamped Annual Incentive Plan Awards

Disclosed Targets for Performance Metrics

 Substantially revamped our short-term incentive plan in response to investor feedback to increase transparency, reduce discretion and provide for a more formulaic approach

 Disclosed targets for our key financial performance targets

 

Qualifications and Experience of Directors

We believe our directors bring a well-rounded variety of experience, qualifications, attributes and skills, and represent a mix of deep knowledge of the Company and fresh perspectives. As we review our long-term strategy, we also evaluate what current and future skills and experience our Board requires, and we weigh those skills when assessing our current directors and potential director candidates. The table below summarizes certain of our directors’ key experiences, qualifications and core competencies.(1)

(1)

This summary is not intended to be an exhaustive list of each of our directors’ skills or contributions to the Board.

Disclosed Clear Weightings for Annual Incentive Plan Performance Measures

Simplified Evaluation of Achievements

 Established specific weightings for each performance measure for each named executive officer

 Reduced complexity in our short-term incentive program by focusing on five key performance measures

 
IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement15

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Executive Compensation Practices Highlights

In 2020, following extensive stockholder engagement, the Leadership Development and Compensation (LDC) Committee of the Board revamped our short-term incentive program and accelerated the implementation of the changes planned for 2021 to apply to our 2020 compensation decisions. The key features of the new program, which are consistent with the feedback received from stockholders, are summarized below.

 

Enhanced disclosure of Compensation

Philosophy

No Changes to Targets for Short- and Long-Term Incentive Awards

 In response to investor requests for greater insight into the LDC Committee’s determinations and philosophy regarding compensation for our named executive officers, we added a letter from the LDC Committee and expanded disclosures in our “Compensation Philosophy” section

 While 2020 was a challenging period for the Company, we did not change the preset targets for our short- or long-term incentive awards; rather the LDC Committee acknowledged the extraordinary nature of the pandemic and managements’ significant efforts in mitigating its impact on the business by making a partial adjustment to the calculation of our 2020 financial results

 

Strengthened Link between Pay and Performance

No Changes to in-flight Performance

Share Awards

 In 2020, the LDC Committee assigned at least a 70% total weighting for our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer and a 65% total weighting for our Business Unit Presidents to financial measures, including Revenue/Profit, Cash Flow and Balance Sheet/Liquidity Performance to further align pay with performance

 The LDC Committee did not make any adjustments as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic to our outstanding 2019-2021 and 2020-2022 performance share awards

See pages 51-98

Say-on-Pay

The Board and the LDC Committee strive to ensure our executive compensation program aligns with the interests of our stockholders and reflects our pay-for-performance philosophy. In 2021, the Board committed to implementing the say-on-pay frequency approved by a majority of stockholders at the 2021 annual meeting of stockholders. Following that meeting, at which approximately 96% of stockholder votes favored annual say-on-pay advisory votes, the Board adopted annual say-on-pay until the next required say-on-frequency vote.

See pages 49-80 for more information regarding our executive compensation program.


14  |  Proxy Statement SummaryIQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT

2020 COMPENSATION MIX

Our executive compensation program is focused on creating alignment between executive compensation and business performance by rewarding our executive officers for the achievement of financial, operational, strategic, and leadership goals that are intended to contribute to long-term stockholder value. We emphasize performance-based, variable compensation over fixed compensation, which is reflected in the proportion of total compensation that is performance-linked. The following charts reflect the mix of pay for our Chief Executive Officer (87.7% performance-linked) and the average for our other named executive officers that were in role for full year 2020 (75.8% performance-linked):

Chief Executive Officer

Average of other Named Executive Officers

LOGOLOGO


IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT  |  15

Proposal No. 1: Election of Directors

Our Board of Directors is divided into three classes, designated Class I, Class II and Class III. Each year, a different class of directors is elected at our annual meeting of stockholders and each elected director holds office for a 3-year term or until his or her successor is duly elected or until his or her earlier death, resignation, retirement, disqualification or removal.

This year, Class II directors

will stand for election for a new term.

LOGOLOGOLOGO
Ari BousbibJohn M. Leonard, M.D.Todd B. Sisitsky

Following our 2021 Annual Meeting, assuming each director nominee is elected to a new term by the stockholders, the Board will consist of nine (9) directors, divided into the following three classes:

ClassDirectorsYear Term Expires 

Class I

Carol J. Burt, Colleen A. Goggins, Ronald A. Rittenmeyer

2023

Class II

Ari Bousbib, John M. Leonard, M.D., Todd B. Sisitsky

2024

Class III

John P. Connaughton, John G. Danhakl, James A. Fasano

2022

  

Consistent with the requirements of our governance documents and uponIQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement16


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PROPOSAL NO. 1
Election of Directors

Upon the recommendation of the N&G Committee, the Board has nominated each of John P. Connaughton, John G. Danhakl, James A. Fasano, and Leslie Wims Morris for election for a new term as a Class III director at the 2022 Annual Meeting. Ms. Wims Morris was appointed as a director by the Board, following the recommendation of the N&G Committee, in January 2022 after an extensive search.

John P. Connaughton

John G. Danhakl

James A. Fasano

Leslie Wims Morris

If elected, each Class III director nominee will serve for a term of three years and until his or her successor is duly elected and qualified or until his or her earlier death, resignation, retirement, disqualification or removal.

The Board believes that each of the nominees has a record of integrity, a strong professional reputation, and a history of entrepreneurial or managerial achievement. The specific experience, qualifications, attributes and skills of each nominee that led the Board to conclude that the individual should serve as a director are described in their respective biographies below.

Shares represented by executed proxies will be voted, if authority to do so is not withheld, for the election of the four nominees named above. If a nominee becomes unavailable for election or unable to serve as a director, and the Board does not choose to reduce the size of the Board, such shares will be voted for the election of such substitute nominee as the Board may propose. Each nominee has agreed to serve if elected, and management has no reason to believe that any nominee will be unable to serve. Directors are elected by a plurality of the votes cast.

THE BOARD RECOMMENDS A VOTE “FOR” THE ELECTION OF EACH NAMED NOMINEE

IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement17

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Board of Directors

Our Board is made up of eleven directors. Set forth below is biographical information for the Class III director nominees and all of the continuing directors. The biographies also note the specific skills and experience that make these individuals well-qualified to serve on the Board.

ClassIIIDirectorsforElectiontoaThree-YearTermExpiringatthe2025AnnualMeetingofStockholders

JOHN P. CONNAUGHTONAge: 56

Director since:2008

INDEPENDENT

LDC Committee


Recent Experience:

Bain Capital (1989-present)

  Co-Managing Partner and Global Head of Private Equity

Prior Experience:

  Consultant at Bain & Company, Inc.

FormerU.S. public company directorships:

  iHeartMedia, Inc.

Other positions:

  Member, Board of Directors: The Boston Celtics; University of Virginia Investment Management Company

  Member, Board of Trustees: Brigham and Women’s Hospital; The Berklee College of Music; University of Virginia McIntire Foundation; The Roxbury Latin School; GreenLight Fund

  Member, Dean’s Advisory Board: Harvard Business School

Education:

  Master of Business Administration, Harvard Business School

  Bachelor of Science in Commerce, University of Virginia

Specific Experience: Extensive leadership and business experience as a managing partner of a global investment firm, with a practice focused on the healthcare industry, service on the boards of several public and private companies, and over 30 years’ experience in the private equity industry.

JOHN G. DANHAKLAge: 65

Director since: 2016

INDEPENDENT

LDC Committee
Nominating and Governance Committee the Board has nominated Ari Bousbib, John M. Leonard, M.D. and Todd B. Sisitsky for election for a new term as a Class II director at the 2021 Annual Meeting. If elected to a new term at the 2021 Annual Meeting, each Class II director nominee will be elected for a term of three years and serve until his or her successor is duly elected and qualified or until his or her earlier death, resignation, retirement, disqualification or removal.

The Board believes that each of the nominees has a record of integrity, a strong professional reputation and a record of entrepreneurial or managerial achievement. The specific experience, qualifications, attributes and skills of each nominee that led the Board to conclude that the individual should serve as a director are described in each nominee’s biography below.

Shares represented by executed proxies will be voted, if authority to do so is not withheld, for the election of the three nominees named above. In the event that any nominee should be unavailable for election as a result of an unexpected occurrence, and the Board does not, in that event, choose to reduce the size of the Board, such shares will be voted for the election of such substitute nominee as the Board may propose. Each person nominated for election has agreed to serve if elected, and management has no reason to believe that any nominee will be unable to serve. Directors are elected by a plurality of the votes cast at the 2021 Annual Meeting.

  LOGO   

THE BOARD RECOMMENDS A VOTE “FOR” THE ELECTION OF

EACH NAMED NOMINEE

 

Recent Experience:


Leonard Green & Partners, L.P. (1995-present)

  Managing Partner

Prior Experience:

  Managing Director of Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette Securities Corporation

  Vice President at Drexel Burnham Lambert, Inc.

FormerU.S. public company directorships:

  IMS Health (predecessor to IQVIA)

Other positions:

  Member, Board of Directors: Life Time Fitness, Inc.; Charter NEX Generation; Genani Corporation; Eyemart Express; Mister Car Wash Holdings, Inc.; SRS Distribution; Convergint Technologies LLC; Parts Town; Lakeshore Learning; Pye-Barker Fire Safety, LLC; WellSky

Education:

  Master of Business Administration, Harvard Business School

  Bachelor of Arts in Economics, University of California at Berkeley

Specific Experience: Extensive leadership and business experience as a managing partner of a global investment firm, service on the boards of several public and private companies, and over 30 years’ experience in the private equity industry and investment banking industries.
16  |  Proposal No. 1IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT
IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement18

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JAMES A. FASANOAge: 52

Director since: 2016

INDEPENDENT

Audit Committee (Chair)
Audit Committee Financial Expert


 

Recent Experience:

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (2004-present)

  Managing Director

 

The following table sets forth, forPrior Experience:

  Member of Investment Banking group at Merrill Lynch & Co.

  Member of Mergers and Acquisitions group at RBC Capital Markets

  Commissioned Officer in the Class II director nomineesCanadian Armed Forces

Former U.S. public company directorships:

  IMS Health (predecessor to be voted on at the 2021 Annual MeetingIQVIA)

Other positions:

  Member, Board of Directors, Asurion

Education:

  Master of Business Administration, University of Chicago Graduate School of Business

  Bachelor of Engineering, Royal Military College of Canada

Specific Experience: Extensive leadership and each person whose term of officefinance experience as a managing director will continue afterof a global investment firm and over 22 years’ experience in the 2021 Annual Meeting, certain information about them, including their ages as of the date of this Proxy Statement:

private equity and investment banking industries.

 

  Name Age Position Held with the Company Audit  N&G  LDC  Director
Since
 

  Class II Directors for election at the 2021 Annual Meeting to terms expiring at the 2024 Annual Meeting of Stockholders

 

  Ari Bousbib

 

59

 

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

             

 

2016

 

  John M. Leonard, M.D.

 

63

 

Lead Director

 

 

X

 

 

 

X

 

     

 

2015

 

  Todd B. Sisitsky

 

49

 

Director

  

 

Chair

 

 

 

X

 

 

 

2016

 

  Class III Directors whose terms expire at the 2022 Annual Meeting of Stockholders

 

  John P. Connaughton

 

55

 

Director

         

 

X

 

 

 

2008

 

  John G. Danhakl

 

64

 

Director

     

 

X

 

 

 

X

 

 

 

2016

 

  James A. Fasano

 

51

 

Director

 

 

Chair

 

   

 

2016

 

  Class I Directors whose terms expire at the 2023 Annual Meeting of Stockholders

 

  Carol J. Burt

 

63

 

Director

 

 

X

 

     

 

X

 

 

 

2019

 

  Colleen A. Goggins

 

66

 

Director

 

 

X

 

 

 

X

 

     

 

2017

 

  Ronald A. Rittenmeyer

 

73

 

Director

 

 

X

 

     

 

Chair

 

 

 

2016

 

LESLIE WIMS MORRISAge: 51

Director since: BOARD COMPOSITION2022

Diversity and Tenure. Consistent with our Corporate Governance Guidelines, the Board seeks a mix of directors that enhances the diversity of backgrounds, skills and experiences on the Board, including with respect to professional skills, relevant industry expertise, specialized experience, international experience, age, gender, race and ethnicity. The Board believes that considering diversity in our Board composition is consistent with the goal of creating a Board that best serves the needs of the Company and the interests of its stockholders, and it is one of the many factors considered when identifying individuals for Board service.INDEPENDENT

Director Search Policy. In 2020, to deepen our commitment to identifying diverse candidates for our Board, the Board adopted a “Rooney Rule” for director nominee slots, which provides that when conducting a formal search for new director candidates, the Nominating and Governance Committee will ensure that any initial list of director candidates from which new management-supported director nominees are chosen will include qualified female and racially or ethnically diverse candidates and that any third-party firm engaged to assist in the search shall be instructed to include such candidates on the initial list.



IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENTProposal No. 1  |  17 

 

Recent Experience:

JPMorganChase (2019-present)

  Managing Director and Head of Corporate Development, Consumer & Community Banking

 

Since the merger of QuintilesPrior Experience:

  VP, Executive Partnerships at American Express

  SVP, Strategy and IMS Health in October 2016 (the “Merger”), and as the director nomination requirements of the Shareholders Agreement (as defined herein) have expired, the Board has been focused on refreshing the composition of the Board in order to ensure the appropriate mix of backgrounds, skills and experiences in light of the Company’s post-Merger strategy and to enhance the diversity of the Board. Since the Merger, five directors have retired from the Board and two directors, who are both women, have joined the Board. The Board expects to continue to seek new directors who will further enhance the mix of experiences, backgrounds and diversity of the current Board.Business Development at Broadridge Financial Solutions

  SVP at Jefferies & Company

 

Gender Diversity

 

   

Age Distribution

   

Significant Board Refreshment

     

100%

of new director appointments since the Merger have been female directors

 

2 of 8 Independent Directors are Female

 

   

60

  

 

Average age

of Directors

49-73 – Age range

   

8

  

 

New Directors

over past 5 years

Other positions:

Qualifications and experience  Vice Chair, Board of directors. We believe our directors bring a well-rounded varietyTrustees: Dance Theatre of experiences, qualifications, attributes and skills, and represent a mix of deep knowledge of the Company and fresh perspectives. As we review our long-term strategy, we continually assess the skills of our directors in evaluating what current and future skills and experiences will be required and weigh those skills when evaluating our current directors as well as potential director candidates. The table below summarizes certain of the key experiences, qualifications and core competencies of our directors.Harlem

 

Education:

  Master of Business Administration, Harvard Business School

  Bachelor of Arts in English, Yale University

Specific Experience: Extensive leadership and business experience as a senior executive of a commercial banking institution and over 25 years’ experience in the financial services industry.
Skill1Total of 9

LOGO

Senior Leadership Experience

9

LOGO

Public Company Board Experience

6

LOGO

Healthcare Industry Experience

9

LOGO

Technology Industry Experience

4

LOGO

Financial Expertise

7

LOGO

Global Experience

8
  
IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement19
1

This summary is not intended to be an exhaustive list of each of our directors’ skills or contributions to the Board.


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ClassIDirectors

CAROL J. BURTAge: 64

Director since: 2019


INDEPENDENT

18  |  Proposal No. 1IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT

LDC Committee
Audit Committee
Audit Committee Financial Expert


 

Recent Experience:

Burt-Hilliard Investments (2008-present)

  Principal

 

BOARD OF DIRECTORSConsonance Capital Partners (2013-present)

Set forth below is biographical information for  Senior Advisor

  Member, Operating Council

Prior Experience:

  SVP Corporate Finance and Development, among other roles, at WellPoint, Inc. (now Anthem, Inc.)

  Founder, Managing Director and Head of the Class II director nomineesHealthcare Investment Banking Group, among other roles, at Chase Securities (now J.P. Morgan)

U.S. public company directorships:

  ResMed Inc. (Audit Committee Chair, Compliance Oversight Committee Chair, and each person whose termNominating and Governance Committee)

Former U.S. public company directorships:

  Envision Healthcare Corporation

  WellCare Health Plans, Inc.

Other positions:

  Member, Board of office as a director will continue afterDirectors: WellDyneRx, LLC; Global Medical Response Inc.

  Member: Women Corporate Directors; International Women’s Forum

Education:

  Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration, the 2021 Annual Meeting.University of Houston

Class II Directors for Election to a Three-Year Term Expiring at

Specific Experience: Extensive leadership and business experience of over 35 years’ experience in the 2024 Annual Meetinghealth insurance, healthcare services and financial services industries, and service on the boards of Stockholders

ARI BOUSBIB
LOGO

Director Since 2016

Chairman and CEO

59 years old


Recent Experience:

IQVIA Holdings Inc. (2010-present)

  Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (2016-present)

  Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of IMS Health (2010-2016)

Other Prior Experience:

  President of UTC’s commercial companies (Otis Elevator Company, Carrier Corporation, UTC Fire & Security and UTC Power Inc.), among other roles, at United Technologies Corporation

  Partner at Booz Allen Hamilton

U.S. public company directorships:

  The Home Depot, Inc. (Finance Committee and Audit Committee)

Former U.S. public company directorships:

  IMS Health (predecessor to IQVIA)

  Best Buy, Inc. (2006-2007)

Other positions:

  Member, Harvard Medical School Health Care Policy Advisory Council

Education:

  Master of Business Administration, Columbia University

  Master of Science in Mathematics and Mechanical Engineering, Ecole Superieure des Travaux Publics, Paris

Specific Experience: Because of Mr. Bousbib’s extensive leadership experience and service as our Chief Executive Officer, we believe Mr. Bousbib is well qualified to serve on the Board.


IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENTProposal No. 1  |  19several public and private companies.

 

COLLEEN A. GOGGINSAge: 67

Director since: 2017

INDEPENDENT

JOHN M. LEONARD, M.D.
LOGO

Director Since 2015

Independent

Lead Director

63 years old

Audit Committee (Member)

Audit Committee
Nominating and Governance Committee
Leads Sustainability Oversight for the Board


Committee (Member)

Audit Committee Financial Expert             

 


Recent Experience:

Intellia Therapeutics, Inc. (2014-present)

  President and Chief Executive Officer (2018-Present)

  Executive Vice President, Research and Development (2017-2018)

  Chief Medical Officer (2014-2017)

Other Prior Experience:

  Chief Scientific Officer and Senior Vice President of Research and Development at AbbVie Inc.

  Senior Vice President of Global Pharmaceutical Research and Development, among other roles, at Abbott Laboratories

U.S. public company directorships:

  Intellia Therapeutics, Inc.

Education:

  Doctorate in Medicine, Johns Hopkins University

  Bachelor of Arts in Biochemistry, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Specific Experience: Because of his leadership experience, including his over 30 years’ experience in medicine, research and management, we believe Dr. Leonard is well qualified to serve on the Board.

TODD B. SISITSKY
LOGO

Director Since 2016

Independent

49 years old

LDC Committee (Member)

Nominating and Governance
Committee
(Chair)


Recent Experience:

TPG Capital (2003-present)

  Co-Managing Partner

Other Prior Experience:

  Executive at Forstmann Little & Company

  Executive at Oak Hill Capital Partners

U.S. public company directorships:

  Allogene Therapeutics, Inc. (Audit Committee, Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee)

Former U.S. public company directorships:

  Endo International plc

  IASIS Healthcare LLC

  IMS Health (predecessor to IQVIA)

Other positions:

  Chair, Board of Advisors, Dartmouth Medical School

  Member, Board of Directors, Ellodi Pharmaceuticals, Convey Health Solutions, Inc.; Immucor Inc.

Education:

  Master of Business Administration, Stanford Graduate School of Business

  Bachelor of Arts, Dartmouth College

Specific Experience: Because of his extensive experience in leadership, business and healthcare, we believe Mr. Sisitsky is well qualified to serve on the Board.


20  |  Proposal No. 1IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT

 

Recent Experience:

Board of Directors, SIG Combibloc Group

Supervisory Board, Bayer AG

 

Prior Experience:

Class I Directors Continuing in Office until the 2023 Annual Meeting of Stockholders
CAROL J. BURT
LOGO

Director Since 2019

Independent

63 years old

LDC Committee (Member)

Audit Committee (Member)

Audit Committee Financial Expert             


Recent Experience:

Burt-Hilliard Investments (2008-present)

  Principal

Consonance Capital Partners (2013-present)

  Senior Advisor

  Member, Operating Council

Other Prior Experience:

  SVP Corporate Finance and Development, among other roles, at WellPoint, Inc. (now Anthem, Inc.)

  Founder, Managing Director and Head of the Healthcare Investment Banking Group, among other roles, at Chase Securities (now J.P. Morgan)

U.S. public company directorships:

  ResMed Inc. (Audit Committee and Compliance Oversight Committee)

Former U.S. public company directorships:

  Envision Healthcare Corporation

  WellCare Health Plans, Inc.

Other positions:

  Member, Board of Directors, WellDyneRx, LLC; Global Medical Response Inc.

  Member, Women Corporate Directors

  Member, International Women’s Forum

  Vice Chair, Board of Trustees, Colorado Chapter of The Nature Conservancy

Education:

  Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration, the University of Houston

Specific Experience: Because of her leadership experience and over 35 years of business experience in the health insurance, healthcare services and financial services industries and her experience serving on public company boards, we believe Ms. Burt is well qualified to serve on the Board.

  Member of Executive Committee and Worldwide Chairman of Consumer Group, among other roles at Johnson & Johnson

U.S. public company directorships:

  The Toronto-Dominion Bank (Risk Committee)

Former U.S. public company directorships:

  Bausch Health Companies Inc. (f/k/a Valeant Pharmaceuticals International)

Other positions:

  Member: Citymeals-on-Wheels New York City; University of Wisconsin Center for Brand and Product Management;

  University of Wisconsin Foundation

  Member, Board of Trustees: Institute of International Education

Education:

  Master of Arts in Management, Kellogg School of Management

  Bachelor of Science in Food Chemistry, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Specific Experience: Extensive leadership experience in the healthcare industry, service on the boards of several public and private companies, and over 20 years’ experience in the healthcare industry.


IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT Proposal No. 1  |  21 

IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement20

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COLLEEN A. GOGGINS
RONALD A. RITTENMEYERAge: 74
LOGO

Director Since 2017

Independent

66 years old

Audit Committee (Member)

Nominating and Governance
Committee
(Member)

Leads Sustainability Oversight for           

the Board


Prior Experience:

  Member of Executive Committee and Worldwide Chairman of Consumer Group, among other roles at Johnson & Johnson

U.S. public company directorships:

  The Toronto-Dominion Bank (Risk Committee)

Former U.S. public company directorships:

  Bausch Health Companies Inc. (f/k/a Valeant Pharmaceuticals International)

Other positions:

  Member, Board of Directors, SIG Combibloc Group; Citymeals-on-Wheels New York City; University of Wisconsin Center for Brand and Product Management

  Member, Supervisory Board, Bayer AG

  Member, University of Wisconsin Foundation

  Member, Board of Trustees, Institute of International Education

Education:

  Master of Arts in Management, Kellogg School of Management

  Bachelor of Science in Food Chemistry, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Specific Experience: Because of Ms. Goggins’s extensive leadership and healthcare experience, we believe Ms. Goggins is well qualified to serve on the Board.
RONALD A. RITTENMEYER
LOGO

Director Since 2016

Independent

73 years old

Audit Committee (Member)

LDC Committee (Chair)

Audit Committee Financial Expert             


Recent Experience:

Tenet Healthcare Corporation (2017-present)

  Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Millennium Health (2016-2017)

  Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Other Prior Experience:

  Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, among other roles, at Electronic Data Systems Corporation

U.S. public company directorships:

  Tenet Healthcare Corporation

Former U.S. public company directorships:

  American International Group, Inc.

  IMS Health (predecessor to IQVIA)

  Millennium Health

Education:

  Master of Business Administration, Rockhurst University

  Bachelor of Arts in Commerce and Economics (Finance), Wilkes University

Specific Experience: Because of his leadership experience, over 30 years of business experience and extensive experience serving on public company boards, we believe Mr. Rittenmeyer is well qualified to serve on the Board.

Director since: 2016


INDEPENDENT

22  |  Proposal No. 1IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT

Class III Directors Continuing in Office until the 2022 Annual Meeting of Stockholders
JOHN P. CONNAUGHTON

LOGO

Director Since 2008

Independent

55 years old

LDC Committee (Member)                               


Recent Experience:

Bain Capital (1989-present)

  Co-Managing Partner

Other Prior Experience:

  Consultant at Bain & Company, Inc.

Former U.S. public company directorships:

  iHeartMedia, Inc.

Other positions:

  Member, Board of Directors, The Boston Celtics; University of Virginia Investment Management Company

  Member, Board of Trustees, Brigham and Women’s Hospital; The Berklee College of Music; University of Virginia McIntire Foundation; The Roxbury Latin School

  Member, Dean’s Advisory Board, Harvard Business School

Education:

  Master of Business Administration, Harvard Business School

 ��Bachelor of Science in Commerce, University of Virginia

Specific Experience: Because of his extensive experience as a Managing Director of Bain Capital, service on other public company boards and over 15 years’ experience in the private equity industry, as well as extensive experience in the healthcare industry, we believe Mr. Connaughton is well qualified to serve on the Board.
JOHN G. DANHAKL

LOGO

Director Since 2016

Independent

64 years old

LDC Committee (Member)

Nominating and Governance                         
Committee
(Member)


Recent Experience:

Leonard Green & Partners, L.P. (1995-present)

  Managing Partner

Other Prior Experience:

  Managing Director of Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette Securities Corporation

  Vice President at Drexel Burnham Lambert, Inc.

Former U.S. public company directorships:

  IMS Health (predecessor to IQVIA)

Other positions:

  Member, Board of Directors: Life Time Fitness, Inc.; Advantage Solutions Inc.; Charter NEX; Global Citizen CPA Global; Genani Corporation; Insight Global, Inc.; Mister Car Wash Holdings, Inc.; MultiPlan, Inc.; Savers, Inc.; SRS Distribution

Education:

  Master of Business Administration, Harvard Business School

  Bachelor of Arts in Economics, University of California at Berkeley

Specific Experience: Because of his extensive experience serving as a public company director and his extensive experience in leadership and business, we believe Mr. Danhakl is well qualified to serve on the Board.


IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENTProposal No. 1  |  23

JAMES A. FASANO

LOGO

Director Since 2016

Independent

51 years old

Audit Committee (Chair)                                     

Audit Committee

LDC Committee (Chair)

Audit Committee Financial Expert


 


Recent Experience:

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (2004-present)Tenet Healthcare Corporation

  Executive Chairman (2021-present)

  Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (2017-2021)

Prior Experience:

  Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Millennium Health (2016-2017)

  Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, among other roles, at Electronic Data Systems Corporation

U.S. public company directorships:

  Tenet Healthcare Corporation

Former U.S. public company directorships:

  American International Group, Inc.

  IMS Health (predecessor to IQVIA)

  Millennium Health

Education:

  Master of Business Administration, Rockhurst University

  Bachelor of Arts in Commerce and Economics (Finance), Wilkes University

Specific Experience: Extensive leadership and healthcare experience as the chief executive officer of multiple healthcare companies, service on the boards of several public and private companies, and over 30 years’ experience in the healthcare industry.

SHEILA A. STAMPSAge: 64

Director since: 2022

INDEPENDENT

Audit Committee
Audit Committee Financial Expert


Prior Experience:

  EVP, Corporate Strategy and Investor Relations at DBI, LLC

  Commissioner, New York State Insurance Fund

  Director, Pensions and Cash Management at New York State Common Retirement Fund

  Managing Director at Bank of America

  Managing Director at Bank One Corporation (now JPMorganChase)

 

Other Prior Experience:positions:

  Member, Board of Investment Banking group at Merrill Lynch & Co.Trustees: Bankinter Innovation Foundation

  Member, Board of Mergers and Acquisitions group at Merrill Lynch & Co.Directors: National Association of Corporate Directors, New York Chapter

U.S. public company directorships:

  Member of MergersAtlas Air Worldwide Holdings Inc. (Chair, Audit and Acquisitions group at RBC Capital MarketsFinance Committee)

  Commissioned Officer in the Canadian Armed ForcesPitney Bowes Inc. (Audit Committee and Executive Compensation Committee)

  MFA Financial, Inc. (Compensation Committee and Nominating and Governance Committee)

 

Former U.S. public company directorships:

  CIT Group Inc.

Education:

  Master of Business Administration, University of Chicago

  Bachelor of Science in Management, Duke University

Specific Experience: Extensive leadership and financial experience in the asset management and commercial banking industries as well as her work in government and public policy, service on the boards of several public companies, and 40 years’ experience in the asset management and commercial banking industries.
IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement21

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ClassIIDirectors

ARI BOUSBIBAge: 60

Director since: 2016

Chairman and Chief
Executive Officer


Recent Experience:

IQVIA Holdings Inc. (2010-present)

  Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (2016-present)

  Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of IMS Health (2010-2016)

Prior Experience:

  President of UTC’s commercial companies (Otis Elevator Company, Carrier Corporation, UTC Fire & Security and UTC Power Inc.), among other roles, at United Technologies Corporation

  Partner at Booz Allen Hamilton

U.S. public company directorships:

  The Home Depot, Inc. (Finance Committee and Audit Committee)

Former U.S. public company directorships:

  IMS Health (predecessor to IQVIA)

  Best Buy, Inc. (2006-2007)

Other positions:

  Member, Harvard Medical School Health Care Policy Advisory Council

Education:

  Master of Business Administration, Columbia University

  Master of Science in Mathematics and Mechanical Engineering, Ecole Superieure des Travaux Publics, Paris

Specific Experience: Extensive leadership and healthcare experience as our Chief Executive Officer and service on the boards of several public companies.

JOHN M. LEONARD, M.D.Age: 64

Director since: 2015

INDEPENDENT

Lead Director

Audit Committee
Nominating and Governance Committee
Audit Committee Financial Expert


Recent Experience:

Intellia Therapeutics, Inc. (2014-present)

  President and Chief Executive Officer (2018-Present)

  Executive Vice President, Research and Development (2017-2018)

  Chief Medical Officer (2014-2017)

Prior Experience:

  Chief Scientific Officer and Senior Vice President of Research and Development at AbbVie Inc.

  Senior Vice President of Global Pharmaceutical Research and Development, among other roles, at Abbott Laboratories

U.S. public company directorships:

  Intellia Therapeutics, Inc.

Education:

  Doctorate in Medicine, Johns Hopkins University

  Bachelor of Arts in Biochemistry, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Specific Experience: Extensive leadership and healthcare experience as the chief executive officer of a healthcare company, service on the boards of public companies, and over 30 years’ experience in the healthcare industry.
IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement22

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TODD B. SISITSKYAge: 50

Director since: 2016

INDEPENDENT

LDC Committee
Nominating and Governance Committee (Chair)


Recent Experience:

TPG (2003-present)

  President & Co-Managing Partner of TPG Capital

  President of TPG, Inc.

Prior Experience:

  Executive at Forstmann Little & Company

  Executive at Oak Hill Capital Partners

U.S. public company directorships:

  Allogene Therapeutics, Inc. (Audit Committee, Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee)

  TPG, Inc. (Audit Committee, Compensation Committee, and Conflicts Committee)

  Convey Health Solutions Holdings, Inc. (Nominating and Governance Committee)

Former U.S. public company directorships:

  Endo International plc

  IASIS HEALTHCARE LLC

  IMS Health (predecessor to IQVIA)

 

Other positions:

  Chair, Board of Advisors, Dartmouth Medical School

  Member, Board of Directors, NEWAsurionDirectors: Ellodi Pharmaceuticals; Immucor Inc.

 

Education:

  Master of Business Administration, University of ChicagoStanford Graduate School of Business

  Bachelor of Engineering, Royal MilitaryArts, Dartmouth College of Canada

Specific Experience: Because of Mr. Fasano’s extensiveExtensive leadership and business experience as a Managing Director at CPPIBmanaging partner of a global investment firm with a practice focused on the healthcare industry, service on the boards of several public and private companies, and over 25 years’ experience in finance and leadership roles, we believe he is well qualified to serve on the Board.

private equity industry.


24  |  
IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement23

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After careful consideration, IQVIA’s Board voted to approve, and to recommend that stockholders approve, an amendment to IQVIA’s Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation (the “Certificate of Incorporation”) to eliminate the classified Board structure over time and provide for the annual election of all directors.

IQVIA’s Certificate of Incorporation currently provides for a Board that is divided into three classes, with members of each class serving for three-year terms. If this proposal is approved, beginning in 2023 and thereafter, directors whose current terms are expiring will be elected for one-year terms. Because the election of directors at the 2022 Annual Meeting will occur before the effectiveness of the proposal, if approved, each Class III director elected will serve a full three-year term. Beginning with the 2025 annual meeting, all directors will be elected annually.

The proposed declassification process will not shorten the terms of our continuing directors or the upcoming terms of any directors elected at the 2022 Annual Meeting, ensuring a smooth transition to annual elections of all of our directors. All directors elected to fill vacancies prior to the 2025 annual meeting will hold office for a term expiring at the annual meeting at which the term of the class to which they have been elected expires.

If amended as proposed, our Certificate of Incorporation (as required under Delaware law) will also provide that any director elected to serve a one-year term may be removed from office, with or without cause, by the affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of the Company’s shares then entitled to vote at an election of directors.

This summary does not contain all the information that may be important to you. The complete text of the Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, as it is proposed to be amended (the “Amended Certificate”), is included in Appendix B to this Proxy Statement. This summary is qualified in its entirety by reference to the text of the Amended Certificate, which we urge you to read in its entirety.

Rationale for the Proposed Amendment

The Board regularly reviews our corporate governance structure and practices. In particular, since the termination of the various governance requirements in our Shareholders Agreement signed at the time of the Merger, the Board has made several changes it believes are in the best interest of the Company and its stockholders. These changes include removing all stockholder supermajority voting requirements, providing for stockholder proxy access, and moving to annual say-on-pay votes.

As part of this continuing effort, the Board has weighed the advantages and disadvantages of maintaining a classified board of directors structure. The Board considered that many U.S. public companies have eliminated their classified board structures in recent years, and that many investors have expressed to us that the election of directors is the primary means for them to influence corporate governance policies and to increase a board’s accountability.

After carefully weighing governance considerations and stockholder feedback on this topic, the Board concluded that the annual election of all directors will bolster our corporate governance structure and enhance the accountability of the Board. Accordingly, the Board, upon the recommendation of the N&G Committee, has unanimously determined that it is in the best interests of the Company and its stockholders to eliminate the classified board of directors structure in accordance with this proposal.

Vote Required

The affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of the shares present in person or presented by proxy at the 2022 Annual Meeting and entitled to vote thereon will be required to approve this proposal. Abstentions will have the effect of a vote against this proposal and broker non-votes will have no effect on the outcome. If approved, the Amended Certificate will become effective when it is filed with the Secretary of the State of Delaware, which we intend to do following the 2022 Annual Meeting. If this proposal is approved, we will make conforming updates to our Bylaws. If this proposal is not approved, the Board will remain classified.

 

THE BOARD RECOMMENDS A VOTE IQVIA’s Corporate Governance“FOR” THE PROPOSED AMENDMENT TO OUR CERTIFICATE OF
INCORPORATION TO DECLASSIFY OUR BOARD

IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement24

Back to Contents

The Board is responsible for supervision ofsupervising the overall affairs of the Company. The Board oversees our senior management, to whom it has delegated authority to manage the Company’s day-to-day operations of the Company. Members of the Board operations. Directors are kept informed of our business through discussions with our Chief Executive Officer and other officers, by reviewing materials provided to them, and by participating in regular, as well as special, meetings of the Board and its committees. In addition, to promote open discussion among our non-management and independent directors, those directors meet in regularly scheduled executive sessions without the participation of our Chief Executive Officer.

The Board has adopted Corporate Governance Guidelines, which, together with our Certificate of Incorporation, and Bylaws and the other documents listed below, form the governance framework for the Board and its committees. The following sections provide an overview of our corporate governance structure including director independence and other criteria we use in selecting director nominees, our board leadership structure and the responsibilities of the Board and each of its committees.practices.

Documents Establishing Our Corporate GovernanceDOCUMENTS ESTABLISHING OUR CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

The Board has a long-standing commitment to sound and effective corporate governance practices. The following key documents are the foundation of corporate governance at the Company:IQVIA:

Corporate Governance Guidelines

Code of Conduct

Certificate of Incorporation

Bylaws

Audit Committee Charter

LDC Committee Charter

N&G Committee Charter

  Corporate Governance Guidelines

  Audit Committee Charter

  Code of Conduct

  LDC Committee Charter

  Certificate of Incorporation

  Nominating and Governance Committee Charter

  Bylaws

These documents and other important information on our corporate governance are posted in theunder “Corporate Governance” section ofon the “Investor Relations” section of our website, under “Governance Documents” and “Committee Charters” and may be viewed at http://ir.iqvia.com. The website address is intended to be an inactive textual reference only. Noneir.iqvia.com. (None of the information on, or accessible through, IQVIA’s website is part of this proxy statement or is incorporated by reference herein.) We will also provide printed copies of these documents free of charge to any stockholder who sends Investor Relations a request at: IQVIA Holdings Inc., 83 Wooster Heights Road, Danbury, Connecticut 06810.


IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.  2021 PROXY STATEMENTIQVIA’s Corporate Governance  |    2022 Proxy Statement25

CORPORATE GOVERNANCE PRACTICES

We believe that a strong corporate governance framework is essentialBack to our long-term success. Contents

Corporate Governance Practices

We are committed to adopting and following strong corporate governance practices because we believe that such practices promote an environment of accountability for the Board and our senior management and otherwise promote the long-term interests of our stockholders.

IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement26

Enhancements for 2021

Proposed Elimination of Stockholder Supermajority Standards. The Board included in this Proxy Statement a proposalBack to remove all stockholder supermajority voting standards from the company’s Certificate of Incorporation.Contents

Rooney Rule for Director and CEO Searches. The Board adopted a new policy to require an initial list of external candidates for new directors or the Chief Executive Officer position to include qualified female and racially or ethnically diverse candidates.

Sustainability Oversight. The Board designated Nominating and Governance Committee Member Colleen Goggins to coordinate the Board’s oversight of our sustainability matters and initiatives.

Enhanced Stockholder Engagement. We regularly meet with our stockholders to better understand their perspectives, and we reached out to approximately half of our stockholder base following our 2020 annual meeting of stockholders and met with approximately 32%. You can find a summary of what we heard from stockholders and how we responded to their feedback beginning on page 54.

Ethics and Compliance Enhancements. We strengthened our ethics and compliance program in several ways, including: enhanced compliance policies; quarterly management certification of compliance; affirmation of commitment to ethics and compliance by all employees as part of our customized Code of Conduct training; and compliance-based performance objectives for all employees worldwide.

Our other governance practices and policies include the following:

IndependentBoard

Independent Board

All our directors are independent except for our Chairman and Chief Executive OfficerOfficer.

IndependentBoardcommittees

Independent Board Committees

Each of our three Board committees is comprisedmade up solely of independent directorsdirectors.

IndependentLeadDirector;regularexecutivesessions

Independent Lead Director; Regular Executive SessionsWe have an

Our independent Lead Director who was elected by our independent directors, who has comprehensive duties set forth in our Corporate Governance Guidelines, including leading regular executive sessions of the Board, where independent directors meet without management presentpresent.

AnnualBoardandcommitteeself-assessmentprocess

Annual Board and Committee Self-Assessment Process

The Board and each Board committee led by their respective chairs, conducts a self-assessment annually to determine whether it is functioning efficiently and meeting its governance responsibilitiesresponsibilities.

RobustCodeofConduct

Robust Code of Conduct

Our Code of Conduct, DoingtheRightThing, applies to our directors, officers and employees, including our principal executive officer, principal financial officer, principal accounting officer, controller or personsand individuals performing similar functions. The codeCode of conductConduct is a guide to the responsibilities we share for ethical business conduct and paints a clear picture of what we stand for as an organization, what we expect from ourselves, and what we must do to maintain our reputation

reputation.


26  |  IQVIA’s Corporate Governance

ProhibitiononhedgingorpledgingofIQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT

stock

Prohibition on Hedging or Pledging of Company Stock

Our securities trading policy prohibits hedging transactions with respect to, and the pledging of, our securities, including prepaid variable forward contracts, equity swaps, collars, and exchange funds, and otherwise prohibits our directors, officers, employees or otherwise engagetheir immediate family members from engaging in transactions that hedge or offset, or are designed to hedge or offset, any decrease in the market value of our securities, by any of our directors, officers or other employees or their immediate family members, except where the individual receives prior written approval from the General Counsel. In 2020,2021, the General Counsel did not approve any stock hedging or pledging transactions and none of our current executive officers or directors have entered into any such hedging or pledging transactionstransactions.

Shareownershiprequirements

Share Ownership Requirements

We have robust share ownership guidelines, which require our named executive officers to hold IQVIA stock valued at between 3three times and 6six times their base salary. Our share ownership policy requiressalary and our executive officersdirectors to hold 50% of the net shares received by them as a result of the exercise, vesting or settlement of long-term incentive awards until they meetstock valued at five times their required ownership levelsannual cash retainer.

RequirementtoincludegenderandraciallyorethnicallydiversecandidatesindirectorandCEOsearches

The Company’s Corporate Governance Guidelines require the initial list of external candidates in any search for new directors or the Chief Executive Officer position to include qualified female and racially or ethnically diverse candidates.

Nosupermajoritystockholdervoterequired

Our stockholders may act by majority vote on actions that may be taken by stockholders, including approving amendments to the Bylaws and removing for cause a director or the entire Board from office and filling the vacancy or vacancies.

Clawback Policypolicy

We maintain a

Our clawback policy, thatwhich applies to current and former executive officers, among others, that provides for the recoupment of short- and long-term incentive compensation in the event of a financial restatement under specified circumstancescircumstances.

Directorresignationpolicy

Director Resignation Policy

Directors are required to tender their resignation if they receive a number of withhold votes that is greater thanexceeds 50% of all votes cast in an uncontested election.

Proxyaccessright

Proxy Access Right

Eligible stockholders may, subject to certain requirements, include their own director nominees in our proxy materialsmaterials.

IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement27

Back to ContentsLEADERSHIP STRUCTURE

Leadership Structure

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Mr. Bousbib became our Chairman and Chief Executive Officer on October 3, 2016. We believeThe Board has determined that the current board leadership structure with the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer roles combined,described below is appropriate and in the best interests of our stockholders because our Chief Executive Officer has a unique depth of knowledge aboutat the Company and the varied and complex opportunities and challenges we face.present time. The Board believes that this structure has helped facilitate the successful integration of the Merger and the transformation of our Company.

The role of the Chairman is to set the agenda for the Board meetings and to preside over general board sessions. When the Board meets in executive session without management present to evaluate management’s performance, these sessions are presided by our independent Lead Director. Independent directors also evaluate our leadership structure regularly and garnerseek feedback on the subject from stockholders. Our Chairman and Chief Executive Officer and the

Lead Director

The Lead Director communicate regularly during the courseis chosen by a majority vote of the year.

The current board leadership structure provides for effective and efficient leadership because, among other things, it recognizes the value of one person both speaking for and leading the Company and the Board. The Board recognizes that there may be circumstances in the future that would lead it to separate these offices, but it does not believe there is any reason to do so at this time. The Board believes that this subject is primarily a matter for the succession planning process and that it is in the best interests of the Company for the Board to make this determination when it elects a new Chief Executive Officer or under such other circumstances that it believes are best for the Company at a given point in time.


IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENTIQVIA’s Corporate Governance  |  27

Lead Director; Executive Sessions

independent directors. The Lead Director helps ensure there is an appropriate balance between management and the independent directors and that the independent directors are fully informed and able to discuss and debate the issues that they deem important. Our currentDr. Leonard has served as Lead Director is Dr. Leonard. since 2018.

The responsibilities of the Lead Director, as outlined in our Corporate Governance Guidelines include, among others:

 

Board Matter

Responsibility

Communicatingwithdirectors

Liaising between non-management directors and management

Executivesessions

Presiding at executive sessions of non-management directors

Boardmeetings

Presiding at all Board meetings when the Chairman is not present

Agendas

Consulting with the Chairman on matters pertinent to the Company and the Board, including meeting agendas, schedules and information sent to the Board

Communicating Communicatingwithstockholders

Engaging with major stockholders, as appropriate

Chief Executive Officer and Chairman

The Board believesMr. Bousbib has been our Chairman and Chief Executive Officer since 2016. We believe that combining the roles of Chairman and Chief Executive Officer provides for effective and efficient leadership because, among other things, it recognizes the value of one ofperson both speaking for and leading the key elements of effective, independent oversight is that the independent directors meet in executive session on a regular basis without the presence of management. Accordingly, our independent directors meet separately in executive session at each regularly scheduled Board and committee meeting.

Board Committees

To assist in carrying out its duties, the Board has delegated authority to three committees: the Audit Committee, the LDC CommitteeCompany and the Nominating and Governance Committee. The Board held ten (10) meetings during fiscal 2020. All of our current directors attended at least 75% ofBoard. This structure also recognizes the total number of meetings of the Board and Board committees on which they served in 2020. We strongly encourage our directors to attend the annual meeting of stockholders. Eight (8) directors attended the annual meeting of stockholders in 2020.

BOARD STRUCTURE

The Board oversees the management of our business byfact that our Chief Executive Officer has a unique depth of knowledge about the Company and senior management.the varied and complex opportunities and challenges we face. We also have a strong Lead Director, who provides a clear independent voice on the Board, and we believe appropriately balances the fact that the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer roles are held by one person.

The role of the Chairman is to set the agenda for Board meetings in close coordination with our Lead Director and to preside over general Board sessions, except when the Board meets in executive session without management present to evaluate management’s performance, in which case the Lead Director presides over the Board sessions.

The Board is divided into three classes. Upon the expiration of the initial term of office for each class of directors, each director in such class shallrecognizes there may be elected for a term of three years and serve until his or her successor is duly elected and qualified or until his or her earlier death, resignation, retirement, disqualification or removal. Any additional directorships resulting from an increasecircumstances in the numberfuture that would lead it to separate the offices of directors or a vacancy may be filled by the directors then in office.

Our BoardChairman and Chief Executive Officer, but it does not believe there is comprised of nine (9) directors, each of whom was designated for nomination as a director in accordance with our governance documents.any reason to do so at this time.


28  |  IQVIA’s Corporate GovernanceIQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT

Director IndependenceDIRECTOR INDEPENDENCE

The Board conducted an assessment ofassessed the independence of each director and determined that, other than our Chief Executive Officer, each of our directors is currently independent:independent.

8 of 9

IQVIA Directors

are Independent

  Carol J. Burt

  John P. Connaughton

  John G. Danhakl

  James A. Fasano

  Colleen A. Goggins

  John M. Leonard, M.D.

  Ronald A. Rittenmeyer

  Todd B. Sisitsky

In accordance with our Corporate Governance Guidelines and the corporate governance standards of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), this determination of independence means that the Board finds that the director hasour directors (other than our Chief Executive Officer) have no material relationshiprelationships with the Company, directly or indirectly, that would interfere with his or hertheir exercise of independent judgment as a directordirectors of the Company. With respect

IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement28

Back to directors who are membersContents

Committees of the Audit Committee and the LDC Committee,Board

To assist in carrying out its duties, the Board has determined that each director meets an even higher standard as required by Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and NYSE rules.

The Board has also determined that Ms. Burt, Messrs. Fasano and Rittenmeyer and Dr. Leonard are “Audit Committee Financial Experts” as such term also is defined in SEC rules and that each member of the Audit Committee is financially literate.

COMMITTEES OF THE BOARD

The Board hasdelegated authority to three standing committees:

Audit Committee

Leadership Development and Compensation Committee

Nominating and Governance Committee

All three committees are made up entirely of independent directors. In addition, the Board has determined that each director who is a member of the Audit Committee or the LDC Committee meets the higher independence standard as required by Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and NYSE rules for service on such committees.

The charters for all three committees are available under “Corporate Governance” on the “Investor Relations” section of our website and may be viewed at http://ir.iqvia.com.

Regarding sustainability and ESG matters, in particular, the Board has delegated oversight responsibility to the N&G Committee and, because of the importance of our sustainability program to our strategic objectives, the N&G Committee designated Committee Member Colleen Goggins to provide oversight on behalf of the Board and the Committee.

From time to time, the Board may also create ad hoc or special committees for certain purposes. Each committee is comprised solely of independent, non-employee directors. The charter of each committee provides that non-management directors who are not members of such committee may nonetheless attend meetings of such committee, but they may not vote.

AUDIT COMMITTEE


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AUDIT

COMMITTEE

2020 Meetings:

The Audit Committee held seven (7) meetings during fiscal 2020

2021 Meetings: seven

Members in 2021:

James A. Fasano (Chair)

Carol J. Burt

Colleen A. Goggins

John M. Leonard, M.D.

Ronald A. Rittenmeyer

Sheila A. Stamps (appointed

in 2022)

New Amended committee charter explicitly references oversight of cybersecurity risk

The Board has determined that Mses. Burt and Stamps, Messrs. Fasano and Rittenmeyer, and Dr. Leonard are “Audit Committee Financial Experts” as such term is defined in SEC rules, and that each member of the Audit Committee is financially literate.

Responsibilities:

Assisting the Board in fulfilling its oversight responsibilities relating to:
the integrity of the Company’s financial statements
the Company’s compliance with legal and regulatory requirements, including its quality assurance function overseeing clinical trial services
the independent auditor’s qualifications and independence
the performance of the Company’s internal audit function and the independent auditor
the performance of the Company’s compliance and ethics program
Reviewing and discussing with management and the independent auditor the annual and quarterly financial statements before the filing of the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q
Discussing earnings press releases and the financial information and financial guidance included therein
Overseeing the relationship between the Company and our independent registered public accounting firm, including:
Having direct responsibility for that firm’s appointment, compensation and retention
Reviewing the scope of that firm’s audit services
Approving non-audit services
Reviewing and evaluating that firm’s independence
Reviewing with internal auditors and the independent auditor the overall scope and plans for audits, including authority and organizational reporting lines and adequacy of staffing and compensation, and monitoring the progress and results of such plans during the year
Reviewing with internal auditors and the independent auditor any audit problems or difficulties, including any restrictions on the scope of the independent auditor’s activities or on access to requested information and any significant disagreements with management, and management’s response to such problems or difficulties
Overseeing management’s implementation and maintenance of effective systems of internal controls over financial reporting and disclosure controls, and reviewing and discussing with management, internal auditors and the independent auditor the Company’s system of internal control, its financial and critical accounting policies and practices, policies relating to risk assessment and risk management, including cybersecurity risk, and our major financial risk exposures
Reviewing and approving all related party transactions and corporate opportunity transactions


 

Members in 2020:

James A. Fasano (Chair)

Carol J. Burt

Colleen A. Goggins

John M. Leonard, M.D.

Ronald A. Rittenmeyer

Responsibilities:

  Assisting the Board in fulfilling its oversight responsibilities relating to: (i) the integrity of the Company’s financial statements, (ii) the Company’s compliance with legal and regulatory requirements, including its quality assurance function overseeing clinical trial services, (iii) the independent auditor’s qualifications and independence, (iv) the performance of the Company’s internal audit function and the independent auditor, and (v) the performance of the Company’s compliance and ethics program

  Reviewing and discussing with management and the independent auditor the annual and quarterly financial statements prior to the filing of the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q

  Discussing earnings press releases and the financial information and financial guidance included therein

  Overseeing the relationship between the Company and our independent registered public accounting firm, including:

  Having direct responsibility for its appointment, compensation and retention

  Reviewing the scope of its audit services

  Approving its non-audit services

  Reviewing and evaluating its independence

  Reviewing with internal auditors and the independent auditor the overall scope and plans for audits, including authority and organizational reporting lines and adequacy of staffing and compensation, and monitor the progress and results of such plans during the year

  Reviewing with internal auditors and the independent auditor any audit problems or difficulties, including any restrictions on the scope of the independent auditor’s activities or on access to requested information and any significant disagreements with management, and management’s response to such problems or difficulties

  Overseeing management’s implementation and maintenance of effective systems of internal controls over financial reporting and disclosure controls, and reviewing and discussing with management, internal auditors and the independent auditor the Company’s system of internal control, its financial and critical accounting policies and practices, policies relating to risk assessment and risk management and our major financial risk exposures

  Reviewing and approving all related party transactions and corporate opportunity transactions


30  |  IQVIA’s Corporate Governance
IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.  2021 PROXY STATEMENT  2022 Proxy Statement29

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LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT AND COMPENSATION COMMITTEE

 

2021 Meetings:five
Members in 2021:
Ronald A. Rittenmeyer (Chair)
Carol J. Burt
John P. Connaughton
John G. Danhakl
Todd B. Sisitsky
John M. Leonard,
M.D. (Ex Officio)

Responsibilities:

Reviewing and approving corporate goals and objectives relevant to the compensation of our Chief Executive Officer, the officers of the Company who report directly to our Chief Executive Officer, and all officers who are “insiders” (“Senior Officers”) subject to Section 16 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”)
Evaluating the performance of our Chief Executive Officer and other Senior Officers in light of those goals and objectives and determining and approving, or recommending to the Board for approval, their respective compensation levels
Making recommendations to the Board about the compensation of our directors
Administering our equity-based plans and management incentive compensation plans and making recommendations to the Board about amendments to such plans and the adoption of any new employee incentive compensation plans
Recommending to the Board ownership guidelines for the Senior Officers, other executives and non-employee directors, and periodically assessing these guidelines and recommending revisions as appropriate
Establishing the terms of compensatory arrangements and policies to protect our business, including restrictions that apply to current and former Senior Officers
Reviewing and approving all Senior Officer employment contracts and other compensatory, severance and change in control arrangements for current and former Senior Officers; reviewing and establishing our overall management compensation and benefits philosophy and policies; and reviewing and approving our policies and procedures for the grant of equity-based awards
Establishing and reviewing periodically policies and procedures with respect to perquisites
Reviewing our incentive compensation arrangements to determine whether they encourage excessive risk-taking; reviewing and discussing at least annually the relationship between risk management policies and practices and compensation; and evaluating compensation policies and practices that could mitigate any such risk
Reviewing the processes for managing executive succession and the results of those processes


 

 

LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT AND
COMPENSATION COMMITTEE

2020 Meetings:

The LDC Committee held five (5)
meetings during fiscal 2020

Members in 2020:

Ronald A. Rittenmeyer (Chair)

John P. Connaughton

John G. Danhakl

Todd B. Sisitsky

Responsibilities:

  Reviewing and approving corporate goals and objectives relevant to the compensation of our Chief Executive Officer and the officers of the Company who report directly to our Chief Executive Officer and all officers who are “insiders” subject to Section 16 of the Exchange Act (“Senior Officers”)

  Evaluating the performance of our Chief Executive Officer and other Senior Officers in light of those goals and objectives and, either as a committee or together with the other independent directors (as directed by the Board), determining and approving, or recommending to the Board for approval, the compensation levels for our Chief Executive Officer and other Senior Officers

  Making recommendations to the Board about the compensation of our directors

  Administering our equity-based plans and management incentive compensation plans and making recommendations to the Board about amendments to such plans and the adoption of any new employee incentive compensation plans

  Recommending to the Board ownership guidelines for the Senior Officers, other executives and non-employee directors, and periodically assessing these guidelines and recommending revisions as appropriate

  Establishing the terms of compensatory arrangements and policies to protect our business, including restrictions that apply to current and former Senior Officers

  Reviewing and approving all Senior Officer employment contracts and other compensatory, severance and change in control arrangements for current and former Senior Officers, reviewing and establishing our overall management compensation and benefits philosophy and policy, and reviewing and approving our policies and procedures for the grant of equity-based awards

  Establishing and reviewing periodically policies and procedures with respect to perquisites

  Reviewing our incentive compensation arrangements to determine whether they encourage excessive risk-taking, reviewing and discussing at least annually the relationship between risk management policies and practices and compensation, and evaluating compensation policies and practices that could mitigate any such risk

  Reviewing the processes for managing executive succession and the results of those processes


IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENTIQVIA’s Corporate Governance  |  31

NOMINATING AND GOVERNANCE COMMITTEE

 

 

2021 Meetings:four
Members in 2021:
Todd B. Sisitsky (Chair)
John G. Danhakl
Colleen A. Goggins
John M. Leonard, M.D.

Leslie Wims Morris (appointed in 2022)

New Amended committee charter explicitly references oversight of strategic plans, objectives and risks related to sustainability and ESG matters

Responsibilities:

Overseeing sustainability and corporate governance matters, with a Committee member designated to coordinate oversight and responsible for reporting developments to the Committee
Overseeing the Company’s stockholder engagement program
Identifying individuals qualified to become members of the Board, consistent with criteria approved by the Board
Establishing processes for identifying and evaluating Board candidates, including nominees recommended by stockholders
Recommending to the Board the individuals to be nominated for election as directors and to each of the Board’s committees
Developing and recommending to the Board a set of corporate governance principles, as well as practices and policies with respect to directors
Coordinating an orientation program and appropriate educational materials for new directors
Evaluating and making recommendations to the Board regarding stockholder proposals that relate to corporate governance and other matters related to stockholders
Overseeing the evaluation of the Board


 

NOMINATING AND

GOVERNANCE COMMITTEEIQVIA HOLDINGS INC.

    2022 Proxy Statement
30

2020 Meetings:

The Nominating and Governance Committee held four (4) meetings during fiscal 2020

Members in 2020:

Todd B. Sisitsky (Chair)

John G. Danhakl

Colleen A. Goggins

John M. Leonard, M.D.

Responsibilities:

New Overseeing sustainability and corporate governance matters, with a Committee member designated to coordinate oversight and responsible for reporting developments to the Committee

New Oversee stockholder engagement program

  Identifying individuals qualified to become members of the Board, consistent with criteria approved by the Board

  Establishing processes for identifying and evaluating


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Board’s Role in Risk Oversight

Our Board actively oversees our enterprise risk management program to ensure it remains effective. Our Board’s role in risk oversight is consistent with our overall leadership structure: management is responsible for assessing and managing our risk exposures, and our Board provides oversight, executed through open communication with management and independent monitoring of strategic risks.

Succession Planning for Directors and Executive Officers

Directors

The N&G Committee is responsible for recommending to the Board the individuals to be nominated for election as directors. It is the Board’s policy that independent directors must make up a majority of the Board at all times, as required by the NYSE, and that, in recruiting and evaluating new director candidates, the N&G Committee shall seek to achieve a mix of Board members that enhances the diversity of background, skills and experience on the Board, including with respect to professional skills, relevant industry experience, specialized expertise, international experience, gender, race and ethnicity.

The N&G Committee will consider stockholders’ recommendations of nominees for membership on the Board on a substantially similar basis as it considers other nominees. Stockholders may recommend candidates for membership on the Board by submitting candidates including nominees recommended by stockholders

  Recommending to the Board the persons to be nominated for election as directors and to each of the Board’s committees

  Developing and recommending to the Board a set of corporate governance principles

  Articulating to each director what is expected, including reference to the corporate governance principles and directors’ duties and responsibilities

  Reviewing and recommending to the Board practices and policies with respect to directors

  Evaluating and making recommendations to the Board regarding stockholder proposals that relate to corporate governance and other matters related to stockholders

  Overseeing the evaluation of the Board

The Nominating and Governance Committee will consider stockholders’ recommendations of nominees for membership on the Board on a substantially similar basis as it considers other nominees. Stockholders may recommend candidates for membership on the Board to the Nominating and Governance Committee by submitting the names in writing to: Secretary, IQVIA Holdings Inc., 83 Wooster Heights Road, Danbury, Connecticut 06810.

The Bylaws specify certain time limitations, notice requirements and other procedures applicable to the submission of nominations before an annual or special meeting. These procedures are described below under the section entitled “Stockholder Proposals for 2021 Annual Meeting of Stockholders.”


32  |  IQVIA’s Corporate Governance
IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.  2021 PROXY STATEMENT  2022 Proxy Statement31

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BOARD’S ROLE IN RISK OVERSIGHT

Our Board actively oversees our enterprise risk management programrefreshment

The Board regularly focuses on refreshing the composition of the Board to ensure an appropriate mix of backgrounds, skills and experience to support the Company’s strategy and to enhance the Board’s diversity. Since the closing of the Merger in 2016, the Board has actively pursued a strategy of refreshing the composition of the Board to provide greater diversity. Since that we maintain effective risk management. Our Board’s roletime, five directors have retired from the Board and four directors—all women—have joined. The Board expects to continue to seek new directors who will further enhance the mix of experience, backgrounds and diversity currently represented.

Succession planning

The process of determining to add a new Board member and identifying qualified candidates begins well in risk oversight is consistent with our overall leadership structure—management is responsible for assessing and managing our risk exposures,advance of anticipated vacancies. Under this ongoing process, the Chairman of the N&G Committee and our Board maintainsChief Executive Officer monitor and maintain an oversight role, executed through open communication with managementdialogue, and independent oversight of strategic risks. Our Board considers key risk topics in its oversight, including risks associated with our strategic plan, our capital structure, our business activities, and social and environmental matters. Risks are identified by management and reviewedalso consult with the appropriateother members of the Board, committeeregarding the size of the Board, future retirements, and attributes desired for any new directors. Once a decision has been made to recruit a new director, the N&G Committee may retain an executive recruitment organization to assist in the search by providing names of qualified candidates.

Director search policy

In 2020, to deepen our commitment to identifying diverse candidates for our Board, the Board adopted a new diversity requirement for director nominee slots. Under this rule, the N&G Committee will ensure that any initial list of candidates from which new management-supported director nominees are chosen will include qualified female and racially or ethnically diverse candidates, and that any third-party firm engaged to assist in the full Boardsearch will be instructed accordingly.

Proxy access

A stockholder, or a group of up to twenty stockholders, holding at least 3% of the Company’s common stock for oversight.

In 2018, we established an Enterprise Risk Council, comprisedat least three years may submit director nominees for inclusion in our Proxy Statement. Stockholders may rely on proxy access to nominate candidates for up to 20% of leaders from our principal functional areas and business units that meet on a quarterly basis, to update our enterprise risk framework used to identify and manage our key risks. The framework considers external and internal factors that could impede the achievement of our business objectives or damage our brand, reputation or financial condition. The Board reviews these key risks and the related framework annually, and the Board or two director seats, whichever is greater. The Bylaws specify certain time limits, notice requirements, and other procedures for stockholders who wish to include their director nominees in the Company’s proxy materials. For information, see “Other Relevant Information—Stockholder Proposals and Nominees for 2023 Annual Meeting of Stockholders.”

Retirement age

The Board believes that setting a retirement age for IQVIA directors is advisable to ensure periodic turnover of the Board. Accordingly, in 2021 the Board revised our Corporate Governance Guidelines to require directors to offer to retire from the Board when they attain the age of 74. The Board believes it is important to monitor its composition, skills and needs in the context of the Company’s long-term strategic goals, and, therefore, may elect to decline a director’s offer to retire in appropriate cases. As part of the transition to the retirement policy, the Board committees discuss selected risks in more detail throughoutwaived application of the year, as discussed below.

While our Board has the ultimate oversight responsibility for the risk management process, our Board’s committees assist it in fulfilling its oversight responsibilities in certain areas of risk. In particular, our Audit Committee focuses on risks associated with our financial statements, internal accounting and financial controls, internal and external audits, cybersecurity, compliance with legal and regulatory matters and performance of our compliance and ethics program in connection therewith, including our guidelines and policiesretirement policy with respect to risk assessment and risk management and our major financial risk exposures. Our LDC Committee focuses on risks associated with our compensation policies and practices, including thoseMr. Rittenmeyer, who was 74 at the time the policy was adopted, for our executive officers. Our Nominating and Governance Committee focuses on risks associated with our corporate governance policies and practices.2022.

Vacancies

Each of these committees reports to our Board with respect to the risk categories it oversees. These ongoing discussions enable our Board to monitor our risk exposure and evaluate our risk mitigation efforts. In addition, our risk management function conducts regular interviews and surveys of key employees relating to enterprise risk management and reports the results and analysis of such interviews and surveys to our Board.

SUCCESSION PLANNING FOR DIRECTORS AND EXECUTIVE OFFICERS

Directors.Vacancies on the Board mayoccasionally occur from time to time.between annual meetings. The Bylaws provide that any vacancy caused by the death or resignation of a director may be filled by the affirmative vote of a majority of the directors then in office.

The NominatingBoard and Governancethe N&G Committee is responsible for recommending totreat the Board the persons to be nominated for election as directors and to eachfilling of the Board’s committees. It is the Board’s policy that the composition of the Board at all times adhere to the standards of independence promulgated by the NYSE as further clarified herein and reflect a range of talents, ages, skills, character, diversity and expertise, particularlyvacancies in the areas of accounting and finance, management, domestic and international markets, leadership and corporate governance, our industry and the markets we serve sufficient to provide sound and prudent guidance with respect to our operations and interests.same manner as general succession planning.


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Executive Officers

As provided in its Corporate Governance Guidelines, theThe Board also seeksplans for succession to achieve a mixthe positions of directors that enhancesChief Executive Officer and certain other senior management roles. To assist the diversity of background, including with respect to professional skills, relevant industry experience, specialized expertise, international experience, gender, race and ethnicity, to maintain a diverse membership. The process of determining to add a new Board, member and identifying qualified candidates begins well in advance of anticipated vacancies. Under this ongoing process, the Chairman of the Nominating and Governance Committee and our Chief Executive Officer monitorperiodically provides the LDC Committee with assessments of senior managers and maintain an open dialogue,their potential to succeed him, and also consult withassessments of individuals considered potential successors to certain other senior management positions. These assessments are derived from our leadership development and succession planning process, which involves the other members offollowing principal steps:

CEO search policy

Pursuant to the diversity requirement adopted by the Board including our Lead Director, regarding the size ofin 2020, if the Board future retirements and director attributes desired for any new directorships. Once a decision has been made to recruit a new director,or the Nominating and GovernanceLDC Committee may retainconducts an executive recruitment organization to assist it in its search by providing a range of qualified candidates.

Enhancement for 2021

”Rooney Rule” for Director Searches. In addition to the above described succession planning processes, when conducting a formalexternal search for new directorChief Executive Officer candidates, the Nominating and GovernanceBoard or the LDC Committee will ensure that any initial list of director candidates from which new management-supported director nominees are chosen will includeincludes qualified female and racially or ethnically diverse candidates, and that any executive search firm engaged to assist in the search shall beis instructed to include such candidates onaccordingly.

Meetings and Executive Sessions

The Board held seven meetings during fiscal 2021. All of our directors attended at least 75% of the initial list.

Executive Officers. In addition, the Board also plans for succession to the positionstotal number of Chairmanmeetings of the Board and Chief Executive Officer as well as certain other senior management positions. To assist the Board committees on which they served in 2021 during the time they served. We strongly encourage our Chief Executive Officer periodically providesdirectors to attend the LDC Committee with an assessmentannual meeting of senior managers andstockholders. 100% of their potential to succeed him. He also providesour directors attended the LDC Committee with an assessmentannual meeting of persons considered potential successors to certain other senior management positions. This assessment results from our leadership development and succession planning process, which involves three principal steps:stockholders in 2021.

Regional and global business unit and corporate staff function assessments to identify key employees and employees with high potential for increased responsibilities

Chief Executive Officer assessmentsThe Board believes that one of the leaderskey elements of effective, independent oversight is that the regionalindependent directors meet in executive session on a regular basis without the presence of management. These sessions promote open discussion and global business unitsenable the independent directors to evaluate management’s performance. Our independent directors meet separately in executive session at each regularly scheduled Board and corporate staff functions, focusing on senior executives’ development and successioncommittee meeting.

Board review and approval, focusing on Chief Executive Officer succession, key senior executives’ development and succession, the pool of high-potential executives and initiatives

How to improve retention and promote their development as company leaders

We use tools and processes, followed by face-to-face reviews, to implement our leadership development and succession planning process. Through this process, we identify a pool of high-potential employees who are selected for development. Our development program emphasizes skills training, education and career planning.

its Committees


34  |  IQVIA’s Corporate GovernanceIQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT

HOW TO CONTACT THE BOARD AND ITS COMMITTEES

We have established a process by which stockholdersStockholders and other interested parties can contact the Board or a committee of the Board. To contact the Board or a Board committee, you can sendby sending an email to BoD@iqvia.com, or writewriting to the following address:

Board of Directors


c/o Secretary


IQVIA Holdings Inc.


83 Wooster Heights Road


Danbury, Connecticut 06810

Communications will be distributed to the Chairman of the Board or the other members of the Board, as appropriate, depending on the facts and circumstances outlined in the communication received.communication.


IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement33

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Environmental, Social, and Governance

Our Commitment to Sustainability

We are committed to sustainable ESG practices that further our corporate purpose of helping our clients improve healthcare outcomes for patients. Our sustainable business practices are organized under the three pillars of our ESG program — People,PublicandPlanet.

As an industry leader, we continually look for ways to advance and strengthen our ESG efforts and report on our progress each year in our annual ESG Report. You can find more details about all the topics below as well as other important information related our sustainability efforts in our 2021 ESG Report, which is available on our website at https://www.iqvia.com/esg.

2021 PROXY STATEMENTselect highlights of our ESG-related accomplishments:

•  Aligned our 2021 ESG Report with TCFD, GRI and SASB ESG reporting frameworks

•  Published our 2021 EEO-1 report and also expanded disclosure of other workforce diversity demographics

•  Strengthened Board oversight of our ESG program by amending our N&G Committee charter to explicitly include responsibility for oversight of ESG-related matters

•  Enhanced Board oversight of cybersecurity matters by amending our Audit Committee charter to explicitly state that the Audit Committee has oversight over such matters

•  Further enhanced stockholder rights by proposing to declassify our Board

•  Enhanced the diversity of our Board through the appointment of two racially/ethnically diverse women as directors, and enhanced diversity disclosure for our Board

•  Strengthened our D&I efforts with the appointment of a senior leader of our D&I program, among other achievements

•  Racial, ethnic and gender diversity for 2021 new hires in the US exceeded the levels for the overall US workforce

•  Increased the frequency of employee engagement surveys to twice annually

•  Reduced our total and per-employee GHG emissions compared to the prior year beyond our expectations

•  Transitioned to 100% renewable energy supply in our Scottish laboratory and initiated efforts for other facilities to achieve the same over time

•  Removed all single-use plastics from our office facilities worldwide

IQVIA’s Corporate Governance  |  
  
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SUSTAINABILITY AND CORPORATE CITIZENSHIP

Honesty, integrityReporting frameworks and ethical conduct arestandards

To maximize transparency and increase understanding of our guiding principles. Now more than ever these principles have also become critical business drivers:progress toward completing our sustainability and citizenshipESG initiatives, we are imperativenow utilizing external standards and frameworks to guide our reporting. To that end, we organized our climate risk disclosure in our 2021 ESG Report in accordance with the TCFDrecommendations. In addition, we aligned our sustainability report with the GRIand SASBdisclosure frameworks by including and reporting against their respective reporting standards indexes. The GRI and SASB indexes are tools to help readers identify and evaluate our disclosures against standardized ESG topics. In the coming years, we will consider expanding our ESG disclosure corresponding to GRI and SASB recommendations.

Sustainability Governance

Board level

Our Board has delegated responsibility for oversight of our ESG-related efforts and initiatives to the N&G Committee. In 2021, the Board approved an amendment to the N&G Committee’s charter to explicitly state that the N&G Committee has “direct responsibility and power… to oversee and review IQVIA’s strategic plans, objectives and risks related to” our sustainability program. Because of the importance of our sustainability program to our organization. Our employees want to work for a company that considers its impact onstrategic objectives, the planet; our customers want a partner that conducts business ethically and responsibly; and investors want to understand how we manage the opportunities and risks associated with running our Company in order to help ensure sustainable growth.

This year it became even more clear that the earth’s future is dependent not only on a healthy environment, but also on a thriving population. We are in the business of helping our customers improve patient outcomes and have a role to play in ensuring the well-being of people all over the world—both in prosperous and challenging times—and it is a responsibility we do not take lightly.

Summary of 2020 Sustainability and Corporate Citizenship Accomplishments

We significantly advanced our Sustainability and Corporate Citizenship Program in 2020. Our key accomplishments, which are outlined in further detail below, include:

Board Oversight. Strengthened Board governance by designating Nominating and Governance MemberN&G Committee designated committee member Colleen Goggins to coordinate Board oversight of our Sustainability and Corporate Citizenship program.

SASB Materiality Analysis. Solicited investor input by asking stockholders to identify material sustainability issues and risks, consistent with Sustainability Accounting Standards Board principles.

UN Global Compact. Joined the UN Global Compact and selected four UN Sustainable Development goals to align to.

COVID-19 Response. Supported our employees, clients and the global community during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Employee Engagement. Conducted an employee survey, which highlighted significant improvement in employee engagement since our last survey in 2018 and exceeded broader benchmarks.

Diversity Demographic Disclosure. Provided greater disclosure on diversity and inclusion by adding key demographic data on our employee base to this proxy statement.

Black Outreach & Engagement Initiative. Supporting our Black U.S. employee population through the launch of our Black Outreach & Engagement initiative.

Reduced Environmental Impact. Reduced our environmental impact from 2018 to 2019 despite a significant increase in the size of our workforce over that period.

Enhancements in Our Sustainability Governance.

In 2020, we took steps to further strengthen our commitment to sustainability and citizenship.


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Board Leadership of Sustainability. Oversight of sustainability matters happens at multiple levels in our sustainability governance structure. This structure includes our Nominating and Governance Committee, ESG Executive Steering Committee, and a working group of key functional leaders who partner to implement sustainability policies and processes across our operations. In 2020, the Nominating and Governance Committee enhanced its oversight of our Sustainability and Corporate Citizenship program by designating Committee Member Colleen Goggins to lead sustainabilityprovide oversight on behalf of the Board and the N&G Committee. Ms. Goggins meets quarterlyregularly with themembers of management to provide guidance on our ESG Executive Steering Committee responsible for Sustainabilityinitiatives, including reporting, and Corporate Citizenship, receivingto receive updates on the status of progress against our sustainability commitments and providing feedback and guidance.commitments. She also engages with stockholders to discuss ESG matters. Ms. Goggins regularly updates the N&G Committee and fullthe Board on our efforts. The following chart summarizesIn addition, Dr. John Leonard, our Lead Director and a member of the N&G Committee, actively participates with Ms. Goggins to advance our ESG agenda through his regular meetings with our chief executive officer and management team and with our stockholders.

Management level

At the management level, our ESG program is governed by our ESG Executive Steering Committee, which is made up of senior executives, including our Chief Financial Officer, General Counsel, and Chief Human Resources Officer, and is responsible for setting our sustainability governance structure.strategy.

In addition, a working group of key functional leaders focuses on implementing sustainability policies and processes across our operations. The working group includes representatives from Human Resources, Legal, Ethics and Compliance, Health and Safety, Corporate Communications and Business Development. It regularly reports on progress towards the three pillars of IQVIA’s ESG program – People, Public, Planet – to the ESG Executive Steering Committee and our Chief Executive Officer.

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Embedding ESG in risk management

Our Board regularly considers key risk topics, including risks associated with our strategic plan, ESG and climate matters, our capital structure, and our business activities. Risks are identified by management and reviewed with the appropriate Board committee or the full Board. 

Our Enterprise Risk Council, made up of leaders from our principal functional areas and business units, meets on a quarterly basis to update the enterprise risk framework used to identify and manage our key risks, including ESG-related risks. The framework considers external and internal factors that could impede the achievement of our business objectives or damage our brand, reputation or financial condition, including social and environmental factors. The Audit Committee reviews these key risks and the related framework annually, and the Board or appropriate Board committees discuss selected risks in more detail throughout the year. 

United Nations Global Compact

We are members of the UN Global Compact, affirming our commitment to embed sustainability across our business. As part of the development of our sustainability and citizenship strategy, we have identified four UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that we believe IQVIA can have the most impact in advancing.

GOAL3GoodHealthandWell-being. We use our data insights and clinical expertise to help our partners accelerate access to more advanced and affordable healthcare treatments around the world.

GOAL5GenderEquality. We are committed to maintaining a culture of inclusion in which women and people from diverse backgrounds can fully contribute to the growth and success of our business. Currently, 60% of our workforce and 51% of our managers are women.

  
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Stakeholder Engagement on Sustainability.GOAL12ResponsibleConsumptionandProduction. We are committed to reducing waste. In addition2021, we removed 100% of single-use plastic from all our office facilities. We continue to evaluate our discussionswaste footprint and will determine appropriate next steps to reduce our impact in 2022.

GOAL13ClimateAction. In recognition of sustainability with investors as part ofthe need to reduce our Stockholder Engagement Program, we conductedenvironmental footprint and to progress towards becoming carbon neutral, IQVIA will set a materiality analysis, as recommendedscience-based target, certified by the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB)Science-Based Targets initiative (SBTi), to identify the areas of our business where our stakeholders (including customers, investors and employees) felt we had the biggest risks and opportunities. We will report more on the outcome of this process in our 2020 Sustainability and Citizenship report, which we expect to issue by the end of 2023.

People

Ourhumancapitalmanagement

Our approximately 79,000 employees help us drive our business success and achieve our ambition to advance human health. Attracting, developing, and retaining a talented workforce is essential to the first quartersuccess of fiscal 2021.

Commitmentour business and the realization of our purpose. Investments in our people are motivated by our desire to UN Global Compacthave an engaged and Establishing Commitmentsconnected workforce. This results in high productivity and better results for UN Sustainable Development Goals.IQVIA. In 2020,an industry as competitive as ours, we also joinedrecognize that employees who feel supported contribute to higher retention and recruitment rates.

Boardoversightofhumancapitalmanagement

The Board receives regular updates on key human capital metrics, including recruitment and attrition rates, talent development data, and metrics related to hiring, promotion and our overall workforce.

The Board also devotes significant time to leadership development and succession planning at the UN Global Compact to affirm our commitment to incorporate sustainability across our business. The UN Global Compact has determined 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). We identified fourexecutive level and provides guidance on important decisions in each of these goals—numbers 3, 5, 12,areas. The LDC Committee has primary responsibility for succession planning for our Chief Executive Officer and 13—oversight of succession planning for senior leadership. For additional details on our succession planning process, see “Succession Planning for Directors and Executive Officers” above.

Strategy

Our employees are critical to our continued success and are a core element of our long-term strategy. Senior Management is responsible for ensuring that best align with our sustainability program. We then established specific commitments to paceinitiatives, policies, and processes reflect and reinforce our progress toward addressing these SDGs,desired corporate culture, which we will reportbelieve supports successful human capital management. The Company’s human capital management strategy is built on three fundamental focus areas:

Recruitment. We consider a range of qualified candidates for all positions. We hire qualified individuals with a variety of backgrounds and experiences from both within and outside the organization for positions at all levels.

Development&Progression. IQVIA is committed to having a diverse pipeline of talent moving up in our progress against each year:

Sustainable
Development Goal
Statement of Commitment

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We use our data insights and clinical expertise to help our partners accelerate access to more advanced and affordable healthcare treatments around the world

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We are committed to maintaining a culture of inclusion in which women and people from diverse backgrounds can fully contribute to the growth and success of our business

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We are committed to reducing waste and will remove 100% of single use plastic in all our office facilities by the end of 2021

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In recognition of the need to reduce our environmental footprint and progress towards becoming carbon neutral, IQVIA will set a science based target, certified by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), by the end of 2023


38  |  IQVIA’s Corporate GovernanceIQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT

Respondingorganization and providing opportunities for all employees to COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic required a rapid and comprehensive response to mitigate the impact on our employees and customersdevelop within their current role as well as our mission to advance public health. As a company responsible for a workforce of approximately 70,000people worldwide, our first priority was to ensure the healthtowards their next role. We do this by encouraging mentoring and safety of our colleagues amid the pandemic. We took numerous steps to ensure our employees were safe and cared for throughout 2020, including:

Implemented new and flexible work-from-home arrangements and added bandwidth and VPN capacity to enable 95% of our employees at the peak of the pandemic to work remotely, which facilitated our business to remain operational while our employees stayed safe throughout the pandemic.

Developed robust safety protocols for our essential employees who continued to work on site (lab personnel, data server technicians, healthcare workers, etc.).

Created an internal COVID-19 Response web portal, which served as a resource for employees to access information about the pandemic, as well as provided materials to support their physical and mental health and well-being.

Supported our employees, preserved employment and maintained base compensation throughout the year, keeping a focus on the well-being of our employees and the Company’s longer-term strategic objectives rather than prioritizing dramatic cuts and restructurings to achieve pre-pandemic short-term targets.

Accelerated roll-out of our Employee Assistance Program, a free service that offers confidential mental and emotional well-being support, to our entire global workforce, which had already been available to approximately 70% of our employees.

Launched IQVIA Cares, a COVID-19 relief program, which was funded by our directors and senior executives voluntarily forgoing pay, that provided financial aid to more than 2,200 employees around the world experiencing personal hardship as a result of the pandemic.

At the same time, we mobilized our resources to join in the fight against COVID-19, while ensuring our ongoing workestablishing support networks, as well as by providing tools to help advance human health was not significantly impacted. This included:employees map out and achieve their career goals.

Helping to ensure our customers could continue their important research on disease, helping patients and continuing innovation—during COVID-19 and beyond—by creating a task force dedicated to ensuring patient safety and trial continuity.

We actively engaged with clients through regular executive briefings, free weekly market tracking reports, white papers, thought leadership pieces, and webinars to help them understand the rapidly evolving dynamics of the outbreak to help them predict how the virus will develop.

We applied our people, data and technology to bring AI and insights to help our clients track the progression of the disease, manage capacity and monitor supply chains.

Maintained regular dialogue with governments, regulators, payers and clients, providing them with up-to-date insights on the spread and impact of COVID-19.

Working on more than 300 clinical trials and studies for COVID-19 vaccines and therapies, including four of the five COVID-19 vaccine trials that reached phase III and were funded by the U.S. government, providing full clinical trial services for two of these.

Accelerated development of our virtual trials technology, which is supporting vaccine development.

Deployed our field-based resources, lab facilities and clinical expertise to support large-scale COVID-19 diagnostic testing across a number of countries.

We made upfront investments in post-authorization safety study capabilities and technology in anticipation of COVID-19 vaccines.

Publishing thought-leadership pieces throughout the pandemic. Subjects included: COVID-19 Pandemic and digitalization of healthcare in Southeast Asia, COVID-19: An accelerator of change to pharma’s customer interaction, andCOVID-19: Super-charging Drug Development in the Race for a Cure, among countless others.

Becoming a founding member of The Preparedness and Treatment Equity Coalition, an organization whose vision is to take a metrics-driven approach to close the gaps in pandemic care and services in underserved communities.


IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENTIQVIA’s Corporate Governance  |  39

Below you will find more 2020 highlights of our progress in advancing sustainability in terms of People, PublicRetention. We seek to develop a working environment where employees feel supported and Planet.

LOGOLOGOLOGO
PeoplePublicPlanet
Creating a workplace of highly engaged, safe and healthy employees who follow our Code of Conduct

Engaging consistently and transparently in a manner that inspires participation and demonstrates leadership in sustainability

Making a positive impact on the environments we work in

PEOPLE

Each one of ourwant to stay. To increase employee engagement and retention, we consistently seek feedback from employees provide value, no matter where they sit within the organization. through surveys and focus groups and develop meaningful initiatives and programs to respond to their needs.

Building on diversity and inclusion successes

We are committed to creating an inclusivemaintaining our strong culture where all employees are respected and heard, whereof D&I in which people from all backgrounds can fully contribute to the growth and sharesuccess of our business. This is a foundation of our approach to human capital. We create this culture for employees regardless of gender, race, color, creed, religion, marital status, age, national origin or ancestry, physical or mental disability, medical condition, veteran status, citizenship, sexual orientation, gender identity or any other protected group status. Our concept of diversity broadly includes employees who reflect a diverse range of backgrounds, thoughts, experience and skills.

As outlined in our human capital management strategy, attracting, developing and advancing diverse talent at all levels of the organization is critical to our business and is an essential element of our inclusive, innovative workplace. We have programs that help us in our efforts, including our ERGs and D&I training.

In 2021, we continued to build on our existing programs. In recognition of the growth of our D&I programs globally, we hired a new senior leader of our D&I program. Although D&I is everyone’s responsibility, the objective of this new role is to have a dedicated resource accountable for evolving and where opportunitystrengthening our D&I strategy over the coming years.

To further enhance our D&I transparency, we have also published ourEEO-1report, which we file with the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and advancement is availablewhich details demographic workforce data, including data by race/ethnicity, gender and job category, for our US employees.

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Increased Employee Engagement.

By the numbers

US Employees

Global Gender Diversity

Listening to our employees

In 2020,2021, we completed our secondconducted two company-wide employee survey since the Merger,surveys, which provided a valuable opportunity to hear the perspectives of our workforceemployees around the world. Responses increasedworld and was especially important during the largely remote working environment caused by the continuing pandemic. Receiving and responding to employee feedback is an important facet of our human capital management strategy, and to focus attention on it, we added responsiveness to employee feedback to the metrics that determine the 2021 short-term incentive awards for this surveyour named executive officers.

We received more than 54,000 responses in each of our second quarter and 81%fourth quarter employee surveys in 2021, with an average participation rate of76% across both surveys. We continue to see an increase in all areas with 85% of respondents indicated a favorable view offeeling engaged with IQVIA, which is 4 points better than prior year and 4 points above the Company’s employee engagement, which was a 13% increase from 2018, 4% higher than the FortuneFORTUNE 500 benchmark and 5% higher than the broader surveycompany benchmark.

Employee Engagement Favorability Rating

13% increase vs 2018 results
5% increase vs 2020 Broader Survey Benchmark
4% increase vs 2020 Fortune 500 Benchmark

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The survey results indicate the actions we have taken over the past two years have had a positive impact. Other areas where we saw favorable scores were:

  

Employees acquiring the knowledge and skills needed to be effective in their jobsIQVIA HOLDINGS INC.

84%

    2022 Proxy Statement

Employees feeling part of a team

84%

Employees who would recommend IQVIA as a great place to work

81%

38

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2021 Survey Results

85%

  

85%

  

84%

  

85%

 

feel engaged with IQVIA

   

feel they are acquiring the
knowledge and skills needed
to be effective in their jobs

 

   

would recommend IQVIA as a great place to work

   

feel they are part of a team

4 points better than prior
year and 4 points above the
Fortune 500 company
benchmark

 
 

1 point better than prior year

 

3 points better than prior year

 

1 point better than prior year

         
         
         
           

Public

Improving outcomes for patients and Inclusion.populations

We are proudbelieve we can meaningfully contribute to improving healthcare outcomes around the world and advancing human health. One of the most important ways we do this is through collaboration. We dedicate a significant amount of time and resources to working alongside governments, NGOs, and academia to enable faster and more robust approaches to tackling some of the world’s most pressing health challenges. It is our privilege and honor to collaborate with these institutions, and we feel a deep sense of responsibility towards pursuing this work.

With the breadth and depth of our accomplishmentsexpertise, we are well positioned to help accelerate understanding and overcome some of the most intractable healthcare challenges. We focus on:

Shifting focus to a health and wellness approach prior to the onset of disease

Using AI for early disease detection, treatment response prediction, and adverse event management

Accelerating discovery and development of new treatment modalities for high disease burden conditions

Increasing delivery of scientific advances to those who will benefit most

Reducing care delivery burden on patients, caregivers and communities

We were particularly inspired and honored to collaborate with a wide range of stakeholders to strengthen public health system foundations and address key barriers to access across more than 200+ healthcare facilities across Sub-Saharan Africa and to support a variety of nonprofits and programs in increasingIndia that focus on health, women, and education.

Patient Advocacy Groups

We work alongside numerous organizations to help them develop, enhance and optimize their patient registries, including the representationAmericanHeartAssociation, the AmericanCollegeofSurgeons(ACS), the MultipleMyelomaResearchFoundation, and inclusiontheAutismBiomarkersConsortiumforClinicalTrials. Patient registries are collections of diverse employees globally.data related to patients with a specific diagnosis or condition, and they play an important role in healthcare. For example, within ACS’s National Surgical Quality Improvement Program, following colectomy surgeries there was a 30%reduction in urinary tract infections and a 22%reduction in surgical site infections after initiating the registry.

Through our partnership with the JuvenileDiabetesResearchFoundation(JDRF), we developed an algorithm using AI to identify misdiagnosed adult T1D patients. T1D was once thought to be a childhood onset disease with a strong familial pattern, but it is now estimated that 90% of T1D patients do not have a family history of the disease, and almost half of newly diagnosed cases occur in adults, leading to frequent misdiagnosis. Our commitmentanalysis showed that approximately 40% of T1D patients are initially misdiagnosed with Type 2 diabetes, and up to diversity and inclusion is reflected10 million Type 2 diabetics in the various policies, programs, trainingsUS exhibit risk factors that point to potential misdiagnosis of T1D. JDRF and IQVIA are currently recruiting health systems for prospective interventional validation and deployment of this algorithm as a decision support tool for clinical care team.

In partnership with the Children’sHospitalAssociation, we offer, including our Employee Resource Groups, manager diversitysupport the data collection of indicators, occurrences and inclusion trainingmanagement processes for sepsis-related events, which is a difficult condition to diagnose and our highly diverse global workforce. The below statisticstreat and graphs highlight the diversity of our approximately 70,000 employees.

Ethnic and Racial Diversity

Countries where our employees work and live

100+

Ethnicities represented in our workforce

80

Percentage of US employees who identify as Black or African American

11%

Racial Identity of US Employees

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Gender Diversity

Our policies and practices of promoting gender diversityleads to more than 5,000 pediatric deaths in the workplace have resulted in substantial representation by women at multiple levels within the Company. The below charts show the gender diversity of all employees and manager-level employees worldwide.

Gender Diversity of Employees

Worldwide

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Gender Diversity of Manager Level

Employees Worldwide

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Our Response to Social Unrest in the U.S. In response to the social unrest in the U.S. in 2020, the Company took the opportunity to review its social engagement initiatives and reinvigorate and enhance a number of the Company’s existing programs to benefit our employee community. In addition, we specifically engaged our Black employee community through an extensive series of town halls, listening sessions and two-way dialogue that included our Chief Executive Officer and our entire senior leadership team. In these sessions, we heard several consistent themes on employee needs:

Recognition, education and understanding of Black experiences and challenges

Opportunity, advocacy and support

Forums for community building and engagement

US annually. As a result of this extensive engagement,our work, data showed a 19%decrease in sepsis-related mortalities, and 56%of participating hospitals reported screening improvements for sepsis, among other positive indicators.

We are collaborating with the Company madeAmericanSocietyofHematology (ASH) to develop a decisionnetwork of clinical sites and patient advocacy partnerships that will share EHR data. The information will be shared from 17,000 ASH members and will enrich EHR data with patient-reported outcomes, claims and other important data points. At the end of 2021, 110sites were in queue for integration into the network, with more than 30sponsors interested in using it for studies.

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Patient Advocacy Summit

Through our 2021 Patient Advocacy Summit, IQVIA convened leaders of more than 80 patient advocacy organizations to participate in thought-provoking conversations to share ideas and best practices around relevant and timely patient-driven research and health data topics. The invitation-only event explored solutions to the Black Outreach & Engagement Initiative. Under this initiative, we are focusingmost pressing challenges faced by organizations seeking to improve patient outcomes and to empower patient advocacy organizations to be the trusted source of all the best knowledge in their community, domain, or disease area. Topics discussed included:

Why patient advocacy leadership is poised to lead health research initiatives on developing tangible approachesbehalf of their community and how to get action

Diversity and inclusion in real world research and the role of patient advocacy organizations

Understanding and addressing the operational challenges around health data initiatives

Using data to address delayed diagnosis and misdiagnosis in patients

Perspectives on the needschanging role of our Black employee community through the following three pillars:

Awareness and Dialogue: Creating awareness along with active and visible dialogue within IQVIA regarding matters of diversity and inclusion impacting the Black employee communityregistries in healthcare

Mentorship: Creating networks to support the successful growth and development of Black professionals as they progress their careers through role modelling, networkStrategies for building and sponsorshipmobilizing their communities

Diversity in clinical trials

Representation: Creating opportunitiesAs a business, we have a responsibility to work to ensure equality in the broader healthcare system in which we operate. It is incumbent on all of us entrusted to deliver clinical trials — sponsors, Contract Research Organization (CROs) and investigator sites — to enhance access to trials for Black professionals across all levelshistorically underserved populations and contribute to improved understanding of potential sources of outcome variability.

We were founding members of the Company

Early feedback on the Black Outreach & Engagement Initiative from our employees has been very positive.

In addition, in 2020, we became a founding member of Preparedness & Treatment Equity CoalitionPTEC, which is dedicated to reducing inequities in pandemic preparedness by studying and identifying health system reforms to reduce health disparities, including issues with access to testing and treatment, lower rates of adult vaccinations and higher rates of conditions such as metabolic and cardiovascular diseases.

IQVIA has established an R&DS Diversity and Inclusion in Clinical Trials initiative and invested in allocating expertise and resources that span across our organization — enhancing our ability to deploy innovative approaches that deliver on growing customer demand and regulatory expectations. As an example of our success, IQVIA’s enrollment in COVID-19 EUA (Emergency Use Authorization) vaccine trials was meaningfully more inclusive than enrollment by our peers: 16% Black or African American participants (compared to 10% average), 35% Spanish origin/Hispanic/Latino participants (compared to 23% average), and overall 1.7x more diverse.

IQVIA Innovation Hub

In 2021, we launched the IQVIA Innovation Hub, an organization that connects pioneering early-stage companies with IQVIA’s unique ecosystem of capabilities to create novel solutions for our clients and drive accelerated patient impact. The Innovation Hub manages a growing portfolio of investments and partnerships, where we offer our industry leading expertise, access to our established client network, access to our partners, capabilities and financial capital to forward-thinking start-ups. By fusing emerging technologies and ideas with our existing capabilities, the Innovation Hub seeks to create commercial value for IQVIA and our clients through new capabilities that bolster our differentiation, create new sources of business, and help advance our mission of improving patient outcomes.

The IQVIA Innovation Hub is tapping into the significant and growing ecosystem of innovative healthcare start-up companies. Our partners include:

Belong.Life, a global thriving patient community of more than 1 million patients and novel iBelong technology to stand up new patient communities across therapeutic areas

Helparound, end-to-end mobile gateway for pharma patient support programs, connecting the silos from prescription, throughout patient enrollment, benefit verification, copay and all parts of patient journey

Octopus.Health, an AI-based patient assistance platform, providing analytics to increase adherence, engagement and patient outcomes

IQVIA Institute for Human Data Science

We also separately engagedrecognize the vast potential of our business in contributing to the advancement of human health globally. One of the ways we can be effective is through thought leadership that is based on applying our information, analytics and expertise to important healthcare issues. For the past decade, the IQVIA Institute for Human Data Science (the “Institute”) has delivered timely research, insightful analysis and scientific expertise applied to granular, non-identified patient-level data. As a multi-stakeholder initiative, the Institute regularly engages with industry stakeholders andacademic researchers, healthcare providers, payers, life sciences companies, health technology companies, patient advocacy groups and policymakers.

We communicate our perspectives to actively influence regulatory guidancebroad audiences, including government officials, policy leaders and initiated development of clinical trial sites that serve underrepresented populations.the public through free published reports, articles, and webinars.

IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement40

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2021 Publication Highlights


42

Drug Expenditure Dynamics 1995–2020: Understanding Medicine Spending in Context

   |  IQVIA’s Corporate Governance

Digital Health Trends: Innovation, Evidence, Regulation and Adoption

Estimates total drug spending, including by hospitals and net of discounts and rebates, for eleven countries to shed light on the composition and dynamics of drug expenditures.

 IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT

Reviews digital health tools, including mobile health apps and wearable sensors, and covers trends in four areas — innovation, evidence, regulation and adoption — to assess how these new tools are becoming an entirely new therapeutic modality.

Employee Resource Groups. We are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive workforce and have in place programs that help us in our efforts, including our existing network of Employee Resource Groups (ERGs), which provide a framework for employees to connect and collaborate with colleagues with similar interests. These groups support our values and business goals and foster the diverse thinking required for innovation. They provide a forum for the exchange of ideas and opportunities for mentoring and professional development.

There are five global ERGs and all are employee-led, voluntary, and open to every employee. Each ERG has a mission that is aligned to our vision, values, and core operating principles.

 

Black, Asian,Global Trends in Research and Minority Ethnic Network GroupDevelopment (R&D): Overview through 2020

 Connects employees to provide a sense of community to support in the professional and personal development of Black, Asian and minority ethnic group employees across the organization

Evolving Oncology Endpoints: A New Horizon for Oncology Outcomes

Examines the trends in pharmaceutical research and development through the end of 2020 and provides an analysis of initiated clinical trials, including the impact of the pandemic and COVID-19-specific research.

Examines trends in new and evolving oncology endpoints being studied in clinical trials, and looks closely at how these evolving endpoints could potentially be used to evaluate clinical benefit, support regulatory approval and inform payer reimbursement decisions effectively and efficiently.

Planet

Climate change has the potential to cause significant disruption to companies and to society at large. As an organization committed to public health, we are focused on being part of the solution to climate change, including mitigating our environmental impact—primarily by reducing our real estate footprint and impact and our business travel.

While we have determined that, at this time, climate change does not present a material risk to our business given the nature of our activities, the potential of climate change to impact human health and well-being is most pressing for IQVIA, as our business serves and depends on people around the world. IQVIA recognizes our responsibility to our stockholders and all stakeholders to manage the risks to our operations associated with climate change and to contribute to mitigating climate change by adopting sustainable business practices. We take these risks into account during our climate-related risk assessment and when making associated business decisions.

We support having clear and consistent disclosures regarding our approach to climate change. To that end, we have aligned to the TCFD recommendations for disclosing information about the risks and opportunities presented by climate change in our 2021 ESG Report.

Sustainability goal achieved

We are committed to reducing waste. In 2021, we successfully met our goal of removing 100% of single-use plastic from all our office facilities. Conscious of the impact to the environment of plastic waste, we worked across our global office facilities to remove vending machine snacks, replace bottled drinking water supplies with reusable glass containers using filtered water, and stock compostable or reusable cups. We continue to evaluate our waste footprint and will determine appropriate next steps to reduce our impact in 2022.

 
IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement41

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Greenhouse gas emissions

Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are categorized and tracked on three different scopes, depending on the source of the emissions, as described below.

Emerging Professionals GroupGHG Scope

Description

Fosters ambition and builds community among our leadership and talent pipeline for emerging professionals through networking, personal development and volunteerism

Primary Driver

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender GroupScope 1

Supports the ability for all people at IQVIA to be their authentic selves by fostering an inclusive, equal and inspiring culture for LGBT+ employees

Veterans Employee Resource Group

Offers opportunities and support through the IQVIA community to its veteran and active service members and family

Women Inspired Network

Fosters a corporate culture that inspires women to excel in their careers at IQVIA and within the biopharma industry

In 2020, we grew our ERG membership to more than 2,500 participants worldwide, with multiple chapters established across the globe. Following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the ERGs quickly moved much of their engagement efforts online, hosting multiple virtual events and meet-ups to ensure their important work continued in building community amid the pandemic.

Employee Well-being.Investing in resources and incentives to promote the personal well-being of our employees and their families is an important way we take care of our people. As a digital healthcare company, we also use our own in-house technical expertise to develop online tools to enable our employees to access resources quickly and seamlessly.

We provide a variety of health and welfare benefit plans that are available to employees and their family members, based on their location and specific country regulations. Plans may include medical, dental, and vision coverage; telemedicine and on-site medical care; critical illness coverage; disability, accidental death and dismemberment, pet and life insurance; tuition reimbursement; identity theft protection; commuter benefits; matching gift programs; and locally relevant savings and retirement plans such as pensions and 401(k) plans.

We provide parental leave for all full-time employees for the birth or adoption of a child, with variability in leave time dependent on location. We also provide paid leave for other life matters including sick time, bereavement, jury duty, military service, and time off for voting, depending on country-specific policies.

Beyond health and welfare benefits, many regions also offer employee wellness programs. In the United States, our “Healthy You” wellness program offers employees a range of wellness benefits, including free flu shots, teledoc services, nutrition counseling, tobacco cessation support and reimbursement for wellness-related expenses.


IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENTIQVIA’s Corporate Governance  |  43

In 2020, in light of the urgent need we observed to address and assist all employees in helping them build resilience in response to the ongoing pandemic, we expanded access to our Employee Assistance Program (EAP) to our workforce worldwide. The EAP is a free and voluntary program that offers confidential mental and emotional well-being support, including assessments, counseling, and follow-up services. The EAP was already available to approximately 70% of our employees, and we accelerated our plans to roll out our EAP to the remainder of our workforce to meet our employees’ needs. In addition, we are exploring a training program for all managers on how to support team members who may be affected by the pandemic.

PUBLIC

Our business touches the public, including some of the most vulnerable populations. We strive to be decent and fair-minded and do what is right on the job, relentlessly upholding the high ethical standards we have set for ourselves.

Public Health Efforts. Our responsibility to the public also extends to using our resources and assets to help advance the greater good. In 2020, we joined in the global response to the COVID-19 crisis and contributed our capabilities to support its resolution. In addition, we helped advance public health through partnerships with governments and non-governmental organizations (NGOs). Highlights from 2020 include:

Partnering with JDRF, the leading global organization funding type 1 diabetes (T1D) research, to use non-identified patient-level, real world data and analytics to address unmet needs in the diabetes community.

Collaborating with Friends of Cancer Research to advance real-world evidence in a cross-industry effort to advance acceptance and drive future uses of real-world evidence.

Working with the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation to design and build a data collection and evidence-generation program to aid the fight against cystic fibrosis.

Joining forces with the World Alzheimer’s Month campaign for a global market research study, providing clinical trial sponsors a view of how hypothetical treatments, such as the use of antibodies, will change the way we approach Alzheimer’s disease and enrich the delivery of therapeutics.

Helping the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation through our data science, technology and strategic consulting capabilities to help advance how researchers discover therapeutic targets and how clinicians treat multiple myeloma patients.

Supporting theReal-World Evidence Leadership (RWE) Forum, a non-competitive collaboration of major pharmaceutical companies, whose objective is to understand, and respond to RWE challenges and opportunities with a single voice with the aim of improving outcomes for patients globally.

Code of Conduct. Our Code of Conduct (the “Code”) is our enterprise-wide, codified set of anchoring principles that define the IQVIA culture. Our Code paints a clear picture of what we stand for as an organization, what we expect of ourselves, and what we must do to maintain our reputation. It sets forth our expectations for acceptable behavior in various areas including business ethics (such as anti-bribery, anti-corruption and anti-trust), patient safety and medical ethics, biopharmaceutical regulatory compliance, data protection, conflicts of interest and other workforce matters, business engagements, asset protection, corporate governance, and sustainability and citizenship.


44  |  IQVIA’s Corporate GovernanceIQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT

Data Privacy and Security. Additionally, we are committed to upholding our responsibility to the public across our business, most importantly regarding:

Privacy—We are a global leader in protecting individual privacy. We use a variety of privacy-enhancing technologies and safeguards that protect individual privacy while generating and analyzing the information that helps our customers drive human health outcomes forward.

Cybersecurity—We have an Integrated Information Security Framework to protect the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of data in IQVIA’s possession, which is based on industry standards and regulations, including, but not limited to: GxP, HITRUST, the ISO 27000 family, COBIT, HIPAA, HITECH, and NIST.

Environmental, Health and Safety Regulations. We comply with health and safety regulations for workers globally pursuant to applicable local laws and regulations. Environmental laws and regulations are incorporated into our policies and procedures to ensure compliance. At the corporate level, we have group certifications to ISO 14001:2015 and ISO 45001:2018. In accordance with both certifications, we have a robust, integrated Environmental, Health & Safety Management System (EHSMS) with supporting standard operating procedures in place. Under our EHSMS, all employees must actively participate in helping to ensure a safe, healthy, and secure work environment. Our Code of Conduct describes the obligations of employees to maintain such an environment, follow all applicable safety and security rules and complete required training. Q2 Solutions, our joint venture with Quest Diagnostics, operates laboratories in the United States, United Kingdom, Singapore, India, Japan, and China. Q2 facilities are certified to ISO 14001:2015 and ISO45001: 2018. Depending on the location and services provided accreditation also will include ISO 14001, CAP ISO 15189, ISO 9001, NGSP Level 1, ANVISA, ISO45001, CDC Lipids, CLIA, MOH Certified Laboratory.

PLANET

We are committed to doing our part to help reduce our environmental footprint and mitigate the impacts of climate change. We have an Environmental, Health & Safety Policy in place, with select locations certified to ISO 14001:2004 and OHSAS 18001, including group certifications at the corporate level to both standards.

In 2020, we committed to establishing a science based target by the end of 2023 to reduce our environmental footprint and progress towards becoming carbon neutral (see page 37 above). We are committed to following conscientious environmental practices in order to achieve these goals, especially in the areas of greenhouse gas management, energy efficiency and waste reduction.

GHG Emissions. Our primary Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions impact is associated with our business travel, which declined significantly in 2020. Similarly, our energy use and waste disposal are primarily associated with our occupation of offices, which also declined significantly in 2020.


IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENTIQVIA’s Corporate Governance  |  45

The following graph shows our GHG emissions categorized by scope for 2019 and trend data compared to 2018 GHG emissions, which reflect an overall decrease of approximately 8%, or 14,293 metric tons equivalent. As a services company, the production of GHG emissions is a direct function of the activity generated by our employees and, as a high-growth company, our employees have increased substantially in recent years, which would be expected to have a direct positive relationship on our GHG emissions. However, our GHG emissions reductions in 2019 were achieved despite the fact that size of our workforce increased by 9,000 people, or 15.55%, over that same period, yielding an approximately 18% reduction in total GHG emissions on a per employee basis. We believe this ratio of GHG emissions per employee is a better measure of our emissions reduction performance. Our 2020 emissions data will not be available until it is independently verified by Apex, a leading provider of environmental impact assurance services, in July 2021.

Greenhouse Gas Emissions

LOGO

GHG ScopeDescriptionPrimary Driver

Scope 1

All direct emissions

From the

Emissions associated with activities of IQVIA under our direct control, including fuel combustion from company vehicles and gas emissions from boilers and air-conditioning refrigerant leaks

Scope 2

Indirect emissions1(1)

Emissions associated with electricity purchased and used by IQVIA to power facilities heating, cooling and computer / IT equipment

Scope 3

All other indirect emissions

Emissions associated with IQVIA business travel

1
(1)

We use the market-based method, which takes into account emissions from energy contracts and instruments (such as renewable energy credits), to report our Scope 2 emissions. But, we also track Scope 2 emissions using

Our primary GHG emissions (i.e., Scope 1 emissions) come from our business travel and use of office and laboratory space. Both these areas were significantly affected in 2020 as we responded to the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, our total GHG emissions saw a steep decline over 2020, resulting in a 57% decrease from 2019, particularly our Scope 3 emissions, which decreased by 72%. While these decreases are welcome, if business travel and office usage return to pre-pandemic levels, our GHG emissions are likely to rise, although we anticipate that the implementation of our Future of Work initiative, which will facilitate approximately 80% of our employees working in flexible arrangements, will help us continue our multi-year downward-trending trajectory for GHG emissions.

Given IQVIA’s historically significant employee growth year over year, we consider metric tons of GHG emissions per employee to be a more meaningful measure of our progress than absolute emissions totals. In 2020, we increased our global workforce by approximately 3,000 employees (approximately 5% more employees than in 2019) and still decreased our total GHG emissions per employee by approximately 47%. We also decreased our Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 61% per employee.

As described above, we will set a science-based target for GHG emissions reductions, certified by the SBTi, by the end of 2023.

Our GHG data for all years was verified by Apex Companies, LLC, a leading provider of environmental impact assurance services.

IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement42

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MetricTonsEquivalent

 

2018

2019

2020

Scope 1

37,342

39,211

10,471

Scope 2

53,345

47,021

38,180

Scope 3

90,872

81,034

22,884

 

MetricTonsEquivalentPerEmployee

 

2018

2019

2020

Scope 1

0.64

0.59

0.15

Scope 2

0.92

0.70

0.55

Scope 3

1.57

1.21

0.33

 

IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement43

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Stockholder Engagement

Our Approach

Our Board and management are committed to regular engagement with our stockholders so we can solicit their views and input on matters related to performance, corporate governance, environmental and social impacts, human capital management, and executive compensation, among other topics. Overall, we met throughout the year with 23 of our top 35 stockholders, representing approximately 35% of our outstanding common stock. The typical outreach participants and methods are shown below.

WhoWhen & HowEngagement Approach

Stockholders

Research Analysts

Proxy Advisory Firms

Year-round

Targeted outreach ahead of annual stockholder meeting and as needed

In-person meetings

Teleconferences and phone calls

Industry conferences

Board Engagement

Led by our N&G Committee

Lead Director and N&G Committee members provide feedback to the location-based method, which represents only the GHG intensityrest of the grids where its sites operate. For 2019,Board

Management Engagement

Led by our location-based Scope 2 emissions also decreased from 50,778Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer, General Counsel, and SVP, Investor Relations

Targeted outreach and inbound inquiries

Feedback provided to 44,560 metric tons equivalent.senior management and the Board


46  |  IQVIA’s Corporate GovernanceIQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT

 

Sustainable Procurement.We hold our supply chain partners to sustainability standards that align with our own values and objectives. Our Supplier Code of Conduct spells out expectations for our supply chain partners in several key areas, including:

Ethics and Compliance

Labor and Human Rights

Environment

Health and Safety

2021 Analyst & Investor Conference

We deployed our Supplier Code of Conduct to vendorshosted an Analyst and suppliers we work with, as partInvestor Conference during which 11 of our sustainable procurement program, to encourage adoption and implementationsenior executives gave a comprehensive overview of our standards for conducting business with us.

Bybusinesses. Our Chief Executive Officer laid out our 20by25 strategy and our Chief Financial Officer provided medium-term financial guidance. Over 100 investors, analysts, and other stakeholders attended the endconference in person and over 300 members of the first quarteranalyst and investor community listened to the live webcast.

2021 Targeted Engagement

Following our 2021 annual meeting of 2021,stockholders, we expect to issuerequested governance-specific engagement meetings with stockholders representing approximately 42% of our 2020 Sustainabilityoutstanding common stock. The Lead Director, N&G Committee member Colleen Goggins, and Citizenship Report, which will provide increased visibility intomembers of senior management participated in governance-specific engagement meetings with stockholders representing approximately 22% of our governance programs and commitment to and support for the communities in which we live and work. The report will be available on our website at https://ir.iqvia.com/corporate-responsibility-and-sustainability. The website address is intended to be an inactive textual reference only. None of the information on, or accessible through, IQVIA’s website is part of this proxy statement or is incorporated by reference herein.outstanding common stock.


IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement44

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Summary of Board Responsiveness

While stockholder views varied, the following table details the key themes we generally heard throughout the engagement process and how we responded to that input.

What We Heard

What We Did

The Company should consider declassifying its Board and, more generally, continue on its multi-year trajectory of further enhancing stockholder rights

We included a management proposal in this Proxy Statement to (i) declassify the Board and (ii) permit stockholders to remove directors elected for one-year terms with or without cause

The Company should hold say-on-pay advisory votes annually

Following last year’s say-on-frequency advisory vote, the Board adopted annual say-on-pay until the next required say-on-frequency vote

There is significant interest in our ongoing ESG efforts and the Board’s oversight of ESG matters, and in aligning our ESG disclosures to one or more of the major ESG reporting frameworks

We amended the charter of the N&G Committee to formally include oversight of ESG matters as a committee responsibility

We committed to aligning our 2021 PROXY STATEMENTESG Report with the disclosure guidelines promulgated by the GRI, SASB, and TCFD

Consider explicitly tying executive compensation to the achievement of ESG-related objectives

  |  

We added ESG performance objectives and responsiveness to employee survey feedback to the metrics that determine short-term incentive awards for our named executive officers

Diversity among our directors is a top priority, and stockholders want more transparency on this topic

We included gender, racial and ethnic diversity statistics for the Board in this Proxy Statement

Stockholders asked us to consider filling the next director slot with a racially or ethnically diverse director

We added two ethnically and racially diverse women as directors to the Board

Increase disclosure of workforce demographic data

We are publishing our EEO-1 report, and we have included other additional diversity disclosures for our US employees in this Proxy Statement

  
47IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement45

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Non-Employee Director Compensation

Program

NON-EMPLOYEE DIRECTOR COMPENSATION PROGRAM

Non-employeeThe Board has the authority to set the terms of our non-employee director compensation is assessedprogram and may change those terms at any time.

The LDC Committee assesses non-employee director compensation each year by the LDC Committee, based on input from Steven Hall & Partners, an independent compensation consulting firm, (our “external compensation consultant”), and taking into account compensation paid to non-employee directors at companies in the same peer group usedwe use for executive compensation purposes, as described below inpurposes. (For information on the Compensationpeer group, see “Compensation Discussion and Analysis under “OverviewAnalysis—Overview of ourOur Executive Compensation Program—Benchmarking” beginning on page 61.57.) The Board reviews recommendations made by the LDC Committee as a result of its annual assessment of non-employee director compensationCommittee’s recommendations and makes a final determination on the compensation of our non-employee directors. For compensation paid in 2020, this assessment took place in July 2019. Based on its most recent assessment, the LDC Committee did not recommend to the Board any changes to non-employee director compensation for 2020,2021, and the Board did not make any changes.

Under our

The non-employee director compensation program each member of the Board who is not an employee and who is not affiliated with the SHA Parties (as defined and identified under “Certain Relationships and Related Party Transactions—Shareholders Agreement” below) is eligible to receive compensation consisting of an annual retainer of $100,000 paid in cash in quarterly installments and an annual grant of fully vested restricted stock units with a grant date fair value of approximately $200,000. In addition, under the program, eligible directors receive additional payments, paid in cash on a quarterly basis, for service on the committees of the Board. as follows:

Payment

Annual Compensation ($)

Cash retainer (paid in quarterly installments)

100,000

Equity retainer fair value (payable in fully-vested restricted stock units (RSUs))

200,000

Lead Director fee

42,500

Committeechairfees:

Audit

30,000

Leadership Development and Compensation

25,000

Nominating and Governance

20,000

Committeemember(otherthanchair)fees:

Audit

10,000

Leadership Development and Compensation

5,000

Nominating and Governance

5,000

We also reimburse our directors for reasonable travel expenses and other out-of-pocket costs incurred in connection with attendance at Board meetings.

The non-employee director compensation program

Non-Employee Director Compensation for directors who are not affiliated with the SHA Parties is as follows:

2021

Payment

Annual Compensation ($) 

Cash retainer

100,000 

Equity retainer fair value (payable in fully vested restricted stock units)

200,000 

Committee Chair Fees:

    Audit

30,000 

    Leadership Development and Compensation

25,000 

    Nominating and Governance

20,000 

Lead Director Fee

42,500 

Committee Member (other than Chairs) Fees:

    Audit

10,000 

    Leadership Development and Compensation

5,000 

    Nominating and Governance

5,000 

Committee membership fees are not paid to the chairperson of a committee. The Board has the authority to set the terms of our non-employee director compensation program and may change those terms at any time.


48  |  Director CompensationIQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT

Non-employee director compensation for 2020.The following table shows information regarding the compensation earned by our non-employee directors during 2020.2021. The compensation received by our Chief Executive Officer during 20202021 is included in the “Summary Compensation Table” below.Table.” Our Chief Executive Officer did not receive any additional compensation for his service on the Board. Our non-employee directors other than those affiliated with the current SHA Parties, are eligible to receive compensation for their service on the Board.

In addition, in April 2020, we established a temporary voluntary program, IQVIA Cares, for our directors and senior executives to forgo a portion of their cash compensation or base salary for the balance of the second quarter to fund a relief program for IQVIA employees around the world who had suffered personal hardship as a result of the pandemic. Each of our non-employee directors participated in the program and contributed at least 20% of their second-quarter cash compensation to the fund, for a total contribution of $108,625, as further described in footnote 1 to the table below.

2020 DIRECTOR COMPENSATION

Name

  

Fees Earned or

Paid in Cash  ($)(1)

   

Stock Awards  ($)(2)

   

Total ($) 

 

Carol J. Burt

  

 

104,500

  

 

199,943

  

 

304,443 

John P. Connaughton

  

 

 

  

 

 

  

 

— 

 

Jonathan J. Coslet(3)

  

 

 

  

 

 

  

 

— 

 

John G. Danhakl

  

 

27,500

  

 

199,943

  

 

227,443 

Michael J. Evanisko(3)

  

 

27,500

  

 

 

  

 

27,500 

James A. Fasano

  

 

 

  

 

 

  

 

— 

 

Colleen A. Goggins(4)

  

 

115,000

  

 

199,943

  

 

314,943 

John M. Leonard, M.D.

  

 

149,625

  

 

199,943

  

 

349,568 

Ronald A. Rittenmeyer

  

 

128,250

  

 

199,943

  

 

328,193 

Todd B. Sisitsky

  

 

 

  

 

 

  

 

— 

 

(1)

Reflects the fact that non-employee directors voluntarily agreed to forgo portions of their cash compensation to fund the IQVIA Cares program. Because Ms. Goggins had deferred 100% of annual cash retainers and committee fees under our Director Deferral Plan, she voluntarily contributed personal funds to the IQVIA Cares program.

(2)

In accordance with our non-employee director compensation program, restricted stock units were granted to Ms. Burt and Goggins, each of Messrs. Danhakl and Rittenmeyer and Dr. Leonard with a grant date of May 6, 2020 (1,492 restricted stock units each). These restricted stock units were fully vested when granted. Amounts reflect the aggregate grant date fair value of the restricted stock units at May 6, 2020 ($134.01 per share) computed in accordance with Accounting Standards Codification Topic 718, or ASC 718, excluding the impact of estimated forfeitures. Assumptions used in the calculation of these amounts in 2020 are included in Notes 1 and 17 to our consolidated audited financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2020 included in Part II of our annual report on Form 10-K.

(3)

Messrs. Coslet and Evanisko retired from the Board on April 6, 2020 following our 2020 annual meeting of stockholders. The compensation for Mr. Evanisko reflects the amount of cash fees paid through such retirement date.

(4)

Ms. Goggins deferred 100% of her annual cash retainer and committee fees under our Director Deferral Plan, described below, which amounts were converted into deferred shares that are payable in shares of Company common stock following a termination of the director’s service or the director’s death, or upon a change in control of the Company. As of December 31, 2020, Ms. Goggins has 1,584 deferred shares outstanding under the Director Deferral Plan.


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2021 DIRECTOR COMPENSATION

Name

Fees Earned or

Paid in Cash

($)

Stock

Awards

($)(1)

Total

($)

Carol J. Burt

115,000

199,997

314,997

John P. Connaughton(2)

John G. Danhakl(3)

110,000

199,997

309,997

James A. Fasano(2)

Colleen A. Goggins(3)

115,000

199,997

314,997

John M. Leonard, M.D.

157,500

199,997

357,497

Ronald A. Rittenmeyer

135,000

199,997

334,997

Todd B. Sisitsky(2)

(1)

In accordance with our non-employee director compensation program, restricted stock units were granted to Mses. Burt and Goggins, Messrs. Danhakl and Rittenmeyer and Dr. Leonard with a grant date of April 15, 2021 (934 restricted stock units each). These restricted stock units were fully vested when granted. Amounts reflect the aggregate grant date fair value of the restricted stock units at April 15, 2021 ($214.13 per share) computed in accordance with Accounting Standards Codification Topic 718, or ASC 718, excluding the impact of estimated forfeitures. Assumptions used in the calculation of these amounts in 2021 are included in Notes 1 and 17 to our consolidated audited financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2021, included in Part II of our Annual Report on Form 10-K.

(2)

Messrs. Connaughton, Fasano, and Sisitsky do not participate in the non-employee director compensation program due to their relationships with current or former SHA Parties (as defined under the section titled “Certain Relationships and Related Person Transactions — Shareholders Agreement.”)

(3)

Mr. Danhakl and Ms. Goggins deferred 100% of their annual cash Board retainers and committee fees under our Director Deferral Plan, described below. These amounts were converted into deferred shares that are payable in shares of IQVIA common stock following a termination of the director’s Board service or the director’s death, or upon a change in control of the Company. As of December 31, 2021, Mr. Danhakl and Ms. Goggins have 497 and 2,104 deferred shares outstanding, respectively, under the Director Deferral Plan.

Director share ownership guidelines.Share Ownership Guidelines

Under the Company’s share ownership guidelines established by the LDC Committee, each member ofdirector who participates in the Board who is not an employee and is not affiliated with the SHA Partiesnon-employee director compensation program is expected to hold shares of our common stock that have a value equal to five (5) times his or herthe annual cash retainer for service as a director. While there is no set time period in which this ownership level must be met, each non-employee director not affiliated withdirectors who are subject to the SHA Parties isguidelines are required to retain ownership of at least 50% of the shares received by him or herthey receive as a result of the exercise, vesting or settlement of equity awards until the share ownership guideline is met. The LDC Committee is responsible for setting and periodically reviewing these guidelines. The LDC Committee oversees compliance withreviews these guidelines and reviewsoversees compliance by reviewing director holdings annually. As of February 12, 2021,15, 2022, each non-employeedirector not affiliated with the SHA Partiessubject to share ownership guidelines has already satisfied his or her share ownership requirement.requirement, other than our two directors appointed in January 2022.

Non-Employee Director Deferral Plan.Plan

Pursuant to the IQVIA Holdings Inc. Non-Employee Director Deferral Plan, (the “Director Deferral Plan”), non-employee directors may elect to defer receipt of their cash retainers. If aA director who elects to defer his or hera retainer he or she will instead be credited with that value in deferred shares under the Director Deferral Plan. Deferred shares become payable in CompanyIQVIA common stock following a termination of the director’s Board service or the director’s death, or upon a change in control of the Company.


50  |  
IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement47

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PROPOSAL NO. 3
Non-Binding Vote on
Executive Compensation

 IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT

Proposal No. 2:
Advisory Vote on
Frequency of the
Vote on Executive
Compensation

The Board is pleased to provide stockholders with the opportunity to cast an advisory, non-binding vote on whether to hold an advisory vote on the compensation of our named executive officers every one, two or three years (“say-on-frequency”).

Pursuant to the requirements under the Dodd-Frank Act and Section 14A of the Exchange Act, the Board is requiredproviding stockholders with the opportunity to submitcast an advisory, nonbinding resolutionnon-binding vote on the compensation of our named executive officers (“say-on-pay”), as disclosed in this Proxy Statement pursuant to Item 402 of Regulation S-K, including the Compensation Discussion and Analysis, compensation tables and related narrative.

In 2021, the Board committed to implementing the say-on-pay frequency approved by a majority of stockholders at least once every six years to determine whether advisory, nonbinding votes on executive compensation (“say-on-pay” votes) should be held every one, two or three years, commonly referred to as a “say-on-frequency” vote.

Rationale for Proposal. At the 2021 annual meeting of stockholders in 2017,stockholders. Following that meeting, at which approximately 96% of stockholder votes favored conducting say-on-pay advisory votes annually, the stockholders voted, in an advisory (nonbinding) vote, that future shareholder Board adopted annual say-on-pay votes should be held every three years. until the next required say-on-frequency vote.

Our Board is not requiredcompensation strategy focuses on providing total compensation packages that are designed to submit another say-on-frequencyattract and retain high-caliber executives by incentivizing them to achieve Company and individual performance goals that are closely aligned with stockholder interests. Our compensation packages emphasize pay for performance and long-term value creation for our stockholders. Since our last say-on-pay vote, we overhauled our short-term incentive compensation program and implemented a formula (among other enhancements) to determine awards under the program, which provides greater transparency on the performance measures and metrics used to determine awards and limits LDC Committee discretion. The LDC Committee believes the Company’s executive compensation program and the compensation decisions for 2021 described in this Proxy Statement appropriately reward our named executive officers for Company and individual performance and that these programs and policies will assist the Company in retaining our senior leadership team.

When considering how to vote, we urge stockholders untilto review the 2023 annual meetingfull details of stockholders, butour executive compensation program and the Board believes it isdecisions presented in the best interests ofCompensation Discussion and Analysis, as well as the Company and its stockholders to propose an advisory (nonbinding) vote this year instead of waiting until 2023 in light of feedback received during extensive stockholder engagement efforts in 2020.

In our engagements, we asked stockholders their opiniondiscussions regarding the frequency of the Company’s say-on-pay votes. Some stockholders expressed a preference for an annual say-on-pay vote, while others expressed a preference for the current triennial approach as they felt it better aligned with the Company’s long-term strategy.In response to these requests and given the divergenceLDC Committee included elsewhere in opinion, the Board determined the appropriate course of action was to propose a say-on-frequency vote before taking any further action on the matter. Because of the mixed view of several stockholders, however, the Board is not providing a recommendation on this proposal, but has resolved to implement the majority’s vote in setting the frequency of future say-on-pay votes.

Say-on-Frequency Vote. In order to provide the stockholders of the Company an opportunity to advise the Board in an advisory (nonbinding) vote on this matter, we are asking stockholders to vote on whether future say-on-pay votes should occur every one, two or three years. If you have no preference, you may abstain.Proxy Statement.

Because yourthis vote is advisory, it will not be binding on the Board and will not overrule any decision by the Board or require the Board to take any action, however,action. However, the Board has resolved to implement the say-on-pay frequency that receives majority support by stockholders.

The text of the resolution in respect of Proposal No. 2 is as follows:

RESOLVED, that the shareholders recommend, in an advisory, non-binding vote, whether a vote to approve the compensation of the Company’s named executive officers should occur every one, two or three years, or abstain from any recommendation.”

THE BOARD DOES NOT MAKE A RECOMMENDATION WITH RESPECT TO HOW FREQUENTLY AN ADVISORY VOTE TO APPROVE EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION SHOULD OCCUR, HOWEVER, THE BOARD HAS RESOLVED TO IMPLEMENT THE SAY-ON-PAY FREQUENCY APPROVED BY A MAJORITY OF STOCKHOLDERS


IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT  |  51

Compensation Discussion and Analysis

A LETTER FROM OUR LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT & COMPENSATION COMMITTEE

Dear Stockholder,

As members of IQVIA’s LDC Committee, we endeavor to create an executive compensation program that adheres to our pay-for-performance philosophy and aligns with the interests of stockholders, while allowing us the flexibility to attract and retain an exceptionally talented executive team and steer them to meet ambitious goals without taking undue risk. During 2020, we initiated an ambitious stockholder engagement program to solicit investor feedback on our executive compensation and governance programs. We made constructive changes in response to your feedback and have revised our disclosures throughout this Proxy Statement to describe the significant changes we have made to our executive compensation program.

We gathered your feedback during an extensive outreach effort that included members of the Board and management. During 2020, we reached out to stockholders representing approximately half of our outstanding common stock, including each of our top 15 stockholders. Stockholders representing approximately 32% of our outstanding common stock agreed to provide feedback on our executive compensation program and philosophy in meetings that included LDC Committee Member and Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee Chair Todd Sisitsky and IQVIA senior management.

Stockholder feedback included strong support for our management team as well as constructive inputs and suggestions to improve our executive compensation program and related compensation disclosures. We also heard your commitment to promoting sustainability and your interest in what we are doing to advance our efforts to contribute to a sustainable future.

Based on those discussions, we implemented a number of significant changes. After considering all feedback received, sharing it with our full Board of Directors, and evaluating as a committee, we made significant and substantive changes to our executive compensation program and related disclosures in this Proxy Statement. These changes are consistent with the feedback received and focus on our short-term incentive compensation. While our goal was to ensure these changes were in place as objectives and targets were set for our 2021 annual incentive plan, we decided to accelerate their implementation and have applied these changes to compensation decisions under the 2020 annual incentive plan as well. The program changes in response to your feedback are summarized below:

Philosophy. We expanded disclosures in our “Compensation Philosophy” section below to provide greater insight into LDC Committee determinations

Formula. We implemented a formula to determine short-term incentive awards

Simplicity. We reduced complexity by focusing on five key performance measures

Transparency. We provided specific scoring and/or payouts for each performance measure used to determine short-term incentive compensation awards

Weightings. We established specific weightings for each performance measure for each named executive officer


52  |  Compensation Discussion and AnalysisIQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT

Targets. Compensation decisions will be based on achievement of objective, disclosed targets for key metrics

Discretion. We limited the upward discretionary component of short-term incentive awards to no more than 1/6th of the final award and where any individual performance adjustments were made, a clear and detailed rationale provided

Stockholders continue to request more disclosure on our sustainability initiatives. As detailed in this proxy statement, sustainability is a key component of our long-term strategy and we made significant progress in our programs this year. We became a member of the UN Global Compact, to publicly signal our commitment to incorporate sustainability across our business. The Board also designated Nominating and Governance Committee Member Colleen Goggins to coordinate oversight of sustainability efforts and initiatives. A full description of our 2020 sustainability accomplishments is described beginning on page 35.

We believe these changes are consistent with your inputs and in support of our strategic goals. We have listened to stockholder feedback and have restructured our short-term incentive award program in response. IQVIA, our Board of Directors and the LDC Committee arevalue the views of our stockholders and will remain committed toconsider the ongoing evaluation and improvement of our executive compensation program, informed by an ongoing discussion with you. We look forward to continuing the dialogue and encourage you to reach out with any questions or concerns related to our program before making your voting decision. Thank you for your investment in IQVIA.

Sincerely,

The IQVIA Leadership Development & Compensation Committee

Ronald A. Rittenmeyer, Chair

Carol J. Burt

John P. Connaughton

John G. Danhakl

Todd B. Sisitsky


IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENTCompensation Discussion and Analysis  |  53

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Strong Performance

2020 Business Results

$11.4Bn

Revenue

$2.4Bn

Adjusted

EBITDA

$6.42

Adjusted

Diluted EPS

$1.34Bn

Free Cash

Flow

Business Highlights

Involved in over 300 clinical trials for COVID-19 vaccines and therapies

Over 50 new trials in R&DS that utilize our virtual trials technology

60 new OCE clients in 2020, resulting in 140 client wins since launch

Response to COVID-19 Pandemic

Supporting Employees

Added bandwidth and VPN capacity to enable 95% of our employees at peak of pandemic to work remotely, while maintaining our rigorous cybersecurity standards

Heavily restricted travel; provided PPE for field-based teams

Preserved employment and maintained base compensation, keeping a focus on the well-being of our employees and the Company’s longer-term strategic objectives rather than prioritizing dramatic cuts and restructurings to achieve pre-pandemic short-term targets

Senior executives and Board members volunteered to forgo over $1 million of pay to fund IQVIA Cares, which provided financial aid to employees around the world who had suffered personal hardship as a resultoutcome of the pandemic

Supporting Clients

Mitigated trial disruption through remote monitoring and virtual studies

Leveragedsay-on-pay vote when making future compensation decisions for our data science technology to help clients track the virus’s path, manage capacity and monitor supply chains

Supporting Public Health

Involved in over 300 clinical trials for COVID-19 vaccines and therapies

Provided substantial thought leadership regarding rapidly evolving dynamics and predictions of the virus’s impacts

Launched COVID-19 Trial Matching Solutions to connect at-risk individuals and researchers to clinical research projects

Supporting Investors

Updated full-year 2020 financial guidance early in the pandemic, while all other full-service clinical research organizations withdrew their full-year 2020 financial guidance

Accelerated planning process and disclosed full-year 2021 financial guidancenamed executive officers. We will hold a quarter earlier than in prior years

Increased disclosure of cash flow and liquidity measures throughout the pandemic

Enhanced disclosurenon-binding, advisory vote on sustainability and corporate citizenship matters in Proxy Statement
Expansion of our Sustainability and Corporate Citizenship Programs

Joined the UN Global Compact and increased Board oversight of our sustainability initiatives

Increased employee morale, motivation and satisfaction, as reflected in our 2020 employee engagement survey results, showing double-digit improvements from last employee survey in 2018

Launched Black Outreach & Engagement Initiative

Accelerated roll-out of our Employee Assistance Program to our entire global workforce

Stockholder Engagement Efforts and Responsiveness

We enhanced our stockholder engagement program to better understand the priorities of our stockholders.

Requested meetings with stockholders representing approximately half our outstanding common stock

Met with stockholders representing approximately 32% of our outstanding common stock

We made concrete changes in response to feedback received:

Revised our short-term incentive award program
Enhanced disclosure throughout the CD&A
Proposed a say-on-frequency vote in the proxy statement earlier than required and committed to implementing the majority view

Changes to Executive Compensation Program

Short-Term Incentive Awards

Established formula for award calculation
Simplified award determination by focusing evaluation review on 5 performance measures:

  Revenue/Profit

  Cash Flow

  Balance Sheet/Liquidity

  Operational/Strategic

  Leadership/Governance

Specific weightings for each performance measure
Individual performance upward adjustment limited to no more than 1/6th of the final award
Enhanced disclosure throughout the CD&A

Named Executive Officer Pay Aligned with Performance

A majority of the compensation of our named executive officers is performance-linked.every year until the next required stockholder vote on the frequency of such advisory vote, which will be held at our 2027 annual meeting.

ThetextoftheresolutioninrespectofProposalNo.3isasfollows:

87.7%RESOLVED, of our Chief Executive Officer’s total 2020that the compensation was performance-linked.

75.8% of our other Named Executive Officers’ (that were in role for full-year 2020) total 2020 compensation was performance-linked.


54  |  Compensation Discussion and AnalysisIQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT

SAY-ON-PAY AND STOCKHOLDER ENGAGEMENT

Say-on-Pay

The Board and LDC Committee strivespaid to ensure our executive compensation program forthe Company’s named executive officers, aligns withas disclosed in the interests of our stockholders and reflects our pay-for-performance philosophy. AtCompany’s Proxy Statement for the 20202022 annual meeting of stockholders pursuant to Item 402 of Regulation S-K, including the say-on-pay advisory vote received 46% stockholder support in favor of our executive compensation. Following our 2020 annual meeting,Compensation Discussion and in addition to regular engagement with stockholders, we conducted targeted governance-specific outreach efforts to understand our stockholders’ viewpoints on this topic.

Our Approach

Our BoardAnalysis, compensation tables and management are committed to regular engagement with our stockholders and soliciting their views and input on matters related to performance, corporate governance, environmental and social impacts, human capital management and executive compensation, among other topics. As more fully described below at the onset of the pandemic earlier this year, we took extra measures to understand stockholders’ concerns and questions regarding the impact of the pandemic on the CRO industry and responded accordingly.narrative discussion, is hereby APPROVED.”

 

THE BOARD RECOMMENDS A VOTE “FOR” THE APPROVAL OF OUR EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION AS DESCRIBED IN THIS PROXY STATEMENT

Who

 

When & How

Engagement Approach

  Stockholders

  Research Analysts

  Proxy Advisory Firms

  Year-Around

  Targeted outreach ahead of annual stockholder meeting and as needed

  In-person meetings

  Teleconferences and phone calls

  Industry conferences

Board Engagement

  Led by our Chair of our Nominating and Governance Committee (NGC) and Member of LDC Committee Todd Sisitsky

  Lead Director and NGC Chair provide feedback to the rest of the Board

Management Engagement

  Led by our Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer, General Counsel, and SVP, Investor Relations and Treasury

  Targeted outreach and inbound inquiries

  Feedback provided to senior management and the Board

Stockholder Engagement during the Pandemic

At the onset of the COVID-19 outbreak, stockholders expressed concerns that the pandemic would bring clinical development to a halt, resulting in severe disruptions in the CRO industry. There was great uncertainty whether clinical trials would continue and whether clinical research associates and other CRO personnel would have access to clinical sites. As a result of this uncertainty, all of our full-service CRO peers withdrew their full-year 2020 financial guidance. We provided assurance, clarity and certainty to investors regarding the financial and operational health of the CRO industry by releasing a detailed update on business conditions on April 2, 2020, including revised first quarter financial guidance to reflect the impact of the pandemic, and then, later in April, by issuing updated full-year 2020 financial guidance. As the year progressed, and the full impact of the pandemic and our response became more visible, we provided more transparency by updating financial guidance in July 2020 and again in October 2020. Furthermore, in response to investor queries, we provided additional, detailed disclosure regarding site accessibility and our liquidity position. At the same time we provided further assurance to investors by committing to accelerate our planning process in order to provide a view of 2021 financial guidance earlier than in past years. We fulfilled this commitment by issuing 2021 financial guidance in October 2020, a quarter earlier than in prior years. Overall, we met throughout


IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.  2021 PROXY STATEMENT  2022 Proxy Statement48

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Compensation Discussion
and Analysis

Compensation Discussion and Analysis  |   55

the year with 20 of our top 25 stockholders, representing approximately 45% of our outstanding common stock.

2020 Targeted Engagement

Our stockholders’ perspectives are a critical input considered by the LDC Committee when determining executive compensation. Following our 2020 annual meeting of stockholders, we expanded our stockholder outreach and requested governance-specific engagement meetings with stockholders representing approximately half of our outstanding common stock, and Chair of the Nominating and Governance Committee and member of the LDC Committee, Todd B. Sisitsky and members of senior management participated in engagement meetings with stockholders representing approximately 32% of our outstanding common stock.

Summary of Board Responsiveness

In our meetings with stockholders, we heard strong support for the leadership and performance of our Chief Executive Officer and senior management team. Stockholders also provided constructive inputs and suggestions to improve our executive compensation program and related compensation disclosures. While the views of stockholders varied, the following table details the key themes we generally heard throughout the engagement process regarding the annual incentive plan for named executive officers (the “Annual Plan”) and how we responded to those concerns.

What We HeardWhat We Did
Although stockholders do not generally object to the sizeTable of incentive awards, they want greater insight/transparency into short-term incentive award determinations

  Implemented a formula to determine short-term incentive awards

  Disclosed specific weighted metrics used to determine payout ratio

Simplify short-term incentive program complexity

  Increased transparency and reduced complexity by focusing on five key performance measures

Increase transparency around targets and payouts

  Disclosed targets and results for key financial performance measures

  Established specific weightings for each performance measure for each named executive officer

  Provided specific scoring and payouts for each performance measure used to determine short-term incentive compensation

Strengthen link between pay and performance

  In 2020, assigned at least a 70% total weighting for our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer and a 65% total weighting for our Business Unit Presidents to financial measures, including Revenue/Profit, Cash Flow and Balance Sheet/Liquidity Performance to further align pay with performance

  Added Adjusted Diluted EPS to revenue/profit performance measure to strengthen the alignment with our pay-for-performance philosophy

Clarify reasons for use of discretion

  The LDC Committee limited the upward discretionary component of short-term incentive awards to no more than 1/6th of the final award for any named executive officer and in no event may an individual performance adjustment result in a named executive officer’s Formula-Based Payout Factor exceeding 200%

  We will specify any individual performance adjustments and provide a clear rationale if discretion is exercised


56contents  |  Compensation Discussion and AnalysisIQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT

Implementation of Annual Incentive Plan Changes

We redesigned the Annual Plan for 2021 consistent with the above summary. While our goal was to ensure these changes were in place as objectives and targets were set for our 2021 annual incentive plan, we decided to accelerate their implementation and have applied these changes to compensation decisions under the 2020 annual incentive plan as well.

In addition, during our engagement meetings, stockholders requested:

greater insight into the Board and LDC Committee’s philosophy regarding compensation determinations (see page 59 for additional disclosure in response to this request)

increased disclosure regarding targets for our long-term performance share awards (see page 93 for additional disclosure in response to this request)

Finally, we solicited feedback from stockholders regarding the frequency of say-on-pay votes. As more fully described on page 50, we accelerated the stockholder vote on say-on-frequency in response to feedback received and specific requests for the Board to consider the frequency of say-on-pay votes, and the Board committed to implement the frequency that receives a majority of stockholder votes.


IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement49

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Executive Summary

2021 Named Executive Officers

This Compensation Discussion and Analysis section discusses our compensation program and compensation decisions related to the following individuals, who were our named executive officers in 2021:

 

AriBousbib

Age: 60

Chairman, Chief
Executive Officer and
President

RonaldE.Bruehlman

Age: 61

Executive Vice
President and Chief
Financial Officer

W.RichardStaub,III

Age: 59

President, Research &
Development Solutions

KevinC.Knightly

Age: 61

President,
Technology &
Commercial Solutions

EricM.Sherbet

Age: 57

Executive Vice
President, General
Counsel and Secretary

2021 Business Performance Highlights

 

Source: FactSet – 12/31/2021

(1)

This graph assumes that $100 was invested in IQVIA, the S&P 500 and the peer group as of the close of market on December 31, 2020, BUSINESS PERFORMANCE HIGHLIGHTSand assumes the reinvestment of dividends, if any. Peer group average is weighted for market capitalization. The S&P 500 and our peer group are included for comparative purposes only. They do not necessarily reflect management’s opinion that the S&P 500 and our peer group are an appropriate measure of the relative performance of the stock involved, and they are not intended to forecast or be indicative of possible future performance of our common stock.

(2)

Peer group consists of Cerner Corporation, Charles River Laboratories, Inc., Equifax Inc., ICON plc, IHS Markit Ltd., Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings, Nielsen N.V., Syneos Health, Inc., Thomson Reuters Corporation and Verisk Analytics, Inc.

IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement50

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20202021 was a year of major milestones and accomplishments for our organization, including the following:those described below.

 

Financial

   Revenue of $11.413.9 billion, up billion22.1%

compared to 2020

   Adjusted EBITDA1(1) of $2.43 billion, up billion27%

compared to 2020

   Adjusted Diluted Earnings Per ShareEPS1(1) of $6.429.03,

up 41% compared to 2020

   Free Cash Flow(1) of $1.342.3 billion

   Total Stockholder Return of 16%57.5%

Business Continuity

Strategic Growth

   At the start of the crisis, moved quickly to conserve cash and improve liquidity: paused M&A and share repurchase; reduced capital spend; completed key refinancing transactions; and launched successful programs to manage receivables. Ended 2020 with $3.3 billion of liquidity, which is our highest ever

  Added bandwidth and IT capacity to enable remote working for 95% ofemployees at the peak of the pandemic with no interruption to client delivery, trial operations or sales activity

  Took a long-term view of pandemic and maintained employment levels for the employee population, with de minimis exceptions, in anticipation of a return to growth

  Involved in more than 300 clinical trials and studies for COVID-19 vaccines and therapies, including 4 of 5 COVID-19 trials that reached phase III and were funded by the U.S. government, providing full clinical trial services for 2 of them

Strategic Growth

Closed the year with a record $22.610.1 billion of Research & Development Solutionscontracted net new business in R&DS. This brought our backlog andto a record $24.8 billion, up 10.2% compared to 2020. Our next twelve monthmonths revenue from backlog of $5.9increased to $7 billion, an increase of 13.5% from 2019 and showing promising signs of continued revenue acceleration

   Continued investmentsto invest in rich clinical data assets, which now standsstand at over1 1.2 billionnon-identified patients globally

   Gained significantadditional traction in DCTs, with over 300 studies under way utilizing our commercialindustry-leading capabilities and enrolling over Orchestrated Customer Engagement300,000 SaaS-based platform, which is built on best-in-class technologies such as Salesforce, Mulesoft, Heroku and others, with 60 new life sciences clients deciding to standardize on our superior technology, resultingpatients in 14080 total client wins since launch

countries with more than 30 indications

   Launched OCE Optimizer and HCP Engagement Manager Expanded our presence in the commercial technologiesCommercial Technology space,

with over 3,000 clients having adopted IQVIA’s technology platforms, and over 350 clients adopting one or more applications in our OCE platform since launch

   Secured over Launched50 IQVIA Next Best Action new studies using Study Hub, our virtual trials platform,, an AI-driven recommendation engine for life sciences that embeds key insights and continuedintelligence into commercial workflows to deliver the right content at the right time and place and enhance customer engagement

Continued the rollout of our clinical technology suite, launching Mobile CRA, Remote Based Monitoring and Orchestrated Clinical Trials (OCT) platform, with over 350 clients having adopted at least one module in the suite. Launched our Clinical Data Repository applicationsAnalytics Suite, a SaaS-based platform that integrates and transforms structured and unstructured data from clinical trials into predictive insights

Expanded the reach of our award-winning Electronic Clinical Outcomes Assessment(eCOA) tool to over 150 projects across 35 therapeutic areas. Over 70 customers are using this platform, including 8 of the top 10 pharmaceutical companies

• Expanded our investment in the lab business by purchasing the remaining non-controlling interest in our central lab joint venture from Quest Diagnostics and acquiring Myriad Rules Based Medicine

Ended 2021 with a net leverage ratio of 3.56x, significantly exceeding the target of 4.0x

Capital Deployment

   Deployed total capital investment of $616640 million, principally in new product development and technology infrastructure

Returned approximately $395 million to stockholders through repurchase of 1.7 million shares

Invested $2,216 million in net cash, including new product and technology development

  Returned approximately $423 million to stockholders

$177 million of investmentacquisitions in acquisitionskey strategic areas(2)

SustainabilityEnvironmental, Social, and
Corporate Citizenship

Governance (ESG)

   NamedPrepared our reporting on climate impact in alignment with the TCFD framework, the leading set of standards for investors seeking to FORTUNE’s list of World’s Most Admired Companies for 2020, for the fourth consecutive year

understand an organization’s climate approach

   Two female executive leaders were named toAligned our 2021 ESG Report with the 2020 Pharma VOICE 100GRI list of most influential and inspiring leaders in the life sciences industry

SASB reporting frameworks

   Our electronic Clinical Outcomes Assessment (eCOA) solution receivedExplicitly tied progress on ESG-related matters to executive compensation by including ESG objectives in the Fierce Innovation Award and was recognized as the top eCOA solution by Industry Standard Research, andshort-term incentive award program for each of our RIM Smart Solution was honored as Gold Stevie® Award Winner in 2020 American Business Awards®

named executive officers

   Launched Black Outreach & Engagement InitiativeAdded two racially/ethnically diverse women as directors to engage with our Black employee community and to develop support programs focused on awareness and dialogue, mentorship, and representation

Board

   Made significant advances63% of new hires in the US identifying as women and 38% identifying as Non-White, including 13% who identified as Black or African American

Reduced our total and per-employee GHG emissions year-over-year beyond our expectations

 Published our SustainabilityEEO-1 report and Corporate Citizenshipenhanced other workforce and Board diversity disclosure

Added two new groups to our ERG program and saw total participation in ERGs increase by 60%

 To further strengthen our D&I efforts, we appointed a senior leader of our D&I program

Implemented the IQVIA Future of Work initiative, a company-wide effort examining all aspects of how and where we do our work, as more fully described on pages 35-46well as the technology and tools we will need to succeed

Progressed toward setting a science-based target to reduce GHG emissions by the end of 2023

Removed all single use plastic from our offices worldwide, a goal we set out to achieve in 2021

1

See reconciliation of non-GAAP items in the Appendix.


58  |  Compensation Discussion and AnalysisIQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT

(1)

Amounts expressed in constant currency terms in this Proxy Statement exclude the effect of changes in foreign currency exchange rates on the translation of foreign currency results into U.S. dollars. For additional information regarding foreign currency translation, see “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” included in our 20202021 Annual Report. The definitions of Adjusted EBITDA, and Adjusted Diluted EPS figuresand Free Cash Flow are the same, and reconciled back to the nearest comparable GAAP financial measure in the exact same manner, as in the Company’s earnings releases. For additional information regarding “Adjusted EBITDA,” and “Adjusted Diluted EPS,” and “Free Cash Flow,” including a reconciliationreconciliations of these non-GAAP financial measures to net income,their most directly comparable GAAP financial measure, see “Appendix A—Financial Reconciliations”A.”

(2)

All references to $2,216 million of mergers and acquisitions spend in this Proxy Statement include the purchase of the remaining non-controlling interest in our lab business from Quest Diagnostics.

IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement51

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Elements of Our Executive Compensation Program

The primary elements of our 2021 executive compensation program are described below.

Key
Components
How PaidOverview

Key Benchmarks/Performance

Measures

Base SalaryCashFixed compensation to attract and retain executives and balance performance-linked compensation

Benchmarked to peer group

Adjusted for experience, role, and performance

Annual Incentive AwardsCash

Variable annual compensation to motivate and reward executives for achieving annual goals and strategic milestones that are critical to our strategic priorities

Limit: 0%-200% of target

Revenue/Profit

Cash Flow

Balance Sheet/Liquidity

Operational/Strategic

Leadership/ESG

Long-Term Incentive AwardsPerformance Shares 50%

Variable long-term equity-based compensation to motivate and reward executives for achieving key longer-term financial performance and stockholder return objectives

Final awards determined based on achievement relative to pre-established corporate performance metrics for a three-year performance period

Limit: 0%-200% of target

Adjusted Diluted EPS Growth (75%)

Relative TSR (25%)

Stock Appreciation Rights 25%

Variable long-term equity-based compensation to encourage absolute performance and long-term value creation

Awards vest ratably over three years and have a ten-year exercise term

Stock price appreciation
Restricted Stock Units 25%

Variable long-term equity-based compensation to encourage long-term value creation and provide increased retentive value

Awards vest ratably over three years

Stock price
IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement52

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Compensation and Governance Practices

Below we highlight certain of our key practices that we consider good governance features of our executive compensation program.

WHAT WE DO

Align significant percentage of executive pay with performance

Use an objective, formulaic approach to determining short-term incentive awards

Set challenging yet achievable performance objectives for our named executive officers

Offer transparent disclosure of achievements for all performance measures and metrics used to determine short-term incentive awards

Appropriately balance short- and long-term incentives

Limit LDC Committee discretion to adjust short-term incentive awards to no more than 1/6th of the final award

Align executive compensation with stockholder returns by providing the majority of total compensation in the form of performance-based long-term incentive awards

Include non-solicitation and non-competition provisions in award agreements

Align executive compensation with progress on ESG matters by including specific ESG-related objectives in our short-term incentive award program

Conduct an annual compensation risk review and assessment

Use multi-year vesting requirements for long-term awards

Utilize expertise of an external independent compensation consultant

Implement meaningful share ownership guidelines

Disclose targets for long-term incentive awards upon vesting

Conduct annual performance evaluations of the named executive officers at the LDC Committee level

Impose a robust clawback policy for our cash and equity incentive compensation in the event of financial restatements

WHATWEDON’TDO

No contracts with multi-year guaranteed salary increases or non-performance bonus arrangements

No repricing of underwater stock options or Stock Appreciation Rights (SARs) without stockholder approval

No excise tax gross-ups

No payment of unearned dividends prior to vesting

No single trigger equity vesting

No hedging or pledging of Company shares

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Named Executive Officer Compensation at a Glance

The following illustrations depict the amount and mix of compensation delivered to our Chief Executive Officer and other named executive officers in 2021.

The following charts reflect the mix of pay for our Chief Executive Officer (74.4%performance-linked) and the average for our other named executive officers (69.1%performance-linked).

ChiefExecutiveOfficer

AverageofotherNamedExecutiveOfficers

Say-on-Pay

The Board and the LDC Committee strive to ensure our executive compensation program aligns with the interests of our stockholders and reflects our pay-for-performance philosophy. In 2021, the Board committed to implementing the say-on-pay frequency approved by a majority of stockholders at the 2021 annual meeting of stockholders. Following that meeting, at which approximately 96% of stockholder votes favored conducting say-on-pay advisory votes annually, the Board adopted annual say-on-pay until the next required say-on-frequency vote.

IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement54

Back to ContentsCOMPENSATION PHILOSOPHY

Compensation Philosophy

Our compensation philosophy for the Company continues to be primarily focused on creating an alignment between executive compensation and business performance by rewarding our executive officers for the achievement ofachieving financial, strategic, operational and leadership goals that are intended to contribute to long-term stockholder value. We emphasize performance-based, variable compensation over fixed compensation.

Principal Objectives. Our executive team is critical toTo that end, our success and to building value for our stockholders. Our executive compensation program is designed to:

Attract and retain experienced and well-qualified executives to serve in leadership positions and to lead our organization over the long term

Motivate our executives by providing compensation that is directly linked to both our short- and long-term performance

Align the interests of our executive officers with those of our stockholders by delivering a substantial portion of the executive officer’stotal compensation through performance- and time-based equity awards and through the use ofimposing meaningful share ownership guidelines

Ensure that our executive compensation programrisk is designed and administered in a manner thatmanaged appropriately manages risk to safeguard the interest of our stockholders, as well as our employees

We have designed ourOur executive compensation program withincorporates specific features to help achieve these goals and to promote related objectives that are important to our long-term success.


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Compensation In addition, the LDC Committee believes it is appropriate for short- and governance practices.Below we highlight certainlong-term incentive awards granted to our named executive officers to vary based on the relative contribution of our key practices that we consider good governance features of oureach named executive compensation program.officer to IQVIA’s success.

WHAT WE DO

Adopted a more objective, formulaic approach to determining short-term incentive awards

Align executive pay with performance

Appropriately balance short- and long-term incentives

Align executive compensation with stockholder returns through performance-based long-term incentive awards

Use multi-year vesting requirements for long-term awards

Implement meaningful share ownership guidelines

Set challenging performance objectives for our named executive officers

Maintain robust clawback policy for our cash and equity incentive compensation for financial restatements

Include non-solicitation and non-competition provisions in awards agreements

Conduct an annual compensation risk review and assessment

Utilize expertise of an independent compensation consultant

Annual named executive officer performance evaluation by the LDC Committee

WHAT WE DON’T DO

LOGO

No contracts with multi-year guaranteed salary increases or non-performance bonus arrangements

LOGO

No excise tax gross-ups

LOGO

No single trigger equity vesting

LOGO

No repricing of underwater stock options or SARs without stockholder approval

LOGO

No payment of unearned dividends prior to vesting

LOGO

No hedging or pledging of Company shares

Compensation of Our Chief Executive Officer.Officer

The Board and the LDC Committee believe that our Chief Executive Officer’s performance has been exceptional and that he has been critical to the success of our Company in general and to the highly successful integration of Quintiles and IMS Health and the transformation of our Company since the Merger.Company. Customers, patients, employees and stockholders have derived significant long-term benefits from the Merger. Fromduring his tenure. At the time of the Merger until December 31, 2020,that created IQVIA, our Chief Executive Officer was instrumental in defining our strategy and has superbly executed the transformation of our business into the leading global provider of advanced analytics, technology solutions and contract research services in the life sciences industry. SincetheMergerwasannouncedinMay2016,totalstockholderreturnhasmorethanquadrupled. In the last five calendar years, stockholders have enjoyed a total stockholder return of 166%271% and an increase in total enterprise value of greater than $2041 billion.

(1)

This graph assumes that $100 was invested in IQVIA as of the close of market on December 31, 2016.

The Board and the LDC Committee believe that our Chief Executive Officer has been instrumental to this significant generation of stockholder value, and has also been essential in our evolution to become the leading global provider of advanced analytics, technology solutions, and clinical research servicesis critical to the life sciences industry. The Board and the LDC Committee believes thatcontinued success of this evolution,transformation, which is still in process,ongoing, and is fundamental to the long-term success of our Company.

TheBecause of his talents, the Board and the LDC Committee believe strongly that our Chief Executive Officer is highly talented and that many larger companies would have a keen interest in recruiting him to serve as chief executive officer, in light of the success of the Merger and our subsequent strategic transformation. As more fully described in this Proxy Statement and our other public disclosures, the Company did an outstanding job in 2020 weathering the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic while significantly advancing public health and other sustainability objectives. In particular, in 2020, in the midst of a once-in-a-century pandemic, our Chief Executive Officer demonstrated exemplary leadership by steadily navigating the Company through the rapidly evolving crisis and an ever-changing range of possible outcomes. Underto their executive ranks. In particular, under his leadership in 2021, the Company:


60  |  Compensation Discussion and AnalysisIQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT

protectedachieved at or near record-high growth in all key performance measures, including Revenue, Adjusted EBITDA, and supported our employees by preserving employment and base compensation and provided clear direction to our approximately 70,000 employees spread across more than 100 countries at a time of great uncertainty;Adjusted Diluted EPS

addressed investors’ concerns about business continuity andprioritized safeguarding employee jobs during the impactmost challenging parts of the pandemic onand successfully managed our balance sheet by strengthening cash flowhuman capital strategy

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achieved $2.3 billion of Free Cash Flow, a 71% increase over the prior year and liquidityall-time high for the Company

closed the year with a record $10.1 billion of contracted net new business in the faceR&DS business, increasing our backlog to a record $24.8 billion

significantly accelerated the implementation and adoption of extreme volatilityDCT far faster than expected, with more than 300 studies now deploying at least one IQVIA DCT solution

Achieved three-year run-rate cost reduction goals earlier than planned and in excess of targets

Sustained IQVIA’s leadership position in AI with the launch of 10 new AI product lines that exceeded revenue targets

Our Chief Executive Officer has also taken a leading role in implementing an ambitious ESG agenda for the company. Key ESG-related achievements reached in the markets; last year included the following:

Prepared our reporting on climate impact in alignment with the TCFDframework, the leading set of standards for investors seeking to understand an organization’s climate approach

Aligned our 2021 ESG Report with the GRIand SASBreporting frameworks

Explicitly tied progress on ESG-related matters to executive compensation by including ESG objectives in the short-term incentive award program for each of our named executive officers

Committed to increase gender, racial and ethnic diversity on the Board

Expanded our ERG program with the addition of two new groups and saw total participation in our ERG program increase by 60% over the prior year

Enhanced our disclosure of workforce and Board diversity data

Appointed a senior leader of our D&I program responsible for formalizing and driving our strategy across the organization

Progressed toward setting a science-based target to reduce GHG emissions by the end of 2023

Removed all single use plasticfrom our offices worldwide, a goal we set out to achieve in 2021

made significant contributionsFinally, under our Chief Executive Officer’s leadership, the Company has been recognized by multiple organizations, including International Data Corporation’s 2021 MarketScapeTM and the Brandon Hall Group, and, notably, for the fifth year in a row, IQVIA was named to FORTUNE’s list of Most Admired Companies. In addition, for 2021, IQVIA earned a first-place ranking in FORTUNE’s Healthcare:PharmacyandOtherServices category of its World’s Most Admired Companies list, earning top rankings in the categories of innovation, capital deployment, global response to the COVID-19 crisis by supporting our customers in over 300COVID-19 vaccinescompetitiveness, quality of product services, and therapeutics studies for patients around the world and deploying our unique capabilities to help customers understand the rapidly evolving dynamics of the outbreak and to predict how the virus would develop.long-term investment value.

Stockholders benefited from these and other steps taken bythat the Company to ensure long-term sustainable growth despitetook under the crisis, as evidenced by the expected strong 2021 financial performance reflected in the 2021 financial guidance issued by the Company in October 2020. The Board and LDC Committee believes this is due in large part to the outstanding leadership of our Chief Executive Officer.

Officer’s leadership. Accordingly, the Board and the LDC Committee believe that while compensation of our Chief Executive Officer and other named executive officers is strongly aligned with performance (2020 compensation of our Chief Executive Officer was 87.7% performance-linked), retention of our Chief Executive Officer is imperative to our success as a company andcompany. For further details about our 2021 highlights, see “—Executive Summary—2021 Business Performance Highlights” above. That view informs thetheir decisions of the Board and our LDC Committee regarding his compensation.

The Board and the LDC Committee regularly assess whether our Chief Executive Officer’s compensation including long-term incentives, presents sufficient value to retain our Chief Executive Officer.his services. In particular, when considering long-term incentive awards granted to our Chief Executive Officer, the LDC Committee considers, among other factors, the value and vesting schedule of unvested awards and the proportion of unvested awards relative to total awards held. In determining the long-term incentive award for our Chief Executive Officer in 2020,2021, the LDC Committee considered the fact that 94%88% of the value associated with thehis outstanding equity awards held by our Chief Executive Officer as of early February 20202021 would be fully vested or exercisable within approximately 12 months.

In addition, the LDC Committee believes it is appropriate that short- and long-term incentive awards granted to our named executive officers should reflect differentiation based on the relative contribution

Overview of each named executive officer to the success of the Company. The LDC Committee believes that the 2020 short- and long-term incentive awards to our named executive officers reflect the relative contribution of each named executive officer.


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Our Executive Compensation Program

OVERVIEW OF OUR EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION PROGRAM

Roles of the LDC Committee, the Board and managementManagement in compensation decisions.Compensation Decisions

Our executive compensation program is developed and overseen by the LDC Committee. The LDC Committee consults with and takes into account the views and recommendations of senior management in making decisions regarding our executive compensation program. In 2020, the LDC Committee worked closely with management and its independent compensation consultant when deciding to adopt the new structure for short-term incentive awards, as further discussed below. The LDC Committee is responsible for approving (or recommending for approval to the Board, in the case of the compensation of our Chief Executive Officer) annual base salary increases, annual cash incentive targets, short-term incentive awards, and long-term incentive awards offor our named executive officers.

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Use of compensation consultants.Compensation Consultants

The LDC Committee uses Steven Hall & Partners, an external compensation consultant (the “external compensation consultant”), to provide it with objective analysis, advice and information, including competitive market data and compensation recommendations related to the compensation of our named executive officers. While the external compensation consultant may make recommendations on the form and amount of compensation, delivered, the LDC Committee (or the Board as described above)in the case of the Chief Executive Officer) makes all decisions regarding the compensation of our named executive officers.

The external compensation consultant reports directly to the LDC Committee. The LDC Committee is solely responsible for approving payments to the external compensation consultant and for setting the terms, scope and scopeduration of the external compensation consultant’s engagement and the termination of this engagement. The external compensation consultant reports directlydoes not provide services to us other than executive and non-employee director compensation consulting services provided to the LDC Committee. The external compensation consultant provides only executive and non-employee director compensation consulting services to us and does not provide other services such as benefits administration or actuarial services.

After consideration ofconsidering the independence assessment factors provided under the NYSE listing rules, of the NYSE, the LDC Committee determined that the external compensation consultant wasis independent and that the work itthe external compensation consultant performed during 20202021 did not raise any conflicts of interest.

Benchmarking

Benchmarking.The LDC Committee works with our external compensation consultant to better understand and continually monitor market competitivemarket-competitive pay practices, which it then considers when determining compensation adjustments and changes for the coming year. This annual process includes reviewing our identified peer group and conducting a competitive market benchmark analysis of senior officer roles.

Review of Peer Companies.peer companies

The LDC Committee targets total compensation opportunities for our named executive officers, other than our Chief Executive Officer, at or near the median of our peer group and/or market survey group. When reviewing the compensation opportunities for our Chief Executive Officer, the LDC Committee considers the compensation of chief executive officers at public companies outside of theour peer group, described below, including significantly larger companies whichwith annual revenues in excess of $20 billion, because the LDC Committee believes these companies are realistic competitors for hisour Chief Executive Officer’s services. For(For a further description of the LDC Committee’s approach to our Chief Executive Officer’s compensation, see “Compensation Philosophy—“—Compensation of Our Chief Executive Officer.”Officer” above) The LDC Committee considers comparisons to compensation levels at other companies to be helpful in assessing the overall competitiveness of our compensation practices, but places a greater emphasis on aligning overall compensation opportunities rather than on setting each element ofindividual compensation at or near the median for that element.

elements.


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The composition of ourOur peer group reflectsincludes a mix of both industry and non-industry peers. These are companies are ones with whomwhich we compete for executive talent, or whichthat are broadly similar to us based on certain characteristics, such as:characteristics. In particular, we consider financial size and performance as measured by revenue, capitalization, returns, growth and/or profitability; industry focus; scope of operations; employee base and market presence outside the United States; and organizational complexity. The current peer companies, when selected, had annual revenues ranging from 0.5 times to 2.5 times our revenues. The LDC Committee worked with the external compensation consultant in 20202021 to review our peer group for its continued appropriateness.and confirm it remains appropriate. Based on discussions with, and recommendations from, our external compensation consultant, the LDC Committee decided not to make any changes toAllergan plc was removed from the peer group for 2020 with thebecause it was acquired by AbbVie, Inc. in May 2020. The comparator companies to remainare as follows:

Industry

Company Name

IndustryBiotechnology

Company Name

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

BiotechnologyCapital Markets

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Capital Markets

S&P Global, Inc.

Health CareHealthcare Providers and Services

Boston Scientific Corporation

Laboratory Corp of America Holdings

Quest Diagnostics, Inc.

IT Services

Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp.

Fiserv, Inc.

Pharmaceuticals

Allergan plc

Bausch Health Companies Inc.

Professional Services

Nielsen Holdings PLC

Thomson Reuters Corp.

Software

salesforce.com, inc.

 

SoftwareIQVIA HOLDINGS INC.

    2022 Proxy Statement
salesforce.com, inc.57

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Review of Market Survey Data.market survey data

The LDC Committee also considered market survey data when determining the elements and amount of total direct compensation for our named executive officers, other than our Chief Executive Officer, whose base salary and annual incentive target were established pursuant to his employment agreement.

The market survey data reviewed consisted of surveys of executive compensation data from public and private companies across all sectors with similar qualifications asto those we use to determine peer companies. The external compensation consultant prepared analyses of this survey data at the direction of the LDC Committee for its review and consideration. For positions where peer group and market survey data were available, the peer group and market survey data were averaged to provide a market composite perspective of compensation levels offor such positions. We also reviewed peer group data to assess competitive executive incentive compensation programs practices and long-term incentive award levels.practices.

Non-Binding

Non-binding Company Grant Guidelines.grant guidelines

Long-term incentive awards are determined in part based on non-binding Company grant guidelines, which the LDC Committee develops each year using peer group and market survey data of the type described above.year. These guidelines set forth proposed long-term target award values for our named executive officers, other than our Chief Executive Officer, and are established taking into accountto be consistent with peer group and market survey data on target equity award values for employees with similar salaries and positions.

Key Features to Align Executive Pay with Stockholder Interests

As illustrated below, we tie our executive compensation program to our long-term business strategy by keeping our executives focused on, and rewarding them for, the achievement of short- and long-term goals that are integral to our strategy.


CompensationComponent

Link to Strategy

Strategy and Performance Alignment

Annual Plan

A significant portion of our named executive officers’ individual performance goals is tied to one or more of our strategic goals

Compensation is linked to corporate performance through our use of specified Revenue, Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted Diluted EPS goals and liquidity and cash flow metrics to determine annual cash incentive awards

Compensation is linked to ESG performance through our inclusion and evaluation of ESG-related objectives when determining annual cash incentive awards

Aligns named executive officers with stockholders’ interests by:

Rewarding individual achievement of strategic goals that are made more challenging each year and are designed to position the Company as an industry leader

Incentivizing behavior consistent with strong annual Revenue/Profit, Cash Flow and Balance Sheet/Liquidity performance

Reinforcing the importance of long-term sustainability

Long-Term Incentive Awards

We ensure the long-term incentive awards have sufficient retentive value because retaining our named executive officers is crucial to realizing our strategic goals

We consider individual performance (which is tied to our strategic goals) in setting the value of our named executive officers’ long-term equity grants

Further aligns named executive officers’ interests with stockholders’ interests by:

Linking a substantial portion of total compensation to long-term corporate performance using long-term incentive awards, including performance shares based on Relative TSR and Adjusted Diluted EPS targets set at the time of grant

Setting three-year vesting periods for our long-term incentive awards that link their payouts to our long-term corporate and share price performance

Including a clawback of equity awards in the event of a restatement of our financial statements

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ELEMENTS OF COMPENSATION

As described in more detail below, the primary elementsElements of our 2020 executive compensation program include:

Compensation

Key
Components
Pay ElementOverviewKey Benchmarks/Performance
Measures

Base Salary

CashFixed cash compensation to attract and retain executives and balance performance-linked compensation

  Benchmarked to peer group; adjusted for experience, role, and performance

Annual Incentive Awards

Cash

Variable annual cash compensation to motivate and reward executives for achieving annual goals and strategic milestones that are critical to our strategic priorities

Limit: 0%-200% of target

  Revenue/Profit

  Cash Flow

  Balance Sheet/Liquidity

  Operational/Strategic

  Leadership/Governance

Long-Term Incentive Awards

Performance Shares

Variable long-term equity-based compensation to motivate and reward executives for achieving key longer-term financial performance and stockholder return objectives

Granted at beginning of three-year performance period with final award determination based on achievement relative to pre-established corporate performance metrics on vesting date

Limit: 0%-200% of target

  Adjusted Diluted EPS Growth (75%)

  Relative TSR (25%)

Stock Appreciation Rights

Variable long-term equity-based compensation to encourage absolute performance and long-term value creation

Awards vest ratably over three years; ten-year exercise term

  Stock price appreciation

Together, these items are intended to be complementary and serve the goals described above. The following is a discussion of the primary elements of compensation for each of our named executive officers.

Base Salary

The purpose of base salary is to:

provide financial predictability and stability through fixed compensation that is less than a majority of total direct compensation at target for the named executive officers

provide fixed compensation at market-competitive rates that will attract new executives and retain our existing executives with market competitive salaries

provide fixed compensation that reflects the scope, scale and complexity of the executive role

Annual base salaries offor our named executive officers may be adjusted by the LDC Committee based upon the recommendations of our Chief Executive Officer (except with respect to his own salary) as well as market benchmarking data and analysis provided by the external compensation consultant.analysis. The Chief Executive Officer’s recommendations made with respect to aany particular named executive officer generally are generally based upon the executive’s individual annual performance review for the prior year’s performance,year, the executive’s leadership and contributioncontributions to Company performance, as well as market conditions, peer group and/or market survey data, and our overall budgetary guidelines.


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The LDC Committee takes all of these factors into account when making its decisions but does not assign a specific or pre-determined weight to any one factor. In addition to the annual salary review, the LDC Committee may also adjust base salaries during the year in connection with promotions, increases in responsibilities or to maintain competitiveness in the market.

Short-Term Incentive Awards

Overview

Overview.The objective for our Annual Planshort-term incentive award program (the “Annual Plan”) is to incentivize and reward achievement of our annual financial and strategic goals and to establish appropriate companycorporate performance objectives to ensure our named executive officers are accountable for and motivated to deliver a high degree of financial and operational performance without excessive risk-taking. In response to stockholder feedback, received, we redesigned the Annual Plan. While our goal was to ensure these changes werePlan in place as objectives and targets were set for 2021, we decided to accelerate their implementation and have applied these changes to compensation decisions under the 2020 annual incentive plan as well. As further described below, the following is a summary of the2020. The key changes to the Annual Plan.

Redesigned Annual Plan

Formula. Annual Plan payouts will now be determined by a straightforward, disclosed formula.

Simplicity. Simplified our approach by focusing on five key performance measures: Revenue/Profit; Cash Flow; Balance Sheet/Liquidity; Strategic/Operational; and Leadership/Governance. Each performance measure is composed of several quantifiable metrics that will be determined annually by the LDC Committee depending on the Company’s objectives for the year.

Weightings. Specific fixed weightings for each performance measure assigned to each named executive officer. The weightings for our named executive may differ for each person, commensurate with their differing responsibilities, and may change from year to year based on the Company’s objectives for the year and the resulting expectations for each named executive officer.

Formula-Based Payout Factor. Each named executive officer may be assigned a payout ranging from 0% to 200% for each performance measure. The weighted sum of those payouts is the Formula-Based Payout Factor, which is the pivotal input into the Annual Plan payout formula. The Formula-Based Payout Factor is capped at 200% for each named executive officer.

Targets. The payout for the Revenue/Profit Performance Measure will be determined based upon achievement of disclosed threshold, target, and maximum performance standards. Achievement of target corresponds to a 100% payout for this performance measure, while achievement of the threshold will yield a 75% payout and achievement of the maximum will result in a 200% payout. Achievement below threshold will result in a sharp decline in payout, if any. For the other four performance measures, payouts will be based on a pre-established scorecard. Each metric will be given a 1-5 score, and once the scores for all the metrics in a performance measure are totaled and normalized for a 20-point scale, the LDC Committee will determine a payout within a permitted range based on where the total score falls on the scorecard.

Discretion. The LDC Committee may make individual adjustments to the final award for each named executive officer. Adjustments may be positive or negative, but upward adjustment is limited to no more than 1/6th of the final award and in no event may an individual performance adjustment result in a named executive officer’s Formula-Based Payout Factor exceeding 200%.


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summarized below.

Annual Plan awards are conditioned on the achievement of corporate and individualized performance measures, expressed in the aggregate as an “Formula-Based Payout Factor”, which can range from 0% to 200%.measures. Given the broad range of strategic actions necessary to execute the ongoing transformation of our business, the individual performance measures provide a necessary balance to the corporate performance measures and reward our named executive officers for accomplishments beyond strong financial results. The individual performance measures also help mitigate any risk that financial targets will be achievedpursued at the cost of long-term sustainability.

At the beginning of each fiscal year, the LDC Committee establishes the metrics and corresponding targets for the performance measures for each named executive officer based on the company’sCompany’s targeted financial performance and objectives for the year. The targets are intended to be realistic, but rigorous. Performance measures will consist of a series of key financial, strategic, operational, leadership and governance metrics that relate to the duties of the named executive officer in support of the business objectives for the year.

For each named executive officer, awards under the Annual Plan awards are calculated by multiplying an executive’s annual base salary by their target incentive percentage, and multiplying the result by an Formula-Based Payout Factor, which amount may then be increased or decreased based on the judgment of the LDC Committee in the form of an Individual Performance Adjustment, as follows:

 

Basesalary

Award Payout

=

Base
Salary

x

Target
Incentive

x

Formula-Based
Payout Factor

(+/-)

Individual Performance Adjustment

Base Salary.Short-term incentive compensation for each named executive officer is determined using his annual base salary as the initial building block in the award calculation.

Targetincentive

Target Incentive.The LDC Committee determines a target annual short-term incentive for each named executive officer, fromranging between 0% toand 200% of their base salary upon hire and reviewssalary. Target Incentive amounts are reviewed annually to determine whether adjustments are appropriate.

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Formula-Based Payout Factor.Back to Contents

Formula-based payout factor

The Formula-Based Payout Factor reflects the level ofweighted achievement with respect to five performance measures: Revenue/Profit, Cash Flow and Balance Sheet/Liquidity, which evaluate corporate performance,performance; and Operational/Strategic and Leadership/Governance,ESG, which are tailored for each named executive officerofficer.

Individual performance adjustment

Adjustments, if any, are made at the discretion of the LDC Committee and any upward adjustment is limited to evaluate their individual performance.no more than 1/6th of the final award and in no event may an Individual Performance Adjustment result in a named executive officer’s Formula-Based Payout Factor exceeding 200%.

Performance measures

The five performance measures that determine the Formula-Based Payout Factor for the Annual Plan are described below.


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Performance Measures.

Revenue/Profit

The LDC Committee selected revenueRevenue and profit achievement as a performance measure because they create a direct link between executive compensation and the Company’s results of operations. As further described below, the component metrics for the Revenue/Profit Performance Measurethis performance measure are Revenue, Adjusted EBITDA, and Adjusted Diluted EPS, which align with how such metrics are calculated in the Company’s public financial guidance pronouncements.publicly disclosed earnings releases.

Cash Flow

The LDC Committee selected cashCash flow as a performance measure because it is a key driver of working capital performance and, as such, an important measure of the Company’s financial performance. The cash flow performance measure will includeincludes Free Cash Flow as a metric, and may include additional metrics year-to-yearsuch as past due balances and days sales outstandingNet Days Sales Outstanding in a given year based on the LDC Committee’s determination, taking into account the views and recommendations of senior management as to what cash flow metrics should be prioritized in a particular year by the Company should prioritize based on itsour strategic goals.

Balance Sheet/Liquidity

The LDC Committee selected balance sheet strength and liquidity as a performance measure because maintaining a strong balance sheet, with high liquidity levels and sound working capital management, areis a key indicatorsindicator of the Company’s financial health of the Company. The balance sheet/liquidityhealth. This performance measure will include Net Leverage Ratio as a metric, and may include additional metrics year-to-yearsuch as interest expense, debt maturities and/or repatriations in a given year based on the LDC Committee’s determination, taking into account the views and recommendations of senior management as to what balance sheet/liquidity metrics should be prioritized in a particular year by the Company should prioritize based on itsour strategic goals.

Operational/Strategic

The LDC Committee selected operational and strategic performance as a performance measure because we are engaged in a strategic transformation of our business, to a leading global provider of advanced analytics, technology solutions and clinical research services to the life sciences industry, and the achievement of specific operational and strategic goals, goals—beyond annual financial measures, measures—is critical to achieving our short- and long-term financial objectives. The LDC Committee establishes individualized metrics underfor this performance measure annually for each named executive officer.

Leadership/Governance

ESG

The LDC Committee selected leadershipLeadership and governance performance as a performance measure becauseESG actions and achievements under this category can have a profound influence on the Company’s success or failure, of the Company.its long-term risk management, and sustainability. The LDC Committee establishes individualized metrics for this performance measure annually for each named executive officer under this performance measure.officer.

Weightings

In any givenEach year, the LDC Committee assigns each of the five performance measures is assigned a specific weighting that may varydiffer for each named executive officer and isofficer. The weightings are determined based on each named executive officer’s contribution to, or responsibility for, a given performance measure. The performance measures are underpinned by a set of specific metrics.metrics that also may vary from year to year —both in substance and in weighting—for each named executive officer. The relative payout for each performance measure will be multiplied by the weighting for the applicable named executive officer before being added to the other performance measure payouts to calculate the named executive officer’s Formula-Based Payout Factor. In other words, the Formula-Based Payout Factor, which can range from 0% to 200%, reflects the weighted achievement of the five performance measures. The Formula-Based Payout Factor for each named executive officer can range from 0% to 200%.


For 2021, the weightings are set forth below under the section entitled “—2021 Compensation Determinations—2021 Short-Term Incentive Awards—Weightings.”

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Metrics for the revenue/profit performance measure

The Revenue/Profit Performance Measureperformance measure incorporates the following three corporate metrics whichdescribed below. These metrics align with the Company’s public financial guidance pronouncements, reflecting a direct link between executive compensation and the key performance measures the Company provideswe provide in its earnings reports:reports.

Metric

Metric

Description and Reason Selected

Revenue

   “Revenue”“Revenue” is defined as the Company’s revenue from itsour Consolidated Statements of Income

   The LDC Committee believes that Revenue is a key driver of stockholder value and earnings growth over time

Adjusted EBITDA

   “Adjusted“Adjusted EBITDA” is defined as the Company’s net income or loss from our Consolidated Statements of Income before interest income and expense, income taxes, depreciation and amortization, and as further adjusted to eliminate restructuring and related charges, income from non-controlling interests, stock-based compensation, acquisition related charges,and integration-related costs, deferred revenue purchase accounting adjustments, loss on extinguishment of debt, integration related costs and other expense. This definition is the same, and reconciled back to the nearest comparable GAAP financial measure in the exact same manner, as Adjusted EBITDA included in the Company’s earnings releases

   The LDC Committee believes that Adjusted EBITDA is an important measure of financial performance and the ability to service debt and reflects our near- and longer-term goal of increasing profitability

Adjusted Diluted
Earnings Per Share

   “Adjusted“Adjusted Diluted Earnings Per Share” or “Adjusted Diluted EPS” means with respect to each fiscal year during the performance period, our earnings per share, as reported, excluding all adjustments made to Net income or loss from our Consolidated Statements of Income to arrive at Adjusted EBITDA with the exception of interest expense and depreciation and amortization, as well as incremental adjustments for purchase accounting amortization and royalty hedge gain (loss) and any extraordinary nonrecurring items. This definition is the same, and reconciled back to the nearest comparable GAAP financial measure in the exact same manner, as Adjusted Diluted EPS included in the Company’s earnings releases

   The LDC Committee believes itAdjusted Diluted EPS is an important measure of Company performance that isand a fundamental metric for the investment community

The payout for the Revenue/Profit Performance Measureperformance measure is determined based on a quantitative assessment of the Company’s achievement against pre-established targets for each of these metrics.

The target for each of the above metrics will vary depending on the annual objectives year-to-year and will beThese targets are set at the beginning of each fiscal year by the LDC Committee. ThresholdCommittee, and maximum performance is set at 15% less than and 15% greater thanwill vary depending on the target, respectively. Achievement at target yields a 100%Company’s annual objectives. The payout for each metric subject tois determined as follows, and then multiplied by the metric’s designated weighting, whereas threshold and maximum performance would result in 75% and 200% payouts, respectively. weight:

Performance level

Threshold

Target

Maximum

How calculated

Target – 15%

Goal set by LDC Committee

Target + 15%

Payout

75%

100%

200%

When a result falls between these reference points, we use linear interpolation to determine the resulting payout. Achievement below threshold will result in a sharp decline in payout, if any.


68  |  Compensation Discussion and AnalysisIQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT

Metrics for the other performance measures

For each of the other four performance measure, two corporate and two individualized,measures, the LDC Committee assigns a rating of 1-51 – 5 points for each of the underlying metrics that underlie the performance measure based on the following criteria:

Score

Rating

Description

5

      Score      RatingDescription
5

Significantly Overperform

Achieved more than expected

4

Overperform

4Overperform

Exceeded some expectations and achieved other expectations

3

3

Meets Expectation

Achieved expected results

2

Underperform

2Underperform

Achieved expected results in some areas and did not achieve expected results in some other areas

1

1

Significantly Underperform

Did not achieve any expected results in any area

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The scores for each metric under a performance measure are totaled and normalized for a 20-point scale, and then the LDC Committee determines the named executive officer’s payout within the score ranges set forth on the following objective scorecard:below.

Total Score

Low

High

17-20

176%

200%

13-16

126%

175%

9-12

76%

125%

1-8

0%

75%

The following graphic is a representation of how the payouts may range within each score band:

LOGO


IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENTCompensation Discussion and Analysis  |  69

The key individual performance metrics used for each of our named executive officers, along with an assessment of the level of achievement for all 2021 performance measures, are summarized below under the section entitled “Compensation Discussion and Analysis—2020“—2021 Compensation Determinations—20202021 Short-Term Incentive Awards”.Awards.” We will disclose the metrics used for each individual performance measure, but we consider the specific targets used to evaluate certain of the metrics to be confidential and commercially-sensitive information, and thatbelieve their disclosure would result in competitive harm to the Company.

Weightings. Each year, the LDC Committee will assign a specific weighting for each

Individual performance measure to each named executive officer, which may differ for each officer. The weightings are determined based on each named executive officer’s respective contribution to, or responsibility for, a given performance measure. The relative payout for each performance measure will be multiplied by the weighting for the applicable named executive officer, before being added to the other performance measure payouts to calculate the named executive officer’s Formula-Based Payout Factor.

adjustment

For 2021, the LDC Committee has set the following weightings for each named executive officer:

Performance Measure Ari Bousbib,
Chief
Executive
Officer
 Ronald Bruehlman,
Chief Financial
Officer
 Eric Sherbet,
General
Counsel
 W. Richard Staub
Kevin Knightly,
Business Unit
Presidents
Revenue/Profit 50% 50% 50% 60%
Cash Flow 10% 15% 5% 10%
Balance Sheet/Liquidity 10% 15% 10% 0%
Operational/Strategic 15% 10% 15% 20%
Leadership/Governance 15% 10% 20% 10%

For 2020, the weightings are set forth below under the section entitled “Compensation Discussion and Analysis—2020 Compensation Decisions—2020 Short-Term Incentive Awards—Weightings.” The weightings for the 2021 Annual Plan differ slightly from the 2020 Annual Plan as cash flow and liquidity received greater attention in 2020 given uncertainties created by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Individual Performance Adjustment.The Annual Plan permits the LDC Committee to make individual adjustments to the final award for each named executive officer in recognition of theofficer. These adjustments are designed to recognize an individual’s relative contribution to our financial, operational and strategic success during the year that the LDC Committee does not believe wasare adequately reflected by the Formula-Based Payout Factor. Adjustments may be positive or negative, at the LDC Committee’s discretion, butdiscretion. However, upward adjustments are limited to no more than 1/6th of the executive’s final award, for any named executive officer and in no eventthey may an individual performance adjustment result innever cause a named executive officer’s Formula-Based Payout Factor exceedingto exceed 200%.

The LDC Committee’s determinations for 20202021 with respect to the Annual Plan are discussed below under the section entitled “Compensation Discussion and Analysis—2020“—2021 Compensation Decisions—2020Determinations—2021 Short-Term Incentive Awards.”

Long-Term Incentive Awards

We believe that substantial long-term returns for our stockholders are achieved through a culture that focuses on long-term performance by our named executive officers and other senior management. By providing our senior management with a meaningful equity stake in the Company, we are better able to align their interests with and create value for our stockholders.


70  |  Compensation Discussion and AnalysisIQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT

In 2020,2021, our annual grant of long-term incentive awards to our named executive officers under our 2017 Incentive and Stock Award Plan (the “2017 Plan”) consisted of a combination of time-based restricted stock appreciation rights (SARs), which only have value if our stock price increases from the date of grant and vest based on continued serviceunits, SARs, and performance shares, allocated as shown below. This mix differs from the equity mix granted in 2020.

 

Percentage of

LTI Total

LTI Award Component

Prior

2021

Performance Shares

50%

50%

Stock Appreciation Rights

50%

25%

Restricted Stock Units

N/A

25%

Rationale for selected forms of equity

Restricted stock units

Restricted stock units provide increased retentive value to our named executive officers, and further align our long-term incentive program with the companies in our comparator group, all of which are earned basedinclude restricted stock units in their long-term incentive award program. The LDC Committee believes that adding a modest percentage of restricted stock units to the long-term incentive award mix appropriately increases focus on Company achievementretention while retaining a significant portion of Relative TSR and Adjusted Diluted EPS performance goals,the overall award value as described in the table below.performance-based compensation.

Stock appreciation rights

The LDC Committee believes that SARs reinforce our goal of retaining key executives while incentivizing the creation of value for our stockholders. The SARs granted to our named executive officers in 20202021 will vest as to one-third of the underlying shares on each of the first three anniversaries of the grant date, generally subject to the named executive officer’s continued service with the Company through the applicable vesting dates.

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Performance shares

We believe that performance shares encourage our named executive officers to achieve key strategic objectives and maximize value creation for our stockholders. The performance shares granted to oura named executive officersofficer in 20202021 will be earned based on our financial results over the three-year period from January 1, 20202021 through December 31, 2022 using a weighted combination2023, subject to the executive’s continued service with the Company through the end of the following performance metrics:period.

Metrics for performance shares

Performance shares will vest, if at all, based on the Company’s results for the two metrics described below. The number of performance shares a named executive officer may earn ranges from 0% of the executive’s target award (if the threshold levels of performance are not achieved) to 200% of the target award (if the maximum levels are achieved or exceeded). Each earned and vested performance share will be settled for one share of our common stock.

 

Performance Metric

DescriptionandReasonSelected

RelativeTotal
Stockholder
Return

LOGO

  “Relative“Relative Total Stockholder Return” or “Relative TSR” is a measure of the Company’s stockholder value creation relative to the market average returnS&P 500 Index over time.three years. It combines share price appreciation and dividends, if any, paid to show the total return to the shareholderstockholders expressed as an annualized percentagepercentage.

The LDC Committee views this metric as closely correlated with long-term returns to stockholders and ties 25% of the vesting of performance shares to achievement of Relative TSR goalsstockholders.

Adjusted Diluted
EarningsPer Share
Share*

LOGO

  “Adjusted“Adjusted Diluted Earnings Per Share” or “Adjusted Diluted EPS” means, with respect to each fiscal year during the performance period, our earnings per share, as reported, excluding,including all adjustments made to Net income or loss from our Consolidated Statements of Income to arrive at Adjusted EBITDA, with the exception of interest expense and depreciation and amortization, as well as incremental adjustments for purchase accounting amortization and royalty hedge gain (loss) and any extraordinary nonrecurring items. This definition is the same, and reconciled back to the nearest comparable GAAP financial measure in the exact same manner, as Adjusted Diluted EPS included in the Company’s earnings releasesreleases.

The LDC Committee believes this metric is an important measure of Company performance and a fundamental metric for the investment community.

*

The Adjusted Diluted EPS goal is based on our goal of increasing profitability and ties 75% of the vesting of performance shares to achievement ofthree-year Adjusted Diluted EPS growth, goalsand is subject to adjustment based upon the occurrence of certain corporate events in accordance with the 2017 Plan. The calculation may be subject to other adjustments for material or non-recurring events occurring during the relevant fiscal year as determined by the LDC Committee in its sole discretion.

How long-term incentive awards are determined

The Adjusted Diluted EPS goal is based onWe provide our three-year Adjusted Diluted EPSnamed executive officers with long-term incentive awards to promote retention, to incentivize sustainable growth and is subjectlong-term value creation, and to adjustment based uponfurther align the occurrenceinterests of certain corporate events in accordanceour executives with the 2017 Plan and may be subject to such other adjustments for material or non-recurring events occurringthose of our stockholders during the relevant fiscal year as determined by the LDC Committee in its sole discretion. Our Relative TSR goal for the 2020 performance shares is based on our three-year total stockholder return performance as compared to the total stockholder return performance of the S&P 500 Index.


IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENTCompensation Discussion and Analysis  |  71

vesting periods. The LDC Committee considers a number of factors in determining the long-term incentive award grants to our named executive officers, including including:

the Company’s non-binding grant guidelines including

a review of peer group and other market survey data as described above,

the retentive value of remainingeach executive’s unvested long-term incentive awards

individual performance evaluations and

the performance objectives offor each named executive officer. The number of performance shares that may be earned ranges from 0%officer

an assessment of the named executive officer’s target award, ifexecutive’s position, role and responsibilities within the threshold levelsCompany

the overall competitiveness of performance are not achieved, to 200%each executive’s total direct compensation opportunity

internal equity considerations

the impact of the target award, if the maximum levels are achieved or exceeded. Each earnedgrants on long-term incentive plan usage and vested performance share will be settled by delivery of one share of our common stock.dilution.

Under the terms of the applicable award agreements, our named executive officers must remain employed through the end of the performance period in order to receive payment from any earned performance shares.

The LDC Committee’s determinations with respect to long-term incentive award grants to our named executive officers during 20202021 are discussed below under the section entitled “Compensation Discussion and Analysis—2020“—2021 Compensation Decisions—2020Determinations—2021 Long-Term Incentive Awards”Awards.”

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2021 Compensation Determinations

Below we discuss the LDC Committee’s key compensation decisions in setting 2021 base salary and short- and long-term incentives. The LDC Committee’s process for determining executive compensation, and the specific terms of each compensation component, are described above under “—Overview of Our Executive Compensation Program” and “—Elements of Compensation.”

2021 Base Salary

The following table sets forth the annual base salaries for each named executive officer. The LDC Committee reviews the base salary of each named executive officer annually and determines whether to make an adjustment. Each of our named executive officers, other than our Chief Executive Officer, received an increase to their base salaries in 2021.

Named Executive Officer

2021 Base Salary

AriBousbib

$1,800,000

RonaldE.Bruehlman

$   885,800

W.RichardStaub,III

$   623,150

KevinC.Knightly

$   566,500

EricM.Sherbet

$   540,750

2021 Short-Term Incentive Awards

Target incentive

Each of our named executive officers was eligible for an annual short-term incentive award in 2021 ranging from 0% to 200% of their target incentive. The target short-term incentive opportunity (expressed as a percentage of base salary) for each of our named executive officers has not changed since 2018 or, in the case of Mr. Bruehlman, since 2020, when he became a named executive officer. The target short-term incentive opportunity for each of our named executive officers for 2021 under the Annual Plan was as follows:

Named Executive Officer

Target Annual Incentive as a

Percentage of Annual Base Salary

AriBousbib

200%

RonaldE.Bruehlman

100%

W.RichardStaub,III

85%

KevinC.Knightly

85%

EricM.Sherbet

75%

Weightings

For 2021, the LDC Committee assigned weightings for the performance measures for each named executive officer in the percentages shown below.

Performance Measure

Ari Bousbib,

Chief Executive Officer

Ronald Bruehlman,

Chief Financial Officer

Eric Sherbet,

General Counsel

W. Richard Staub and

Kevin Knightly,

Business Unit

Presidents

Revenue/Profit

50%

50%

50%

60%

Cash Flow

10%

15%

5%

10%

Balance Sheet/Liquidity

10%

15%

10%

0%

Operational/Strategic

15%

10%

15%

20%

Leadership/ESG

15%

10%

20%

10%

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Performance measures

The three corporate performance measures apply to each of our named executive officers, though they are weighted differently depending upon the executive’s role. We disclose several of our key financial targets underlying the performance measures below, but we consider the specific targets used to evaluate certain of the metrics to be confidential and commercially-sensitive information, and believe their disclosure would result in competitive harm to the Company.

Performance measuresMetrics used to assess performance
Revenue/Profit

Revenue

Adjusted EBITDA

Adjusted diluted EPS

Cash Flow

Free Cash Flow

Net Days Sales Outstanding

Balance Sheet/Liquidity

Net leverage ratio

Interest expense

Operational/StrategicVaries by individual
Leadership/ESGVaries by individual
Revenue/Profit performance measure

The Revenue/Profit performance measure is based on achievement of certain Revenue, Adjusted EBITDA, and Adjusted Diluted EPS results. As described in our 2021 Proxy Statement, in determining the achievement for the Revenue/Profit metrics for 2020, the LDC Committee approved partial adjustments to the actual achievement amounts for the 2020 Revenue/Profit metrics equal to approximately one-third of the impact of COVID-19 on these metrics. In order to ensure that management did not realize the benefit of 2020 adjustments again in 2021, the LDC Committee applied the target growth rates described below to the 2020 Revenue/Profit achievement amounts, asadjustedupwardforthe2020COVID-19adjustments, thereby setting targets that were moredifficulttoachievein2021 than if the unadjusted actual achievement amounts were used.

+10%

+15%

+20%

Revenue

Adjusted EBITDA

Adjusted Diluted EPS

The following table sets forth the weighted payouts for each metric and the aggregate payout for the Revenue/Profit performance measure withoutaccountingforthe2020COVID-19adjustment made by the LDC Committee.

Metric

Threshold

(75% payout)

Target

(100% payout)

Maximum

(200% payout)

2021 Actual

Achievement

Unweighted

Payout

Weight

Weighted

Payout

Revenue(1)

$10,622

$12,496

$14,370

$13,874

174%

30.0%

52%

Adjusted EBITDA(1)

$2,331

$2,742

$3,153

$3,022

168%

30.0%

50%

Adjusted Diluted EPS

$6.55

$7.70

$8.86

$9.03

200%

40.0%

80%

Final Payout

182%

(1)

$ in millions

By applying our growth targets to COVID-19 adjusted 2020 performance rather than 2020 actual performance, we increasedthe baseline target for our named executive officers by approximately 2% for Revenue, 4% for Adjusted EBITDA, and 5% for Adjusted Diluted EPS. This adjustment resulted in the payout for the Revenue/Profit performance measure decreasing from 182% to 161%. The significance of the impact to the weighted payout is a result of our formula design, which more heavily rewards significant over-performance. Consequently, our named executive officers will not receive the full benefit of our significant over-performance in 2021 as a result of this adjustment. This is evident by the fact that for 2020, the LDC Committee’s COVID-19 adjustment resulted in a6-pointincrease (from 87% to 93%) in the weighted payout for the 2020 Revenue/Profit performance measure, while this year, the corresponding adjustment resulted in a 21-pointdecreaseto the 2021 Revenue/Profit performance measure for our named executive officers.

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The following table sets forth the weighted payouts for each metric and the aggregate payout for the 2021 Revenue/Profit performance measure afteraddingbackthe2020COVID-19adjustment to 2020 actual performance.

Metric

Threshold

(75% payout)

Target

(100% payout)

Maximum

(200% payout)

2021 Actual

Achievement

Unweighted

Payout

Weight

Weighted

Payout

Revenue(1)

$10,850

$12,764

$14,679

$13,874

158%

30.0%

47%

Adjusted EBITDA(1)

$2,412

$2,838

$3,264

$3,022

143%

30.0%

43%

Adjusted Diluted EPS

$6.87

$8.09

$9.30

$9.03

178%

40.0%

71%

Final Payout

161%

(1)

$ in millions.

Cash Flow performance measure

For 2021, the Cash Flow performance measure includes two metrics, each weighted equally: Free Cash Flow and Net Days Sales Outstanding. These metrics were chosen by the LDC Committee at the beginning of 2021, as described more fully below.

Metric

Definition

Why Included

Free Cash Flow

Operating cash flow minus capital expenditures

Free Cash Flow is a critical driver for the Company because it measures our ability to generate cash for reinvestment in the business to fund growth initiatives and acquisitions, to return to stockholders via share repurchases, and for debt repayment, among other uses

Net Days Sales Outstanding

A quarterly measurement of the average number of days to collect payment from customers from the time revenue is recognized. The reported Net Days Sales Outstanding metric takes into consideration accounts receivable, unbilled amounts and unearned income

Net Days Sales Outstanding is a key driver of Free Cash Flow and reflects effective accounts receivable/working capital management

The following table shows highlighted achievements for the metrics that make up the Cash Flow performance measure. The LDC Committee’s view was that reaching new records for Free Cash Flow and Net Days Sales Outstanding, which also far exceeded last year’s performance and significantly exceeded the Company’s target for 2021, represents an outstanding achievement. Based on these achievements, the LDC Committee assessed a normalized total score of 20outof20points for the performance measure and, in accordance with the predetermined scorecard, assigned a final payout of 200%.

Metric

Performance Summary

Free Cash Flow

$2.3billion Free Cash Flow achieved, which is 131% of our Adjusted Net Income—a record high and a 71% increase compared to 2020

Deployed a record of approximately $3.3billion in capital on share repurchases, mergers and acquisitions, and capital expenditures

Past Due Balances averaged 14.5%, compared to 15.3% in 2020

Net Days Sales Outstanding

Net Days Sales Outstanding ended 2021 at a record 18days, improving from 32 days, or 44%, compared to 2020

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Balance Sheet/Liquidity performance measure

For 2021, the Balance Sheet/Liquidity performance measure included two metrics, each weighted equally: net leverage ratio and interest expense. The LDC Committee chose these metrics based on the priorities of the management team at the beginning of 2021.

Metric

Definition

Why Included

Net Leverage Ratio

The ratio of net indebtedness as of December 31, 2021, to Adjusted EBITDA for the year ended December 31, 2021

This measure shows how well we can cover our debts and is an important indicator of financial health and balance sheet strength

Interest Expense

The cost incurred by the Company for borrowed
funds for the year ended December 31, 2021, less
any interest income received over the same period

This is a key income statement line item that equals 2% - 3% of total revenue and impacts net earnings, cash flow and liquidity

The following table shows highlighted achievements for the metrics that make up the Balance Sheet/Liquidity performance measure. The LDC Committee’s view was that Net Leverage Ratio and Interest Expense both decreased greater than expected based on the Company’s plan, representing a significant achievement. Based on these achievements, the LDC Committee assessed a normalized total score of 20 out of 20 points for the performance measure and, in accordance with the predetermined scorecard, assigned a final payout of 200%.

Changes

MetricPerformance Summary
Net Leverage Ratio

Ended 2021 with a net leverage ratio of 3.56x

Achieved Vision 2022 target leverage of 3.5x-4.0x a full year early

Reduced net leverage ratio from 4.5x at the end of 2020 while increasing investment: $2.2 billion spent on mergers and acquisitions; $0.4 billion on share repurchases; and $0.6 billion in capital expenditures

Interest Expense

Achieved Net Interest Expense of $369 million, which is 10% less than 2020 and favorable to target by $54 million

Extended all long-term debt maturities due in 2022 and 2023, including our revolving credit facility, for two years to three years, locking in favorable interest rates for several years

Refinanced two tranches of term A loans of approximately $1.9 billion, achieving a lower blended interest rate

Upsized and extended our securitization facility, using the proceeds to repay $250 million of higher interest-bearing Term B loans

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Individual performance measures

The LDC Committee set individualized metrics for each named executive officer for the Strategic/Operational and Leadership/ESG performance measures to capture key qualitative and quantitative objectives that are relevant to each executive and important to the execution of the Company’s overall strategy and performance. The following tables identify those metrics and list key highlights from each named executive officer’s 2021 accomplishments for each.

Ari Bousbib

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Operational/Strategic Performance

Measure Metrics

Key Achievements

Achieve Vision 2022 operational and strategic objectives

All planned Vision 2022 initiatives for 2021 completed and exceededcostreductiontargetsbymorethan15%

Achieved 3-year run-rate cost reduction targets early, exceedingtarget

Exceededall Vision 2022 revenue and profitability targets to date

Significant reduction in selling, general and administrative expenses (SG&A) as percentage of revenue through expansion of internal automation programs, various process improvement initiatives, and reductions in office space

Advance R&DS go-to-market strategy

Clinical research contracted backlog grew 10.2% to a record $24.8 billion, significantlyexceedingtarget

Increased personal engagement with senior executives at both established clients and emerging or potential new clients

More than 250 new customers added globally—a significant increase over the prior year

Sustained leadership position in DCT, with more than 300studies now deploying at least one IQVIA DCT solution

Execute technology transformation strategy

Expanded adoption of the OCE platform to include more than 350 customers adopting at least one application since launch

Launched new software applications that address key client needs, such as Next Best Action, a salesforce / marketing effectiveness tool that secured wins with twotop-20global pharmaceutical companies, significantlyexceedingtargets

IDC MarketScape recognized OCE and the Human Data Science Cloud as an industry-leading BPO solution for pharmaceutical sales & marketing

Increased adoption of the OCT platform with 350+ customers now adopting at least one module since launch

Continue to innovate with Real World Solutions (RWS) and Advanced Analytics

Continued expansion of rich real world data assets which grew to cover more than 1.2billion non-identified patients globally, aboveexpectations

Sustained leadership position in AI with launch of 10 new AI product lines and exceededrevenuetargets

Expanded access to genomics information in the US and Europe through several new partnerships with new clients

New RWS preferred provider relationships established with several global pharmaceuticals, exceedingtargets

Based on these achievements, the LDC Committee assessed a total score of 20outofapossible20points for this performance measure.

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Leadership/ESG Performance

Measure Metrics

Key Achievements

Develop and retain key talent

Conducted several live virtual Q&A sessions that reached more than 160future leaders globally

Several new executive leaders appointed to further our corporate development strategy and technology business

Increased positive engagement with employees based on the 2021 employee engagement survey, with 85%of respondents feeling engaged with IQVIA, which was 4points better than prior year and 4pointsabove the FORTUNE 500 company benchmark

IQVIA named a FORTUNEWorld’sMostAdmiredCompanyfor a fifthyearinarow

IQVIA was awarded six Human Capital Management Excellence Awards from the Brandon Hall Group recognizing our global talent development programs

Deliver value to stockholders

2021 total stockholder return of 57.5%—better than peers and double the returns of the S&P 500

Expansion of trading multiples for forward-looking PE and EV / EBITDA ratios

Hosted 1:1 meetings and non-deal roadshows with more than 30 investors and held Analyst and Investor Conference for more than 300 stockholders and analysts

Ended 2021 with 18of21 analysts issuing a “Buy” rating and none with a “Sell” rating

Effective oversight of capital allocation

Acquisitions completed in 2020 in the aggregate performedbetterthantargetfor 2021

Increased strategic M&A activity, including acquiring full ownership of our central lab joint venture

Returned approximately $395millionin cash to stockholders through purchase of 1.7million shares of IQVIA stock at an average price of $238.22pershare

Implemented new governance and management cadence to more regularly review and evaluate M&A opportunities of greater strategic importance

Enhance and further the global ESG program

Environmental:

Committed to setting a science-based target for GHG emissions reductions by end of 2023

Reduction in overall and per-employee GHG emissions exceededexpectations and began the transition to renewable energy sources in our clinical laboratories

Disclosed climate risks consistent with TCFD reporting framework, resulting in increased climate disclosure in our ESG report

Social:

Prioritized and led a process to identify a new director that would increase our Board’s diversity, and personally oversaw extensive evaluations of numerous qualified candidates

Racial, ethnic and gender diversity for 2021 new hires in the US exceeded the levels for the overall US workforce

ERG program expanded to include two new groups and saw a significant increase in employee participation

Enhanced disclosure of D&I workforce metrics with public disclosure of our EEO-1 report

Governance:

Increased ESG transparency through adoption of globally recognized GRI and SASB reporting frameworks

New leader appointed to oversee global D&I programs

All worldwide employees required to meet new performance goals demonstrating a commitment to Compliance for 2021

Based on these achievements, the LDC Committee assessed a total score of 20outofapossible20points for this performance measure.

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Ronald E. Bruehlman

Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

Operational/Strategic Performance

Measure Metrics

Key Achievements

Achieve Vision 2022 operational and strategic objectives

All planned Vision 2022 initiatives for 2021 completed and exceededcostreductiontargets by more than 15%

Exceeded all Vision 2022 revenue and profitability targets to date

Significant reduction in SG&A as percentage of revenue through expansion of internal automation programs, various process improvement initiatives, and reductions in office space

Improve acquisition evaluation process

Increased strategic M&A activity, including acquiring full ownership of our central lab joint venture

Acquisitions completed in 2020 in the aggregate performed better than target for 2021

Execute strategic / operational global finance initiatives

Significantly reduced in acquisition-related costs through improvements to pre-close transaction and integration processes

Executed various initiatives resulting in significant improvements to cash flow, days of sales outstanding and past due balances

Significantly improved finance function productivity through greater automation and process improvements for global finance share services

Effective oversight of capital investments

Total capital spending in absolute terms and as a percentage of revenue for 2021 was significantly better than target

Returned approximately $395millionin cash to stockholders through purchase of 1.7 million shares of IQVIA stock at an average price of$238.22pershare

Implemented new governance and management cadence to more regularly review and evaluate M&A opportunities of greater strategic importance

Based on these achievements, the LDC Committee assessed a total score of 19outofapossible20points for this performance measure.

Leadership/ESG Performance

Measure Metrics

Key Achievements

Develop and retain key talent

Reorganized finance leadership and provided expanded responsibilities and new roles to various key global finance executives with no significant attrition or loss of key finance leadership

Deliver value to stockholders

2021 total shareholder returns of 57.5%—substantially better than peers and double the returns of the S&P 500

Expansion of trading multiples for forward-looking PE and EV / EBITDA ratios

Ended 2021 with 18of21 analysts issuing a “Buy” rating and none with a “Sell” rating.

Enhance employee engagement and show responsiveness to employee survey feedback

Implemented various initiatives addressing feedback from 2020 employee survey, such as increased communication through quarterly global finance newsletters and town hall meetings

Overall favorability scores on 2021 employee engagement survey was 83%, an increase of 5points from the prior year

Enhance and further the global ESG programs

Increased ESG transparency through adoption of globally recognized SASB and GRI reporting standards

Committed to setting a science-based target for GHG emissions reductions by the end of 2023

Reduction in overall and per-employee GHG emissions exceededexpectations and began the transition to renewable energy sources in our clinical laboratories

Based on these achievements, the LDC Committee assessed a total score of 20outofapossible20points for this performance measure.

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W. Richard Staub, III

President, Research & Development Solutions

Operational/Strategic Performance

Measure Metrics

Key Achievements

Achieve Vision 2022 operational and strategic objectives

All Vision 2022 productivity initiatives completed within planned timelines and exceededcostreductiontargets

Achieve contracted net new business targets

Clinical research contracted backlog grew 10.2% to $24.8billion, significantlyexceedingtarget

More than 250 new customers added globally—a significant increase over 2020

Diversify depth of offerings and expand growth in new services

Sustained leadership position in DCT; more than300 studies now deploy at least one IQVIA DCT solution

Launched new services that expanded DCT capabilities, including new mobile nursing and phlebotomy services and a partnership with a medical device company to support at-home blood sampling for trials

Increased adoption of the OCT platform with350+customers now adopting at least one module since launch

Ensure delivery excellence and client satisfaction

Operational readiness by both client and regulator inspections exceededtargetand completed key inspections with no critical findings

Based on these achievements, the LDC Committee assessed a total score of 17outofapossible20points for this performance measure.

Leadership/ESG Performance

Measure Metrics

Key Achievements

Develop and retain key talent

Promoted internal talent to several executive leadership roles within the R&DS business unit

Provided personal mentorship to several high potential and future executive leaders

Enhance employee engagement and show responsiveness to employee survey feedback

Launched new People Strategy to drive engagement across focus areas identified by 2020 employee engagement survey

Overall favorability scores on 2021 employee engagement survey was 84%, an increase of 3points from the prior year

Execute on diversity and inclusion initiatives

Implemented D&I initiative for executive leadership team and more than 100senior managers across the business unit

Launched the R&DS Diversity and Inclusion in Clinical Trials initiative that enhances our ability to recruit more diverse groups of patients for clinical trials

Expanded the US Black Outreach & Engagement Initiative with launch of Mentoring for Inclusion program and revamped US talent acquisition strategy to increase sourcing of diverse candidates

Demonstrate effective leadership of R&DS

Initiated Mentoring for Inclusion program and revamped U.S. talent acquisition strategy to increase sourcing of diverse candidates

Delivered against full-year finance goals despite industry-wide recruitment and retention challenges

Based on these achievements, the LDC Committee assessed a total score of 18outofapossible20points for this performance measure.

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Kevin C. Knightly

President, Technology and Commercial Solutions

Operational/Strategic Performance

Measure Metrics

Key Achievements

Achieve Vision 2022 operational and strategic objectives

All Vision 2022 productivity initiatives completed within planned timelines and exceededcostreductiontargets

Execute on commercial technology strategy

Expanded adoption of the OCE platform to include more than 350 customers adopting at least one application since launch

Launched new software applications that address key client needs, such as Next Best Action, a salesforce / marketing effectiveness tool that secured wins withtwotop-20 global pharmaceutical companies, significantlyexceededtarget

Improved global profitability of commercial technology portfolio through enhanced product development and delivery processes

Protect core information and analytics offerings

Key data supply agreements renewed within the US and Europe with no loss of data access

Return Contract Sales and Medical Solutions (CSMS) business to growth

Global CSMS business returned to growth and exceededtargetsforbothrevenueandprofitability

Based on these achievements, the LDC Committee assessed a total score of 17outofapossible20points for this performance measure.

Leadership/ESG Performance Measure

Metrics

Key Achievements

Develop and retain key talent

Promoted internal talent to several executive leadership roles within the T&AS business unit

Launched new targeted skills training based on employee feedback for 1,110 employees globally

Enhance employee engagement and show responsiveness to employee survey feedback

Overall favorability scores on 2021 employee engagement survey was 88%, an increase of3points from the prior year

Initiated new communication strategy for T&AS business unit and new career planning tools based on feedback from 2020 employee engagement survey

Execute on diversity and inclusion initiatives

Implemented new D&I team with plans to expand to a broader set of managers

Ensure quality and integrity of information assets

No significant information security issues

Maintained production quality for information deliverables with no major customer escalations

No supply disruptions

Based on these achievements, the LDC Committee assessed a total score of 18outofapossible20points for this performance measure.

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Eric M. Sherbet

Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary

Operational/Strategic Performance

Measure Metrics

Key Achievements

Achieve Vision 2022 operational and strategic objectives

All Vision 2022 productivity initiatives completed within planned timelines and exceededcostreductiontargets

Drive implementation of changes to executive compensation program and further enhance proxy statement disclosures

Enhanced proxy statement disclosure and transparency, including increased disclosure of workforce and Board diversity data

Launched revised annual short-term incentive program for named executive officers that received positive feedback from stockholders and other stakeholders

Effective management of investigations and litigation matters

IQVIA received significant favorable findings in a key intellectual property theft litigation, with counterparty receiving multiple, rare sanctions violations based on its behavior

Effectively managed other ongoing litigations, with no significant unfavorable rulings

Execute strategic and operational global legal initiatives

Provided legal support for increased M&A activity and lowered the transaction costs of M&A-related legal support

Enhanced internal automation system for reviewing vendor contracts which reduced labor hours and improved speed of reviews

Based on these achievements, the LDC Committee assessed a total score of 19outofapossible20points for this performance measure.

Leadership/ESG Performance

Measure Metrics

Key Achievements

Develop and retain key talent

Maintained stable department retention rates and no turnover of key talent following organizational changes

Enhance employee engagement and show responsiveness to employee survey feedback

Implemented more rigorous calibration and talent assessment process that addresses more differentiated development needs among key talent

Overall favorability scores on 2021 employee engagement survey was 87%, an increase of 5points from the prior year

Enhance ESG program and Sustainability Report

Environmental

Committed to setting a science-based target for GHG emissions reductions by end of 2023

Disclosed climate risks consistent with TCFD reporting framework, resulting in increased climate disclosure in our ESG report

Social

Enhanced disclosure of D&I workforce metrics with public disclosure of our EEO-1 report

Racial, ethnic and gender diversity for 2021 new hires in the US exceeded the levels for the overall US workforce

Increased positive engagement with employees based on the 2021 employee engagement survey, with 85% of respondents feeling engaged with IQVIA, which was 4points better than prior year and 4points above the FORTUNE 500 company benchmark

Expanded ERG program to include two new groups, with significant increase in employee participation

Governance

Increased ESG transparency through adoption of globally recognized GRI and SASB reporting frameworks

Support with navigating employment impacts of COVID-19 pandemic

Provided strong support for implementation of complex requirements of government-mandated COVID-19 vaccine initiatives in the US

Supported development and launch of the Future of Work initiative that provides more workplace flexibility to employees globally

Based on these achievements, the LDC Committee assessed a total score of 19outofapossible20points for this performance measure.

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The LDC Committee and our Chief Executive Officer (except with respect to his own individual performance) evaluated the performance of each of our named executive officers as described above and determined scores for each individualized performance measure. Based on these scores, and in accordance with the predetermined scorecard, the LDC Committee assigned final payouts to each named executive officer for the individualized performance measures, as shown below.

Named Executive Officer

Strategic/Operational

Performance Measure

Leadership/ESG

Performance Measure

Ari Bousbib

200%

200%

Ronald E. Bruehlman

200%

200%

W. Richard Staub, III

185%

192%

Kevin C. Knightly

180%

190%

Eric M. Sherbet

200%

200%

Individual performance adjustment

The LDC Committee approved the individual performance adjustments described below.

Named Executive Officer

Individual Performance Adjustment

Ari Bousbib

The LDC Committee recommended and the Board made a positive adjustment to Mr. Bousbib’s Annual Plan payout, representing 9.7% of the final award. This adjustment was made in consideration of the following contributions and accomplishments of Mr. Bousbib:

Led the development of the 20by25 strategic growth plan to accelerate our growth rate to double digits and achieve at least $20 billion of revenue by 2025 even before finishing the Vision 2022 strategic growth plan

Led process to recruit a Chief Product Officer with extensive technology experience

Recommended appointment of two new board members, which significantly increased the racially, ethnically, and gender diversity of the Board, after prioritizing need for more diversity on Board and overseeing process to evaluate numerous qualified candidates

Demonstrated leadership throughout the COVID-19 pandemic and, in 2021, resumed to extent possible a normal operating cadence with in-person operating reviews, client meetings and other management meetings, across the US and overseas

Earned for the first time a first-place ranking in FORTUNE’S Healthcare:PharmacyandOtherServices category of its World’s Most Admired Companies list, with top rankings in the categories of innovation, capital deployment, global competitiveness, quality of product services, and long-term investment value

Established the IQVIA Future of Work initiative, a company-wide effort examining all aspects of how and where we do our work, as well as the technology and tools that will be required to help us adapt post-pandemic and best support our workforce going forward

Ronald E. Bruehlman

The LDC Committee made a positive adjustment to Mr. Bruehlman’s Annual Plan payout, representing 9.5% of the final award. This adjustment was made in consideration of the following contributions and accomplishments of Mr. Bruehlman:

Led the Finance organization to implement numerous operational and process changes to achieve a record level of Free Cash Flow

Achieved two upgrades to a “Buy” rating from analysts during 2021 and one new analyst initiating coverage at a “Buy” rating

Led process to develop new mid-term guidance through 2025 and to release 2022 financial guidance earlier than expected

Played a key role in the negotiation and execution of the purchase of the remaining non-controlling interest in our lab joint venture from Quest Diagnostics

Substantially increased investor engagement versus prior years by hosting more than 74 investment firms and 130 individual investors through 1:1 meetings and non-deal roadshows and held in-person analyst and investor conference that was well received by analysts and stockholders

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Named Executive Officer

Individual Performance Adjustment

W. Richard Staub, III

The LDC Committee made a positive adjustment to Mr. Staub’s Annual Plan payout, representing 12% of the final award. This adjustment was made in consideration of the following contributions and accomplishments of Mr. Staub:

Oversaw the achievement of a record $10 billion in net new bookings and growth of the clinical backlog to an industry-leading $24.8 billion

Led R&DS organization to deliver several global COVID-19 vaccine trials within timelines significantly better than historic standards and well beyond expectations. In addition to fast timelines, these trials also achieved enrollment diversity rates 1.7x better than comparable COVID-19 vaccine trials

Oversaw the simultaneous integration of the lab joint venture and Myriad RBM acquisitions with no adverse impact to normal clinical operations

Provided a high level of mentorship and guidance to emerging leaders

Kevin C. Knightly

The LDC Committee made a positive adjustment payout, representing 4% of the final award. This adjustment was made in consideration of the following contributions and accomplishments of Mr. Knightly:

Oversaw the recovery and return to growth of CSMS, a business substantially impacted globally by the COVID-19 pandemic

Developed and executed strategy that substantially grew IQVIA’s presence within the MedTech sector over the past three years beyond expectations

Led new strategic partnership opportunities to create new data sources which will provide benefit to IQVIA over a longer-term period

Eric M. Sherbet

The LDC Committee made a positive adjustment to Mr. Sherbet’s Annual Plan payout, representing 7% of the final award. This adjustment was made in consideration of the following contributions and accomplishments of Mr. Sherbet:

Co-led global ESG and sustainability programs with support from the Board oversight chair, Colleen Goggins, and Lead Director John Leonard, M.D., which made substantial improvements to our global ESG program

Significant efforts in identifying new director candidates, resulting in the appointment of two new directors as well as overall increased gender and racial/ethnic diversity of the Board

Surpassed by 2x the cost reduction targets for Vision 2022 productivity initiatives

Key intellectual property theft litigation received significant favorable findings that were significantly beyond our expectations, with counterparty receiving multiple, rare sanctions violations based on its behavior

Named Executive Officer short-term incentive award determinations

The table below summarizes the final Annual Plan payouts to our named executive officers for 2021. The LDC Committee did not make any adjustments to the Formula-Based Performance Payout Factor or the underlying corporate or individual performance measures.

Named Executive

Officer

Prorated Base

Salary

x

Target

Incentive

x

Formula-Based

Performance

Payout Factor

=

Calculated

Payout

(+/-)

Individual

Performance

Adjustment

=

Final

Payout

Ari Bousbib

$1,800,000 

 

 

200

%

 

181

%

 

$6,504,197

 

$695,803

 

$7,200,000

Ronald E. Bruehlman

$872,900 

 

 

100

%

 

181

%

 

$1,577,279

 

$165,571

 

$1,742,849

W. Richard Staub, III

$614,075

 

 

85

%

 

173

%

 

$ 903,141

 

$123,156

 

$1,026,297

Kevin C. Knightly

$558,250

 

 

85

%

 

172

%

 

$ 815,343

 

$33,973

 

$849,315

Eric M. Sherbet

$532,875

 

 

75

%

 

181

%

 

$ 722,155

 

$54,356

 

$776,511

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2021 Long-Term Incentive Awards. Following a review of our

The LDC Committee met on February 9, 2021, to determine 2021 long-term incentive programawards. When making the awards, the LDC Committee first determined the total grant date value of the award for each named executive officer and then delivered that value in three components: three-year performance shares (50%), SARs (25%), and restricted stock units (25%), assuming target-level achievement of applicable performance goals for performance shares, as set forth in the table below. The terms of each type of long-term incentive award are set forth above under “—Elements of Compensation—Long-Term Incentive Awards.”

Named Executive Officer

Performance Shares

RSUs

SARs

Ari Bousbib

$9,683,424

$4,425,467

$4,425,579

Ronald E. Bruehlman

$2,689,797

$1,229,204

$1,229,325

W. Richard Staub, III

$968,338

$442,455

$442,539

Kevin C. Knightly

$806,833

$368,743

$368,783

Eric M. Sherbet

$860,729

$393,375

$393,368

The 2021-2023 performance share awards provide for the grant of common stock at the end of the three-year performance period based on the achievement of relative TSR and Adjusted Diluted EPS growth goals over that period, as follows:

Performance Metric

Weight

Threshold

Target

Maximum

3-Year Adjusted Diluted EPS Growth

75%

6.2%

10.0%

13.6%

3-Year TSR vs. S&P 500 (percentile)

25%

25

50

75

Percentage of Target Payout

 

50%

100%

200%

As described in our 2021 Proxy Statement, in 2020, the LDC Committee approved a modificationpartial upward adjustment of $0.32 per share (equal to approximately one-third of the impact of COVID-19 on 2020 Adjusted Diluted EPS) to the 2020 Adjusted Diluted EPS performance metric under the performance share awards for the 2018-2020 performance period. Consistent with the approach used in setting 2021 financial targets under our Annual Plan and in order to ensure that management did not benefit from this adjustment again in future years, the LDC Committee, in setting the Adjusted Diluted EPS target for performance share awards of the 2021-2023 performance period, applied the growth rates described above to the 2020 Adjusted Diluted EPS, asadjustedupwardforthe$0.322020COVID-19adjustment, thereby setting a target that will be more difficult to achieve under the 2021-2023 performance share awards than if the unadjusted 2020 Adjusted Diluted EPS amount was used.

Consistent with our compensation philosophy, the LDC Committee sets challenging yet achievable goals to appropriately incentivize performance. When setting the 10% target for Adjusted Diluted EPS Growth, the LDC Committee considered, among other things, the performance of both our peer group and the broader market. Forthe2017-2019three-yearperiod,approximately64%ofourpeergroupandapproximately37%oftheS&P500reportedAdjustedDilutedEPSGrowthoflessthan10%,andforthe2018-2020three-yearperiod,approximately46%ofourpeergroupandapproximately54%oftheS&P500failedtoexceedthe10%annualhurdle.

The Adjusted Diluted EPS growth target for the 2021-2023 performance shares is substantially consistent with the earnings growth trajectory reflected in the three-year financial guidance we disclosed at our 2021 Analyst and Investor conference. At that time, we said we expected continued double-digit Adjusted Diluted EPS growth during the 2023-2025 period.

Over the past several performance periods, not only has the Company realized double-digit Adjusted Diluted EPS growth, but the base year Adjusted Diluted EPS at the start of each grant cycle has been equal to prior year results, meaning the growth goals are based on Adjusted Diluted EPS that has grown by more than 10% in prior periods, thus making the target for every new cycle more challenging to achieve than the prior cycle—even when the annual growth target remains a constant 10%. Further, as we continue to achieve scale and grow our earnings at a rapid pace, the dollar amount of Adjusted Diluted EPS needed to achieve a 10% growth rate increases significantly over time. With an Adjusted Diluted EPS of $9.03 for 2021, the challenge to continually achieving a 10% annual growth rate is much greater than it was four years ago when the Adjusted Diluted EPS was less than half as much.

Based on the factors described above, the LDC Committee concluded that constantly achieving a 10% annual growth rate over the long term represented a challenging but achievable goal that is an appropriate target for our long-term incentive awards.

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Chief Executive Officer long-term incentive award mix. Beginning withdetermination

The LDC Committee considered all of the factors described above when determining our Chief Executive Officer’s annual long-term incentive award grants made in 2021. For further details, see “—Compensation of Our Chief Executive Officer.” In particular, the Board and the LDC Committee believe that, while compensation of our Chief Executive Officer and other named executive officers is strongly aligned with performance (2021 compensation of our Chief Executive Officer was74.4%performance-linked), retention of our Chief Executive Officer is imperative to the Company’s success. That belief informs the decisions of the Board and our LDC Committee regarding the Chief Executive Officer’s annual long-term incentive awards.

The LDC Committee considers, among other factors, the value and vesting schedule of unvested awards and the proportion of unvested awards relative to total awards held by our Chief Executive Officer when granting him new long-term incentive awards. In determining his long-term incentive award for 2021, the mixLDC Committee considered the fact that 88% of the value associated with the outstanding equity elementsawards held by our Chief Executive Officer as of early February 2021 would be fully vested or exercisable within approximately 12 months. The LDC Committee believes this impending reduction in our grantsunvested awards could substantially decrease the retention value of the Chief Executive Officer’s long-term equity awards, making it much easier for a competitor to recruit him and providing him with less of a financial incentive to stay in the face of a potential higher offer from another company.

Performance share determinations for 2021

Performance share awards granted to our named executive officers will also include time-based restricted stock units (RSUs)on February 13, 2019, were based on IQVIA’s achievement of Adjusted Diluted EPS growth and Relative TSR goals during a three-year performance period, as described above in the section entitled “—Elements of Compensation—Long-Term Incentive Awards”. Instead of dividing long-term incentive award amounts evenly betweenThe three-year performance period for the 2019-2021 performance shares and SARs, as was done previously, future award amounts will be allocated 50% toended on December 31, 2021. The number of performance shares 25%that could be earned ranged from 0% of the target award, if the threshold levels of performance were not achieved, to SARs,200% of the target award, if the maximum levels were achieved or exceeded. For results between these marks, the number of shares would be determined by linear interpolation.

The LDC Committee did not make any adjustments, including for COVID-19, to the 2019-2021 performance share metrics or payouts. Performance for Adjusted Diluted EPS Growth was determined by comparing our Adjusted Diluted EPS at the beginning of the performance period to the Adjusted Diluted EPS at the conclusion of the performance period, which means that any adjustments made mid-period would be irrelevant to the growth calculation. The performance goals and 25%results used to RSUs:determine the final payout factor for the 2019-2021 performance shares were as follows:

Performance Metric

Weight

Threshold

Target

Maximum

Actual

Performance

Payout Factor

3-Year Adjusted Diluted EPS Growth

75%

6.2%

10.0%

13.6%

17.6%

200%

150%

3-Year TSR vs. S&P 500 (percentile)

25%

25

50

75

83

200%

50%

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

200%

   Percentage of LTI Total
LTI Award Component  Prior  2021
Performance Shares  50%  50%
SARs  50%  25%
Restricted Stock Units  N/A  25%

Granting a portionAdditional information on the vested value of long-term incentivethe performance share awards in RSUs will provide increased retentive value toearned by our named executive officers is set forth in the table and further align our long-term incentive program with our comparator group, 100%related footnotes below under “Compensation of which include RSUs in their long-term incentive award program. The LDC Committee believes this revised long-term incentive award mix appropriately increases focus on retention while retaining a significant portion of the overall award value as performance-based compensation.Named Executive Officers—2021 Option Exercises and Stock Vested.”

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Retirement, Perquisites and Termination Benefits

Retirement Plans.plans

We believe that our retirement plans serve as an important tool to attract and retain our named executive officers and other key employees, and that we would be at a competitive disadvantage if we did not offer attractive retirement plans. We also believe that offering a baseline of stable retirement benefits encourages our named executive officers to make a long-term commitment to us. Consistent with our understanding of competitive market practice, we do not adjust the level of retirement plan benefits based on the value of a named executive officer’s long-term incentive awards nor do we adjust the level of a named executive officer’s total direct compensation for a given year in light of the value of retirement benefits.


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IQVIA.

The summaries below of our retirement plans should be read in conjunction with the tables and related footnotes under the sections entitled “Compensation of Named Executive Officers—20202021 Pension Benefits,” “—IMS Health Defined Benefit Retirement Plans” and “—2020 2021 Non-Qualified Deferred Compensation,” which provide more detail on the retirement benefits and deferred compensation values, if any, for each of our named executive officers:officers.

Plan

Description

IMS Health Retirement Plan

U.S.-based legacy IMS Health employees, including our Chief Executive Officer, Mr.Messrs. Bousbib, Bruehlman and Mr. Knightly, are eligible to participate in this tax-qualified defined benefit pension plan with a cash balance formula. Effective December 31, 2016, this plan was closed to new participants.

IMS Health Retirement Excess Plan

Certain U.S.-based legacy IMS Health employees, including our Chief Executive Officer, Mr.Messrs. Bousbib, Bruehlman and Mr. Knightly, are eligible to participate in this unfunded, non-qualified retirement plan utilizing the same benefit formula, compensation recognition, retirement eligibility and vesting provisions as the tax-qualified IMS Health Retirement Plan. ItThis excess plan provides pension benefits not provided by the IMS Health Retirement Plan due to Internal Revenue Code limits. Effective December 31, 2016, this plan was closed to new participants.

IMS Health Defined Contribution Executive Retirement Plan

Certain U.S.-based legacy IMS Health employees are eligible to participate in the unfunded, non-qualified defined contribution plan that was frozen to new participants and accruals as of June 30, 2012. Mr. Knightly is the only named executive officer who participates in this plan.

IQVIA 401(k) Plan

U.S.-based employees, including our named executive officers, are eligible to participate in this tax-qualified, defined contribution plan. Employees may contribute a portion of their compensation to this plan and receive a matching Company contribution. Under the IQVIA 401(k) Plan, for 2020,For 2021, our discretionary matching contribution generally matched the first 3% of employee contributions at 100%, and the next 3% of employee contributions at 50% (subject to Internal Revenue Code limitations); however,. However, for those employees eligible to participate in the IMS Health Retirement Plan, our discretionary matching contribution matched 50% of employee contributions up to 6% of compensation (subject to Internal Revenue Code limitations).

IQVIA Savings Equalization Plan

Certain U.S.-based employees, including our named executive officers, are eligible to participate in this unfunded, non-qualified defined contribution plan using the same benefit formula as in the IQVIA 401(k) Plan. ItThe savings equalization plan provides athe Company matching contribution not provided bycontributions that cannot be made under thetax-qualified IQVIA 401(k) Plan due to Internal Revenue Code limits.

IQVIA Elective Deferred Compensation Plan

Certain U.S. basedU.S.-based employees, including our named executive officers, are eligible to participate in this elective non-qualified deferred compensation plan. The plan allows eligible employees to defer up to 80% of their base salaries as of the first day of the calendar year or partial year and up to 100% of short-term incentive awards earned under the Annual Plan payable to the participant with respect to that year.Plan. Contributions consist solely of participants’ elective deferral contributions withcontributions; there are no matching or other employer contributions.


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Termination Benefits.benefits

We provide severance, change of control and retirement protections to our Chief Executive Officer pursuant to his employment agreement. Mr. Staub has severance protection in his employment arrangement. Messrs. Bruehlman, Knightly and Sherbet have severance protection through our Employee Protection Plan. These employment agreements and plans are summarized below under “—“Compensation of Named Executive Officers—Potential Payments uponUpon Termination or Change in Control” below.Control.” Our severance and change in control protections are designed to be fair and competitive to aid in attracting and retaining experienced executives, including our named executive officers.executives. We believe the protection we provide, including the level of

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severance payments and post-termination benefits and our limited change in control benefits, is appropriate and within the range of competitive practice.

The provisions of ourOur employment agreements, plans and other compensation arrangements do not provide for any excise tax gross-up payment to our named executive officers. Any taxes, including golden parachute excise taxes, resulting from severance or any other change in control relatedcontrol-related compensation are the responsibility of the executive.

Perquisites

Perquisites.For other elements of compensation provided to our named executive officers, such as perquisites and health and welfare benefits, the LDC Committee provides competitive benefits. The LDC Committee considers the views and experiences of the external compensation consultant on these matters. The LDC Committee believes that perquisites should not constitute a significant part of our executive compensation program but does provide certain perquisites to our named executive officers on an individual basis as deemedit deems appropriate and reasonable by the LDC Committee. The perquisites provided to our named executive officers in 2020 are summarized below under “—Perquisites” and reported in the “Summary Compensation Table”.


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2020 NAMED EXECUTIVE OFFICERS    

This Compensation Discussion and Analysis discusses compensation decisions related to our named executive officers, which are listed in the “Summary Compensation Table” below and the other compensation tables included in this Proxy Statement. For 2020, the following individuals were our named executive officers:

NameAgeCurrent Position
LOGOAri Bousbib59Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President
LOGORonald E. Bruehlman60Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
LOGOW. Richard Staub, III58President, Research & Development Solutions

LOGO

Kevin C. Knightly60President, Technology & Commercial Solutions
LOGOEric M. Sherbet56Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary
LOGOMichael R. McDonnell57Former Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

Mr. Bruehlman’s appointment became effective August 1, 2020 when he replaced Mr. McDonnell.


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2020 COMPENSATION DETERMINATIONS

Below we discuss the LDC Committee’s key compensation decisions in setting 2020 base salary, short- and long-term incentives, which were made based on the process and evaluation described under the sections above entitled “—Compensation Philosophy” and “—Overview of our Executive Compensation Program”. When making compensation decisions, the LDC Committee considered such factors as relevant benchmarking data, the experience and length of service of the named executive officer, relative responsibilities among members of our executive team, contributions by the named executive officer against a series of established strategic, financial, operational and/or leadership objectives that relate to the duties of the named executive officer, business conditions and the unusual impact the COVID-19 pandemic and the various governmental, industry and consumer actions related thereto have had on the Company’s business and results of operations.

Impact of COVID-19 on 2020 Financial Results. As part of its evaluation of fiscal year 2020 compensation determinations, the LDC Committee examined how the COVID-19 pandemic affected the Company’s operations and performance over the course of the year. The LDC Committee did not adjust any financial target in any short- or long-term incentive plan to reflect the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Company performance was measured against the financial targets established for the 2020 Annual Plan in February 2020 and for our long-term incentive awards, the financial targets established at the respective date of grant.

During 2020, following the onset of the pandemic, each of our business units performed a detailed analysis of the expected impact of the pandemic on the revenue and profit for their respective units, and then provided monthly updates. In our R&DS business unit, the unfavorable impact attributable to COVID-19 was largely due to operational disruption of clinical research sites, which impacted patient recruitment and patient study participation, and limited our ability to travel and access clinical research sites. These site access restrictions and impact on clinical trial conduct by the sites had a direct impact on our ability to perform our services and caused delays relative to pre-COVID-19 timelines. In our TAS business, certain offerings that relied on face-to-face interactions or were dependent on in-person gatherings experienced significant disruption. Activity within the Contract Sales and Medical Solutions business also become more challenging due to a decline in sales rep visits, and physician attention diverted to the COVID-19 crisis.

Netted against these unfavorable impacts were new business awards tied directly to the COVID-19 pandemic, including U.S. government funded vaccine trials awarded to us, as well as government relief efforts in certain jurisdictions tied to the pandemic, including Federal payroll tax credits in the US.

After considering these and other positive and negative impacts of the pandemic, we estimated that the total impact to the Company’s performance in 2020 was approximately $750 million in Revenue and approximately $250 million in Adjusted EBITDA, with a corresponding impact of $1 per share on Adjusted EPS. The LDC Committee believes that this net negative impact was not the result of poor management performance, but rather the undeniable, extraordinary-in-nature effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and the various governmental, industry and consumer actions related thereto. Indeed, the LDC Committee determined that management’s strong performance during the course of the pandemic was a critical factor in minimizing the distortive effects of the pandemic on our performance. Under the leadership of our named executive officers, we put our employees in a position to safely and effectively continue to perform their duties while preserving their jobs and compensation to the largest extent possible, and we delivered critical, virtual solutions at a scale never before seen in clinical trials, such as transitioning to remote monitoring with the number of remote monitoring visits reaching 5x the level they were prior to the crisis and enabling telehealth where possible, which significantly helped support trial continuity.


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The LDC Committee considered a number of factors when deciding how to address this overall impact. Key considerations included:

the extraordinary nature of the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on the broader world economy and the healthcare services industry in particular

our named executive officers’ significant efforts to swiftly adapt during the pandemic to ensure the safety of our employees and preserve their jobs and compensation to the largest extent possible

keeping a focus on the well-being of our employees and the Company’s longer-term strategic objectives rather than prioritizing dramatic cuts and restructurings to achieve pre-pandemic short-term targets

management’s effectiveness in significantly improving the Company’s cash and liquidity position despite the pandemic

the sales and profit growth trajectory the Company was achieving immediately prior to the pandemic; and the rapid return to our sales and profit growth in the fourth quarter of 2020

our strong stock performance in the fourth quarter as investors recognized the named executive officers’ excellent management of our business during the pandemic and strong growth expectations post-pandemic

the importance of making adjustments to retain and motivate our key executives given their tremendous efforts in light of the extraordinary nature of the pandemic

without any adjustment to 2020 Adjusted Diluted EPS, the Adjusted Diluted EPS growth target for our 2021-2023 performance shares to be granted in February 2021 would be based off an unusually depressed year because of the COVID-19 impact on 2020. This would have meant the target growth rate for these performance awards would have been far too easily achieved in light of the expected resumption of our growth trajectory in 2021. Accordingly, measuring growth from the unadjusted 2020 Adjusted Diluted EPS amount would have misaligned the interests of stockholders and management in driving long-term sustainable growth

In acknowledgment of the above factors, the LDC Committee approved an adjustment to our Revenue, Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted Diluted EPS results. While the LDC Committee had the authority to add back the full impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on these financial metrics when calculating the Revenue/Profit Financial Measure under our short-term incentive award program, it decided to only add back approximately one-third of the total impact. This add-back to 2020 Adjusted Diluted EPS also flowed through to the calculation of the 2018-2020 Adjusted Diluted EPS growth rate used to determine the payout factor applied to the 2018-2020 performance shares, and it will be used as the base for the 2021-2023 performance shares. The adjustment was made by the LDC Committee based on its authority under the 2017 Plan, which governs both our short- and long-term incentive awards, to include or exclude any event that is unusual in nature or occurs infrequently and occurs during the applicable performance period.

See “—2020 Short-Term Incentive Awards” and “—2020 Long-Term Incentive Awards” for further information on how these adjustments affected 2020 short- and long-term incentive awards.


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2020 BASE SALARY

The amount of our Chief Executive Officer’s annual base salary is set forth in his employment agreement, but it remains subject to increase based on the same factors as described above for the other named executive officers. The following table sets forth the annual base salaries for each named executive officer:

Named Executive Officer2020 Base Salary
Ari Bousbib1            $1,800,000
Ronald E. Bruehlman2            $860,000
W. Richard Staub, III            $605,000
Kevin C. Knightly            $550,000
Eric M. Sherbet            $525,000

Michael R. McDonnell3

            $670,000

1

Mr. Bousbib’s base salary effective February 11, 2020.

2

Mr. Bruehlman assumed this role and salary on August 1, 2020.

3

Mr. McDonnell left the Company on August 3, 2020.

2020 SHORT-TERM INCENTIVE AWARDS

The Annual Plan provides cash incentives to named executive officers based on a combination of measurable Company-wide financial performance targets and individual performance objectives. As described in greater detail above, following and in response to significant engagement with our stockholders on our executive compensation program, the LDC Committee made substantial changes to the process for granting short-term incentive awards beginning in 2021. However, the LDC Committee decided to largely apply the new short-term incentive award program in their determination of awards for 2020. We have disclosed several of our key financial targets underlying our performance measures below, but we consider the specific targets used to evaluate certain of the metrics to be confidential, commercially-sensitive information, and that their disclosure would result in competitive harm to the Company.

In assessing performance in 2020 for our named executive officers, the LDC Committee took into account the exceptional nature of the year for the Company. The Company’s leadership significantly outperformed expectations under extremely challenging and difficult circumstances caused by the pandemic. Their achievements, which are detailed throughout this section “2020 Compensation Determinations”, would be considered exceptional in a typical year and beyond extraordinary in light of these challenges.


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Weightings. For 2020, the LDC Committee assigned the following weightings for each performance measure to each named executive officer. The weightings for cash flow and liquidity in 2020 compared to the weightings for these measures in 2021 reflect the greater attention these measures received in 2020 given the uncertainties created by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Performance Measure Ari Bousbib,
Chief
Executive
Officer
 

Ronald Bruehlman,
Chief Financial

Officer

 

Eric Sherbet,

General

Counsel

 

W. Richard Staub
Kevin Knightly,

Business Unit

Presidents

Revenue/Profit 40% 40% 35% 50%
Cash Flow 15% 15% 10% 15%
Balance Sheet/Liquidity 15% 25% 15% 0%
Operational/Strategic 15% 10% 20% 25%
Leadership/Governance 15% 10% 20% 10%

Corporate Performance Measures. The three corporate performance measures apply to each of our named executive officers, though they are weighted differently depending upon the role of the named executive officer.

Revenue/Profit Performance Measure. The Revenue/Profit Performance Measure is based on achievement of Revenue, Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted Diluted EPS, as further described above in the section entitled “Compensation Discussion and Analysis—Elements of Compensation—Short-Term Incentive Awards”. The LDC Committee set the targets for these metrics in line with the midpoints of our initial, pre-pandemic 2020 financial guidance, with threshold and maximum achievements set at 15% below and 15% above the targets, respectively. Although the Company adjusted its full-year 2020 financial guidance downward in April 2020 to reflect the then-expected impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the LDC Committee did not approve adjustments to any previously established target under the Annual Plan. The following table sets forth the weighted payouts for each metric and aggregate payout for the metrics without accounting for the adjustment for the COVID-19 pandemic made by the LDC Committee.

Metric  Threshold
(75%)
   Target
(100%)
   Maximum
(200%)
   2020 Actual
Achievement
   Unweighted
Payout
   Weight   Weighted
Payout
 
Revenue1  $10,104  $11,888  $13,671  $11,359   93%    37.5%    35% 
Adjusted EBITDA1  $2,204  $2,593  $2,981  $2,384   87%    37.5%    32% 
Adjusted Diluted EPS  $6.16  $7.25  $8.34  $6.42   81%    25.0%    20% 
 

 

   

 

 

 

 

 

   

 

 

 

 

 

   

 

 

 

 

 

   

 

 

 

 

 

   Final Payout    87% 

1

In millions.

As further described above under the section entitled “Compensation Discussion and Analysis—2020 Compensation Determinations—Impact of COVID-19 on 2020 Financial Results”, the LDC Committee added back approximately one-third of the total impact of the COVID-19 pandemic when determining 2020 compensation awards. For Revenue/Profit Performance Measure, the adjustments affected the calculation of each of the metrics that underlie the Revenue/Profit Performance Measure and amounted to $245 million to Revenue, $84 million to Adjusted EBITDA and $0.32 to Adjusted Diluted EPS.


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This adjustment resulted in the payout of the Revenue/Profit Performance Measure increasing from 87% to 93%, which given that the Revenue/Profit Performance Measure is weighted at between 35% -50% for our named executive officers, amounted to only approximately a 1% - 2% increase in their total Annual Plan awards. The adjusted results for the Revenue/Profit Performance Measure are detailed in the following table.

Metric  Threshold
(75%)
   Target
(100%)
   Maximum
(200%)
   2020 Adjusted
Achievement1
   Unweighted
Payout
   Weight   Weighted
Payout
 
Revenue2  $10,104  $11,888  $13,671  $11,604   96%    37.5%    36% 
Adjusted EBITDA2  $2,204  $2,593  $2,981  $2,468   92%    37.5%    34% 
Adjusted Diluted EPS  $6.16  $7.25  $8.34  $6.74   88%    25.0%    22% 
 

 

   

 

 

 

 

 

   

 

 

 

 

 

   

 

 

 

 

 

   

 

 

 

 

 

   Final Payout    93% 

1

Metrics reflect partial COVID-19 adjustments discussed above under the section entitled “Compensation Discussion and Analysis—2020 Compensation Determinations—Impact of COVID-19 on 2020 Financial Results.”

2

In millions.

Cash Flow Performance Measure. For 2020, the cash flow performance measure includes three metrics, each weighted equally: free cash flow (FCF), past due balances and days sales outstanding (DSO). These metrics were chosen by the LDC Committee based on the priorities of the management team at the onset of the pandemic, as described more fully below.

LOGO

MetricDefinitionRationale for Inclusion
Free Cash Flow (FCF)Operating cash flow minus capital expendituresFCF is a critical driver for the Company because it measures our ability to produce cash that is then available for reinvestment in the business to fund growth initiatives and acquisitions, to return to stockholders via share repurchases, and for debt repayment, among other ways

Days Sales Outstanding

(DSO)

A measure of the number of days needed to collect payment after revenue (e.g., accounts receivable, unbilled services and unearned income, net) has been recordedKey driver that supports free cash flow and reflects effective accounts receivable/working capital management
Past Due BalancesThe percentage of accounts receivable that are outstanding following the due date for an invoiceThe LDC Committee determined that in light of the COVID-19 pandemic that Past Due Balances should be an area of focus for management due to the heightened risk to collections during the pandemic


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The following table shows highlighted achievements for each of the metrics that comprise the Cash Flow Performance Measure. The LDC Committee’s view was that the Company performance with respect to the Cash Flow Performance Measure would have been outstanding in any year, but was particularly noteworthy given the impact of the pandemic. Based on these achievements, the LDC Committee assessed a normalized total score of 19 out of 20 points for the performance measure and, in accordance with the predetermined scorecard for this performance measure, assigned a final payout of 200%.

MetricPerformance Summary

Free Cash Flow

 Total free cash flow of $1.34 billion, an all-time record despite the impact of the pandemic, and over 30% higher than target

Days Sales Outstanding

  DSO of 32 days, an all-time record for the Company and significantly exceeded target

Past Due Balances

  Total past due balances equaled 12% of accounts receivable, which exceeded target

  6% improvement compared to past due balance of 18% in 2019

Balance Sheet/Liquidity Performance Measure. For 2020, the balance sheet/liquidity performance measure includes four metrics, each weighted equally: net leverage, interest expense, debt maturities and repatriations. These metrics were chosen by the LDC Committee based on the priorities of the management team at the onset of the pandemic, as described more fully below.

LOGO

MetricDefinitionRationale for Inclusion
Net LeverageThe net leverage ratio is the ratio of net indebtedness as of December 31, 2020 to Adjusted EBITDA for the year ended December 31, 2020 and shows how many years it would take to repay our indebtedness if net debt and Adjusted EBITDA were held constantThis measure shows how well we can cover our debts and is an important indicator of financial health and balance sheet strength
Interest ExpenseInterest expense is the cost incurred by the Company for borrowed funds for the year ended December 31, 2020, less any interest income received over the same periodKey income statement line item that equals 3%-4% of total revenue and that impacts our balance sheet strength, cash flow and liquidity
Debt MaturitiesDebt maturities encompass the weighted average of the maturity dates of our long-term indebtedness, which consists of senior unsecured notes and our senior secured credit facilitiesManaging debt maturities of our various senior notes and term loans is a critical element of financial planning and can have a significant impact on the Company’s refinancing flexibility
RepatriationsThe amount of cash brought into our US holding company structure from our non-US subsidiaries over the course of the fiscal yearThis is an important strategy that affects the Company’s flexibility in deploying cash, which was critical in 2020 due to the liquidity concerns resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic


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The following table shows highlighted achievements for each of the metrics that comprise the Balance Sheet/Liquidity Performance Measure. The LDC Committee’s view was that the Company performance with respect to the Balance Sheet/Liquidity Measure would have been outstanding in any year, but was particularly noteworthy given the impact of the pandemic. Based on these achievements, the LDC Committee assessed a total score of 18 out of 20 points for the performance measure and, in accordance with the predetermined scorecard for this performance measure, assigned a final payout of 200%.

MetricPerformance Summary
Net Leverage

  Achieved net leverage of 4.5x, which was an improvement over target following the onset of the pandemic

  In February, at the start of the crisis, the Company moved quickly to conserve cash and improve liquidity: suspended share repurchases, reduced capital spend and completed key refinancing transactions to make the full amount of our $1.5 billion revolving credit facility available by June 2020, and increased liquidity during a time when access to credit markets was significantly impaired

  Ended 2020 with $3.3 billion of liquidity, with $1.5 billion in short-term borrowing capacity and $1.8 billion in cash, which significantly exceeded target and was our highest ever and 68% greater than 2019

Interest Expense

  Refinanced $0.8 billion of senior notes due 2024

  Executed $1 billion interest rate swap at the onset of the pandemic in March 2020 and a further $0.3 billion swap in June 2020 to convert floating interest rates to fixed obligations of 0.56% and 0.54%, respectively, protecting against future interest rate increases and increasing our percentage of fixed rate debt to approximately 65% from approximately 60%, which will further increase predictability of interest expense and hedged against a volatile interest rate environment

  As a result of these actions, reduced net interest expense versus target

Debt Maturities

  Refinanced our senior notes due 2024, extending their maturity by four years to 2028, which reduced our nearest-term debt load due in 2024 by 30%

  Following the refinancing, our nearest bond maturity is now the first quarter of 2025

  At start of the crisis, moved quickly to syndicate an $800 million term loan A with a four-year maturity that enabled us to pay down our revolving credit facility to zero

Repatriations

  Total cash repatriation to the US over $1 billion, which exceeded target despite the impacts of the crisis

  Ensured we could maintain short-term borrowing capacity even if we drew down the revolving credit facility


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Individual Performance Measures. The LDC Committee set individualized metrics for each named executive officer for the Strategic/Operational and Leadership/Governance Performance Measures, as detailed in the tables below, to capture key qualitative and quantitative objectives relevant to each executive that are important to the execution of the Company’s overall strategy and performance.

LOGO

LOGO


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The following tables list key highlights from each named executive officer’s 2020 accomplishments for each individual performance measure metric:

Ari Bousbib

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Operational/Strategic Performance
Measure Metrics

Key Achievements

Achieve Vision 2022 operational and strategic objectives

  All planned Vision 2022 program initiatives in 2020 completed ahead of target

Exceeded cost reduction targets by more than 40% through various automation and LEAN process improvement initiatives, reductions in third party spending and rationalization of office facilities

Clinical site activation timelines reduced by 20% through process enhancements and technology, significantly exceeding targets

  Implemented enhanced governance and tools to improve visibility and ROI of investments throughout the organization

Drive continued transformation in our technology offerings

  Expanded market adoption of our Orchestrated Customer Engagement (OCE) platform, gaining 60 new clients in 2020, exceeding target

  Delivery of new HCP Engagement Manager and Optimizer modules for OCE and other product enhancements within target timelines and budget

  Launch of software applications developed for new areas, such as the Vigilance Platform, a pharmacovigilance offering, which secured four global pharmaceutical customers at launch, significantly exceeding target timelines and client wins

  IQVIA’s electronic Clinical Outcomes Assessment (eCOA) solution awarded the 2020 Fierce Innovation Award for best digital innovation and recognized as the top eCOA solution by Industry Standard Research

Enable growth through analytics and Real World offerings

Double digit revenue growth across Real World Solutions offerings despite the impact of the pandemic

  Continued investments in Real World data, with over one billion active non-identified patients globally, significantly exceeding targets

  Sustained market leadership in Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning (AIML) with the launch IQVIA’s AIML Platform to support client’s commercial activities and securing wins with several top 20 pharma clients, significantly exceeding targets

  Expanded data access through new partnerships, such as the collaboration with MIT’s NEWDIGS initiative to build evidence networks for Rheumatoid Arthritis

Achieve clinical development net new business targets

  Clinical research contracted backlog grew 18.5% to $22.6 billion at year end, significantly exceeding target

  Adoption of virtual trials technology increased with over 50 new studies awarded using our virtual trial technology solutions, including awards from 5 of the top 10 pharmaceuticalcompanies, significantly exceeding targets

  New preferred provider relationships established and agreements with several top 10 global pharmaceutical customers extended, exceeding targets

Based on these achievements, the LDC Committee assessed a total score of 19out of a possible 20 points for this performance measure.


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Leadership/Governance
Performance Measure Metrics

Key Achievements

Develop and retain key talent

  Favorability rating in 2020 employee engagement survey improved by 13 percentage points vs 2018 and above Fortune 500 peer benchmarks, significantly exceeding target

  Global employee retention rates improved versus 2019, exceeding targets

  New global programs launched to prepare high potential employees for leadership roles and improve visibility of talent across the global business

  IQVIA recognized on FORTUNE’s list of World’s Most Admired Companies for 2020 for the fourth consecutive year and two female executive leaders were named to the 2020 Pharma VOICE 100 list of most influential and inspiring leaders in the life sciences industry

Stockholder engagement and value creation

2020 total stockholder returns of 16.0%, better than four of five full service late stage CROs in our peer group

  Expansion of trading multiples for forward-looking PE and EV / EBITDA measures

  Hosted more than 70 investors during the year through remote 1:1 meetings, non-deal roadshows and other virtual events

  Ended the year with 18 of 21 analysts covering the Company issuing a “buy” rating, none with a “sell” rating

Ensure highest standards of ethical practice

Strengthened our ethics and compliance program through enhanced compliance policies; quarterly management certification of compliance; tone from the top communications; affirmation of commitment to ethics and compliance by all employees as part of our customized Code of Conduct training; and compliance-based performance objectives for all employees worldwide

  Significantly enhanced framework and governance for the Annual Sustainability and Corporate Citizenship Report

  Advanced board diversity with proposed amendments to Corporate Governance Guidelines requiring future board searches to include diverse candidates

Effective crisis management

Business continuity maintained throughout the pandemic with no interruptions to client delivery, data production, clinical trial operations or sales activity

  Implemented global crisis management structure to create transparency and global alignment in management’s response to the crisis

  CEO led daily briefing calls throughout the crisis with an extended leadership team

  Increased frequency of CEO communication to global employees throughout the crisis

  Early actions taken to conserve cash, increase liquidity and stabilize the company’s financial position

Based on these achievements, the LDC Committee assessed a total score of 20 out of a possible 20 points for this performance measure.


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Ronald E. Bruehlman

Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

Operational/Strategic Performance
Measure Metrics

Key Achievements

Achieve Vision 2022 operational and strategic objectives

  All planned Vision 2022 program initiatives in 2020 completed within target timelines and exceeded cost reduction targets

Achieve net new business targets

  Clinical research contracted backlog grew 18.5% to $22.6 billion at year end, significantly exceeding target

  New preferred provider relationships established and agreements with several top 10 global pharmaceutical customers extended, exceeding targets

  Over 300 COVID-19 vaccines and therapeuticsstudies awarded, enrolling nearly 100,000 patients

Deliver continued value to stockholders

  2020 total stockholder returns of 16.0%, better than four of five full service late stage CROs in our peer group

Expansion of next-twelve-month PE ratio and EBITDA/EV multiple compared to 2019

Hosted 82 institutional investors from 64 different investment firms through 1:1 meetings and other virtual events

  Ended 2020 with 18 of the 21 analysts covering the Company issuing a “buy” rating, none with a “sell” rating

Deliver global financial systems improvements initiatives

  First phase of a global program to consolidate / rationalize critical legacy finance systems launched, achieving financial targets

Continuity of leadership and operations during transition of chief financial officers

  Seamlessly transitioned from prior chief financial officer in a short timeline, receiving positive feedback from employees and investors with no negative analyst commentary

Based on these achievements, the LDC Committee assessed a total score of 17 out of a possible 20 points for this performance measure.

Leadership/Governance
Performance Measure Metrics

Key Achievements

Develop and Retain Key Talent

  Department employee retention exceeded targets

Effective oversight and accountability for investments

  Enhanced governance processes to support and speed M&A integration

  Implemented new governance processes and software tools to monitor return on investment for on-going capital projects, exceeding targets

Effective support for business units

  Worked closely with business unit leaders to revise business forecasts during the crisis

Effective leadership of the Global Finance team

  Successfully transitioned from prior chief financial officer in short timeline

  No loss of key Finance leadership during the CFO transition

  No negative analyst commentary following announcement

  Maintained same operational cadence despite the pandemic

Based on these achievements, the LDC Committee assessed a total score of 18 out of a possible 20 points for this performance measure.


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W. Richard Staub, III

President, Research & Development Solutions

Operational/Strategic Performance

Measure Metrics

 Key Achievements

Achieve Vision 2022 operational and strategic objectives

  All planned Vision 2022 program initiatives in 2020 completed within target timelines and exceeded cost reduction targets

Achieve contracted net new business targets

  Clinical research contracted backlog grew 18.5% to $22.6 billion at year end, significantly exceeding new business targets

  Contracted LTMnet book-to-bill ratio of 1.53x (including pass throughs), significantly exceeding new business targets

  Established new preferred provider relationships and extended prior agreements with several top 10 global pharmaceutical customers, exceeding targets

  Awarded over 300 COVID-19 vaccines and therapeutics studies, enrolling nearly 100,000 patients

Execute on strategic objectives for Clinical Technology

  Accelerated adoption of virtual trial technology, securing over 50 new studies using virtual trial technology with 5 top 10 pharmaceutical clients

  Delivery of the Mobile CRA, Remote Based Monitoring and Clinical Data Repository applications for the OCT platform in-line with the product roadmap strategy targets

Ensure delivery excellence & clients satisfaction

  Reductions in median clinical site activation timelines versus prior year, significantly exceeding targets

  Improved overall client satisfaction scores measured by standardized internal client surveys, significantly exceeding targets

Based on these achievements, the LDC Committee assessed a total score of 18 out of a possible 20 points for this performance measure.

Leadership/Governance Performance

Measure Metrics

 Key Achievements

Develop and Retain Key Talent

  Improved global business unit retention rates versus prior year, exceeding targets

Adherence to Quality and Compliance standards

  Reductions in critical quality findings for on-site clinical monitoring, exceeding targets

  Accelerated adoption of new eTMF platform and improving our overall readiness for future regulatory reviews, exceeding targets

Adoption of employee engagement initiatives

  New employee communications program established and several retention and engagement initiatives launched with positive feedback from employees, exceeding targets

Demonstrate effective leadership of R&DS

  Initiated R&DS COVID-19 task force to coordinate our global response

  Maintained continuity of clinical trial operations and general management cadence throughout the pandemic

Based on these achievements, the LDC Committee assessed a total score of 17 out of a possible 20 points for this performance measure.


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Kevin C. Knightly

President, Technology and Commercial Solutions

Operational/Strategic Performance

Measure Metrics

Key Achievements

Achieve Vision 2022 operational and strategic objectives

  All planned Vision 2022 program initiatives in 2020 completed within target timelines and exceeded cost reduction targets

Execute on commercial technology strategic initiatives

  Expanded market adoption of OCE platform, gaining 60 new wins in 2020, bringing total wins to 140 since launch, exceeding target

  Launched new HCP Engagement Manager and Optimizer modules for OCE and other product enhancements within target timelines and budget, exceeding target

  Launched the Vigilance Platform and secured four new clients at launch, significantly exceeding target timelines and client wins

Protect core information & analytics offerings

  Key data supply agreements renewed within the US and Europe, exceeding targets

  Expanded access to longitudinal patient records in key high-growth markets and non-traditional sources (such as wearable devices), exceeding targets

  Delivered accelerated revenue in our Analytics offerings through new AI/ML enabled offerings, significantly exceeding targets

Accelerate CSMS business growth

  Maintained overall profitability despite revenue declines due to the pandemic

Based on these achievements, the LDC Committee assessed a total score of 14 out of a possible 20 points for this performance measure.

Leadership/Governance

Performance Measure Metrics

Key Achievements

Develop and Retain Key Talent

  Global business unit employee retention rates exceeded targets

Enhance employee engagement

  Achieved employee engagement scores above benchmarks on the latest employee survey

  Implemented new career planning tools, addressing feedback from prior surveys

Collaborate & support regional and global business leaders

  Accelerated and re-prioritized internal and external product investments to adapt to changes in regional business unit needs driven by the crisis

Ensure quality & integrity of information assets

  Maintained continuity of data production throughout the crisis and despite remote working

  No information security issues or supply disruptions throughout the crisis

  Launched new information security tools and enhanced governance processes to further protect our intellectual property and ensure the quality and integrity of our information

Based on these achievements, the LDC Committee assessed a total score of 17 out of a possible 20 points for this performance measure.


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Eric M. Sherbet

Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary

Operational/Strategic Performance

Measure Metrics

Key Achievements

Achieve Vision 2022 operational and strategic objectives

  All planned Vision 2022 program initiatives in 2020 completed within target timelines and significantly exceeded cost reduction targets

Effective stockholder engagement

  Increased stockholder engagement, meeting with stockholders holding approximately 32% of our outstanding common stock

  Substantially revised and enhanced proxy statement, receiving positive feedback from investors

  Partnered with Human Resources and Finance to revise Annual Incentive Plan methodology and process following 2020 say-on-pay vote result

Effective management of investigations and litigation matters

  Exceeded financial targets for core litigation and legal expenses

  Effectively managed litigation portfolio, reducing risk to the Company

Improve guidance and support global mergers and acquisitions legal process

  Implemented enhanced mergers and acquisitions legal processes to streamline deal activities according to transaction size and complexity

Based on these achievements, the LDC Committee assessed a total score of 16 out of a possible 20 points for this performance measure.

Leadership/Governance

Performance Measure Metrics

Key Achievements

Develop and Retain Key Talent

  Department employee retention rates exceeded targets

Enhanced legal organization

  Completed new hires for key senior leader positions

  Reorganized department organizational structure to simplify accountability, improve visibility across regions and reduce management layers

Oversee board/organizational governance processes

  Managed greater frequency of interactions with board of directors during the COVID-19 pandemic and maintained same governance cadence in a remote environment

  Co-led Sustainability and Corporate Citizenship program, which made significant advances in 2020

  Strengthened our ethics and compliance program through enhanced compliance policies; quarterly management certification of compliance; tone from the top communications; affirmation of commitment to ethics and compliance by all employees as part of our customized Code of Conduct training; and compliance-based performance objectives for all employees worldwide

Support organization through COVID-19 pandemic

  Reacted quickly at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, providing global employment law support, privacy law support, contracting support and return to office protocols, many of which were legal issues that had little or no precedence

Based on these achievements, the LDC Committee assessed a total score of 17 out of a possible 20 points for this performance measure.


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The LDC Committee and our Chief Executive Officer (except with respect to his own individual performance) evaluated the performance of each of our named executive officers as described above and determined scores for each individualized performance measure. Based on these scores, and in accordance with the predetermined scorecard for these performance measures, the LDC Committee assigned final payouts to each named executive officer for these individualized performance measures. The chart below sets forth each named executive officer’s payout for each of the Strategic/Operational Performance Measure and the Leadership/Governance Performance Measure.

Named Executive Officer  Strategic/Operational
Performance Measure
 Leadership/Governance
Performance Measure
Ari Bousbib  192% 200%
Ronald E. Bruehlman  180% 200%
W. Richard Staub, III  190% 200%
Kevin C. Knightly  138% 200%
Eric M. Sherbet  170% 200%

Michael R. McDonnell

      (1)      (1) 

1

Mr. McDonnell left the Company on August 3, 2020 and was not eligible to earn a short-term incentive under the Annual Plan with respect to 2020.

Target Incentive. Each of our named executive officers was eligible for an annual short-term incentive award in 2020 ranging from 0% to 200% of their target incentive. Other than for Mr. Bruehlman, who became a named executive officer in August 2020, the target short-term incentive opportunity (expressed as a percentage of base salary) for each of our named executive officers has not changed since 2018. The target short-term incentive opportunity for each of our named executive officers for 2020 under the Annual Plan was as follows:

Named Executive Officer

Target Annual Incentive as a
Percentage of Annual Base Salary

Ari Bousbib

200%

Ronald E. Bruehlman

100%

W. Richard Staub, III

85%

Kevin C. Knightly

85%

Eric M. Sherbet

75%

Michael R. McDonnell

(1)

1

Mr. McDonnell exited the Company on August 3, 2020 and was not eligible to earn a short-term incentive under the Annual Plan with respect to 2020.


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Individual Performance Adjustment. The LDC Committee’s ability to make individual performance adjustments for each named executive officer is an important tool that facilitates a recognition of the relative contributions to our financial and operational success during the year that the LDC Committee believes were not fully captured under the Annual Plan’s payout formula. Adjustments may be positive or negative, at the LDC Committee’s discretion, but upward adjustments are limited to no more than 1/6th of the final award for any named executive officer and in no event may an individual performance adjustment result in a named executive officer’s Formula-Based Payout Factor exceeding 200%. The LDC Committee approved the following individual performance adjustments:

Named Executive OfficerIndividual Performance Adjustment
Ari Bousbib

The LDC Committee recommended and the Board made a positive adjustment of $947,783 to Mr. Bousbib’s Annual Plan payout, representing 14.5% of the final award. This adjustment was made in consideration of the following contributions and accomplishments of Mr. Bousbib:

  Provided exceptional leadership to the global organization, ensuring employees’ maintained motivation and engagement throughout the crisis

  Took a long-term view of pandemic, declining to make dramatic cuts, preserving employment levels for much of the employee population and maintaining base compensation throughout the year in anticipation of a return to growth, which occurred from third quarter onwards

  Launched IQVIA Cares to provide financial aid to more than 2,200 employees around the world who had suffered personal hardship as a result of the pandemic

  Provided leadership during social unrest in the US, communicating more frequently with employees, which led to the launch of new engagement initiatives

  Oversaw an increase in the retention rates for high-potential talent despite increasing prominence of, and competition for talent in, the healthcare industry due to the pandemic

Ronald E. Bruehlman

The LDC Committee made a positive adjustment of $111,474 to Mr. Bruehlman’s Annual Plan payout, representing 16.7% of the final award. This adjustment was made in consideration of the following contributions and accomplishments of Mr. Bruehlman:

  Prior to taking over the CFO role, he provided daily support to the prior CFO and other finance leaders during the crisis in an advisory role

  Led an accelerated planning process for 2021, allowing the business to communicate guidance one quarter earlier than normal

W. Richard Staub, III

The LDC Committee made a positive adjustment of $66,552 to Mr. Staub’s Annual Plan payout, representing 8.3% of the final award. This adjustment was made in consideration of the following contributions and accomplishments of Mr. Staub:

  Provided exceptional leadership to the global R&DS organization, ensuring employees’ maintained motivation and engagement throughout the crisis

  Led a rapid shift of clinical operations to remote-based monitoring while not experiencing any negative impacts on overall quality

  Significantly increased engagement with clients throughout the crisis, providing support and advice

  Rapidly expanded capacity to execute against large recruitment targets for COVID-19 vaccine development trials within short timelines


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Named Executive OfficerIndividual Performance Adjustment
Kevin C. Knightly

The LDC Committee made a positive adjustment of $48,918 to Mr. Knightly’s Annual Plan payout, representing 7.4% of the final award. This adjustment was made in consideration of the following contributions and accomplishments of Mr. Knightly:

  Oversaw the movement of key production and delivery hubs to remote working without any impact to client deliverables, technology implementations or data production

  Led several businesses through the pandemic whose operational performance was significantly impacted by unusual and one-off events resulting from the crisis

Eric M. Sherbet

The LDC Committee made a positive adjustment of $61,585 to Mr. Sherbet’s Annual Plan payout, representing 9.1% of the final award. This adjustment was made in consideration of the following contributions and accomplishments of Mr. Sherbet:

  Provided legal support to enable several refinancing transactions that improved the Company’s liquidity position in midst of pandemic

  Provided leadership and oversaw enhanced sustainability efforts of the Company following social unrest in the US and in response to stockholder feedback

  Led the global legal department throughout the crisis

Named Executive Officer Short-Term Incentive Award Determinations. The table below summarizes the final Annual Plan payouts to our current named executive officers for 2020:

Named Executive
Officer
 Prorated Base
Salary
  x  Target
Incentive
 x Formula-
Based
Performance
Payout Factor
 =  Calculated
Payout
  (+/-)  Individual
Performance
Adjustment
  =  Final
Payout
 
Ari Bousbib $1,788,798     200%   156%     $5,575,197      $947,783      $6,522,980 
Ronald E. Bruehlman $359,508     100%   155%     $557,369      $111,474      $668,842 
W. Richard Staub, III $605,000       85%   144%     $739,469      $66,552      $806,021 
Kevin C. Knightly $550,000       85%   131%     $611,469      $48,918      $660,387 
Eric M. Sherbet $525,000       75%   156%     $615,852      $61,585      $677,437 

The COVID-19 adjustment to 2020 Revenue, Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EPS described more fully under section entitled “Compensation Discussion and Analysis—2020 Compensation Determinations—Impact of COVID-19 on 2020 Financial Results” impacted the total payout amount for each of our named executive officers by no more than approximately 2%.


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2020 LONG-TERM INCENTIVE AWARDS

Consistent with the process set forth under the sections above entitled “Compensation Discussion and Analysis—Compensation Philosophy” and “—Overview of our Executive Compensation Program”, we provide our named executive officers with long-term incentive awards to promote retention, to incentivize sustainable growth and long-term value creation, and to further align the interests of our executives with those of our stockholders during the vesting periods. The grant date value of long-term incentive awards granted to each named executive officer for a given year is based on an assessment of the individual’s position, role and responsibilities within the Company, the overall competitiveness of their total direct compensation opportunity, internal equity considerations and the current retentive value of the long-term incentive awards that remained unvested for each named executive officer. The LDC Committee also considers compensation peer group and other market data for a general understanding of competitive equity compensation practices and considers the impact of the grants on long-term incentive plan usage and share dilution. Additional information on the equity awards granted to our named executive officers in 2020 is set forth in the tables, and related footnotes, under the section above entitled “Compensation of our Named Executive Officers—2020 Grants of Plan-Based Awards”.

Awards Made in 2020. The LDC Committee met on February 11, 2020 to determine 2020 long-term incentive awards. When making the awards, the LDC Committee first determined the total grant date value of the award to be granted to each named executive officer and then delivered that value in two components: three-year performance shares representing 50% and SARs representing the remaining 50% of the total grant date value of the award, assuming target level achievement of applicable performance goals for performance shares, as set forth in the table below. The terms of each type of long-term incentive award are set forth above under “Compensation Discussion and Analysis—2020 Compensation Determinations—2020 Long-Term Incentive Awards”, which terms are generally applicable to long-term incentive awards granted in fiscal 2020 and in previous fiscal years.

Named Executive Officer  Performance Shares   SARs 

Ari Bousbib

  

                $

8,316,609

  

$

7,599,668

Ronald E. Bruehlman1

  

 

 

  

 

 

W. Richard Staub, III

  

                $

831,555

  

$

759,967

Kevin C. Knightly

  

                $

554,412

  

$

506,649

Eric M. Sherbet

  

                $

831,555

  

$

759,967

1

Mr. Bruehlman received $2,699,926 in restricted stock units upon his appointment to Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer on August 1, 2020. In his prior role as a Senior Advisor to our Chief Executive officer, he did not receive performance shares or SARs in 2020.

The 2020-2022 performance share award provides for the grant of common stock at the end of the three-year performance period on the achievement of relative TSR and Adjusted Diluted EPS growth goals over that period, as follows:

Performance Metric Weight  Threshold  Target  Maximum 

3-Year Adjusted Diluted EPS Growth

 

 

75%

 

 

 

6.2%

 

 

 

10.0%

 

 

 

13.6%

 

3-Year TSR vs. S&P 500 (percentile)

 

 

25%

 

 

 

25%

 

 

 

50%

 

 

 

75%

 

Percentage of Target Payout

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

50%

 

 

 

100%

 

 

 

200%

 

The Adjusted Diluted EPS growth target for these 2020-2022 performance shares, as well as our 2019-2021 performance shares, is substantially consistent with the earnings growth trajectory reflected in the three-year financial guidance we disclosed at our 2019 Analyst and Investor conference. At that time, we said we expected continued double digit Adjusted Diluted EPS growth during the 2020-2022 period.


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Chief Executive Officer Long-Term Incentive Award Determination. With respect to the determination of our Chief Executive Officer’s annual long-term incentive award in 2020, the LDC Committee considered all of the factors described above. For further details, see “Compensation Philosophy—Compensation of Chief Executive Officer”. In particular, the Board and the LDC Committee believe that, while compensation of our Chief Executive Officer and other named executive officers is strongly aligned with performance (2020 compensation of our Chief Executive Officer was 87.7% performance-linked), retention of our Chief Executive Officer is imperative to the Company’s success and informs the decisions of the Board and our LDC Committee regarding his annual long-term incentive awards.

The LDC Committee considers, among other factors, the value and vesting schedule of unvested awards and the proportion of unvested awards relative to total awards held by our Chief Executive Officer when considering long-term incentive awards granted to our Chief Executive Officer. In determining the long-term incentive award for our Chief Executive Officer in 2020, the LDC Committee considered the fact that 94% of the value associated with the outstanding equity awards held by our Chief Executive Officer as of early February 2020 would be fully vested or exercisable within approximately 12 months. In making its grant determination, the LDC Committee viewed this impending reduction in unvested awards as a substantial decrease in retention value, making it much easier for a competitor to recruit our Chief Executive Officer and provide him with less of a financial incentive to stay in the face of a potential higher offer from another company.

Performance Share Determinations for 2020. Performance share awards granted to our named executive officers on February 8, 2018 were based on IQVIA’s achievement of Adjusted Diluted EPS growth and Relative TSR goals during a three-year performance period, as described above in the section entitled “Compensation Discussion and Analysis—Elements of Compensation—Long-Term Incentive Awards”. The three-year performance period for the 2018-2020 performance shares ended on December 31, 2020. The number of performance shares that may be earned ranges from 0% of the target award, if the threshold levels of performance are not achieved, to 200% of the target award, if the maximum levels are achieved or exceeded. For results between these marks, the number of shares would be determined by linear interpolation.

As of March 31, 2020, prior to the significant impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic being felt on the Company’s operations, we were forecasting a CAGR for Adjusted Diluted EPS during the 2018—2020 performance period to be over 15%, which would have substantially exceeded the maximum of 12.8% for Adjusted Diluted EPS Growth and would have resulted in a weighted payout factor of 150% for this element of the performance shares formula. Given our TSR performance was at the 80th percentile, the total payout would have been at the 200% maximum level.

The LDC Committee determined that but for the pandemic, we would have, at a minimum, maintained that level of performance based on the Company’s upward sales and profit trajectories and financial forecasts immediately prior to the pandemic.

Key Considerations in Payout Determination. As described more fully above under the section entitled “Compensation Discussion and Analysis—2020 Compensation Determinations—Impact of COVID-19 on 2020 Financial Results”, the LDC Committee considered a number of factors when deciding how to address this overall impact. Key considerations included:

the extraordinary nature of the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on the broader world economy and the healthcare services industry in particular

our named executive officers’ significant efforts to swiftly adapt during the pandemic to ensure the safety of our employees and preserve their jobs and compensation to the largest extent possible

keeping a focus on the well-being of our employees and the Company’s longer-term strategic objectives rather than prioritizing dramatic cuts and restructurings to achieve pre-pandemic short-term targets


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management’s effectiveness in significantly improving the Company’s cash and liquidity position despite the pandemic

the sales and profit growth trajectory the Company was achieving immediately prior to the pandemic; and the rapid return to our sales and profit growth in the fourth quarter of 2020

the CAGR for Adjusted Diluted EPS during the 2018—2020 performance period was forecasted to be over 15% as of March 31, 2020, immediately prior to the significant impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic being felt on the Company’s operations, which would have substantially exceeded the maximum of 12.8% for Adjusted Diluted EPS Growth and would have resulted in a weighted payout factor of 150% for this element of the performance shares formula. Given our TSR performance was at the 80th percentile, the total payout would have been at the 200% maximum level

our strong stock performance in the fourth quarter as investors recognized the named executive officers’ excellent management of our business during the pandemic and strong growth expectations post-pandemic

the importance of making adjustments to retain and motivate our key executives given their tremendous efforts in light of the extraordinary nature of the pandemic

without any adjustment to 2020 Adjusted Diluted EPS, the Adjusted Diluted EPS growth target for our 2021-2023 performance shares granted in February 2021 would be based off an unusually depressed year because of the COVID-19 impact on 2020. This would have meant the target growth rate for these performance awards would have been far too easily achieved in light of the expected resumption of our growth trajectory in 2021. Accordingly, measuring growth from the unadjusted 2020 Adjusted Diluted EPS amount would have misaligned the interests of stockholders and management in driving long-term sustainable growth

at the beginning of the 2018-2020 performance period, in light of significant tax benefits the Company was anticipating receiving in 2018 as a result of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act enacted in 2017 (the “Tax Act”), the LDC Committee applied the expected 2018 tax benefits to the 2017 Adjusted Diluted EPS to raise the base year Adjusted Diluted EPS used for calculating EPS growth during the 2018-2020 performance period; if this adjustment was not made, the target growth rates for these performance awards would have been more easily achieved

After considering the above factors, and consistent with its action on 2020 short-term incentive awards, the LDC approved an adjustment to reflect approximately one-third of the total impact of the COVID-19 pandemic when determining the payouts for the 2018-2020 performance shares. The adjustment was made by the LDC Committee based on its authority under the 2017 Plan to include or exclude any event that is unusual in nature or occurs infrequently and occurs during the applicable performance period. The adjustment, which benefited 2020 Adjusted Diluted EPS, was consistent with the approach the LDC Committee took in 2018 when it adjusted 2017 Adjusted Diluted EPS to increase the base year Adjusted Diluted EPS used to measure the CAGR during the 2018-2020 performance period, thus negating the benefit the Tax Act would have had on the growth rate.

The LDC Committee approved no other adjustments to any other outstanding performance share awards, and this adjustment was correspondingly added back to the 2020 Adjusted Diluted EPS base year for the purpose of setting the baseline for the 2021-2023 performance shares.

For the 2018-2020 performance shares, this adjustment affected the calculation of Adjusted Diluted EPS growth used in the determination of the awards’ final payout factor. There was no impact or adjustment to the calculation of Relative TSR.


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The performance goals and results used to determine the final payout factor for the 2018-2020 performance shares were as follows:

Performance Metric Weight  Threshold  Target  Maximum  Actual  Performance   Payout
Factor
 

3-Year Adjusted Diluted EPS Growth

 

 

75%

 

 

 

5.5%

 

 

 

9.3%

 

 

 

12.8%

 

 

 

12.5%

 

 

190%

 

 

142

3-Year TSR vs. S&P 500 (percentile)

 

 

25%

 

 

 

25   

 

 

 

50   

 

 

 

75   

 

 

 

84   

 

 

200%

 

 

50

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

192

Additional information on the vested value of the performance share awards earned by our named executive officers is set forth in the table and related footnotes below under “Compensation of Named Executive Officers—2020 Option Exercises and Stock Vested”.

PERQUISITESreasonable.

We provide certain perquisites to our Chief Executive Officer each year pursuant to his employment agreement, all of which are considered compensation and subject to taxes. Our Chief Executive Officer receives reimbursement of reasonable expenses related to home security, financial and estate planning, tax preparation services, and executive physical exams in an annual amount not to exceed $50,000 in the aggregate; use of a Company-leased automobile and reimbursement of all related operating expenses; and personal use of corporate aircraft, subject to the business needs of the Company. We do not provide any tax gross-ups to our Chief Executive Officer in connection with any of these benefits.

We believe the cost of providing such perquisites in 20202021 was reasonable and represents a relatively small percentage of the executive’s overall compensation package.


96  |  Compensation Discussion and AnalysisIQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT

PAY IS ALIGNED WITH PERFORMANCE

Executive Pay Mix for 2020. The vast majority of the targeted mix of compensation forperquisites provided to our Chief Executive Officer and other named executive officers that were in role for full year 2020 consisted of variable pay elements. This breakdown directly ties executive pay to our performance, including financial results, strategic initiatives2021 are summarized and stock performance. In addition, the LDC Committee believes that a significant percentage of our Chief Executive Officer’s target compensation package should consist of compensation that aligns with our compensation philosophy of appropriately balancing risk and motivating our executive officers to achieve Company performance objectivesreported in the short term2021 Summary Compensation Table below in the section entitled “Compensation of Named Executive Officers.”

Rigorous Accountability, Risk-Mitigation and to grow the business to create value for our stockholders over the long term. The following charts reflect the mix of pay for our Chief Executive Officer (87.7% performance-linked) and the average for our other named executive officers that were in role for full year 2020 (75.8% performance-linked):

Chief Executive Officer

Average of other Named Executive Officers

LOGO

LOGO

In addition, most of our named executive officers’ incentive compensation is tilted toward long-term awards, which further aligns compensation with long-term Company performance.

Fiscal 2020 short-term vs. long-term incentive compensation

LOGO


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Key Features to Align Executive Pay with Stockholder Interests. As illustrated below, we tie our executive compensation program to our long-term business strategy by keeping our executives focused on, and rewarding them for, their achievement of short- and long-term goals that are integral to our strategy.

LOGO

Annual Plan

  A significant portion of our named executive officer’s individual performance goals, upon which Annual Plan payouts are determined, are tied to one or more of our strategic goals

  We link a substantial portion of compensation to corporate performance through our use of achievement of specified Revenue, Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted Diluted EPS goals and liquidity and cash flow metrics in determining annual cash incentive awards

Aligns named executive officers with stockholders’ interests by:

  Rewarding individual performance for achievement of strategic goals, which are increased each year and designed to position the Company as an industry leader

  Incentivizing behavior consistent with strong annual Revenue/Profit, Cash Flow and Balance Sheet/Liquidity performance

Long-Term Incentive Awards

  We consider individual performance (which is tied to our strategic goals) in setting the value of our named executive officer’s long-term equity grants

  We link a substantial portion of compensation to long-term corporate performance through the use of long-term incentives, including performance shares that use Relative TSR and Adjusted Diluted EPS as financial metrics

Further aligns named executive officer’s interests with stockholders’ interests by:

  Taking individual performance (which is tied to our strategic goals) into account in making grants

  Linking a substantial portion of long-term compensation to long-term corporate and stock performance

Recovery Provisions

RIGOROUS ACCOUNTABILITY, RISK-MITIGATION AND RECOVERY PROVISIONS

Share ownership guidelines.Ownership Guidelines

Under our share ownership guidelines established by the LDC Committee, our named executive officers are expected to own shares of our stock with a value equal to at least the following multiples of their annual base salaries:salaries noted below. The below table reflects each named executive officer’s share ownership relative to their ownership requirement as of February 15, 2022.

 

Named Executive Officer

Share Ownership

Guideline1

Ownership Level as

of February 12, 20211

Ari Bousbib

6x

128X

Ronald E. Bruehlman

3x

8X

W. Richard Staub, III

3x

7X

Kevin C. Knightly

3x

9X

Eric M. Sherbet2

3x

2X

1

Represents the applicable multiple of the named executive officer’s annual base salary.

2

Mr. Sherbet joined IQVIA in March 2018.

Our share ownership guidelines are designed to increase each named executive officer’s ownership stake in usIQVIA and align their interests with the interests of our stockholders.


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For purposes of the policy,share ownership guidelines, shares are treated as owned if they are owned directly, held through the named executive officer’s account under our retirement plans, or if they are underlying unvested time-based restricted stock unit awards or unvested time-based restricted stock awards. Shares are not counted as owned for purposes of our share ownership guidelines if they are underlying any unvested

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performance shares or other performance-based awards or underlying any stock option award or stock appreciation rightsSAR award, whether or not vested. While there is no set period in which these ownership levels must be met, individualsofficers covered by the guidelines including our named executive officers, are required to retain at least 50% of the shares, net of applicable tax withholding and payment of exercise price (if applicable), receivedthey receive upon the vesting of long-term incentive awards or the exercise of stock options or stock appreciation rights,SARs, until thesethe share ownership guidelines are met.

Clawback policy.Policy

We maintain a formal recoupment, or “clawback,” policy for the recovery of incentive-based compensation paid to current and former executive officers, among others, on the basis of financial results that are subsequently restated as a result of misconduct or material noncompliance with financial reporting requirements under GAAP and SEC rules, andor in the event of a breach of restrictive covenants. The Board administers this policy with respect to executive officers and has the sole discretion to invoke the policy and direct the Company to recover incentive-based compensation received by such persons on the basis of the restatement or misconduct event.individuals in such circumstances.

Risk AssessmentRISK ASSESSMENT

In designing executive compensation, the LDC Committee seeks to create incentives to promote our long-term business success without encouraging undue risk taking. As part of its program design, the LDC Committee’s external compensation consultant performs a risk assessment annually. In 2021, consistent with prior years, the external compensation consultant did not identify any areas of concern in our executive compensation program. The LDC Committee has reviewed our compensation programs, including the external compensation consultants’ risk assessment reports, and has concluded that the risks arising from them are not reasonably likely to have a material adverse effect on us. We do not believe that our compensation programs generally, including the executive compensation program, encourage excessive or inappropriate risk-taking. While appropriate risk-taking is a necessary component of growing a business, the LDC Committee and management have focused on aligning our compensation policies with our long-term interests and avoiding short-term rewards for management and employee decisions that could pose undue long-term risks.

Tax DeductibilityTAX DEDUCTIBILITY

Section 162(m) of the Internal Revenue Code limits the deductibility of compensation paid to certain individuals, including certain current and former executive officers, to $1 million per year. Prior to a change in the tax law in late 2017, certain performance-based compensation awarded or paid by the Company, such as stock appreciation rights and, in some cases, performance shares and annual incentive plan awards, had been eligible to not be limited as to deductibility under such Section 162(m) (if certain requirements had been met). After the change in tax law, as a general matter, all such compensation and other compensation paid to individuals covered by Section 162(m) will be subject to the limitation on deductibility, subject to limited grandfathering exceptions for certain compensation paid pursuant to written binding contracts in effect on November 2, 2017, and not materially modified after such date. The LDC Committee believes that its primary responsibility is to providedesign and administer an executive compensation program that meets the Company’s objectives, described above, and that stockholder interests are best served if it retains flexibility and discretion to approve compensation arrangements even if they may not qualify for full or partial tax deductibility and to amend existing arrangements even if such amendment could result in a loss or limitation of deductibility. Therefore, the LDC Committee has approved compensation arrangements for executive officers that did not qualify for full tax deductibility due to Section 162(m), and will continue to do so in the future.


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  |  99

Compensation Committee
Report

 

Compensation Committee Report

The LDC Committee has reviewed and discussed with management the foregoing Compensation Discussion and Analysis. Based on such review and discussions, the LDC Committee recommended to the Board that the Compensation Discussion and Analysis be included in this Proxy Statement and incorporated by reference into our 20202021 Annual Report for filing with the SEC.

The Leadership Development and Compensation Committee

Ronald A. Rittenmeyer, Chair


Carol J. Burt


John P. Connaughton


John G. Danhakl


Todd B. Sisitsky


100  |  
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Compensation of Named Executive Officers

2021 Summary Compensation of Named Executive Officers

Table2020 SUMMARY COMPENSATION TABLE

The following table presents summary information regarding the compensation awarded to, earned by, or paid to each of our named executive officers for services rendered to us in all capacities for the fiscal years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 2019 and 2018,2019, if the named executive officer was an executive officer in that fiscal year.

Year  

Salary(1)

($)

   

Bonus

($)

   

Stock

Awards(2)

($)

   

Option

Awards(3)

($)

   

Non-Equity

Incentive Plan

Compensation(4)

($)

   

Change in

Pension Value

and Non-

Qualified

Deferred

Compensation

Earnings(5)

($)

   

All Other

Compensation(6)

($)

   

Total

($)

 

Ari Bousbib

 

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

 

2020

   1,643,333      8,316,609   7,599,668   6,522,980   898,824   594,572   25,575,986

2019

   1,684,470      6,599,377   6,026,709   6,600,000   583,877   645,343   22,139,776
2018   1,600,000      3,911,254   3,637,456   6,300,000   476,553   536,516   16,461,779

Ronald E. Bruehlman

 

Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer

 

2020   358,333      2,699,926      668,842   55,892   145,378   3,928,371

W. Richard Staub, III

 

President, Research & Development Solutions

 

2020

   584,833      831,555   759,967   806,021      62,289   3,044,665

2019

   596,050      659,961   602,661   720,000      62,487   2,641,159
2018   578,550      521,475   484,991   615,000      43,041   2,243,057

Kevin C. Knightly

 

President, Technology & Commercial Solutions

 

2020

   531,667      554,412   506,649   660,387   260,056   37,293   2,550,464

2019

   542,500      659,961   602,661   600,000   173,261   35,366   2,613,749
2018   517,500      521,475   484,991   575,000   57,865   33,351   2,190,182

Eric M. Sherbet

 

Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary

 

2020

   507,500      831,555   759,967   677,437      51,075   2,827,534

2019

   515,000      659,961   602,661   550,000      41,537   2,369,159
2018   415,833      294,676   275,003   350,000      63,939   1,399,451

Michael R. McDonnell

 

Former Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer

 

2020

   371,292      887,111   810,615         15,685   2,084,703

2019

   660,000      824,866   753,325   645,000      64,852   2,948,043
2018   650,000      651,772   606,223   600,000      58,560   2,566,555

Year

Salary

($)(1)

 

Bonus

($)

Stock

Awards

($)(2)

Option

Awards

($)(3)

Non-Equity

Incentive Plan

Compensation

($)(4)

Change in

Pension

Value and

Non-Qualified

Deferred

Compensation

Earnings

($)(5)

All Other

Compensation

($)(6)

Total

($)

Ari Bousbib

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

2021

1,800,000

 

14,108,891

4,425,579

7,200,000

535,539

545,842

28,615,851

2020

1,643,333

 

8,316,609

7,599,668

6,522,980

898,824

594,572

25,575,986

2019

1,684,470

 

6,599,377

6,026,709

6,600,000

583,877

645,343

22,139,776

Ronald E. Bruehlman

Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer

2021

872,900

 

3,919,001

1,229,325

1,742,849

95,462

54,629

7,914,166

2020

358,333

(1) 

2,699,926

668,842

55,892

145,378

3,928,371

W. Richard Staub, III

President, Research & Development Solutions

2021

614,075

 

1,410,793

442,539

1,026,297

69,961

3,563,665

2020

584,833

 

831,555

759,967

806,021

62,289

3,044,665

2019

596,050

 

659,961

602,661

720,000

62,487

2,641,159

Kevin C. Knightly

President, Technology & Commercial Solutions

2021

558,250

 

1,175,576

368,783

849,315

91,344

44,716

3,087,984

2020

531,667

 

554,412

506,649

660,387

260,056

37,293

2,550,464

2019

542,500

 

659,961

602,661

600,000

173,261

35,366

2,613,749

Eric M. Sherbet

Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary

2021

532,875

 

1,254,104

393,368

776,511

60,306

3,017,164

2020

507,500

 

831,555

759,967

677,437

51,075

2,827,534

2019

515,000

 

659,961

602,661

550,000

41,537

2,369,159

(1)
IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement82

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(1)

Salary information for Mr. Bruehlman in 2020 reflects amounts paid whento him from August 1, 2020 to December 31, 2020, the period of time he assumed the role ofserved as our Chief Financial Officer on August 1,in 2020. Salary information for Mr. Sherbet in 2018 reflects amounts paid since his employment commenced with us on March 1, 2018. In reaction to the COVID-19 pandemic, each of the above namedabove-named executive officers, along with other members of senior management, voluntarily elected to forgo a percentage of his base salary for the period May 1 to June 30, 2020 (or, in the case of Mr. Bruehlman, his consulting fees for the same period), with the applicable percentage for our Chief Executive Officer being 50% and for the other named executive officers being 20%. This resulted in a total amount of $232,173 contributed to the IQVIA Cares program, which provided financial aid to employees who had suffered personal hardship as a result of the pandemic.

(2)

Amounts reflect the aggregate grant date fair value of time-based RSU awards and/or performance shares (the restricted stock or restricted stock units, as(as applicable) granted in the relevant fiscal year computed in accordance with Accounting Standards Codification Topic 718,


IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENTCompensation of Named Executive Officers  |  101

“Compensation— “Compensation—Stock Compensation,” or ASC 718, excluding the impact of estimated forfeitures. Assumptions used in the calculation of these amounts in 20202021 are included in Note 17 to our consolidated audited financial statements for the fiscal year ended December 31, 20202021, included in Part II of our annual reportAnnual Report on Form 10-K. For performance shares granted to our named executive officers in 2020,2021, the amount reported in the table above is based on the probable outcome of the performance conditions associated with the awards as of the grant date. The grant date fair value of the performance shares, made in the form of restricted stock units, granted to each of our named executive officers in 20202021, assuming the highest level of achievement of the performance conditions, was $16,633,219$19,366,848 for Mr. Bousbib, $1,663,110$5,379,593 for Mr. Bruehlman, $1,936,676 for Mr. Staub, $1,108,824$1,613,667 for Mr. Knightly, $1,663,110and $1,721,459 for Mr. Sherbet and $1,774,222 for Mr. McDonnell.

Sherbet.  

(3)

Amounts reflect the aggregate grant date fair value for each SAR award granted in the relevant fiscal year as computed in accordance with ASC 718, excluding the impact of estimated forfeitures. Assumptions used in the calculation of these amounts in 20202021 are included in Note 17 to our consolidated audited financial statements for the fiscal year ended December 31, 20202021, included in Part II of our annual reportAnnual Report on Form 10-K.

(4)

Amounts for 20202021 reflect amounts to be paid in March 20212022 under the Annual Plan, as applicable to the named executive officer, as approved by the LDC Committee in February 2021.2022. See “Compensation Discussion and Analysis—20202021 Compensation Determinations—20202021 Short-Term Incentive Awards.” Mr. McDonnell was not paid a bonus under the Annual Plan with respect to 2020 and was not eligible to earn a bonus under the Annual Plan with respect to 2020.

(5)

20202021 values represent (i) the aggregate change in the present value of each named executive officer’s accumulated benefit under the IMS Health Retirement Plan and Retirement Excess Plan from December 31, 20192020, to December 31, 20202021, and (ii) interest earned from December 31, 20192020, to December 31, 20202021, on deferred compensation that is considered “above-market interest” under SEC rules. The change in pension value is broken down below to show the effect of an additional year of service by the named executive officer on the present values versus changes in present value attributable to actuarial assumptions. “Above market interest” is equal to the difference between the interest credited to the cash portion of Mr. Knightly’s account under the IMS Health Defined Contribution Executive Retirement Plan from December 31, 20192020, to December 31, 20202021, using the interest rate determined under the plan’s provisions (2.62%(2.82%) and the interest that would have been credited using 120% of the long-term applicable federal rate for December 20202021 (or 1.58%2.28% using annual compounding). Each of these components is shown in the following table:

   Change in Present Value of Pension Benefit     
Name  

Due to additional

accruals

($)

   

Due to change

in actuarial

assumptions

($)

   

Total

($)

   

Above Market

Interest on Deferred

Compensation

($)

 

Ari Bousbib

  

 

556,571

  

 

342,253

  

 

898,824

  

 

 

Ronald E. Bruehlman   24,174   31,718   55,892    

Kevin C. Knightly

  

 

101,638

  

 

147,186

  

 

248,824

  

 

11,232

 

Name

Change in Present Value of Pension Benefit

Above Market Interest

on Deferred

Compensation

($)

Due to additional

accruals

($)

Due to change

in actuarial

assumptions

($)

Total

($)

Ari Bousbib

596,488

(60,949)

535,539

Ronald E. Bruehlman

102,348

(6,886)

95,462

Kevin C. Knightly

110,648

(24,576)

86,072

5,272

(6)

See below for additional information regarding the amounts disclosed in theAmounts reported as “All Other Compensation” column.

2020 ALL OTHER COMPENSATION

The following table details the components of the amounts reflected in the “All Other Compensation” column of the Summary Compensation Table for each of our named executive officers for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020.

Name 

Life

Insurance

Premiums/

Other

Benefits

($)

  

Matching

Contributions

to 401(k)(1)

($)

  

Savings

Equalization

Plan Matching

Contribution(2)

($)

  

Consulting
Fees(3)

($)

  

Other

Perquisites(4)

($)

  

Total

($)

 

Ari Bousbib

 

 

4,902

 

 

8,550

 

 

247,110

 

 

 

 

 

334,010

 

 

594,572

Ronald E. Bruehlman

 

 

3,135

 

 

8,550

 

 

3,133

 

 

130,560

 

 

 

 

 

145,378

W. Richard Staub, III

 

 

4,881

 

 

12,825

 

 

44,583

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

62,289

Kevin C. Knightly

 

 

4,902

 

 

7,917

 

 

24,474

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

37,293

Eric M. Sherbet

 

 

4,902

 

 

12,825

 

 

33,348

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

51,075

Michael R. McDonnell

 

 

2,860

 

 

12,825

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

15,685

(1)

Representsinclude the following items: (i) life insurance premiums of $7,524 each for Messrs. Bousbib, Bruehlman and Knightly and $4,902 each for Messrs. Staub and Sherbet; (ii) matching contributions to the IQVIA 401(k) Planplan on behalf of our named executive officers.

(2)

Representsofficers of $8,700 each for Messrs. Bousbib, Bruehlman and Knightly and $13,050 each for Messrs. Staub and Sherbet; (iii) certain make-whole plan contributions to the IQVIA Savings Equalization Plan on behalf of our named executive officers equal to the amounts that would have been contributed by us on behalf of each of the named executive officers to


102  |  Compensation of Named Executive OfficersIQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT

the applicable tax-qualified 401(k) plan under the plan’s matching contribution formula if not for certain limits applicable to tax-qualified plans under the Internal Revenue Code.

(3)

Consulting fees paid to Mr. Bruehlman during 2020 prior to his employment commencement on August 1, 2020.

(4)

Amounts in this columnCode of $246,460 for Mr. Bousbib, represent$38,405 for Mr. Bruehlman, $52,009 for Mr. Staub, $28,492 for Mr. Knightly and $42,354 for Mr. Sherbet; and (iv) other perquisites for Mr. Bousbib, including (x) reimbursement of estate planning services ($50,000)of $50,000, (y) automobile lease payments and the cost to the Company to lease an automobile for Mr. Bousbib and to reimburse him for all operating expenses related to usethereto of $28,220 and (z) personal usage of the automobile ($32,285). It also includes the aggregate incremental cost for personalCompany’s aircraft usage ($251,725).of $204,938. For safety, security and productivity reasons, we strongly encourage Mr. Bousbib to use the Company’s aircraft for personal travel. Mr. Bousbib is entitled to use of the corporate aircraft for personal use up to 150 hours per annum,year, subject to the business needs of the Company. The amount of incremental cost for personal aircraft usage is determined by calculating the hourly variable costs (i.e., fuel, catering, aircraft maintenance, landing and parking fees, crew costs and other miscellaneous costs) for the aircraft, and then multiplying the result by the hours flown for personal use during the year. Incremental cost, if any, of travel by the executive’s family when accompanying the executive is also included.

IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement83

Back to Contents2020 GRANTS OF PLAN-BASED AWARDS

2021 Grants of Plan-Based Awards

The following table sets forth information regarding plan-based awards made to each of our named executive officers during 2020.2021.

     Committee
Action
Date
     

Estimated Future Payouts Under

Non-Equity Incentive Plan
Awards(1)

     

 

Estimated Future Payouts

Under Equity Incentive Plan

Awards(4)

     

All Other

Stock

Awards:

Number of

Shares of

Stock

or Units(5)

(#)

  

All Other

Option

Awards:

Number of

Securities

Underlying

Options(6)

(#)

  

Exercise

or Base

Price of

Option

Awards(7)

($)

  

Grant

Date Fair

Value of

Stock and

Option

Awards(8)

($)

 
Name Grant
Date
      

Threshold(2)

($)

  

Target

($)

  

Maximum(3)

($)

      

Threshold

(#)

  

Target

(#)

  

Maximum

(#)

     

Ari Bousbib

            3,600,000  7,200,000                       
  2/11/2020   2/11/2020              23,447  46,895  93,790            8,316,609
 

 

  2/11/2020   2/11/2020   

 

 

 

 

 

           

 

 

 

 

 

           

 

 

 

 

 

     224,040  161.70  7,599,668

Ronald E. Bruehlman

            860,000  1,720,000                       
 

 

  8/3/2020   7/27/2020   

 

 

 

 

 

           

 

 

 

 

 

           

 

 

 

 

 

  16,751        2,699,926

W. Richard Staub, III

            514,250  1,028,500                       
  2/11/2020   2/11/2020              2,344  4,689  9,378            831,555
 

 

  2/11/2020   2/11/2020   

 

 

 

 

 

           

 

 

 

 

 

           

 

 

 

 

 

     22,404  161.70  759,967

Kevin C. Knightly

            467,500  935,000                       
  2/11/2020   2/11/2020              1,563  3,126  6,252            554,412
 

 

  2/11/2020   2/11/2020   

 

 

 

 

 

           

 

 

 

 

 

           

 

 

 

 

 

     14,936  161.70  506,649

Eric Sherbet

            393,750  787,500                       
  2/11/2020   2/11/2020              2,344  4,689  9,378            831,555
 

 

  2/11/2020   2/11/2020   

 

 

 

 

 

           

 

 

 

 

 

           

 

 

 

 

 

     22,404  161.70  759,967

Michael R. McDonnell

            569,500  1,139,000                       
  2/11/2020   2/11/2020              2,501  5,002  10,004            887,111
 

 

  2/11/2020   2/11/2020   

 

 

 

 

 

           

 

 

 

 

 

           

 

 

 

 

 

     23,897  161.70  810,615

Name

Grant

Date

Committee

Action

Date

Estimated Future Payouts

Under Non-Equity Incentive

Plan Awards(1)

 

Estimated Future Payouts

Under Equity Incentive

Plan Awards(4)

All Other

Stock

Awards:

Number of

Shares of

Stock or

Units

(#)(5)

All Other

Option

Awards:

Number of

Securities

Underlying

Options

(#)(6)

Exercise

or Base

Price of

Option

Awards

($)(7)

Grant

Date Fair

Value of

Stock and

Option

Awards

($)(8)

Threshold

($)(2)

Target

($)

Maximum

($)(3)

Threshold

(#)

Target

(#)

Maximum

(#)

Ari Bousbib

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3,600,000

7,200,000

 

 

2/9/2021

2/9/2021

 

24,075

48,151

96,302

9,683,424

 

2/9/2021

2/9/2021

 

24,075

4,425,467

 

2/9/2021

2/9/2021

 

96,124

183.82

4,425,579

Ronald E. Bruehlman

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

885,800

1,771,600

 

 

2/9/2021

2/9/2021

 

6,687

13,375

26,750

2,689,797

 

2/9/2021

2/9/2021

 

6,687

1,229,204

 

2/9/2021

2/9/2021

 

26,701

183.82

1,229,325

W. Richard Staub, III

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

529,678

1,059,356

 

 

2/9/2021

2/9/2021

 

2,407

4,815

9,630

968,338

 

2/9/2021

2/9/2021

 

2,407

442,455

 

2/9/2021

2/9/2021

 

9,612

183.82

442,539

Kevin C. Knightly

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

481,525

963,050

 

 

2/9/2021

2/9/2021

 

2,006

4,012

8,024

806,833

 

2/9/2021

2/9/2021

 

2,006

368,743

 

2/9/2021

2/9/2021

 

8,010

183.82

368,783

Eric M. Sherbet

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

405,563

811,126

 

 

2/9/2021

2/9/2021

 

2,140

4,280

8,560

860,729

 

2/9/2021

2/9/2021

 

2,140

393,375

 

2/9/2021

2/9/2021

 

8,544

183.82

393,368

(1)

Represents annual cash incentive award opportunities granted under the Annual Plan. As described in “Compensation Discussion and Analysis—2021 Short-Term Incentive Awards” above, each named executive officer was eligible to receive a target annual incentive equal to a percentage of his annual base salary. The actual amount paid to our named executive officers under the Annual Plan for 2021 is included in the Summary Compensation Table above, in the column labeled “Non-Equity Incentive Plan Compensation.”

(2)

Under the Annual Plan, amounts shown in the “threshold” column assume our LDC Committee exercises its discretion to authorize the lowest possible award (or $0) for each named executive officer. See “Compensation Discussion and Analysis—2021 Compensation Determinations—2021 Short-Term Incentive Awards.”

(3)

Under the Annual Plan, amounts shown in the “Maximum” column represent 200% of the named executive officers’ target award amount. See “Compensation Discussion and Analysis— 2021 Compensation Determinations —2021 Short-Term Incentive Awards.”

(4)

Represents performance shares granted in 2021. See “Compensation Discussion and Analysis— 2021 Compensation Determinations —2021 Long-Term Incentive Awards.”

(1)

Represents annual cash incentive award opportunities granted under the Annual Plan. As described in “Compensation Discussion and Analysis—2020 Short-Term Incentive Awards” above, each named executive officer, other than Mr. McDonnell, was eligible to receive a target annual incentive equal to a percentage of his annual base salary. The actual amount paid to our named executive officers under the Annual Plan for 2020 is included in the Summary Compensation Table above, in the column labeled

“Non-EquityIQVIA HOLDINGS INC.  Incentive Plan Compensation.”

  2022 Proxy Statement
84

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(2)

Under the Annual Plan, amounts shown in the “threshold” column assume our LDC Committee exercises its discretion to authorize the lowest possible award (or $0) for each named executive officer. See “Compensation Discussion and Analysis—2020 Compensation Determinations—2020 Short-Term Incentive Awards.”

(3)

Under the Annual Plan, amounts shown in the “Maximum” column represent 200% of the named executive officers’ target award amount. See “Compensation Discussion and Analysis—2020 Compensation Determinations—2020 Short-Term Incentive Awards.”

(4)

Represents performance shares granted in 2020. See “Compensation Discussion and Analysis—2020 Compensation Determinations—2020 Long-Term Incentive Awards.”

(5)

Consists of the number of Restricted Stock Units (RSUs) granted in 2020, which vest over three years, in three equal installments beginning on the first anniversary of the grant date.

(6)

Consists of the number of time-based SARsRSUs granted in 2020,2021, which vest over three years in three equal installments beginning on the first anniversary of the grant date. See “Compensation Discussion and Analysis—2020 2021 Compensation Determinations—2020Determinations —2021 Long-Term Incentive Awards.”

(6)

Consists of the number of time-based SARs granted in 2021, which vest over three years in three equal installments beginning on the first anniversary of the grant date. See “Compensation Discussion and Analysis— 2021 Compensation Determinations —2021 Long-Term Incentive Awards.”

(7)

The exercise price is equal to the closing price per share of our common stock on the grant date, as reported on the NYSE.

(8)

Reflects the grant date fair value of equity awards granted in 20202021 determined in accordance with FASB ASC Topic 718. See footnotes (2) and (3) to the “Summary Compensation Table.”


IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENTCompensation of Named Executive Officers  |  103

Narrative disclosureDisclosure to summary compensation tableSummary Compensation Table and 2020 grants2021 Grants of plan-based awards table.Plan-Based Awards Table

We have entered into agreements with Messrs. Bousbib, Bruehlman, Staub and Sherbet governing the terms of their employment. The material terms of each of the agreements with these named executive officers are described below. Each of the agreements also provides for certain payments and benefits to which the named executive officer may be entitled in connection with a termination of employment or upon a change in control, which are described below under “—Potential Payments Upon Termination or Change in Control”.

Employment Agreement with ourOur Chief Executive Officer.In February 2019, we amended and restated theOfficer

Our employment agreement with our Chief Executive Officer replacing and superseding his prior employment agreement, which was most recently amended and restated in July 2018. The amended and restated agreement increased our Chief Executive Officer’sprovides for a base salary and provided that his outstanding long-term incentive awards would remain outstanding and eligible for vesting, subject to certain limitations, in the event of his retirement from the Company, but otherwise preserved the terms and conditions of his existing agreement. Our Chief Executive Officer’s employment agreement has a three-year term, commencing July 26, 2018, with automatic one-year renewals thereafter unless either party gives a notice of non-renewalis currently set at least sixty days in advance. Under the amended employment agreement, our Chief Executive Officer’s annual base salary is $1.7 million, which has since been increased to $1.8 million and is subject to annual review. Pursuant to the agreement, he remainsis eligible to receive an annual bonus with a target amount of 200% of his annual base salary. Pursuant to his employment agreement,In addition, our Chief Executive Officer is entitledeligible to participate in our savings, retirement and health and welfare plans, and certain deferred compensation plans and our long-term incentive plan in accordance with their terms, and he is also entitled toprovided certain perquisites, as described more fully under “Compensation Discussion and Analysis—2021 Compensation

Determinations—Retirement, Perquisites and Termination Benefits—Perquisites”,Perquisites,” and in note 6 to the “2019“2021 Summary Compensation Table”, above. The employment agreement also includesrenews annually on July 26th for a further one-year term unless either party gives notice of non-renewal at least sixty days in advance.

The employment agreement further provides for certain restrictive covenants in favor of the Company, including a covenant not to compete with us or to solicit our clients or employees during and for 24 months following termination of his employment with us.

Agreements with Mr. Bruehlman.In August 2020, we entered intoBruehlman

We have a letter agreement with Mr. Bruehlman in connection with his appointment as our Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer, effective August 1, 2020.that provides for a base salary that is currently set at $885,800 and is subject to annual review. The letter agreement does not specify a term of employment, and either we or Mr. Bruehlman may terminate the employment relationship at any time for any reason. Under hisPursuant to the letter agreement, Mr. Bruehlman’s initial annual base salary was $860,000, his target annual bonus is 100% of his annual base salarysalary; and he is also entitledeligible to participate in our savings, retirement and welfare plans and long-term incentive plan in accordance with their terms. Under his letter agreement, Mr. Bruehlman was also entitled to a long-term incentive award with a grant date value of $2,700,000 effective as of August 3, 2020.

Mr. Bruehlman is also subject to a Non-Competition Agreementnon-competition agreement that includes, among other things, provisions regarding non-competition and non-solicitation of customers and employees for 12 months following his termination of employment for any reason.

IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement85

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Agreements with Mr. Staub. In November 2016, we entered intoStaub

We have a letter agreement with Mr. Staub in connection with his appointment as President, Research & Development Solutions.that provides for a base salary that is currently set at $623,150 and is subject to annual review. The letter agreement does not specify a term of employment, and either we or Mr. Staub may terminate the employment relationship at any time for any reason. Under hisPursuant to the letter agreement, Mr. Staub’s initial annual base salary was $540,000, which has since been increased to $605,000, hisBruehlman’s target annual bonus is 85% of his annual base salary,salary; and he is entitledalso eligible to participate in our savings, retirement and welfare plans and long-term incentive plan in accordance with their terms.

Mr. Staub is also subject to a Non-Competition Agreementnon-competition agreement that includes, among other things, provisions regarding non-competition and non-solicitation of customers and employees for 24 months following his termination of employment for any reason.


104  |  Compensation of Named Executive OfficersIQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT

Agreements with Mr. Sherbet. In January 2018, we entered into

We have a letter agreement with Mr. Sherbet in connection with his appointment as our Executive Vice President, General Counselthat provides for a base salary that is currently set at $540,750 and Secretary, effective March 1, 2018.is subject to annual review. The letter agreement does not specify a term of employment, and either we or Mr. Sherbet may terminate the employment relationship at any time for any reason. Under hisPursuant to the letter agreement, Mr. Sherbet’s initial annual base salary was $490,000, which has since been increased to $525,000, his target annual bonus is 75% of his annual base salarysalary; and he is also entitledeligible to participate in our savings, retirement and welfare plans and long-term incentive plan in accordance with their terms.

Mr. Sherbet is also subject to a Non-Competition Agreementnon-competition agreement that includes, among other things, provisions regarding non-competition and non-solicitation of customers and employees for 12 months following his termination of employment for any reason.


IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.  2021 PROXY STATEMENT  2022 Proxy StatementCompensation of Named Executive Officers  |  10586

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Outstanding Equity Awards at Fiscal Year-End for 2021OUTSTANDING EQUITY AWARDS AT FISCAL YEAR-END FOR 2020

The following table sets forth information regarding long-term incentive awards held by our named executive officers as of December 31, 2020.2021.

      Option/SAR Awards     Stock Awards 
Name Grant
Date
  Number of
Securities
Underlying
Unexercised
Options /
SARs
(exercisable)
(#)
  

Number of

Securities

Underlying

Unexercised

Options/SARs

(unexercisable)

(#)(3)

  

Equity

Incentive

Awards:

Number of

Securities

Underlying

Unexercised

Unearned

Options/

SARs

(#)

  Option/
SARs
Exercise
Price
($)
  Option/
SARs
Expiration
Date
      

Number of

Shares or

Units of

Stock That

Have Not

Vested

(#)(3)

  

Market

Value of

Shares or

Units of

Stock That

Have Not

Vested(1)

($)

  

Equity

Incentive

Plan

Awards:

Number of

Unearned

Shares,

Units or

Other

Rights That

Have Not

Vested(2)

(#)(3)

  

Equity

Incentive

Plan

Awards:

Market or

Payout

Value of

Unearned

Units or

Other

Rights That

Have Not

Vested(1)(2)

($)

 

Ari Bousbib

  2/10/2015   82,847  -   -   65.16  2/10/2025    -   -   -   - 
  2/2/2016   127,592  -   -   59.90  2/2/2026    -   -   -   - 
  2/2/2017   156,206  -   -   78.21  2/2/2027    -   -   -   - 
  2/8/2018   106,971  53,486  -   95.23  2/8/2028    -   -   -   - 
  2/13/2019   61,454  122,910  -   131.82  2/13/2029    -   -   -   - 
  2/11/2020   -   224,040  -   161.70  2/11/2030    -   -   -   - 
  2/2/2017   -   -   -   -   -    127,292  22,806,908  -   - 
  2/13/2019   -   -   -   -   -    -   -   45,571  8,164,956
 

 

  2/11/2020   -   -   -   -   -   

 

 

 

 

 

  -   -   46,895  8,402,177

Ronald E. Bruehlman

  8/3/2020   -   -   -   -   -   

 

 

 

 

 

  16,751  3,001,277  -   - 

W. Richard Staub, III

  2/8/2018   -   7,132  -   95.23  2/8/2028    -   -   -   - 
  2/13/2019   -   12,291  -   131.82  2/13/2029    -   -   -   - 
  2/11/2020   -   22,404  -   161.70  2/11/2030    -   -   -   - 
  2/13/2019   -   -   -   -   -    -   -   4,557  816,478
 

 

  2/11/2020   -   -   -   -   -   

 

 

 

 

 

  -   -   4,689  840,128

Kevin C. Knightly

  2/10/2015   8,284  -   -   65.16  2/10/2025    -   -   -   - 
  2/2/2016   10,207  -   -   59.90  2/2/2026    -   -   -   - 
  2/2/2017   18,224  -   -   78.21  2/2/2027    -   -   -   - 
  2/8/2018   14,262  7,132  -   95.23  2/8/2028    -   -   -   - 
  2/13/2019   6,145  12,291  -   131.82  2/13/2029    -   -   -   - 
  2/11/2020   -   14,936  -   161.70  2/11/2030    -   -   -   - 
  2/13/2019   -   -   -   -   -    -   -   4,557  816,478
 

 

  2/11/2020   -   -   -   -   -   

 

 

 

 

 

  -   -   3,126  560,085

Eric M. Sherbet

  3/1/2018   7,913  3,957  -   97.20  3/1/2028    -   -   -   - 
  2/13/2019   6,145  12,291  -   131.82  2/13/2029    -   -   -   - 
  2/11/2020   -   22,404  -   161.70  2/11/2030    -   -   -   - 
  2/13/2019   -   -   -   -   -    -   -   4,557  816,478
 

 

  2/11/2020   -   -   -   -   -   

 

 

 

 

 

  -   -   4,689  840,128

Name 

Grant

Date

Option/SAR Awards

 

Stock Awards

Number of

Securities

Underlying

Unexercised

Options/

SARs

(exercisable)

(#)

Number of

Securities

Underlying

Unexercised

Options/SARs

(unexercisable)

(#)(3)

Equity

Incentive

Awards:

Number of

Securities

Underlying

Unexercised

Unearned

Options/

SARs

(#)

Option/

SARs

Exercise

Price

($)

Option/

SARs

Option

Expiration

Date

Number of

Shares or

Units of

Stock

That

Have Not

Vested

(#)

Market

Value of

Shares or

Units of

Stock That

Have Not

Vested

($)(1)

Equity

Incentive

Plan Awards:

Number of

Unearned

Shares,

Units or Other

Rights That

Have Not

Vested

(#)

Equity

Incentive

Plan Awards:

Market or

Payout Value

of Unearned

Units or Other

Rights That

Have Not

Vested

($)(1)(2)

Ari Bousbib

2/10/2015

82,847

65.16

2/10/2025

 

2/2/2016

127,592

59.90

2/2/2026

 

2/2/2017

156,206

78.21

2/2/2027

 

2/8/2018

160,457

95.23

2/8/2028

 

2/13/2019

122,909

61,455

131.82

2/13/2029

 

2/11/2020

74,680

149,360

161.70

2/11/2030

 

2/9/2021

96,124

183.82

2/9/2031

 

2/11/2020

 

46,895

13,230,955

 

2/9/2021

 

24,075

6,792,521

48,151

13,585,323

Ronald E. Bruehlman

2/9/2021

26,701

183.82

2/9/2031

 

8/3/2020

 

11,168

3,150,940

 

2/9/2021

 

6,687

1,886,670

13,375

3,773,623

W. Richard Staub, III

2/8/2018

7,132

95.23

2/8/2028

 

2/13/2019

6,145

6,146

131.82

2/13/2029

 

2/11/2020

7,468

14,936

161.70

2/11/2030

 

2/9/2021

9,612

183.82

2/9/2031

 

2/11/2020

 

4,689

1,322,954

2/9/2021

 

2,407

679,111

4,815

1,358,504

Kevin C. Knightly

2/10/2015

8,284

65.16

2/10/2025

 

2/2/2016

10,207

59.90

2/2/2026

 

2/2/2017

18,224

78.21

2/2/2027

 

2/8/2018

21,394

95.23

2/8/2028

 

2/13/2019

12,290

6,146

131.82

2/13/2029

 

2/11/2020

4,978

9,958

161.70

2/11/2030

 

2/9/2021

8,010

183.82

2/9/2031

 

2/11/2020

 

3,126

881,970

 

2/9/2021

 

2,006

565,973

4,012

1,131,946

Eric M. Sherbet

3/1/2018

11,870

97.20

3/1/2028

 

2/13/2019

12,290

6,146

131.82

2/13/2029

 

2/11/2020

7,468

14,936

161.70

2/11/2030

 

2/9/2021

8,544

183.82

2/9/2031

 

 

2/11/2020

 

4,689

1,322,954

2/9/2021

 

2,140

603,780

4,280

1,207,559

(1)

The values shown equal the number of shares or units multiplied by $282.14, the closing price of a share of our common stock on December 31, 2021, as reported on the NYSE.

(1)

The values shown equal the number of shares or units multiplied by $179.17, the closing price of a share of our common stock on December 31, 2020, the last business day of fiscal year 2020, as reported on the NYSE.

IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement87

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(2)

The number of shares and the payout value reported reflect payout assuming target performance is achieved.

(3)


106  |  Compensation of Named Executive OfficersIQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT

(3)

The following table shows the vesting dates of the outstanding and unvested awards held by our named executive officers as of December 31, 2020.2021. Vesting is generally subject to the named executive officer’s continued service with us through the applicable vesting date. All unvested equity awards held by our Chief Executive Officer are subject to acceleration and/or continued vesting in certain cases (discussed below in the section entitled “—Potential Payments uponUpon Termination or Change in Control”).

 

Name

Grant

Date

Number of

Securities

Underlying

Unexercised

Options/SARs

(unexercisable)

(#)

Vesting

Date

Schedule

Number of

Shares or

Units of

Stock That

Have Not

Vested

(#)

Vesting

Date

Schedule

Equity
Incentive

Plan Awards:

Number of
Unearned

Shares, Units
or

Other
Rights That

Have Not
Vested

(#)

Vesting Date

Schedule

AriBousbib

2/13/2019

Vesting
Date
Schedule

61,455

2/13/2022

2/11/2020

74,680

2/11/2022

2/11/2020

74,680

2/11/2023

2/9/2021

32,041

2/9/2022

2/9/2021

32,041

2/9/2023

2/9/2021

32,042

2/9/2024

2/11/2020

46,895

12/31/2022

2/9/2021

48,151

12/31/2023

2/9/2021

8,025

2/9/2022

2/9/2021

8,025

2/9/2023

2/9/2021

8,025

2/9/2024

RonaldE.Bruehlman

8/3/2020

5,584

8/3/2022

8/3/2020

5,584

8/3/2023

2/9/2021

8,900

2/9/2022

2/9/2021

8,900

2/9/2023

2/9/2021

8,901

2/9/2024

2/9/2021

13,375

12/31/2023

2/9/2021

2,229

2/9/2022

2/9/2021

2,229

2/9/2023

2/9/2021

2,229

2/9/2024

W.RichardStaub,III

2/13/2019

6,146

2/13/2022

2/11/2020

7,468

2/11/2022

2/11/2020

7,468

2/11/2023

2/9/2021

3,204

2/9/2022

2/9/2021

3,204

2/9/2023

2/9/2021

3,204

2/9/2024

2/11/2020

4,689

12/31/2022

2/9/2021

4,815

12/31/2023

2/9/2021

802

2/9/2022

2/9/2021

802

2/9/2023

2/9/2021

803

2/9/2024

 
IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement88

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Name

Grant

Date

Number of

Securities

Underlying

Unexercised

Options/SARs

(unexercisable)

(#)

Vesting Date

Schedule

Number of

Shares or

Units of

Stock That

Have Not

Vested

(#)

Vesting Date

Schedule

Equity Incentive

Plan Awards:

Number of Unearned

Shares, Units or

Other Rights That

Have Not Vested

(#)

Vesting Date

Schedule

Ari BousbibKevinC.Knightly

2/13/2019

6,146

2/8/201813/2022

53,486

2/11/2020

4,979

2/11/2022

02/08/2021

2/11/2020

4,979

-

2/11/2023

-

2/9/2021

2,670

2/9/2022

-

2/9/2021

2,670

-

2/9/2023

2/9/2021

2,670

2/9/2024

2/11/2020

3,126

12/31/2022

2/9/2021

4,012

12/31/2023

2/9/2021

668

2/9/2022

2/9/2021

669

2/9/2023

2/9/2021

669

2/9/2024

EricM.Sherbet

2/13/2019

6,146

2/13/2022

2/11/2020

7,468

2/11/2022

2/11/2020

7,468

2/11/2023

2/9/2021

2,848

2/9/2022

2/9/2021

2,848

2/9/2023

2/9/2021

2,848

2/9/2024

2/11/2020

4,689

12/31/2022

2/9/2021

4,280

12/31/2023

2/9/2021

713

2/9/2022

2/9/2021

713

2/9/2023

2/9/2021

714

2/9/2024

 
IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement2/13/201961,45502/13/2021----
2/13/201961,45502/13/2022----
2/11/202074,68002/11/2021----
2/11/202074,68002/11/2022----
2/11/202074,68002/11/2023----
2/2/2017--127,2922/2/2021--
2/13/2019----45,57112/31/2021

2/11/2020----46,89512/31/2022

Ronald E. Bruehlman

8/3/2020--5,5838/3/2021--
8/3/2020--5,5848/3/2022--

8/3/2020--5,5848/3/2023--

W. Richard Staub, III

2/8/20187,13202/08/2021----
2/13/20196,14502/13/2021----
2/13/20196,14602/13/2022----
2/11/20207,46802/11/2021----
2/11/20207,46802/11/2022----
2/11/20207,46802/11/2023----
2/13/2019----4,55712/31/2021

2/11/2020----4,68912/31/2022

Kevin C. Knightly

��2/8/20187,13202/08/2021----
2/13/20196,14502/13/2021----
2/13/20196,14602/13/2022----
2/11/20204,97802/11/2021----
2/11/20204,97902/11/2022----
2/11/20204,97902/11/2023----
2/13/2019----4,55712/31/2021
2/11/2020----3,12612/31/2022

Eric M. Sherbet

3/1/20183,95703/01/2021----
2/13/20196,14502/13/2021----
2/13/20196,14602/13/2022----
2/11/20207,46802/11/2021----
2/11/20207,46802/11/2022----
2/11/20207,46802/11/2023----
2/13/2019----4,55712/31/2021

2/11/2020----4,68912/31/202289

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IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENTCompensation of Named Executive Officers  |  107

2021 Option Exercises and Stock Vested2020 OPTION EXERCISES AND STOCK VESTED

The following table sets forth information regarding stock options and/or SARs exercised and vesting of restricted stock, restricted stock units and/or performance shares by our named executive officers during 2020.

   

Option/SAR Awards

 

       

Stock Awards(2)

 

 

Name

 

  

Number of
Shares Acquired
on Exercise
(#)

 

   

Value
Realized On
Exercise
($)(1)

 

        

Number of
Shares Acquired
on Vesting(3)

(#)

 

   

Value
Realized On
Vesting

($)

 

 

Ari Bousbib

  

 

414,720

  

 

61,141,826

       

 

137,147

  

 

23,050,240

Ronald E. Bruehlman

  

 

-

 

  

 

-

 

       

 

-

 

  

 

-

 

W. Richard Staub, III

  

 

52,114

  

 

4,049,693

       

 

10,379

  

 

1,837,713

Kevin C. Knightly

  

 

-

 

  

 

-

 

       

 

9,800

  

 

1,755,866

Eric M. Sherbet

  

 

-

 

  

 

-

 

       

 

5,445

  

 

975,581

Michael R. McDonnell

  

 

74,943

  

 

5,793,474

       

 

5,608

  

 

793,644

(1)

Calculated by multiplying the number of shares of our common stock acquired upon exercise by the difference between the exercise price and the market price of our common stock on the exercise date.

(2)

Amounts shown in these columns reflect restricted stock, restricted stock units and/or performance share awards that vested during 2020. The performance share awards for the 2018-2020 performance period vested on December 31, 2020 and were earned by each named executive officer based on the LDC Committee’s certification on February 9, 2021. See “Compensation Discussion and Analysis—2020 Compensation Determinations—2020 Long-Term Incentive Awards—Performance Share Determination”. The value realized upon the vesting of restricted stock, restricted stock units and/or performance shares was calculated, as required by SEC rules, using the closing price of our common stock as quoted on the NYSE, on the date such restricted stock, restricted stock units and/or performance shares became vested.

(3)

After withholding shares sufficient to cover applicable taxes and fees due upon the vesting of restricted stock, restricted stock units and/or performance shares, the named executive officers retained a total of 89,941 net shares in aggregate with individual shares retained as follows:

 Name

Option/SAR Awards

 

Stock Awards(2)

Number of

Shares Acquired

on Exercise

(#)

Value

Realized on

Exercise

($)(1)

Number of

Shares Acquired

on Vesting(3)

(#)

Value

Realized on

Vesting

($)

Ari Bousbib

— 

— 

 

218,434 

49,188,722

Ronald E. Bruehlman

— 

— 

 

5,583 

1,395,638 

W. Richard Staub, III

— 

— 

 

9,114 

2,571,424 

Kevin C. Knightly

— 

— 

 

9,114 

2,571,424 

Eric M. Sherbet

— 

— 

 

9,114 

2,571,424 

(1)

Calculated by multiplying the number of shares of our common stock acquired upon exercise by the difference between the exercise price and the market price of our common stock on the exercise date.

(2)

Amounts shown in these columns reflect restricted stock, restricted stock units and/or performance share awards that vested during 2021. The performance share awards for the 2019-2021 performance period vested on December 31, 2021, and were earned by each named executive officer based on the LDC Committee’s certification on February 9, 2022. See “Compensation Discussion and Analysis—2021 Compensation Determinations—2021 Long-Term Incentive Awards—Performance share determinations for 2021.” The value realized upon the vesting of restricted stock, restricted stock units and/or performance shares was calculated, as required by SEC rules, using the closing price of our common stock as quoted on the NYSE on the date such restricted stock, restricted stock units and/or performance shares became vested.

(3)

After withholding shares sufficient to cover applicable taxes and fees due upon the vesting of restricted stock, restricted stock units and/or performance shares, the named executive officers retained a total of 130,905 net shares in aggregate with individual shares retained as follows:

Name

Total Net Shares

Retained

AriBousbib

110,970 

RonaldE.Bruehlman

3,192 

W.RichardStaub,III

5,637 

KevinC.Knightly

5,463 

EricM.Sherbet

5,643 

 

Ari Bousbib

IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement

70,951

Ronald E. Bruehlman

-

W. Richard Staub, III

6,537

Kevin C. Knightly

6,055

Eric M. Sherbet

3,552

Michael R. McDonnell

2,846

90

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108  |  Compensation of Named Executive OfficersIQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT

2021 Pension Benefits2020 PENSION BENEFITS

The following table sets forth information regarding the present value of the accumulated benefits of our named executive officers under our pension plans assumed from IMS Health in the Merger as of December 31, 2020.2021. Only Messrs. Bousbib, Bruehlman and Knightly, as legacy IMS Health employees, are eligible to participate in such plans. No amounts were paid to any of our named executive officers under our pension plans during our 20202021 fiscal year.

Name

 

  

Plan Name

 

 

Number of

Years of

Credited

Service(1)

 

  

Present

Value of

Accumulated

Benefit

($)(2)

 

  

Payments

During Last

Fiscal Year

 

  

Present Value

of Lump Sum

Payable

if Terminated

on 12/31/20

($)(3)

 

 

Ari Bousbib

  

IMS Health Retirement Plan

 

 

9.33

 

 

192,289

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  IMS Health Retirement Excess Plan  9.33  3,651,674     4,229,609 

Ronald E. Bruehlman

  

IMS Health Retirement Plan

 

 

5.50

 

 

127,840

  
 

 

  IMS Health Retirement Excess Plan  5.50  188,566  

 

 

 

 

 

  217,653 

W. Richard Staub, III

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kevin C. Knightly

  

IMS Health Retirement Plan

 

 

37.42

 

 

652,593

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  IMS Health Retirement Excess Plan  37.42  737,894     854,441 
Eric M. Sherbet              

Michael R. McDonnell

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Name

Plan Name

Number of

Years of

Credited

Service(1)

Present

Value of

Accumulated

Benefit

($)(2)

Payments

During

Last

Fiscal Year

Present Value

of Lump Sum

Payable

if Terminated

on 12/31/21

($)(3)

AriBousbib

IMS Health Retirement Plan

IMS Health Retirement Excess Plan

10.33 

10.33 

212,167 

4,159,604 

— 

— 

4,584,346

RonaldE.Bruehlman

IMS Health Retirement Plan

IMS Health Retirement Excess Plan

6.50 

6.50 

146,616 

265,252 

 

291,516

(1)

W.RichardStaub,III

— 

— 

— 

KevinC.Knightly

IMS Health Retirement Plan

IMS Health Retirement Excess Plan

38.42 

38.42 

676,244 

800,325 

— 

— 

881,332

EricM.Sherbet

— 

— 

— 

(1)

Years are credited based on service from the date the individual became a participant in each plan. Individuals become participants in the Retirement Plan and the Retirement Excess Plan on the first day of the month coincident with or next following the attainment of age 21 and completion of one year of service.

(2)

These amounts represent the actuarial present value, as of December 31, 2020,2021, of the total retirement benefit that would be payable to each of ourthe applicable named executive officers in accordance with the terms of the Retirement Plan and Retirement Excess Plan, as applicable, assuming no future service or compensation increases, and no pre-retirement mortality or termination (i.e., each named executive officer is assumed to retire at age 65 and to receive the benefit of annual interest credits at 3.00% under the Retirement Plan and 3.00% under the Retirement Excess Plan on his account balance until such point). The key actuarial assumptions and methodologies used to calculate the present value of accumulated benefits under both the Retirement Plan and Retirement Excess Plan were (i) a discount rate of 2.92%3.13% and 2.20%2.70%, respectively, and (ii) the White Collar PRI2012 mortality table with scale MP-2020.MP-2021.

(3)

Under the Retirement Excess Plan, if eitherany of Messrs. Bousbib, Bruehlman or Knightly had experienced a separation from service from us for any reason on December 31, 2020, then he2021, that executive would have been entitled to receive a single lump sum payment of his accumulated benefit under the Retirement Excess Plan on the laterlatter of December 31, 20202021, or upon attainment of age 55. As all named executive officers attained age 55 prior to December 31, 2020,2021, the present value is determined as of, and the lump sum is payable December 31, 2020,2021, is shown above. The following key actuarial assumptions and methodologies were used to calculate the present value at December 31, 2020:2021: the Retirement Excess Plan account balance as of December 31, 20202021, was converted into an annuity payable on December 31, 20202021, using a 3.00% interest rate and the GAM 83 Unisex Mortality Table. The resulting annuity was converted to a lump sum payable on December 31, 20202021, using an interest rate of 0.978%2.20% and the GAM 83 Mortality Table. Under the Retirement Excess Plan, if a change in control occurs, and a participant’s employment with us is involuntarily terminated for a reason other than cause or the participant voluntarily terminates employment with us for good reason within 24 months thereafter, his accumulated benefit would be payable in a single lump sum on the date of such termination, even if that date precedes attainment of age 55. Accordingly, if eitherany of Messrs. Bousbib, Bruehlman or Knightly had been involuntarily terminated for a reason other than cause or had voluntarily terminated employment with us for good reason on December 31, 20202021, following a change in control, then eachsuch executive officer would be entitled to receive a single lump sum payment of his accumulated benefit under the Retirement Excess Plan upon such termination. As Messrs. Bousbib, Bruehlman and Knightly have each attained age 55 prior to December 31, 2020,2021, they would receive the same present value as shown above, as of December 31, 2020,2021, with no enhancement in value (as compared with what each named executive officer would have received had he terminated employment on December 31, 20202021, not in connection with a change in control).


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IMS HEALTH DEFINED BENEFIT RETIREMENT PLANS

Health Defined Benefit Retirement Plans

The following table describes the defined benefit pension plans in which Messrs. Bousbib, Bruehlman and Knightly are eligible to participate.

Plan

Description

Eligibility and

Vesting

Benefits Formula

Time and form of

Payment

Internal Revenue

Code Limitations

IMS Health Retirement Plan

Funded, tax-qualified defined benefit retirement program

All U.S.-based legacy IMS Health employees, including our Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Bruehlman, and Mr. Knightly

 

Benefits generally vest after three years of qualifying service

 

This plan was assumed by us in connection with the Merger and closed to new participants effective December 31, 2016

Benefits are defined by a cash balance formula expressed in the form of a notional or “book-keeping” account balance

 

Each month a participant’s cash balance “account” is increased by (i) pay credits of 6% of the participant’s compensation for that month and (ii) interest credits based on the participant’s hypothetical account balance at the end of the prior month

 

Monthly interest credits are based on 1/12th of the 30-year Treasury bond yields in effect during the applicable month, subject to a floor of a 3% annual yield

Participants may retire early at age 55 with three years of service

 

Normal retirement age is 65. Pension benefits are payable as an actuarially equivalent annuity

 

Lump-sum distributions are only available for benefits valued at $5,000 or less

 

Employees do not make contributions to the plan

Section 401(a)(17) of the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) limits the annual compensation that may be taken into account in the calculation of benefits under a tax-qualified defined contribution or defined benefit pension plan, including the IMS Health Retirement Plan, to $285,000$290,000 in 20202021

 

Section 415 of the IRC limits the annual benefit payable under a tax-qualified defined benefit plan, including the IMS Health Retirement Plan, to $230,000 for 20202021

IMS Health Retirement Excess Plan

Unfunded, non-qualified retirement plan utilizing the same benefit formula, compensation recognition, retirement eligibility and vesting provisions as the tax-qualified IMS Health Retirement Plan

 

This plan provides pension benefits not provided by the IMS Health Retirement Plan due to the IRC limitations noted above

Certain eligible U.S.-based legacy IMS Health employees, including our Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Bruehlman and Mr. Knightly

We provide, out of our general assets, amounts equal to the difference between the amount that would have been paid in the absence of the aforementioned Internal Revenue CodeIRC limits and the amount that may be paid under the IMS Health Retirement Plan

Benefits for the named executives are automatically payable upon termination of employment (subject to a six-month delay, in certain cases, under tax rules applicable to non-qualified deferred compensation) in the form of an actuarially equivalent lump sum

None


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2021 Non-Qualified Deferred Compensation2020 NON-QUALIFIED DEFERRED COMPENSATION

The following table sets forth information regarding the non-qualified deferred compensation of each of our named executive officers for our 20202021 fiscal year under the IMS Health DCERPDefined Contribution Executive Retirement Plan (IMS Health DCERP) or the IQVIA Elective Deferred Compensation Plan, as applicable.

Name

 

 

Executive Contributions
in Last Fiscal Year(1) ($)

 

  

Aggregate Earnings
in Last Fiscal

Year(2) ($)

 

  

Aggregate
Withdrawals/

Distributions ($)

 

  

Aggregate Balance
at End of Fiscal
Year  2020(3) ($)

 

 
Ari Bousbib  6,444,899  3,278,522      9,723,421
Ronald E. Bruehlman               
W. Richard Staub, III             
Kevin C. Knightly     493,754      4,406,474
Eric M. Sherbet             
Michael R. McDonnell             

(1)

Contributions for Mr. Bousbib represent his 2019 Short-term incentive Award under the annual plan, which was deferred in 2020. The contribution amount in this table was reflected in the “2019 Summary Compensation Table” under non-equity incentive plan compensation.

(2)

Earnings for Mr. Bousbib includes dividends as well as earnings on the notional investments held. Earnings for Mr. Knightly represent (i) interest credited to the respective named executive officer’s Designated Account (as defined below), and (ii) the increase/decrease in fiscal year 2020 in the fair market value of shares of our common stock notionally held in the particular Designated Account (as described below).

(3)

The aggregate balance at the end of the year consists of the value of Mr. Bousbib’s and Mr. Knightly’s respective accounts, as of December 31, 2020. The Stock Account (as defined below) used in the DCERP plan has been valued using the closing price of our common stock on December 31, 2020 ($179.17), the last business day of fiscal year 2020. Earnings on deferred amounts in Mr. Knightly’s Designated Account, to the extent such earnings were deemed to be “above-market” under applicable SEC rules, have been reflected in the “Summary Compensation Table” in the column labeled “—Change in Pension Value and Non-Qualified Deferred Compensation Earnings.”

Name

Executive Contributions

in Last Fiscal Year(1)

($)

Aggregate Earnings in

Last Fiscal Year(2)

($)

Aggregate Withdrawals/

Distributions

($)

Aggregate Balance at

End of Fiscal Year 2021(3)

($)

Ari Bousbib

6,369,600

3,609,693

 

19,702,714

Ronald E. Bruehlman

 

 

 

W. Richard Staub, III

 

Kevin C. Knightly

1,942,995

 

6,377,765

Eric M. Sherbet

 

(1)

Contributions for Mr. Bousbib represent his 2020 short-term incentive award under the Annual Plan, which was deferred in 2021. The contribution amount in this table was reflected in the “2021 Summary Compensation Table” under non-equity incentive plan compensation.

(2)

Earnings for Mr. Bousbib include dividends as well as earnings on the notional investments held. Earnings for Mr. Knightly represent (i) interest credited to his Designated Account (as defined below), and (ii) the increase/decrease in fiscal year 2021 in the fair market value of shares of our common stock notionally held in his Designated Account (as described below).

(3)

The aggregate balance at the end of the year consists of the value of Mr. Bousbib’s and Mr. Knightly’s respective accounts, as of December 31, 2021. The Stock Account (as defined below) used in the DCERP has been valued using the closing price of our common stock on December 31, 2021 ($282.14), the last business day of fiscal year 2021. Earnings on deferred amounts in Mr. Knightly’s Designated Account, to the extent such earnings were deemed to be “above-market” under applicable SEC rules, have been reflected in the “2021 Summary Compensation Table” in the column labeled “Change in Pension Value and Non-Qualified Deferred Compensation Earnings.”


IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENTCompensation of Named Executive Officers  |  111

The following table describes our non-qualified deferred compensation plans.

Plan

Description

Description

Eligibility and Vesting

Benefits Formula

Benefits Formula

Time and form of Payment

IMS Health Defined Contribution Executive Retirement Plan (IMS Health DCERP)

Non-qualified, unfunded defined contribution plan

Plan was frozen to new participants and accruals as of June 30, 2012

 

Previously accrued benefits continue to be eligible to be credited with an interest credit and notional investment returns

 

Mr. Knightly is fully vested in his account

Participants were able to elect to have their account notionally credited with investment credits (the portion that is so credited is referred to as a “Designated Account”) or, with respect to a designated portion of their account, notionally invested in shares of IMS Health common stock, which then became notionally invested in shares of ourIQVIA common stock in connection with the Merger (the portion that is so notionally invested is referred to as a “Stock Account”)

 

Annual investment credits to a Designated Account are calculated based on the average annual corporate bond yields from the AA to AAA Rated/10+ Years Component of the Merrill Lynch U.S. Corporate Master Index

A participant’s accountsaccount is paid as a lump sum on or shortly after the date the participant terminates employment with us (subject to a six-month delay, in certain cases, under tax rules applicable to non-qualified deferred compensation)

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Plan

Description

Eligibility and Vesting

Benefits Formula

Time and form of Payment

IQVIA Elective Deferred Compensation Plan

Non-qualified, deferred compensation plan

Certain IQVIA employees within the US, including our named executive officers, are eligible to participate

 

The Chief Executive Officer participated in this plan during 2020

Participants may to defer up to 80% of their base salaries as of the first day of the calendar year or partial year and up to 100% of any cash bonus earned under the Annual Plan and payable to the participant with respect to that year

 

Contributions consist solely of participants’ elective deferral contributions with no matching or other employer contributions

Participants may elect to receive date-based, in-service distributions as long as they are active participants in the plan in either a lump sum or in annual installments for up to 15 years

 

Upon separation from service, participants will receive their distribution either as a lump sum or in annual installments for up to 15 years (subject to a six-month delay, in certain cases, under tax rules applicable to non-qualified deferred compensation)


112  |  Compensation of Named Executive OfficersIQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT

Potential Payments Upon Termination or Change in ControlPOTENTIAL PAYMENTS UPON TERMINATION OR CHANGE IN CONTROL

Each of our named executive officers is entitled to receive certain benefits upon a qualifying termination of employment and upon certain change in control transactions. Below we describe payments and benefits that are payable upon certain types of termination of employment or a change in control, or that are enhanced based on the circumstances of a termination or change in control.

Employment Agreement and Long-Term Incentive Award Agreements with ourOur Chief Executive Officer.Officer

Under the terms of his employment agreement, if we terminate our Chief Executive Officer’s employment without cause (including as a result of non-renewal of the employment term by the Company), or if he resigns for good reason (as such terms are defined in the employment agreement) (either, a “qualifying termination of employment”), our Chief Executive Officer will be entitled to severance in an amount equal to two times the sum of his annual base salary and annual target bonus, payable in equal installments over the 24-month period following the termination of his employment, or if such termination or resignation occurs within the 24-month period following a change in control (as defined in the employment agreement), in a lump sum. Under the terms of his employment agreement and his outstanding long-term incentive award agreements, in the event of a qualifying termination of employment, all of our Chief Executive Officer’s outstanding time-based equity awards that remain unvested will vest in full and, if applicable, will remain exercisable for their full respective terms; andterms. In addition, all of his outstanding performance-based equity awards that remain unvested will remain outstanding and eligible to vest based on performance (or,or, if a qualifying termination of employment occurs within 24 months following a change in control event, will vest based on deemed achievement of target performance on the termination date).date.

If our Chief Executive Officer’s employment is terminated by the Company due to his disability or terminates due to his death (as such terms are defined in his agreement), all of his outstanding equity awards that remain unvested will vest in full, and, if applicable, will remain exercisable for their full respective terms, with performance-based awards vesting based on deemed performance at target levels on the date his employment terminates. In the event of our Chief Executive Officer’s permanent retirement from the Company, with certain limited exceptions, all of his outstanding time-based equity awards that remain unvested will remain outstanding and continue to vest on the same schedule as if he had remained employed, and, if applicable, will remain exercisable for their full respective terms, and all of his outstanding performance-based awards will remain outstanding and eligible to vest based on actual performance. Our Chief Executive Officer will be eligible for retirement when he attains age 62. As of December 31, 2020,2021, our Chief Executive Officer was not retirement eligibleretirement-eligible under the terms of his agreement.

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Upon a termination for cause or a resignation without good reason (that does not constitute a retirement, as described above), our Chief Executive Officer will be entitled to salary and other compensation that accrued before termination, but no severance will be payable.

As a condition to our Chief Executive Officer’s receipt of the severance payments described above, he must timely execute (without revoking) a release of claims in favor of usIQVIA and comply with certain restrictive covenants set forth in the employment agreement, including a covenant not to compete with us or to solicit our clients or employees during and for 24 months following termination of his employment with us. Our Chief Executive Officer is also bound by other restrictive covenants, including covenants relating to confidentiality and non-disparagement.


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Letter Agreement with Mr. Staub.Staub

In the event of a termination of employment by us without cause, Mr. Staub will be entitled to the severance benefits under each his letter agreement with us.

Under Mr. Staub’s letter agreement, if Mr. Staub’s employment is terminated other than for causereceive (as defined in the letter agreement), he will receive cash severance, payable in equal monthly installments on our regular payroll schedule during the 24-month non-competition period following termination, equal to (i) 24 months of Mr. Staub’s base salary as of the termination date; (ii) Mr. Staub’s target annual bonus in effect for the year of termination; and (iii) the projected cost of the continuation of group health insurance coverage for Mr. Staub and his eligible dependents pursuant to COBRA for 18 months following the date of termination.

Employee Protection Plan.Plan

Messrs. Bruehlman, Knightly and Sherbet participate in the IQVIA Employee Protection Plan, (the “Employee Protection Plan”),as amended and restated, which provides for certain payments and benefits if the participant’s employment is terminated without cause (as defined in the Employee Protection Plan).

Under the Employee Protection Plan, upon the termination of a participant’s employment without cause, (as defined in the Employee Protection Plan), he or she is entitled to continued base salary payments for a period of time of at leastranging between two weeks and a maximum of 52 weeks, depending on the participant’s salary grade level and years of eligible service (two weeks for each year of service, subject to certain minimum periods),; continued medical, dental and vision benefits throughout the salary continuation period (but not in excess of(or six months, regardless of the duration of continued base salary payments),whichever is shorter); and certain outplacement services. Mr. Knightly would be entitled to a maximum of 52 weeks of severance benefits under the amended and restated plan.Employee Protection Plan. Mr. Sherbet and Mr. Bruehlman would be entitled to 26 weeks of severance benefits under the amended and restated plan.Employee Protection Plan.

A participant is entitled to severance benefits under the Employee Protection Plan following a change in control unless he or she unilaterally resigns, is offered comparable employment with us or an acquiring company, or transfers to a customer or client in connection with a transfer or outsourcing plan. Benefits under the Employee Protection Plan cease when the participant begins to earn compensation from a new employer, and are offset by the amounts of any other severance payments that are made to the participant or by the amount of any sign-on incentive or similar amounts paid upon commencement of the participant’s employment, if such payments occurred within 12 months of the termination. Any salary continuation or benefits payable under the Employee Protection Plan are conditioned upon the participant’s timely execution (without revoking) of a release of claims in favor of usIQVIA that may include certain restrictive covenants, including covenants relating to non-competition and non-solicitation of clients or employees that would apply, in each case, during the one-year period following the participant’s termination of employment or, if longer, the participant’s salary continuation period.


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Summary of potential payments.Potential Payments

The following table estimates the dollar value of the additional payments and benefits our named executive officers would have been entitled to receive under applicable plans and/or arrangements described above, assuming the applicable triggering event occurred on December 31, 2020. The following table does not include payments that would have been payable to Mr. McDonnell who left the Company on August 3, 2020.2021.

Name Type of Payment or Benefit 

Involuntary

Termination

($)

  

Termination

Due to Death/

Disability

($)

  

Change in

Control

without

Termination

($)

  

Involuntary

Termination

Following a

Change in

Control

($)

 

 

Ari Bousbib

 

 

Severance Pay(1)

 

 

 

 

10,800,000

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

10,800,000

 

 Acceleration of time-based equity awards(2)  37,030,290  37,030,290     37,030,290
 Performance-based equity awards (3)  16,567,133  16,567,133     16,567,133
  

Total

 

  

 

64,397,423

 

 

  

 

53,597,423

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

  

 

64,397,423

 

 

 

Ronald E. Bruehlman

 

 

Severance Pay(6)

 

 

 

 

430,000

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

430,000

 

 Health & Welfare Benefits(4)  7,442        7,442
 Outplacement(7)  3,945        3,945
  

Total

 

  

 

441,387

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

  

 

441,387

 

 

 

W. Richard Staub, III

 

 

Severance Pay(5)

 

 

 

 

1,724,250

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1,724,250

 

 Health & Welfare Benefits(4)  16,394        16,394
  

Total

 

  

 

1,740,644

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

  

 

1,740,644

 

 

 

Kevin C. Knightly

 

 

Severance Pay(6)

 

 

 

 

550,000

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

550,000

 

 Health & Welfare Benefits(4)  7,471        7,471
 Outplacement(7)  3,945        3,945
  

Total

 

  

 

561,416

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

  

 

561,416

 

 

 

Eric M. Sherbet

 

 

Severance Pay(6)

 

 

 

 

262,500

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

262,500

 

 Health & Welfare Benefits(4)  7,471        7,471
 Outplacement(7)  3,945        3,945
  

Total

 

  

 

273,916

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

  

 

273,916

 

 

Name

Type of Payment or Benefit

Involuntary

Termination

($)

Termination

Due to Death/

Disability

($)

Change in

Control without

Termination

($)

Involuntary

Termination

Following a

Change in

Control

($)

Ari Bousbib

Severance Pay(1)

10,800,000

10,800,000

Acceleration of time-based equity awards(2)

43,470,266

43,470,266

43,470,266

Performance-based equity awards(3)

26,816,278

26,816,278

26,816,278

Total

81,086,545

70,286,545

81,086,545

Ronald E. Bruehlman

Severance Pay(6)

442,900

442,900

Health & Welfare Benefits(4)

5,708

5,708

Outplacement(7)

3,109

3,109

Total

451,717

451,717

W. Richard Staub, III

Severance Pay(5)

1,775,978

1,775,978

Health & Welfare Benefits(4)

17,123

17,123

Total

1,793,101

1,793,101

Kevin C. Knightly

Severance Pay(6)

566,500

566,500

Health & Welfare Benefits(4)

7,803

7,803

Outplacement(7)

3,109

3,109

Total

577,412

577,412

Eric M. Sherbet

Severance Pay(6)

270,375

270,375

Health & Welfare Benefits(4)

7,803

7,803

Outplacement(7)

3,109

3,109

Total

281,287

281,287

(1)

Represents two times the sum of our Chief Executive Officer’s base salary and his target annual incentive, which is the amount payable to our Chief Executive Officer under the terms of his employment agreement in connection with a termination of his employment by us without cause or by him for good reason.

(2)

Represents the value of the acceleration of unvested time-based SARs determined based on the difference between the exercise price of the SARs and the closing price of a share of our common stock on December 31, 2021 ($282.14), the last business day of fiscal year 2021, and the value of the acceleration of unvested time-based restricted stock determined by multiplying the number of shares underlying the award by the closing price of a share of our common stock on December 31, 2021. For purposes of this table, we have assumed that all time-based SARs and restricted stock would be assumed, continued or substituted in connection with a change in control and that, as a result, all time-based SARs and restricted stock would not become fully vested in connection with such change in control but rather upon a qualifying involuntary termination following a change in control. The actual treatment of time-based SARs and restricted stock in connection with a change in control transaction may be different. As described above, any unvested outstanding time-based equity awards held by our Chief Executive Officer would be accelerated in the event of a qualifying termination of employment or in the event of a termination due to death or disability.

(3)

Represents the value of unvested performance shares (assuming achievement of the performance goals at target), determined by multiplying the number of shares underlying the award by the closing price of a share of our common stock on December 31, 2021 ($282.14). In the event of a qualifying termination of employment, our Chief Executive Officer’s performance shares will remain outstanding and eligible to vest based on performance. In the event of a termination due to death or disability, our Chief Executive Officer’s performance shares would be fully accelerated and paid out at target. For purposes of this table, we have assumed that all performance shares would be assumed, continued or substituted in connection with a change in control and that, as a result, all performance shares would not become fully vested in connection with such change in control but rather upon a qualifying involuntary termination following a change in control. The actual treatment of performance shares in connection with a change in control transaction may be different. As described above, any unvested outstanding performance-based equity awards held by our Chief Executive Officer would be accelerated in the event of a qualifying termination of employment following a change in control or in the event of a termination due to death or disability and would assume the achievement of the performance goals at target.

(1)

Represents two times the sum of our Chief Executive Officer’s base salary and his target annual incentive, which is the amount payable to our Chief Executive Officer under the terms of his employment agreement in connection with a termination of his employment by us without cause or by him for good reason.

(2)

Represents the value of the acceleration of unvested time-based SARs determined based on the difference between the exercise price of the SARs and the closing price of a share of our common stock on December 31, 2020 ($179.17), the last business day of fiscal year 2020, and the value of the acceleration of unvested time-based restricted stock determined by multiplying the number of shares underlying the award by the closing price of a share of our common stock on December 31, 2020. For purposes of this table, we have assumed that all time-based SARs and restricted stock would be assumed, continued or substituted in connection with a change in control and that, as a result, all time-based SARs and restricted stock would not become fully vested in connection with such change in control but rather upon a qualifying involuntary termination following a change in control. The actual treatment of time-based SARs and restricted stock in connection with a change in control transaction may be different. As described above, any unvested outstanding time-based equity awards held by our Chief Executive Officer would be accelerated in the event of a qualifying termination of employment or in the event of a termination due to death or disability.

(3)

Represents the value of unvested performance shares (assuming achievement of the performance goals at target), determined by multiplying the number of shares underlying the award by the closing price of a share of our common stock on December 31, 2020 ($179.17). In the event of a qualifying termination of employment, our Chief Executive Officer’s performance shares will remain outstanding and eligible to vest based on performance. In the event of a termination due to death or disability, our Chief Executive Officer’s performance shares would be fully accelerated and paid out at target. For purposes of this table, we have assumed that all performance shares would be assumed, continued or substituted in connection with a change in control and that, as a result, all performance shares would not become fully vested in connection with such change in control but rather upon a qualifying involuntary termination following a change in control. The actual treatment of performance shares in connection with a change in control transaction may be different. As described above, any unvested outstanding performance-based equity awards held by our Chief Executive Officer would be accelerated in the event of a qualifying termination of employment following a change in control or in the event of a termination due to death or disability and would assume the achievement of the performance goals at target.


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(4)

For Messrs. Bruehlman, Knightly and Sherbet, Health & Welfare Benefits represent the cost to the Company of paying its portion of premiums for medical, dental and prescription drug coverage for Messrs. Bruehlman, Knightlythe executive and Sherbet and theirhis eligible dependents during the period during which salary continuation payments under the provisions of the Employee Protection Plan (as in effect on December 31, 2020)2021) are being made. For Mr. Staub, represents the projected cost of group health carehealthcare continuation for 18 months for Mr. Staub and his eligible dependents, to which he would be entitled to under his employment agreement.

(5)

Represents an amount equal to (i) 24 months of Mr. Staub’s base salary and (ii) Mr. Staub’s target annual bonus in effect for the year of termination.

(6)

Represents the sum of base salary continuation payable to Messrs. Bruehlman, Knightly and Sherbet under the provisions of the Employee Protection Plan as in effect on December 31, 2020.2021.

(7)

Represents the value of outplacement services that would be available to Messrs. Bruehlman, Knightly and Sherbet under the Employee Protection Plan in the event of a qualifying termination of employment under the Employee Protection Plan.employment.

CEO PAY RATIO

Pay Ratio

U.S. publicly-traded companies are required to disclose the ratio of their chief executive officer’s compensation to that of their median employee under applicable rules that first became effective for our proxy statement that we filed in 2018. This disclosure is required in this Proxy Statement and requires that the median employee be selected from all employees, including full-time, part-time, seasonal and temporary employees.

employee. Our Chief Executive Officer to median employee pay ratio was calculated in accordance with Section 953(b) of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act and Item 402(u) of Regulation S-K and the related guidance, and represents a reasonable estimate calculated in accordance with SEC regulations and guidance.estimate. Because the SEC rules for identifying the median employee and calculating the pay ratio permit companies to use various methodologies and assumptions, to apply certain exclusions, and to make reasonable estimates that reflect their employee populations and compensation practices, the pay ratio reported by other companies may not be comparable with the pay ratio that we have reported.report.

Under the pay ratio rule, a company is required to identify its median employee only once every three years so long as during the prior fiscal year there has been no change to its employee population or employee compensation arrangements that it reasonably believes would result in significant changes in its pay ratio disclosure. During 2020, we identified our median employee by using base salaries or base rate of pay as our consistently“consistently applied compensation measure,measure” for all individuals, excluding our Chief Executive Officer, who were employed by us on December 1, 2020 (annualized in the case of employees who joined the Company during 2020). This calculation included full-time, part-time, seasonal and temporary employees. Because ofwe did not experience any material changes to our vast global employee population, or changes in employee compensation arrangements, during 2021, we also appliedbelieve it is reasonable to use the allowed de minimis exemptionmedian employee identified and excluded non-U.S. employees from certain countries noted below. The total numberreported in 2020 for purposes of excluded employees represented less than 5% ofcalculating the pay ratio disclosure with respect to 2021, and that using this median employee will not significantly affect our population. Applying this de minimis exemption, on December 1, 2020, we had 17,959 U.S. employees and 53,974 non-U.S. employees. Irrespective of the de minimis exemption, on this same date we had 17,959 U.S. employees and 54,319 non-U.S. employees. Pursuant to the permitted de minimis exemption, the following countries were excluded from thepay ratio calculation: Bolivia, 3; Ecuador, 55; Egypt, 149; Kazakhstan, 3; Pakistan, 53; and Vietnam, 82.disclosure.

For 2020,2021, the annual total compensation of our median employee, calculated under applicable SEC rules, was $96,128.$139,803. For 2020,2021, the annual total compensation for our Chief Executive Officer is reported in the “Summary Compensation Table” above. On this basis, the ratio of our Chief Executive Officer’s annual total compensation to our median employee’s annual total compensation is estimated at 266:205:1.


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PROPOSAL NO. 4
Stockholder Proposal: Majority Voting in Uncontested Director Elections

Proposal No. 3: Amendments to CertificateIn accordance with SEC rules, we have set forth below a stockholder proposal, along with the supporting statement of Incorporation to Remove Supermajority Voting Standards

After careful consideration,the stockholder proponent, for which the Company and the Board accept no responsibility. The stockholder proposal is required to be voted to approve, and to recommend toon at our 2022 Annual Meeting only if properly presented at our 2022 Annual Meeting.

Myra K. Young, 9295 Yorkship Court, Elk Grove, California 95758, the stockholders that they approve, amendments tobeneficial owner of at least $2,000 in market value of the Company’s Amendedcommon stock on the date the proposal was submitted and Restated Certificatefor at least the preceding year, has notified the Company of Incorporation (the “Certificate of Incorporation”)her intent to remove the supermajority voting requirements currently in the Certificate of Incorporation and replace them with majority voting standards, and to adopt certain other immaterial amendments to the Certificate of Incorporation, each as described below (collectively, the “Proposed Amendments”). In light of the differing nature of the provisions affected, this matter is presented as two Items. The Proposed Amendments are set forth in Item 3(a) and Item 3(b) below. Approval of any one of these Items is not conditioned upon approval of the other Items.

As discussed in more detail below, the Company’s Certificate of Incorporation currently containspresent the following supermajority voting provisions:proposal at the 2022 Annual Meeting.

Stockholder Proposal and Supporting Statement

AmendmentsResolved: Shareholders of IQVIA Holdings Inc. (‘Company’) request the Board of Directors amend our Company’s policies, articles of incorporation and/or bylaws to our Bylaws—The Certificate of Incorporation statesprovide that a supermajority vote is necessary for stockholders to amend, alter, change add or repeal our Bylaws. Item 3(a) proposes to amend the Certificate of Incorporation so that future amendments to the Bylaws maydirector nominees be approvedelected by the affirmative vote of the holdersmajority of votes cast, with a plurality vote standard retained for contested director elections, that is, when the number of director nominees exceeds the number of board seats. This proposal includes that a director who receives less than a majority vote be removed as soon as a replacement director can be qualified on an expedited basis. If such a removed director has key experience, they can transition to a consultant or director emeritus. With written justification, the board can set an effective date several years into the future for these changes to take effect.

Supporting Statement: To provide shareholders a meaningful role in director elections, our Company’s current director election standard should transition from a plurality vote standard to a majority vote standard when only board nominated candidates are on the ballot.

Under our Company’s current voting system, a director can be elected if all shareholders oppose the director but one shareholder votes FOR, even by mistake. More than 90% of the companies in the S&P 500 have adopted majority voting for uncontested elections. Director Todd Sisitsky received less than 60% support at our 2021 meeting.

In 2019 and 2020 majority shares ofvoted FOR similar proposals at TG Therapeutics, Lipocine, Abeona Therapeutics, Alico, Guidewire Software, Stemline Therapeutics, Caesars Entertainment, RadNet, Gannett, New Residential Investment, Safety Insurance Group, First Community Bancshares, Greenhill, and Advaxis.

Vanguard, our largest shareholders, includes the Company presentfollowing in person or bytheir proxy atvoting guidance: “If the company has plurality voting, a meeting and entitled tofund will typically vote on such amendment, alteration, change, addition or repeal.

Removal of Directors—The Certificate of Incorporation states stockholder may remove, only for cause, a director or the entire Board from office only by a supermajorityshareholder proposals requiring majority vote of stockholders. Item 3(b) proposes to amend this requirement so that directors can be removed with the affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of the shares of the Company then entitled to vote at anfor election of directors.

In addition,” BlackRock’s proxy voting guidelines include the Proposed Amendments include certain immaterial changes, whichfollowing: “Majority voting standards assist in ensuring that directors who are reflected in Appendix B.not broadly supported by shareholders are not elected to serve as their representatives.” Many other large shareholders have similar proxy voting policies.

This summaryrequest should be seen in the context that our Company does not contain allallow shareholders to call special meeting or act by written consent, and does not provide shareholders with the informationright to proxy access. Our board is locked into an outdated governance structure that may be importantreduces accountability to you. The complete textshareholders, increasing the likelihood of stagnation. We should not risk Zombies on Board: Investors Face the Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, as they are proposed to be amended (the “Amended Certificate”), is included in Appendix B to this Proxy Statement. The following summary is qualified in its entirety Walking Dead (https://www.msci.com/www/blog-posts/zombies-on-board-investors-face/02161045315).

ToEnhanceShareholderValue,VoteFOR

ElectDirectorsby reference to the text of the Amended Certificate. You are urged to read the Amended Certificate in its entirety.MajorityVote-Proposal4


IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.  2021 PROXY STATEMENT  2022 Proxy StatementProposal No. 3  |  11798

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IQVIA’s Statement in Opposition

Rationale forAfter thoughtful consideration, the Proposed Amendments

As a part ofBoard believes that the Company’s ongoing reviewcurrent method of its corporate governance, the Board determined that itelecting directors is in the best interests of the Company and its stockholders. As a result, the Board recommends voting “against” Proposal No. 4 for the reasons set forth below.

Our Corporate Governance Guidelines already require that directors in an uncontested election who do not receive a majority of the votes cast shall, promptly following certification of the stockholder vote, offer his or her resignation to the Board. As such, because our plurality voting standard already provides a form of majority voting by requiring directors to tender their resignation if they fail to receive a majority of votes cast, implementing a majority voting standard is unnecessary.

The Company’s current plurality voting standard yields a definitive result in a simple, efficient and transparent manner, which has historically been effective in electing strong, independent directors to our Board. Further, under the current plurality voting standard, stockholders already have a meaningful opportunity to removeexpress disapproval with corporate policies, strategy, or director candidates through the use of withhold votes.

By contrast, the majority voting standard being requested by the proponent does not provide the Board with the opportunity to address the underlying cause for stockholder opposition to a nominee by requiring that the director be removed when a replacement is found. Moreover, it does not take into account that vacancies caused by a failed election could be disruptive, especially during this period of significant growth and strategic transformation of our business, and may interfere with the functioning of the Board. An expedited election process may make it difficult to select the most qualified nominees, and a significant turnover among directors may impede the Company’s long-term strategic plan due to lack of director continuity and removal of any particularly unique, experienced directors, ultimately impacting the stability of the Board and the Company.

The Company already has strong corporate governance practices that promote Board accountability and responsiveness to stockholders, and as such the Board does not believe this proposal is in the best interest of the Company and its stockholders. The Board regularly reviews our corporate governance structure and practices, and has made several changes over the last few years that it believes are in the best interest of the Company and its stockholders, including:

removing all stockholder supermajority voting requirements in

providing for stockholder proxy access

accelerating a say-on-frequency vote

adopted annual say-on-pay

if approved at the Company’s Certificate of Incorporation2022 Annual Meeting, declassifying our Board and provide for majority voting standards.

The supermajority voting requirements were a legacy of the Company sponsored-controlled past following the Merger. Supermajority voting requirements can promote stability, and thereby benefit stockholders, by restricting certain fundamental corporate governance changes from being made without overwhelming support by the Company’s stockholders. However, especially now that all the Company’s sponsors have sold down all or substantially all of their ownership interests, as the case may be, the Board also recognizes that many investors believe that supermajority voting provisions conflict with principles of good corporate governance, including by possibly limiting a board’s accountability to stockholders or limiting stockholders’ participation in a company’s corporate governance. It is important to note that if the Proposed Amendments are approved, they would make it easier forempowering stockholders to remove directors without cause

adopted a diversity requirement to ensure that the initial list of external candidates in any search for new directors or the Chief Executive Officer position include qualified female and effect otherracially or ethnically diverse candidates

amended N&G Committee’s charter to formalize the committee’s responsibility to oversee our ESG matters and initiatives

amended Audit Committee’s charter to specifically include oversight of cybersecurity risks as one of the committee’s responsibilities

enhanced Board diversity disclosure

instituted director retirement policy to promote Board refreshment

Further, the Board has a proven track record of responsiveness to stockholder feedback, as many of the governance enhancements described above were implemented as a result of stockholder input obtained during our annual stockholder engagement program.

As part of the Board’s continuing corporate governance changesreview and consideration of this proposal, the Board has weighed the advantages and disadvantages of maintaining plurality voting in director elections with the requisite resignation tender when majority support is not achieved. Based on the foregoing reasons, the Board believes it to be in the future.

After considering the benefits and detriments of maintaining current supermajority voting requirements in the Certificate of Incorporation, the Board approved the Proposed Amendments, declaring the Proposed Amendments advisable and resolving to submit them to the Company’s stockholders for approval.

Proposed Amendments

Item 3(a)—Removal of Supermajority voting standards for stockholder approval of amendments, alterations, changes or repeal of the Bylaws

Currently, Section 8 of the Certificate of Incorporation states that stockholders may only amend, alter, change, add or repeal the Bylawsbest interest of the Company withand its stockholders to maintain the affirmative votecurrent method of the holders of at least 75% of the outstanding shares of the Company, voting together as a single class,electing directors and entitled to vote on such amendment, alteration, change, addition or repeal. This Item 3(a) requests that stockholders approve an amendment totherefore opposes this standard in order to provide that stockholders may amend, alter, change, add or repeal the Bylaws of the Company by the affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of the shares of the Company present in person or by proxy at a meeting and entitled to vote on such amendment, alteration, change, addition or repeal. This is the default voting standard under the DGCL.stockholder proposal.

Item 3(b)—Removal of Supermajority voting standards for stockholder removal, for cause only, of a director or the entire Board from office and filling the vacancy or vacancies

Currently, Section 9 of the Certificate of Incorporation states that stockholders may only remove from office, only for cause, any director or the entire Board and fill any vacancy or vacancies with the affirmative vote of the holders of at least 75% of the outstanding shares of the Company, voting together as a single class. This Item 3(b) requests that stockholders approve an amendment to this standard in order to provide that stockholders can remove directors with the affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of the shares of the Company then entitled to vote at an election of directors. This is the default voting standard under the DGCL.

 

    LOGO     

THE BOARD UNANIMOUSLY RECOMMENDS ATHAT TO ENHANCE STOCKHOLDER VALUE VOTE FOR”AGAINST” EACH OF THE PROPOSED AMENDMENTS, WHICH ARE PRESENTED SEPARATELY AS ITEM 3(A) AND ITEM 3(B)

THIS PROPOSAL.


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Proposal No. 4: Ratification of the Appointment of the Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

PROPOSAL NO. 5
Ratification of the Appointment of the Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

The Audit Committee has appointed PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (PricewaterhouseCoopers) as the Company’s independent registered public accountants for us for the year ending December 31, 2020.2022. Ratification of the appointment of PricewaterhouseCoopers requires the vote of a majority of the shares of our common stock cast affirmatively or negatively on the matter. A representative of PricewaterhouseCoopers is expected to be available to answer appropriate questions at the 20212022 Annual Meeting and is free to make statements during the 20212022 Annual Meeting.

The Audit Committee is not required to take any action as a result of the outcome of the vote on this proposal. However, if the stockholders do not ratify the appointment, the Audit Committee may investigate the reasons for stockholder rejection and may consider whether to retain PricewaterhouseCoopers or to appoint another independent registered public accounting firm.

Even if the appointment is ratified, the Audit Committee in its discretion may direct the appointment of a different independent registered public accounting firm at any time during the year if it determines that such a change would be in the best interests of our stockholders or the company.Company.

 

    LOGO     

THE BOARD RECOMMENDS A VOTE “FOR” RATIFICATION OF THE APPOINTMENT OF PRICEWATERHOUSECOOPERS LLP


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Audit Committee ReportAudit

AUDIT COMMITTEE REPORT

The Audit Committee has selected PricewaterhouseCoopers as our independent registered public accounting firm for the year ended December 31, 2021.2022. The Board will ask our stockholders to ratify this selection at the 20212022 Annual Meeting.

PricewaterhouseCoopers served as our independent registered public accounting firm for the years ended December 31, 20202021, and 2019.2020. Prior to the Merger, PricewaterhouseCoopers had been independent auditor of Quintiles continuously since 2002 and for IMS Health continuously since 1998.

Among its functions, the Audit Committee reviews our financial reporting process on behalf of the Board. Management has the primary responsibility for the financial statements and the reporting process. The independent registered public accounting firm is responsible for expressing an opinion on the conformity of our audited financial statements to accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.

The Audit Committee has reviewed and discussed the annual audited financial statements with management and the independent registered public accounting firm, PricewaterhouseCoopers. The Audit Committee also discussed with the independent registered public accounting firm the matters required to be discussed by Public Company Accounting Oversight Board AS 1301, and reviewed the results of the independent registered public accounting firm’s audit of the consolidated financial statements.

PricewaterhouseCoopers has also confirmed to us that it is in compliance with the rules, standards and policies of the Independence Standards Board and the SEC governing auditor independence. The Audit Committee received and discussed with PricewaterhouseCoopers its written disclosures and the letter as required by applicable requirements of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board regarding the independent registered public accounting firm’s communications with the Audit Committee concerning independence. The Audit Committee has considered whether the provision of non-audit services by our independent registered public accounting firm is compatible with the auditor’s independence.

Based on the reviews and discussions referred to above, and the guidelines specified by the Audit Committee Charter, the Audit Committee recommended to the Board that the audited consolidated financial statements be included in our 20202021 Annual Report for filing with the SEC.

TheAuditCommittee

James A. Fasano, Chair


Carol J. Burt


Colleen A. Goggins


John M. Leonard, M.D.


Ronald A. Rittenmeyer


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Fees Paid to Independent Registered Public Accounting FirmFEES PAID TO INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM

PricewaterhouseCoopers has served as our independent auditor for the years ended December 31, 20202021, and 2019.2020. In addition to rendering audit services during those two years, PricewaterhouseCoopers performed various non-audit services for us worldwide.

Audit and Other Fees for Past Two Fiscal Years.Years

The following table sets forth the aggregate fees billed to the Company for services rendered by PricewaterhouseCoopers for the 2021 and 2020 and 2019 fiscal years:years.

 

 

  (in thousands) 
  

 

  2020   2019 

Audit fees(1)

  

$

8,975

  

$

8,450

Audit-related fees(2)

  

 

 

  

 

 

Tax fees(3)

  

 

2,300

  

 

4,000

All other fees(4)

  

 

20

  

 

35

Total

  

$

11,295

  

$

12,485

 

(in thousands)

2021

2020

Audit fees(1)

$8,590

$8,975

Audit-related fees(2)

522

Tax fees(3)

2,000

2,300

All other fees(4)

20

20

TOTAL

$11,132

$11,295

(1)

Audit fees principally include services related to the annual audit of the consolidated financial statements, quarterly review of our interim consolidated financial statements, statutory audits of foreign subsidiaries, SEC registration statements and other filings, and consultation on accounting matters.

(2)

Audit-related fees, if any, would consist principally of due diligence services and financial accounting and reporting consultations for related services not already reported in audit fees.

(3)

Tax fees relate primarily to professional services for tax compliance, advice and planning services. These services included U.S. and non-U.S. tax services.

(4)

All other fees consisted of non-audit and accounting research services.

All audit and non-audit services to be performed by our independent registered public accounting firm must be approved in advance by the Audit Committee. As permitted by SEC rules, the Audit Committee also has delegated to each of its members, acting singly, with the authority to pre-approve any audit or non-audit services if the need for pre-approval arises between regularly scheduled meetings. Such interim approvals, together with full documentation, are presented to the Audit Committee at its next scheduled meeting.

As early as practicable in each fiscal year, the independent registered public accounting firm provides to the Audit Committee a schedule of the audit and other services that the independent registered public accountants expect to provide or may provide during the year. The schedule willmust be specific as to the nature of the proposed services, the proposed fees and other details that the Audit Committee may request. The Audit Committee will by resolution authorize or decline the proposed services. Upon approval, this schedule will serve as the budget for fees by specific activity or service for the year.

A schedule of additional services proposed to be provided by the independent registered public accountants, or proposed revisions to services already approved, along with associated proposed fees, may be presented to the Audit Committee for their consideration and approval at any time. The schedule willmust be specific as to the nature of the proposed service, the proposed fee, and other details that the Audit Committee may request. The Audit Committee will by resolution authorize or decline authorization for each proposed new service.

Applicable SEC rules and regulations permit waiver of the pre-approval requirements for services other than audit, review or attest services if certain conditions are met. Out of the services characterized above as audit-related and tax, none were billed pursuant to these provisions in fiscal 20202021 without pre-approval.

The Audit Committee has considered the compatibility of non-audit services performed by PricewaterhouseCoopers with its independence. Our Committeeindependence, and has concluded that the provision of non-audit services by PricewaterhouseCoopers is compatible with that firm maintaining its independence from us and itsour management.


IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.  2021 PROXY STATEMENT  2022 Proxy Statement  |  121102

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Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management

The following table sets forth information relating to the beneficial ownership of our common stock as of February 12, 2021,15, 2022, by:

each person, or group of affiliated persons, known by us to beneficially own more than 5% of the outstanding shares of our common stock;

each of our named executive officers;

each of our directors; and

all executive officers and directors as a group.

Beneficial ownership is determined in accordance with SEC rules. In general, under these rules a beneficial owner of a security includes any person who, directly or indirectly, through any contract, arrangement, understanding, relationship or otherwise has or shares voting power or investment power with respect to such security. A person is also deemed to be a beneficial owner of a security if that person has the right to acquire beneficial ownership of such security within 60 days. Except as otherwise indicated, and subject to applicable community property laws, the personseach person named in the table havehas sole voting and investment power with respect to all shares of common stock held by that person.


122  |  Security OwnershipIQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT

The percentage of shares beneficially owned is computed on the basis of 191,767,120190,915,073 shares of our common stock outstanding as of February 12, 2021.15, 2022. Shares of our common stock that a person has the right to acquire within 60 days of February 12, 202115, 2022, are deemed outstanding for purposes of computing the percentage ownership of such person’s holdings but are not deemed outstanding for purposes of computing the percentage ownership of any other person, except with respect to the percentage ownership of all directors and executive officers as a group. Unless otherwise indicated below, the address for each beneficial owner listed is c/o IQVIA Holdings Inc., 83 Wooster Heights Road, Danbury, Connecticut 06810.

 

 

  Shares Beneficially Owned   

Name of Beneficial Owners

        Number         Percent 

5% stockholders:

    

The Vanguard Group(1)

  

 

20,954,687

  

 

10.9

 

BlackRock, Inc.(2)

  

 

14,826,277

  

 

7.7

 

Directors and named executive officers:

    

Ari Bousbib(3)

  

 

1,896,013

  

 

1.0

Ronald E. Bruehlman(4)

  

 

11,880

 

  

 

*

 

W. Richard Staub, III(5)

  

 

39,432

 

  

 

*

 

Kevin C. Knightly(6)

  

 

99,998

 

  

 

*

 

Eric M. Sherbet(7)

  

 

35,180

 

  

 

*

 

Michael R. McDonnell(8)

  

 

18,966

 

  

 

*

 

Carol J. Burt(9)

  

 

2,970

 

  

 

*

 

John P. Connaughton(10)

  

 

 

  

 

 

John G. Danhakl(11)

  

 

37,559

 

  

 

*

 

James A. Fasano

  

 

 

  

 

 

Colleen A. Goggins(12)

  

 

8,991

 

  

 

*

 

John M. Leonard, M.D.(13)

  

 

9,744

 

  

 

*

 

Ronald A. Rittenmeyer(14)

  

 

11,894

 

  

 

*

 

Todd B. Sisitsky

  

 

 

  

 

 

All executive officers and directors as a group (15 persons)(15)

  

 

2,180,253

  

 

1.1

Name of Beneficial Owners

Shares Beneficially Owned

Number

Percent

5% stockholders:

 

 

The Vanguard Group(1)

20,970,407

11.0

BlackRock, Inc.(2)

15,139,662

7.9

Directors and named executive officers:

 

 

Ari Bousbib(3)

2,113,317

1.1

Ronald E. Bruehlman(4)

25,509

*

W. Richard Staub, III(5)

62,332

*

Kevin C. Knightly(6)

113,559

*

Eric M. Sherbet(7)

57,681

*

Carol J. Burt(8)

3,904

*

John P. Connaughton

John G. Danhakl(9)

24,951

*

James A. Fasano

Colleen A. Goggins(10)

10,403

*

John M. Leonard, M.D.(11)

10,678

*

Leslie Wims Morris(12)

104

*

Ronald A. Rittenmeyer(13)

12,538

*

Todd B. Sisitsky

Sheila A. Stamps

All executive officers and directors as a group (16 persons)(14)

2,449,082

1.3

*
IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement103

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*

Represents beneficial ownership of less than one percent of the outstanding shares of our common stock.

(1)

As reported by The Vanguard Group in a Schedule 13G filed with the SEC on February 10, 2021,2022, which reported holdings as of December 31, 2020.2021. The Schedule 13G states that The Vanguard Group has shared voting power with respect to 316,862312,773 shares, sole dispositive power with respect to 20,115,43520,189,420 shares, and shared dispositive power with respect to 839,252780,987 shares. The principal business address of The Vanguard Group is 100 Vanguard Blvd., Malvern, PA 19355.

(2)

As reported by BlackRock, Inc. in a Schedule 13G filed with the SEC on January 29, 2021,February 7, 2022, which reported holdings as of December 31, 2020.2021. The Schedule 13G states that BlackRock, Inc. has sole voting power with respect to 12,568,70113,613,370 shares and sole dispositive power with respect to 14,826,27715,139,662 shares. The principal business address of BlackRock, Inc. is 55 East 52nd Street, New York, NY 10055.

(3)

Includes 724,691892,867 shares underlying stock appreciation rights that are currently exercisable or scheduled to vest within 60 days of February 12, 2021.15, 2022. Of the shares beneficially owned, 543,302 shares of common stock are held in trust for the benefit of members of Mr. Bousbib’s family.

(4)

Consist of 11,880 shares of common stock held in Ronald E. Bruehlman Revocable Trust.

(5)

Includes 20,7458,900 shares underlying stock appreciation rights that are currently exercisable or scheduled to vest within 60 days of February 12, 2021.15, 2022. Of the shares beneficially owned, 11,880 shares of common stock are held in Ronald E. Bruehlman Revocable Trust.

(6)
(5)

Includes 75,37737,563 shares underlying stock appreciation rights that are currently exercisable or scheduled to vest within 60 days of February 12, 2021, and 18,566 notional shares held under the IMS Health DCERP.15, 2022.

(7)
(6)

Includes 31,62889,172 shares underlying stock appreciation rights that are currently exercisable or scheduled to vest within 60 days of February 12, 2021.

(8)

As reported in a Form 4 filed with the SEC on July 7, 2020, which reported holdings as of July 5, 2020. Mr. McDonnell left the Company on August 3, 2020.


IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENTSecurity Ownership  |  123

(9)

Consists of 2,970 shares of common stock issued pursuant to Company stock incentive plans.

(10)

Does not include shares of common stock held by Bain Capital Integral Investors 2008, L.P. (“Integral 2008”), BCIP TCV, LLC (“BCIP TCV”)15, 2022, and BCIP Associates-G (“BCIP-G” and, collectively, the “Bain Capital Entities”). Bain Capital Investors, LLC (“BCI”) is the ultimate general partner of Integral 2008 and governs the investment strategy and decision-making process with respect to investments held by each of BCIP TCV and BCIP-G. Mr. Connaughton, who is one of our directors, is a Managing Director of BCI and as a result, may be deemed to share beneficial ownership of the shares held by the Bain Capital Entities. Mr. Connaughton disclaims beneficial ownership of such shares except to the extent of his pecuniary interest therein. The address for Mr. Connaughton is c/o Bain Capital Private Equity, LP, 200 Clarendon Street, Boston, MA 02116.

(11)

Consists of 37,410 shares of common stock held for the benefit of Mr. Danhakl’s family and 14918,566 notional shares held under the IQVIA Holdings Inc. Non-Employee Director Deferral Plan.IMS Health DCERP.

(12)

Consists of 7,251 shares of common stock issued pursuant to Company stock incentive plans and 1,740 notional shares held under the IQVIA Holdings Inc. Non-Employee Director Deferral Plan.

(13)

Consists of 9,744 shares of common stock issued pursuant to Company stock incentive plans.

(14)

Consists of 11,894 shares of common stock issued pursuant to Company stock incentive plans.

(15)
(7)

Includes 859,05848,090 shares underlying stock appreciation rights that are currently exercisable or scheduled to vest within 60 days 18,566of February 15, 2022.

(8)

Consists of 3,904 shares of common stock held in Carol Burt Hilliard Revocable Trust.

(9)

Consists of 24,344 shares of common stock held in trust for the benefit of Mr. Danhakl’s family and 607 notional shares held under the IQVIA Holdings Inc. Non-Employee Director Deferral Plan.

(10)

Consists of 8,185 shares of common stock issued pursuant to Company stock incentive plans and 2,218 notional shares held under the IQVIA Holdings Inc. Non-Employee Director Deferral Plan.

(11)

Consists of 10,678 shares of common stock issued pursuant to Company stock incentive plans.

(12)

Consists of 104 notional shares held under the IQVIA Holdings Inc. Non–Employee Director Deferral Plan.

(13)

Consists of 12,538 shares of common stock issued pursuant to Company stock incentive plans.

(14)

Includes 1,088,403 shares underlying stock appreciation rights that are currently exercisable or scheduled to vest within 60 days,18,566 notional shares held under the IMS Health DCERP and 1,8892,929 notional shares held under the IQVIA Holdings Inc. Non-Employee Director Deferral Plan.


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Certain Relationships and
Related Person Party Transactions

Approval PolicyRELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS APPROVAL POLICY

We have adopted a written policy with respectassigning responsibility to the review, approval and ratification of related party transactions. Under the policy, our Audit Committee is responsible for reviewing and approving related party transactions. For purposes of this policy, a related person transaction includes any transaction required to be disclosed pursuant to Item 404(a) of Regulation S-K adopted by the SEC.

In the course of its review and approval of related party transactions, our Audit Committee will consider the relevant facts and circumstances to decide whether to approve such transactions. Related party transactions must be approved or ratified by the Audit Committee based on full information concerning the proposed transaction, including the related persons involved,involved; their relationship to the Company,Company; their interest and role in the transaction,transaction; the proposed terms of the transaction, including materiality and character of the related party’s direct or indirect interest,interest; the benefits and perceived benefits, or lack thereof, to the Company and the related party,party; the availability to the Company of alternative means or transactions by which to obtain like benefits,benefits; terms that would prevail in a similar transaction with an unaffiliated third party,party; the actual or apparent conflict of interest of the related party,party; and such other information as our Audit Committee deems appropriate. Our policy provides that we generally should not engage in related party transactions unless the Audit Committee has determined that, upon consideration of all relevant information, the proposed transaction is in, or not inconsistent with, the best interests of the Company and its stockholders.

Shareholders AgreementSHAREHOLDERS AGREEMENT

In connection with the merger of IMS Health Holdings, Inc. (“IMS Health”) with and into Quintiles Transnational Holdings Inc. (“Quintiles”) on October 3, 2016 (the “Merger”),Merger, we entered into a shareholders agreement (the “Shareholders Agreement”) with certain of the largest post-Merger shareholders, including certain funds affiliated with TPG Global, LLC (collectively, “TPG”), certain affiliates of Bain Capital Investors, LLC (collectively, “Bain Capital”), CPP Investment Board Private Holdings Inc. (“CPPIB”), Dr. Dennis B. Gillings and certain of his affiliates (the “DG Shareholders”), and Leonard Green & Partners, L.P. (“LGP”). TPG, the DG Shareholders and LGP are no longer partiesThe funds originally party to the Shareholders Agreement. Bain Capital and CPPIB are the only remaining parties to the Shareholders Agreement. Bain Capital and CPPIBAgreement are sometimes referred to as the “SHA Parties” in this Proxy Statement.Statement, but CPPIB is the only remaining party to the Shareholders Agreement.

The SHA Parties have certain customary registration rights with respect to their shares of our common stock. Pursuant to the registration rights provisions of the Shareholders Agreement, the SHA Parties have demand registration rights, including shelf registration rights, in respect of any shares of our common stock held by them, subject to certain conditions. In addition, in the event that we register shares of our common stock for sale to the public, we are required to give notice of such registration to the SHA Parties, and, subject to certain limitations, include shares of our common stock held by them in such registration. The Shareholders Agreement includes customary indemnification provisions in favor of the SHA Parties, any person who is or might be deemed a control person (within the meaning of the Securities Act of 1933 and the Exchange Act), and related parties against certain losses and liabilities (including reasonable costs of investigation and legal expenses) arising out of or based upon any filing or other disclosure made by us under the securities laws relating to any such registration.


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The Shareholders Agreement will terminate with respect to any current party thereto (i) with respect to provisions regarding our Board, at such time as the party is no longer entitled to designate a nominee, (ii) with respect to provisions regarding registration rights, untilat such time as the party has sold all of its shares of our outstanding common stock or has the ability to sell such shares pursuant to Rule 144 of the Securities Act of 1933 without volume limitations (provided that the shareholder group to which such party belongs then holds less than 3% of our outstanding common stock), and (iii) with respect to the remainder of the Shareholders Agreement, at such time as the party no longer holds any shares of our common stock. The Board designation rights for each of the parties to the Shareholders Agreement have ceased.

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Back to ContentsCORPORATE OPPORTUNITIES

Corporate Opportunities

Our Certificate of Incorporation was approved by stockholders in connection with the Merger and provides that TPG, Bain Capital, CPPIB and LGP, and certain of their respective affiliates, will not have any fiduciary or other duty to refrain from engaging directly or indirectly in the same or similar business activities or lines of business as the Company or any of its subsidiaries. The Certificate of Incorporation further provides that the Company, on behalf of itself and its subsidiaries, renounces any interest or expectancy in being offered an opportunity to participate in business opportunities that are presented to TPG, Bain Capital, CPPIB, LGP, or certain of their respective affiliates. This provision applies to these stockholders (and associated parties) only for so long as such stockholderone or more of them continues to have the right under the Shareholders Agreement to designate one nominee or a nominee designated by any such stockholder at any time continues to serve on the board.Board. The Board designation rights for each of the parties to the Shareholders Agreement have ceased, but TPG, Bain Capital, CPPIB and LGP continue to have at least one current or former designee serving on the Board.


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Back to ContentsAbout the 2021 Annual Meeting

What is the purpose of the 2021 Annual Meeting?

At the 2021 Annual Meeting, holders of shares of our common stock will consider and act upon the following items of business:

Election of the three Class II director nominees named in this Proxy Statement for a three-year term

 

Advisory (non-binding) vote on the frequency of future stockholder advisory votes to approve executive compensation (say-on-frequency)

About the 2022
Annual Meeting

Amendments to our Certificate of Incorporation to eliminate all supermajority voting standards applicable to our stockholders

Ratification of our Audit Committee’s appointment of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP as our independent registered public accounting firm for 2021

Transaction of any other business that may properly come before the 2020 Annual Meeting

The Board recommends: (i) a vote FOR the election of the three nominees proposed for election as Class II directors, (ii) a vote FOR each proposed amendment to our Certificate of Incorporation and (iii) a vote FOR the ratification of the appointment of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP as our independent registered public accounting firm for 2020 and, on any other business properly brought before the 2021 Annual Meeting, in accordance with the best judgment of the named proxies. The Board is not making any recommendation in respect of the say-on-frequency vote, but it has committed to implementing the majority view even though this is an advisory vote and is not binding on the Company.

Who are the Class II directors that will be voted on at the 2021 Annual Meeting?

The following are the Class II directors that have been nominated for election to our Board:

Ari Bousbib

John M. Leonard, M.D.

Todd B. Sisitsky

Information regarding each of our directors is set forth below under “Proposal 1—Election of Directors.”

Who is entitled to vote at the 20212022 Annual Meeting?

How many shares can I vote?

Only stockholders of record on February 12, 2021,15, 2022, the record date for the 20212022 Annual Meeting, are entitled to receive notice of and to vote at the 20212022 Annual Meeting. On that date, we had 191,748,810190,912,001 shares of common stock outstanding on the books and records of our transfer agent, American Stock Transfer and Trust Company, LLC (AST). Each share of our common stock is entitled to one vote. There is no cumulative voting.

What constitutes a quorum?

A quorum of shares is necessary to hold a valid stockholders’ meeting. Our Bylaws provide that a majority of the total votes entitled to be cast by the holders of all outstanding shares of capital stock of the Company entitled to vote generally in the election of directors, present in person or represented by proxy, will constitute a quorum at meetings of stockholders. Shares for which a stockholder directs an “abstention” from voting, as well as shares that a broker holds in “street name” and votes on some matters but not others (“broker (known as “broker non-votes,” which result when brokers have not received voting instructions from their customers on certain non-routine matters), will be counted for purposes of establishing a quorum.


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What proposals will be voted on at the 2022 Annual Meeting? How does the Board recommend that I vote? What vote is required to approve each item of business?

The chart below summarizes the items of business for the 2022 Annual Meeting, the voting requirements, and the effects of broker non-votes and abstentions, as prescribed by our corporate governance documents and Delaware law, on the outcome of the vote for thethese proposals at the 2022 Annual meeting.Meeting.

Proposal

Board Recommendation

Proposal

Vote Required

Effect of Abstentions 

and Broker Non-Votes

Election of four Class III Directors for a three-year term

FOR each nominee

Plurality of votes cast

No effect

Amendment to Certificate of Incorporation to declassify the Board over time and provide for the annual election of all directors

FOR

A “withhold”Majority of shares present in person or presented by proxy at the meeting and entitled to vote oron the matter

Abstentions treated as votes “against” and broker non-votenon-votes will have no effect on the outcome

Advisory say-on-frequency(non-binding) vote to approve executive compensation (say-on-pay)

FOR

Majority of votes
castNot Applicable1(1)

Not considered as votes cast and have noNo effect on the outcome

Amendments to Certificate of IncorporationConsider a stockholder proposal, if properly presented

AGAINST

Majority of shares
present in person or
presented by proxy
at the meeting and
entitled to vote on
the subject matterNot Applicable(1)

Abstentions have the sameNo effect as a vote “against” and broker non-votes will have no effect on the outcome

Ratification of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP as our independent auditor for 2022

FOR

Majority of votes cast

Not considered as votes cast and have noNo effect on the outcome

1
(1)

The advisory vote on frequency of say-on-pay is not binding on the Company, but the Board has committed to implementing the majority view even thoughBecause this is an advisory vote, andthere is not binding on the Company.no required approval.

Our Bylaws provide that directors are elected by a plurality of votes cast, which means that the nominees with the largest number of votes will be elected as directors up to the maximum number of directors to be elected at the 20212022 Annual Meeting. Our Corporate Governance Guidelines provide that, in an uncontested election which is an(an election in which the number of nominees isdoes not greater thanexceed the number of directors to be elected,elected), a director who receives a number of “withhold” votes that is greater than 50% of all votes cast with respect to that nominee’s election shallmust promptly tender his or hera resignation from the Board. The Nominating and GovernanceN&G Committee shall thenwill make a recommendation to the Board as to whether to accept or reject the tendered resignation, or whether other action should be taken. The Nominating and GovernanceN&G Committee and the Board, in making its recommendation or decision, as applicable, shallmust consider what it believes is in the best interests of the Company and its stockholders, and may consider any

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factor or other information it deems relevant. The Board shallwill act on the tendered resignation, taking into account the Nominating and GovernanceN&G Committee’s recommendation, and shallwill publicly disclose its decision regarding the resignation within 90 days after the results of the election are certified. If the resignation is not accepted, the director shall continue tomay serve until the next annual meeting of stockholders at which such director faces re-election andhis or her term until such director’s successor is elected and qualified. As the election of directors at the 2021 Annual Meeting will be uncontested, the director nominees will be elected by a plurality of the votes, subject to the foregoing procedure.

Although the advisory say-on-frequency vote is non-binding, the Board voluntarily included the proposal this year to solicit stockholder feedback on the desired frequency of advisory votes on executive compensation and plans to adopt a standard consistent with the majority of votes cast.

What are the voting rights of stockholders?

Each share of our common stock is entitled to one vote. There is no cumulative voting.

What is the difference between holding shares as a stockholder of record and as a beneficial owner?

If your shares are registered directly in your name with AST, you are considered, with respect to those shares, the “stockholder of record.” Proxy materials or a Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials have been sent directly to you by us.


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If your shares are held in a stock brokerage account or by a bank or other nominee, you are considered the “beneficial owner” of shares held in street name, and these proxy materials or a Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy materialsMaterials are being forwarded to you together with a voting instruction card. As the beneficial owner, you have the right to direct your broker, bank or other nominee how to vote your shares by following their instructions for voting.instructions. Please note that because a beneficial owner is not the stockholder of record, you may not vote these shares in person at the meeting unless you obtain a “legal proxy” from the broker, bank or other nominee that holds your shares, giving you the right to vote the shares at the meeting.

How do stockholders vote?

If you are a stockholder of record, you may havevote your shares voted on matters presented at the 2021 Annual Meeting in any of the following ways:

In person—you

You may attend the 20212022 Annual Meeting and cast your vote there. If you have already voted online, by telephone or by mail, your vote at the 20212022 Annual Meeting will supersede your prior vote.

By proxy—stockholders

Stockholders of record have a choice of voting by proxy:

over the Internet at www.voteproxy.com;

by using the toll-free telephone number 1-800-PROXIES (1-800-776-9437) in the United States or 1-718-921-8500 from foreign countries from any touch-tone telephone and followfollowing the instructions, as noted on your proxy card; or

by completing a proxy card and mailing it in the postage-paid envelope provided. Please allow sufficient time for delivery of your proxy card if you decide to vote by mail.

TheInternetandtelephonevotingfacilitiesforstockholdersofrecordwillcloseat11:59p.m.E.D.T.onApril 12, 2021.11,2022.

If you are a beneficial owner holding shares in street name, please refer to your proxy card or the voting informationinstruction form forwarded by your broker, bank or other nominee to see which of the above choices are available to you. Brokers are not permitted to vote foron Proposals 1, 2, 3, or 3 if the broker has not received4 without instructions from the beneficial owner of the shares. It is particularly important, if you hold your shares through a broker or other nominee, that you instruct your broker how you wish to vote your shares because brokers will have discretionary voting authority only with respect to Proposal 45 if you do not do so.

A control number, located on your proxy card, is designed to verify your identity and allow you to vote your shares, and to confirm that your voting instructions have been properly recorded when voting over the Internet or by telephone. Please be aware that ifIf you vote over the Internet, you may incur costs such as telephone and Internet access charges for which you will be responsible.

If a stockholder gives a proxy, how are the shares voted?

Regardless of the method you choose to vote, the individuals named on the enclosed proxy card (your “proxies”) will vote your shares in the way that you indicate. The individuals named as proxies on the proxy card are Mr. Bousbib, our Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Bruehlman, our Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, and Mr. Sherbet, our Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary. When completing the Internet or telephone processes or the proxy card, you may specify whether your shares should be voted for or withheld from the election of each director, or voted for or against or to abstain from voting on all, some or none of the other items of business to come before the 20212022 Annual Meeting.

If you properly sign your proxy card but do not indicate how your shares should be voted on a matter, the shares represented by your properly signed proxy will be voted as the Board recommends, ifrecommends.


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applicable, which recommendations are set forth above. The Board has not recommended a vote for Proposal 3, which means that the shares represented by your properly signed proxy will not be voted in respect of Proposal 3 if you do not indicated how your shares should be voted.Back to Contents

It is possible that items of business other than those listed above may be brought before stockholders at the 20212022 Annual Meeting. If we were not aware of the matter a reasonable time before the mailing of this Proxy Statement, the personsThe individuals named as proxies on the proxy card will vote shares for which you have given a proxy on the matter as recommended by the Board, or, if no Board recommendation is given, the proxies will vote the shares in their discretion.

In any event, the individuals named as proxies on the proxy card must comply with the rules of the SEC when voting shares on a discretionary basis. At the date of this Proxy Statement, we have not received any notice regarding any other matter to come before the 20212022 Annual Meeting that was timely in accordance with our Bylaws.

If I vote by proxy, may I still attend the 20212022 Annual Meeting?

Voting over the Internet, by telephone or by sending in a signed proxy card will not prevent you from attending the 20212022 Annual Meeting and voting in person.

Who Can Attendcan attend the 20212022 Annual Meeting?

Any Company stockholder as of the close of business on February 12, 202115, 2022, may attend the meeting. You will need proof of ownership to enter the meeting. Even if you plan to attend the meeting, please vote your shares in advance by submitting a proxy.

If your shares are held in street name (beneficially held in the name of a broker, bank or other holder of record), you must present proof of your ownership, such as a bank or brokerage account statement, to be admitted to the meeting. Please note that if you are a beneficial holder and would like to vote at the meeting in person, you will need to bring a legal proxy from your broker, bank or other holder of record.

Stockholders must also present a valid form of photo identification, such as a driver’s license, in order to be admitted to the meeting. No cameras, recording equipment, large bags or packages will be permitted in the meeting.

For directions to the meeting, you may contact the Secretary of the Company at 83 Wooster Heights Road, Danbury, Connecticut 06810.

How can I revoke a proxy?

You have the right to revoke a proxy, whether delivered over the Internet, by telephone or by mail, at any time before it is exercised, by voting again at a later date through any of the methods available to you, by giving written notice of revocation to our Secretary which(which must be filed with the Secretary by the time the 20212022 Annual Meeting begins,begins), or by attending the 20212022 Annual Meeting and voting in person.

Who is paying the costs of this proxy solicitation?

We are paying the costsProxies will be solicited on behalf of the Board by mail, telephone, other electronic means or in person, and we will pay the solicitation of proxies.costs. We will reimburse brokers, banks or other custodians, nominees and fiduciaries for their charges and expenses in forwarding proxy materials to beneficial owners. Certain of our directors, officers and employees, without additional compensation, may also solicit proxies on our behalf in person, by telephone, or by electronic communication. In addition, we have engaged Morrow Sodali LLC to assist in the solicitation from brokers, bank nominees and institutional holders for a fee of $12,000 plus out-of-pocket expenses.

How can I find out the results of the voting at the 20212022 Annual Meeting?

AST will receive and tabulate the vote in connection with the 20212022 Annual Meeting. Representatives of AST will act as the independent Inspectors of Election and in this capacity will supervise the voting,


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decide the validity of proxies and certify the results. AST has been instructed that the vote of each stockholder must be kept confidential and may not be disclosed (except in legal proceedings or for the purpose of soliciting stockholder votes in a contested proxy solicitation).

Voting results will be announced by the filing of a Current Report on Form 8-K with the SEC within four business days after the 20212022 Annual Meeting. If final voting results are unavailable at that time, we will file an amended Current Report on Form 8-K within four business days of the day the final results are available.

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Why did my household only receive one paper copy of the Notice? How can I obtain an additional copy of the proxy materials?

We have adopted a procedure approved by the SEC known as “householding.” Under this procedure, we deliver a single copy of the Notice and, if requested, our proxy materials, to multiple stockholders who share the same address unless we have received contrary instructions from one or more of the stockholders. This procedure reduces our printing and mailing costs and the environmental impact of our annual meetings. Stockholders who participate in householding will continue to be able to access and receive separate proxy cards. Upon written or oral request, we will deliver promptly a separate Notice or a copy of this Proxy Statement and our 20202021 Annual Report to any stockholder at a shared address to which we delivered a single Notice.

To receive free of charge a separate copy of this Proxy Statement and our 20202021 Annual Report, stockholders may write or call us at the following:

Investor Relations Department


83 Wooster Heights Road


Danbury, Connecticut 06810


ir@iqvia.com


203-448-4600

Stockholders who hold shares in street name may contact their brokerage firm, bank, broker-dealer or other similar organization to request information about householding.

How can I reduce the number of proxy materials I receive?

If more than one copy of our 2021 Annual Report has been mailed to your address, and you wish to reduce the number of reports you receive and save us the cost of producing and mailing these reports, or if you wish to receive your reports via the Internet, please let us know. We will discontinue the mailing of reports on the accounts you select if you mark the designated box on the appropriate proxy card(s). At least one account must continue to receive an annual report and proxy statement either via mail or via Internet delivery.

How can I receive electronic access to proxy materials?

If you hold shares registered in your name, you may sign up at www.investordelivery.com to receive electronic access to proxy materials for future meetings, rather than receiving mailed copies. If you choose electronic access, you will receive an email notifying you when the 20202021 Annual Report and Proxy Statement are available, with electronic links to access the documents (in PDF and HTML formats) on a website and instructions on how to vote online. Your enrollment for electronic access will remain in effect unless you cancel it, which you can do up to two weeks before the record date for any future annual meeting.

If you own your shares in street name, you may be able to obtain electronic access to proxy materials by contacting your broker, bank, trustee or other intermediary, or by going online at www.proxyvote.com.www.proxyvote.com.

If I cannot attend the 20212022 Annual Meeting, what are the deadlines for voting?

IfyouchoosetovoteovertheInternetorbytelephone,youmustcompletetheprocessnolaterthan11:59 p.m.E.D.T.onMonday,April 12, 2021 and in that case it 11,2022.Itisnotnecessaryforyoutoalsoreturnyourproxycard.

If you choose to vote by mailing a proxy card, you should mail your signed proxy card sufficiently in advance for it to be received no later than 9:00 a.m. E.D.T. on Monday, April 12, 2021.11, 2022.


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Other Relevant Information

COMPENSATION COMMITTEE INTERLOCKS AND INSIDER PARTICIPATION

During 2020, the LDCCompensation Committee of the Board consisted of Messrs. Connaughton, Danhakl, Rittenmeyer (Chair)Interlocks and Sisitsky. Insider Participation

None of the members of the committeeLDC Committee have at any time been an officer or employee of the Company or any of its subsidiaries. During 2020,2021, none of our executive officers served as a member of the board of directors or compensation committee of any entity whichthat has one or more executive officers serving as a member of theour Board or the LDC Committee.

Delinquent Section 16(a) Reports

For his current term expiring atOur officers, directors and greater than 10% stockholders are required under Section 16(a) of the 2021 Annual meeting, Mr. Sisitsky was designated for nominationExchange Act, to file with the SEC reports of their ownership and changes of their ownership of our securities. They must also furnish copies of the reports to us. Based solely on a review of the copies of such forms furnished to the Board pursuantCompany, the Company believes that during fiscal 2021 all Section 16(a) filing requirements applicable to its officers, directors and greater than 10% stockholders were complied with by such persons, except for three inadvertent late Form 4 filings and one inadvertent missed Form 5 filing as a result of two separate purchases of Company shares totaling 17 shares and the Shareholders Agreement, which, as discussed above, required thatdisposition of four shares of Company stock on behalf of Mr. Bruehlman. In all parties tosuch instances, the Shareholders Agreement vote in favor of the election of certain nominees designated in accordance with the Shareholders Agreement.transactions were made without Mr. Sisitsky is associated with TPG, which ceased to be a party to the Shareholders Agreement in 2020. Information regarding our relationship with this entity and its affiliates is described above under “Certain Relationships and Related Person Transactions.”Bruehlman’s knowledge by an independent financial broker/advisor who manages an investment account on Mr. Bruehlman’s behalf.

Other MattersOTHER MATTERS

We know of no matters, other than those referred to in this Proxy Statement, that will be presented at the 20202022 Annual Meeting. If, however, any other appropriate business is properly presented at the 20202022 Annual Meeting, the personsindividuals named in the enclosed proxy card will have discretion to vote on those matters for you.

Stockholder Proposals and Nominees for 2023 Annual Meeting of StockholdersSTOCKHOLDER PROPOSALS AND NOMINEES FOR 2022 ANNUAL MEETING OF STOCKHOLDERS

Under SEC rules, for a stockholder proposal to be included in our proxy statement (and form of proxy) for presentation at our 20222023 annual meeting of stockholders, the proposal must be received by us, marked to the attention of Secretary of the Company at 83 Wooster Heights Road, Danbury, Connecticut 06810 by October 29, 2021.31 , 2022. As the rules of the SEC make clear, merely submitting a proposal does not guarantee its inclusion.it will be included in our proxy statement.

Our Bylaws provide for a right of proxy access. ThisThe proxy access bylaw enables stockholders, under specified conditions, to include their nominees for election as directors in our proxy statement. Under our Bylaws, a stockholder, or a group of up to 20 stockholders, who has continuously owned at least 3% of our outstanding shares of common stock for at least three consecutive years may nominate up to 20% of the Board (but in any event at leastor two directors)directors (whichever is more) and have such nominee(s) included in our proxy statement, if the stockholder(s) and the nominee(s) satisfy the applicable requirements set forth in our Bylaws. Stockholders seeking to have one or more nominees included in our 20222023 proxy statement must deliver the notice required by our Bylaws to the attention of Secretary of the Company at 83 Wooster Heights Road, Danbury, Connecticut 06810 no earlier than September 26, 2021,between  October 1 , 2022, and no later than October 26, 2021.31 , 2022.

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Under our Bylaws, and as permitted by SEC rules, certain procedures are provided that a stockholder must follow certain procedures to nominate personscandidates for election as directors or to introduce an item of business at an annual meeting of stockholders, but that areeven if those matters will not be included in our proxy statement for that meeting. These procedures provide that nominations for director nominees and/Any such nomination or an item of business to be introduced at an annual meeting of stockholders must be submitted in writing to the Secretary of the Company at 83 Wooster Heights Road, Danbury, Connecticut 06810. We must receive the notice of your intention to introduce a nomination or proposed item of business at our 20222023 annual meeting of stockholders no earlier thanbetween December 14, 2021,13, 2022, and no later than January 13, 2022.


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If, however,12, 2023. However, if the date of our 20222023 annual meeting of stockholders is more than 30 days before or more than 60 days after the anniversary date of the 20212022 Annual Meeting, we must receive notice no earlier than December 14, 202113, 2022, and no later than the laterlatter of January 13, 202212, 2023, or ten days after the day on which the date of our 20222023 annual meeting of stockholders is first disclosed in a public announcement.

TheAny director nomination must contain the information specified in our Bylaws.

Incorporation by ReferenceINCORPORATION BY REFERENCE

In our filings with the SEC, information is sometimes “incorporated by reference.” This means that we are referring you to information that has previously been filed with the SEC and the information should be considered as part of the particular filing. As provided under SEC regulations, the “Audit Committee Report” and the “Compensation Committee Report” contained in this Proxy Statement specifically are not incorporated by reference into any other filings with the SEC. In addition, this Proxy Statement includes several website addresses. These website addresses are intended to provide inactive, textual references only. The information on these websites is not part of this Proxy Statement.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking StatementsSOLICITATION OF PROXIES

Proxies will be solicited on behalf of the Board by mail, telephone, other electronic means or in person, and we will pay the solicitation costs. Copies of proxy materials and of the 2020 Annual Report will be supplied to brokers, banks or nominees, for the purpose of soliciting proxies from beneficial owners, and we will reimburse such record holders for their reasonable expenses. Certain officers, directors and regular employees of the Company, who will receive no extra compensation for their services, may solicit proxies by mail, telephone, facsimile, e-mail or personally.

REDUCE MAILINGS

If more than one copy of our 2020 Annual Report has been mailed to your address and you wish to reduce the number of reports you receive and save us the cost of producing and mailing these reports or if you wish to receive your reports via the Internet, please let us know. We will discontinue the mailing of reports on the accounts you select if you mark the designated box on the appropriate proxy card(s). At least one account must continue to receive an annual report and proxy statement either via mail or via Internet delivery.

CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This Proxy Statement, as well as other written reports and oral statements that we make from time to time, includes statements that express our opinions, expectations, beliefs, plans, objectives, assumptions or projections regarding future events or future results and therefore are, or may be deemed to be, “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (the “Act”). The words “expects,” “assumes,” “anticipates,” “believes,” “estimates,” “expects,” “intends,” “may,” “plans,” “forecasts,” “projects,” “should,” “seeks”, “sees,” “targets,” “will”, “would” and similar words and expressions, and variations or negatives of these words are intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain these identifying words. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees that the future results, plans, intentions or expectations expressed or implied will be achieved. Matters subject to forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, including regulatory, competitive and other factors, which may cause actual financial or operating results or the timing of events to be materially different than those expressed or implied by forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause or contribute


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to such differences include, but are not limited to: business disruptions caused by natural disasters, pandemics such as the COVID-19 (coronavirus) outbreak, orincluding any variants, and the public health policy responses to the outbreak, international conflict or other disruptions outside of our control; our ability to accurately model or forecast the impact of the spread and/or containment of COVID-19, among other sources of business interruption, on our operations and financial results; most of our contracts may be terminated on short notice, and we may lose or experience delays with large client contracts or be unable to enter into new contracts; the market for our services may not grow as we expect; we may be unable to successfully develop and market new services or enter new markets; imposition of restrictions on our use of data by data suppliers or their refusal to license data to us; any failure by us to comply with contractual, regulatory or ethical requirements under our contracts, including current or future changes to data protection and privacy laws; breaches or misuse of our or our outsourcing partners’ security or communications systems; failure to meet our productivity or business transformation objectives; failure to successfully invest in growth opportunities; our ability to protect our intellectual property rights and our susceptibility to claims by others that we are infringing on their intellectual property rights; the expiration or inability to acquire third party licenses for technology or intellectual property; any failure by us to accurately and timely price and formulate cost estimates for contracts, or to document change orders; hardware and software failures, delays in the operation of our computer and communications systems or the failure to implement system enhancements; the rate at which our backlog converts to revenue; our ability to acquire, develop and implement technology necessary for our business; consolidation in the industries in which our clients operate; risks related to client or therapeutic concentration; government regulators or our customers may limit the scope of prescription or withdraw products

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from the market, and government regulators may impose new regulatory requirements or may adopt new regulations affecting the biopharmaceutical industry; the risks associated with operating on a global basis, including currency or exchange rate fluctuations and legal compliance, including anti-corruption laws; risks related to changes in accounting standards; general economic conditions in the markets in which we operate, including financial market conditions and risks related to sales to government entities; the impact of changes in tax laws and regulations; and our ability to successfully integrate, and achieve expected benefits from, our acquired businesses; and the other factors set forth in the “Risk Factors” section of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020,2021, filed with the SEC, as such factors may be amended or updated from time to time in our subsequent periodic and other filings with the SEC, which are accessible on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov.www.sec.gov. Given these risks and uncertainties, you are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. We undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statements or to publicly announce the results of any revisions to any of those statements to reflect future events or developments or otherwise.

By Order of the Board of Directors,

 

LOGO

Eric M. Sherbet


Executive Vice President, General Counsel
and Secretary


Dated:  February 26, 2021

28 , 2022
Danbury, Connecticut


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Appendix A

Use of Non-GAAP Financial Reconciliations

USE OF NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES

Measures

This Proxy Statement includes financial measures not prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States (“GAAP”). Non-GAAP financial information is provided to enhance understanding of our financial performance, but none of these non-GAAP financial measures are recognized terms under GAAP, and non-GAAP measures should not be considered in isolation from, or as a substitute analysis for, our results of operations as determined in accordance with GAAP. We use non-GAAP measures in our operational and financial decision makingdecision-making and believe that it is useful to exclude certain items in order to focus on what it regards to be a more meaningful indicator of the underlying operating performance of the business. For example, we exclude all the amortization of intangible assets associated with acquired customer relationships and backlog, databases, non-compete agreements and trademarks, trade names and other from non-GAAP expense and income measures as such amounts can be significantly impacted by the timing and size of acquisitions. Although we exclude amortization of acquired intangible assets from our non-GAAP expenses, we believe that it is important for investors to understand that revenue generated from such intangibles is included within revenue in determining net income attributable to the Company. InternalAs a result, internal management reports feature non-GAAP measures whichand are also used to prepare strategic plans and annual budgets and review management compensation. We also believe that stockholders may find non-GAAP financial measures useful for the same reasons, although stockholders are cautioned that non-GAAP financial measures are not a substitute for GAAP disclosures. Non-GAAP measures have limitations as an analytical tool. They are not presentations made in accordance with GAAP, are not measures of financial condition or liquidity and should not be considered as an alternative to profit or loss for the period determined in accordance with GAAP or operating cash flows determined in accordance with GAAP.

Non-GAAP measures are frequently used by securities analysts, investors and other interested parties in their evaluation of companies comparable to us, many of which present non-GAAP measures when reporting their results. Non-GAAP measures are not necessarily comparable to similarly titled measures used by other companies. As a result, stockholders should not consider such performance measures in isolation from, or as a substitute analysis for, our results of operations as determined in accordance with GAAP. Stockholders are encouraged to review the reconciliations below of these financial measures.


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IQVIA HOLDINGS INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

NET INCOME TO ADJUSTED EBITDA RECONCILIATION

(in millions)

(unaudited)

 

(in millions)

(unaudited)

Year Ended

December 31, 2020

2021

NetIncomeAttributabletoIQVIAHoldingsInc.

$   279

966

Provision for income taxes

72

163

Depreciation and amortization

1,287

1,264

Interest expense, net

410

369

Income in unconsolidated affiliates

(7

(6)

Income from non-controlling interests

29

5

Deferred revenue purchasing accounting adjustments

1

3

Stock-based compensation

95

170

Other income, net

(23

(81)

Loss on extinguishment of debt

13

26

Restructuring and related charges

expenses

85

68

Acquisition and integration related charges

expenses

143

75

AdjustedADJUSTED EBITDA

$2,384

3,022


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IQVIA HOLDINGS INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

NET INCOME TO ADJUSTED NET INCOME RECONCILIATION

(in millions, except per share data)

(unaudited)

 

(in millions, except per share data)

(unaudited)

Year Ended

December 31, 2020

2021

NetIncomeAttributabletoIQVIAHoldingsInc.

                                  $

279

$966

Provision for income taxes

72

163

Purchase accounting amortization(1)

933

833

Income in unconsolidated affiliates

(7

(6)

Income from non-controlling interests

29

5

Deferred revenue purchasing accounting adjustments

1

3

Stock-based compensation

95

170

Other income, net

(23

(81)

Loss on extinguishment of debt

13

Royalty hedge gain

26

Restructuring and related charges

expenses

85

68

Acquisition and integration related costs

expenses

143

75

AdjustedPreTaxIncome

                                  $

1,620

$2,222

Adjusted tax expense

(330

(453)

Income from non-controlling interests

(29

(5)

Minority interest effect in non-GAAP adjustments(2)

(4)

AdjustedNetIncome

$1,760

Adjustedearningspershareattributabletocommonstockholders:

 

(9Basic

$9.20

Adjusted Net Income

                                  $Diluted

1,252

$9.03

Adjusted earnings per share attributable to Weighted-averagecommon stockholders:sharesoutstanding:

    Basic

 $

6.54

    Diluted

                                  $Basic

6.42

191.4

Weighted-average common shares outstanding:

    Basic

191.3

Diluted

195.0

(1)

Reflects all the amortization of acquired intangible assets.

(2)

Reflects the portion of Q2Q2 Solutions’ after-tax non-GAAP adjustments attributable to the minority interest partner.

IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.


OPERATING CASH FLOW TO FREE CASH FLOW RECONCILIATION

(in millions)

Twelve Months Ended

December 31, 2021

NetCashprovidedbyOperatingActivities

$2,942

Acquisition of property, equipment and software

(640)

FREE CASH FLOW

$2,302

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Appendix B

IQVIA Holdings Inc.
Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation

1.

IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.

SECOND AMENDED AND RESTATED CERTIFICATE OF INCORPORATION

1.    The name of the corporation is “IQVIA Holdings Inc.” (hereinafter referred to as the “Corporation”Corporation).

2.

2.    The street address and county of the registered office of the Corporation in the State of Delaware is 1209 Orange Street251 Little Falls Drive,, in the City of Wilmington, County of New Castle, 1980119808,, and the name of its registered agent at such address is TheCorporation TrustService Company.

3.

3.    The purpose for which the Corporation is organized is to engage in any lawful act or activity for which corporations may be organized under the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware (the “DGCL”).

4.

4.    Capitalization.

A.

A.    AuthorizedShares. The Corporation shall have authority to issue four hundred and one million (401,000,000) shares, consisting of (a) four hundred million (400,000,000) shares of Common Stock, par value $0.01 per share (the “CommonStock”); and (b) one million (1,000,000) shares of Preferred Stock, par value $0.01 per share (the “PreferredStock”).

B.

B.    CommonStock. All shares of Common Stock will be identical in all respects and will entitle the holders thereof to the same preferences, limitations and relative rights.

1.

1.    VotingRights. On all matters to be voted on by the Corporation’s stockholders, each holder of record of shares of Common Stock will be entitled to one vote per share so held.

2.

2.    Dividends. When and as dividends are declared or paid on shares of Common Stock, whether in cash, property or securities of the Corporation, each holder of record of shares of Common Stock will be entitled to a ratable portion of such dividend, based upon the number of shares of Common Stock then held of record by each such holder.

3.

3.    Liquidation. The holders of the Common Stock will be entitled to share ratably, on the basis of the number of shares of Common Stock then held by each such holder, in all distributions to the holders of the Common Stock in any liquidation, dissolution or winding up of the Corporation.

C.

C.    PreferredStock. The Preferred Stock may be issued from time to time in one or more series, the shares of each such series to have such designations, preferences, relative rights and powers, including voting powers (or qualifications, limitations or restrictions thereof) as are stated in the resolution or resolutions providing for the issuance of such series adopted by the Board of Directors of the Corporation. Authority is expressly granted to the Board of Directors, subject to the provisions hereof and to any limitations provided under the DGCL, to authorize the issuance of one or more series within the class of Preferred Stock, and with respect to each such series to determine and fix by resolution or resolutions the designations, preferences, relative rights and powers, including voting powers, full or limited, or no voting power, of such shares, or the qualifications, limitations or restrictions of such shares. This paragraph is intended to afford to the Board of Directors the maximum authority permitted under the DGCL.

5.


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5.    Stockholders of the Corporation may not take any action by written consent in lieu of a meeting.

Subject to the requirements of applicable law, a special meeting of the stockholders of the Corporation may be called at any time (i) by a majority of the members of the Board of Directors or (ii) by the Chairman of the Board or Chief Executive Officer of the Corporation. Any special meeting of the stockholders shall be held on such date, at such time and at such place within or outside the State of Delaware as the Corporation may designate. Notice of every special meeting of the stockholders of the Corporation shall state the purpose or purposes of such meeting. No business may be transacted and no corporate action may be taken at a special meeting other than business within the purpose or purposes stated in the notice of the meeting unless all of the stockholders are present in person or by proxy, in which case any and all business may be transacted at the meeting even though the meeting is held without notice.

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6.

The Corporation shall be entitled to treat the person in whose name any shares are registered as the owner thereof for all purposes and shall not be bound to recognize any equitable or other claim to, or interest in, such shares on the part of any other person, whether or not the Corporation shall have notice thereof, except as required by applicable law.

7.

7.    The business and affairs of the Corporation shall be managed by or under the direction of the Board of Directors. The number of directors which shall constitute the Board of Directors shall be not less than five (5) nor more than seventeen (17), and shall be fixed in such a manner as may be prescribed by the Bylaws. The directors shall be divided into three classes designated Class I, Class II and Class III with each class consisting, as nearly as possible, of one-third of the total number of directors constituting the entire Board of Directors. Class I directors shall initially serve for a term expiring at the first annual meeting of stockholders following the effectiveness of this Certificate of Incorporation, Class II directors shall initially serve for a term expiring at the second annual meeting of stockholders following the effectiveness of this Certificate of Incorporation and Class III directors shall initially serve for a term expiring at the third annual meeting of stockholders following the effectiveness of this Certificate of Incorporation. At each succeeding annual meeting, successors to the class of directors whose term expires at that annual meeting shall be elected for a term expiring at the third succeeding annual meeting of stockholders.Each director shall serve for a term ending on the date of the third annual meeting following the annual meeting at which such director was elected. If the number of directors is changed, any increase or decrease shall be apportioned among the classes so as to maintain the number of directors in each class as nearly equal as possible, and any additional director of any class appointed or elected to fill a newly created directorship resulting from an increase in such class shall hold office for a term that shall coincide with the remaining term of that class, but in no case shall a decrease in the number of directors remove or shorten the term of any incumbent director. A director shall hold office until the annual meeting at which his or her term expires and until his or her successor shall be elected and qualified, subject, however, to prior death, resignation, retirement, disqualification or removal from office. The Board of Directors is authorized to assign members of the Board of Directors already in office to their respective initial class.Eachdirectorwhoisservingasadirectorimmediatelyfollowingthe2022annualmeetingofstockholders,oriselectedthereafterasadirector,shallholdofficeuntiltheexpirationofthetermforwhichheorshehasbeenelected,anduntilhisorhersuccessorshallbeelectedandshallqualify,subject,however,topriordeath,resignation,retirement,disqualification,orremovalfromoffice.Atthe2023and2024annualmeetingsofstockholders,thesuccessorstotheclassofdirectorswhosetermsexpireateachsuchmeetingshallbeelectedforaone-yeartermexpiringatthesubsequentannualmeetingofstockholders.Atthe2025annualmeetingofstockholders,andateachmeetingofshareholdersthereafter,eachdirectorshallbeelectedforaone-yeartermexpiringatthenextannualmeetingofstockholders.Eachdirectorshallholdofficeuntiltheexpirationofthetermforwhichheorsheiselected,anduntilhisorhersuccessorshallbeelectedandqualified,subject,however,topriordeath,resignation,retirement,disqualificationorremovalfromoffice.InthecaseofanyvacancyontheBoardofDirectors,includingavacancycreatedbyanincreaseinthenumberofdirectors,thevacancymaybefilledbytheBoardofDirectorsforatermofofficecontinuinguntilthenextelectionofdirectorsbythestockholders.

8.

8.    In furtherance and not in limitation of the powers conferred by law, the Board of Directors is expressly authorized to adopt, alter, amend and repeal the Bylaws of the Corporation. Any amendment, alteration, change, addition or repeal of the Bylaws of the Corporation by the stockholders of the Corporation shall require the affirmative vote of the holders of at least seventy-five percent (75%)a majority of the outstandingshares of the Corporation, voting together as a class,present in person or by proxy at a meeting and entitled to vote on such amendment, alteration, change, addition or repeal.

9.

9.    Subject to the Bylaws of the Corporation, the stockholders may, at any meeting the notice of which shall state that it is called for that purpose, remove, only for cause and with the affirmative vote of the holders of at least seventy-five percent (75%)a majority of the outstandingshares of the Corporation,


IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENTAppendix B  |  139

voting together as a class,then entitled to vote at an election of directors,, any Director, or the entire Board of Directors, and fill the vacancy or vacancies; in each case provided that whenever any director shall have been elected by a voting group of stockholders, only the stockholders from that voting group may participate in the vote to remove him or her, and such vacancy may be filled only by the holders of shares of that voting group. Subject to the Bylaws of the Corporation, vacancies caused by any such removal and not filled by the stockholders at the meeting at which such removal shall have been made, or any vacancy caused by the death or resignation of any director or for any other reason, and any newly created directorship resulting from any increase in the authorized number of Directors, may be filled only by the affirmative vote of a majority of the directors then in office, although less than a quorum. Any director so elected to fill any such vacancy or newly created directorship shall hold office until the next election of the class for which such director has been chosen and until his or her successor is elected and qualified or until his or her earlier resignation or removal.Subjecttotherights,ifany,oftheholdersofsharesofPreferredStockthenoutstanding,(i)anydirectorwhopriortothe2022annualmeetingofstockholderswaselectedtoathree-yearterm(a“ClassifiedTerm”)thatcontinuesbeyondthedateofthe2022annualmeeting(a“ClassifiedDirector”)mayberemovedfromofficeduringsuchClassifiedTermbythestockholdersoftheCorporationonlyforcause,andonlybytheaffirmativevoteoftheholdersofamajorityofthesharesoftheCorporationthenentitledtovotegenerallyintheelectionofdirectors,consideredforthepurposesofthisSection9asoneclass,and(ii)anydirectorthatisnotaClassifiedDirectormayberemovedfromofficebythestockholdersoftheCorporation,withorwithoutcause,bytheaffirmativevoteoftheholdersof

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amajorityofthesharesoftheCorporationthenentitledtovotegenerallyintheelectionofdirectors,consideredforthepurposesofthisSection9asone class.

Subject to the Bylaws of the Corporation, when one or more directors shall resign effective at a future date, a majority of the directors then in office, including those who have so resigned, shall have power to fill such vacancy or vacancies, the vote thereon to take effect when such resignation or resignations shall become effective, and each director so chosen shall hold office as herein provided in connection with the filling of other vacancies.

10.

10.   Limitation of Director Liability; IndemnificationIndemnification.

(A)

(A)    LimitationofDirectorLiability. To the fullest extent that the DGCL or any other law of the State of Delaware (as they exist on the date hereof or as they may hereafter be amended) permits the limitation or elimination of the liability of directors, no director of the Corporation shall be liable to the Corporation or its stockholders for monetary damages for breach of fiduciary duty as a director. No amendment to, or modification or repeal of, this Article 10 shall adversely affect any right or protection of a director of the Corporation existing hereunder with respect to any state of facts existing or act or omission occurring, or any cause of action, suit or claim that, but for this Article 10, would accrue or arise, prior to such amendment, modification or repeal. If the DGCL is amended after the Effective Time to authorize corporate action further eliminating or limiting the personal liability of directors, then the liability of a director of the Corporation shall be eliminated or limited to the fullest extent permitted by the DGCL, as so amended.

(B)

(B)    Indemnification.

Indemnification.1.

1.    NatureofIndemnity. The Corporation shall indemnify any person (an “Indemnitee”) who at any time serves or has served as a director or officer of the Corporation, or at the request of the Corporation is or was serving as a director, officer, partner, member, trustee, employee or agent of any other foreign or domestic corporation, partnership, limited liability company, joint venture, trust, employee benefit plan, or other enterprise, or as a trustee or administrator under any employee benefit plan of the Corporation or any wholly owned subsidiary thereof (any such entity, an “OtherEntity”), to the fullest extent from time to time permitted by law in the event he or she is or is threatened to be involved as a party, witness or otherwise in any threatened, pending or completed action, demand, suit or proceeding, whether civil, criminal, administrative, arbitrative, investigative or other and whether formal or informal, including but not limited to any investigation, inquiry, hearing or alternative dispute resolution process, whether or not brought by or on behalf of the Corporation, by reason of the fact that he or she is or was acting in such capacity; provided, however, that the Corporation shall not indemnify any such Indemnitee against liability or expenses such person may incur on account of his or her activities which were, at the time taken, known or believed by him or her to be clearly in conflict with the best interests of the Corporation. The rights of those receiving indemnification hereunder shall, to the fullest extent from time to time permitted by law, cover (1) reasonable expenses, including without limitation all reasonable attorneys’ fees actually


140  |  Appendix BIQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENT

incurred by him or her in connection with any such action, suit or proceeding; (2) all payments made by him or her in satisfaction of any judgment, money decree, fine (including an excise tax assessed with respect to an employee benefit plan), penalty, or settlement for which he or she may have become liable in such action, suit or proceeding; and (3) all reasonable expenses incurred in enforcing the indemnification rights provided herein. The rights granted herein shall not be limited by the provisions contained in Section 145 of the DGCL.

2.

2.    DeterminationThatIndemnificationIsProper. The Board of Directors shall take all such action as may be necessary and appropriate to authorize the Corporation to pay the indemnification required by Article 10(B)(1), including without limitation making a determination that indemnification is permissible in the circumstances and a good faith evaluation of the manner in which the claimant for indemnity acted and of the reasonable amount of indemnity due him or her. The Board of Directors may appoint a committee or special counsel to make such determination and evaluation. The Board of Directors may give notice to, and obtain approval by, the stockholders of the Corporation for any decision to indemnify.

3.

3.    AdvancePaymentofExpenses. Expenses incurred by a director or an officer in connection with an action, suit or proceeding referred to in Article 10(B)(1) shall be paid by the Corporation in advance of the final disposition of such action, suit or proceeding upon receipt of an undertaking by or on behalf of the director or officer to repay such amount unless it shall ultimately be determined that he or she is entitled to be indemnified by the Corporation pursuant to this Article 10(B); provided, however, that the Corporation shall have no obligation to advance expenses incurred by a director or officer with respect to

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any claim initiated by such director or officer without the prior written consent of or authorization of the Board of Directors (other than a claim brought by a director or officer to enforce his or her or rights under this Article 10). Such expenses incurred by other employees and agents may be so paid upon such terms and conditions, if any, as the Board of Directors deems appropriate. The Board of Directors may authorize the Corporation’s legal counsel to represent such director, officer, employee or agent in any action, suit or proceeding, whether or not the Corporation is a party to such action, suit or proceeding.

4.

4.    NoDuplicationofPayments. The Corporation shall not be liable under this Article 10(B) to make any payment in connection with any claim made against any Indemnitee to the extent such person has otherwise received payment (under any insurance policy, bylaw or otherwise) of the amounts otherwise payable as indemnity hereunder; provided, however, that the Corporation agrees that, as between the Corporation, on the one hand, and any Sponsor Stockholder with whom a director is or was affiliated and any insurer providing insurance coverage to such Sponsor Stockholder, on the other hand, the Corporation (1) is the indemnitor of first resort under this Article 10 (i.e., its obligations under this Article 10 are primary and any indemnification or advancement obligations of any Sponsor Stockholder with whom a director is or was affiliated and the obligations of any insurer of such Sponsor Stockholder to provide insurance coverage with respect to the same obligations are secondary), (2) shall be required to advance the full amount of expenses incurred by the director and shall be liable for the full amount of indemnification obligations as required by the terms of this Certificate of Incorporation and any other agreements the Corporation may have with the director, without regard to any rights the director may have against such Sponsor Stockholder, and (c) unconditionally and irrevocably waives, relinquishes, releases such Sponsor Stockholder from and agrees not to exercise any rights that it may have with respect to any and all claims for contribution, subrogation or any other recovery of any kind in respect thereof. For purposes of this Article 10, “SponsorStockholder” means any current or former stockholder that is or was party to the Stockholders Agreement (as defined below), any


IQVIA 2021 PROXY STATEMENTAppendix B  |  141

Affiliate (as defined in the Stockholders Agreement) of such stockholder (other than the Corporation and its subsidiaries), and/or any other investment entity or related management company that is advised by the same investment adviser as any of the foregoing entities or by an Affiliate (as defined in the Stockholders Agreement) of such investment adviser.

5.

5.    Subrogation. Subject to the limitations set forth in Article 10(B)(4), in the event of payment of indemnification to an Indemnitee, the Corporation shall be subrogated to the extent of such payment to any right of recovery such person may have and such person, as a condition of receiving indemnification from the Corporation, shall execute all documents and do all things that the Corporation may deem necessary or desirable to perfect such right of recovery, including the execution of such documents necessary to enable the Corporation effectively to enforce any such recovery.

(C)

(C)    Insurance. The Corporation shall have the power to purchase and maintain insurance on behalf of any person who is or was a director, officer, trustee, employee, member or agent of the Corporation, or was serving at the request of the Corporation as a director, officer, trustee, employee, member or agent of an Other Entity, against any liability asserted against the person and incurred by the person in any such capacity, or arising out of his or her status as such, whether or not the Corporation would have the power or the obligation to indemnify such person against such liability under the provisions of this Article 10 or the DGCL.

(D)

(D)    Non-ExclusivityofRights. The rights conferred on any Indemnitee by this Article 10 are not exclusive of other rights arising under any bylaw, agreement, vote of directors or stockholders or otherwise, and shall continue as to a person who has ceased to be a director, officer, employee or agent, and shall inure to the benefit of the heirs and legal representatives of such Indemnitee. The Corporation may enter into an agreement with any of its directors, officers, employees or agents providing for indemnification and advancement of expenses, including attorneys’ fees, that may change, enhance, qualify or limit any right to indemnification or advancement of expenses created by this Article 10.

(E)

(E)    Survival;AmendmentorRepeal. The foregoing provisions of this Article 10 shall be deemed to be a contract between the Corporation and each Indemnitee at any time while these provisions as well as the relevant provisions of the DGCL are in effect and any repeal or modification thereof shall not affect any right or obligation then existing with respect to any state of facts then or previously existing or any action, suit, or proceeding previously or thereafter brought or threatened based in whole or in part upon any such state of facts. Such a contract right may not be modified retroactively without the consent of the Indemnitee.

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(F)

OtherIndemnification. This Article 10 shall not limit the right of the Corporation, to the extent and in the manner permitted by law, to indemnify and to advance expenses to Indemnitees or persons other than Indemnitees when and as authorized by appropriate corporate action, including without limitation by separate agreement with the Corporation.

11.

11.    Except as set forth herein, the Corporation reserves the right to amend, alter, change or repeal any provision contained in this Certificate of Incorporation, in the manner now or hereafter prescribed by statute, and all rights conferred on stockholders herein are granted subject to this reservation.

12.

12.    Meetings of stockholders may be held within or without the State of Delaware, as the Bylaws of the Corporation may provide. The books of the Corporation may be kept (subject to any provision contained in applicable law) outside the State of Delaware at such place as may be designated from time to time by the Board of Directors or in the Bylaws of the Corporation.

13.

13.    The stockholders of the Corporation shall have no right to cumulate their votes for the election of directors.

14.


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14.   Renouncement of Corporate Opportunity.

A.

A.    Scope. The provisions of this Article 14 are set forth to define, to the extent permitted by applicable law, the duties of Exempted Persons (as defined below) to the Corporation and, to the extent applicable, its stockholders, with respect to certain classes or categories of business opportunities. “ExemptedPerson” means each of the Bain Shareholders, the TPG Shareholders, the CPP Shareholder and the LG Shareholders (each as defined in the Shareholders Agreement, dated as of May 3, 2016, by and among the Corporation and certain of its stockholders named therein, as such agreement existed as of May 3, 2016 (the “StockholdersAgreement”)), their respective Affiliates (other than the Corporation and its subsidiaries), TPG Global, LLC and Bain Capital, LLC and their Affiliates and all of their respective partners, principals, directors, officers, members, managers, managing directors and/or employees, including any of the foregoing who serve as officers or directors of the Corporation. Solely for purposes of this Article 14, references to “Affiliate”, “Nominee”, and “StockholderGroup” have the meaning ascribed to such terms in the Stockholders Agreement.

B.

B.    CompetitionandAllocationofCorporateOpportunities. The Exempted Persons shall not have any fiduciary or other duty to refrain from engaging directly or indirectly in the same or similar business activities or lines of business as the Corporation or any of its subsidiaries. To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, the Corporation, on behalf of itself and its subsidiaries, renounces any interest or expectancy of the Corporation and its subsidiaries in, or in being offered an opportunity to participate in, business opportunities that are from time to time presented to the Exempted Persons, even if the opportunity is one that the Corporation or its subsidiaries might reasonably be deemed to have pursued or had the ability or desire to pursue if granted the opportunity to do so, and each such Exempted Person shall have no duty to communicate or offer such business opportunity to the Corporation and, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, shall not be liable to the Corporation or any of its subsidiaries or, to the extent applicable, any of its or their stockholders, for breach of any fiduciary or other duty, as a director or officer or otherwise, by reason of the fact that such Exempted Person pursues or acquires such business opportunity, directs such business opportunity to another person or fails to present such business opportunity, or information regarding such business opportunity, to the Corporation or its subsidiaries.

C.

C.    CertainMattersDeemedNotCorporateOpportunities. In addition to and notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this Article 14, a corporate opportunity shall not be deemed to belong to the Corporation if it is a business opportunity that the Corporation is not financially able or contractually permitted or legally able to undertake, or that is, from its nature, not in the line of the Corporation’s business or is of no practical advantage to it or that is one in which the Corporation has no interest or reasonable expectancy.

D.

D.    EffectofStockholdersAgreement. The provisions of Sections B and C of this Article 14 (i) shall be subject to compliance with any procedures regarding corporate opportunities specified in the Stockholders Agreement and (ii) shall continue with respect to an Exempted Person until the first date that both of the following conditions are true (a) such Exempted Person’s applicable Stockholder Group is not entitled to designate at least one (1) Nominee to the Board of Directors of the Corporation pursuant to the Stockholders Agreement, and (b) no individual is serving on the Board who has at any time been designated as a Nominee by such Exempted Person’s applicable Stockholder Group.

E.

E.    AmendmentofthisArticle14. No amendment or repeal of this Article 14 in accordance with the provisions of Article 11 shall apply to or have any effect on the liability or alleged liability of any Exempted Person for or with respect to any activities or opportunities of which such Exempted Person becomes aware prior to such amendment or repeal. This Article 14 shall not limit any protections or defenses available to, or indemnification or advancement rights of, any director or officer of the Corporation under this Certificate of Incorporation of the Corporation, the Corporation’s bylaws or applicable law.


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IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.

Proxy for Annual Meeting of Stockholders on April 13, 2021

Solicited on Behalf of the Board of Directors

The undersigned hereby appoints Ari Bousbib, Ronald E. Bruehlman, and Eric M. Sherbet, and each of them, with full power of substitution and power to act alone, as proxies to vote all the shares of Common Stock which the undersigned would be entitled to vote if personally present and acting at the Annual Meeting of Stockholders of IQVIA HOLDINGS INC., to be held on April 13, 2021 at 9:00 a.m., E.D.T., at the Ethan Allen Hotel, 21 Lake Avenue Extension, Danbury, Connecticut 06811, and at any postponements or adjournments thereof, as follows:

(Continued and to be signed on the reverse side)

  1.1

14475  


ANNUAL MEETING OF STOCKHOLDERS OF

IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.

April 13, 2021

PROXY VOTING INSTRUCTIONS

INTERNET – Access “www.voteproxy.com” and follow the on-screen instructions or scan the QR code with your smartphone. Have your proxy card available when you access the web page.

TELEPHONE – Call toll-free 1-800-PROXIES (1-800-776-9437) in the United States or 1-718-921-8500 from foreign countries from any touch-tone telephone and follow the instructions. Have your proxy card available when you call.

Vote online/phone until 11:59 PM EST the day before the meeting.

MAIL – Sign, date and mail your proxy card in the envelope provided as soon as possible.

IN PERSON – You may vote your shares in person by attending the Annual Meeting.

GO GREEN – e-Consent makes it easy to go paperless. With e-Consent, you can quickly access your proxy material, statements and other eligible documents online, while reducing costs, clutter and paper waste. Enroll today via www.astfinancial.com to enjoy online access.

LOGO

COMPANY NUMBER  

  
IQVIA HOLDINGS INC.    2022 Proxy Statement

ACCOUNT NUMBER  

121

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NOTICE OF INTERNET AVAILABILITY OF PROXY MATERIALS:

The notice of meeting, proxy statement, form of proxy card and 2020 annual report

are available at https://materials.proxyvote.com/46266C


LOGO   Please detach along perforated line and mail in the envelope provided IF you are not voting via telephone or the Internet.  LOGOBack to Contents

LOGO        20340303030000000000  9041321

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THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS RECOMMENDS A VOTE “FOR” THE ELECTION OF ALL NOMINEES AND “FOR” PROPOSALS 3A, 3B AND 4

AND MAKES NO RECOMMENDATION FOR PROPOSAL 2.

PLEASE SIGN, DATE AND RETURN PROMPTLY IN THE ENCLOSED ENVELOPE. PLEASE MARK YOUR VOTE IN BLUE OR BLACK INK AS SHOWN HERE  

1.The election of three Class II directors.1 YEAR  2 YEAR  3 YEART  ABSTAIN

FOR ALL NOMINEES

WITHHOLD AUTHORITY FOR ALL NOMINEES

FOR ALL EXCEPT

(See instructions below)

     Nominees:

   Ari Bousbib

   John M. Leonard M.D.

   Todd B. Sisitsky

2.Recommend, in an advisory (non-binding) vote, the frequency of the advisory vote on executive compensation.

FOR

AGAINST

ABSTAIN

3a.Amendment to the Certificate of Incorporation to remove supermajority voting standard for stockholder approval of future amendments, alterations, changes or repeal of the ByLaws.

FOR

AGAINST

ABSTAIN

3b.Amendment to the Certificate of Incorporation to remove supermajority voting standard to remove, for cause only, a director or the entire Board.

FOR

AGAINST

ABSTAIN

INSTRUCTIONS:  To withhold authority to vote for any individual nominee(s), mark “FOR ALL EXCEPT” and fill in the circle next to each nominee you wish to withhold, as shown here:

4.The ratification of the appointment of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP as IQVIA Holdings Inc.’s independent registered public accounting firm for the year ending December 31, 2021.
In their discretion, the proxies are authorized to vote upon such other business as may properly come before the Annual Meeting. This proxy when properly executed will be voted as directed herein by the undersigned stockholder. If no direction is made, this proxy will be voted FORALL NOMINEES in Proposal 1 and FOR Proposals 3a, 3b and 4 and be treated as anABSTENTION for Proposal 2.

To change the address on your account, please check the box at right and indicate your new address in the address space above. Please note that changes to the registered name(s) on the account may not be submitted via this method.

☐ 

Signature of Stockholder  Date:  Signature of Stockholder  Date: 

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        Note:Please sign exactly as your name or names appear on this Proxy. When shares are held jointly, each holder should sign. When signing as executor, administrator, attorney, trustee or guardian, please give full title as such. If the signer is a corporation, please sign full corporate name by duly authorized officer, giving full title as such. If signer is a partnership, please sign in partnership name by authorized person.LOGO