Adient plc 10-K

Item 1. Business Adient plc (“Adient”) is a global leader in the automotive seating supply industry with leading market positions in the Americas, Europe and China and maintains longstanding relationships with the largest global automotive original equipment manufacturers (“OEMs”). Adient's proprietary technologies extend into virtually every area of automotive seating solutions, including complete seating systems, frames, mechanisms, foam, head restraints, armrests and trim covers. Adient is a global seat supplier with the capability to design, develop, engineer, manufacture, and deliver complete seat systems and components in every major automotive producing region in the world. Adient designs, manufactures and markets a full range of seating systems and components for passenger cars, commercial vehicles and light trucks, including vans, pick-up trucks and sport/crossover utility vehicles. Adient operates more than 200 wholly- and majority-owned manufacturing or assembly facilities, with operations in 29 countries. Additionally, Adient has partially-owned affiliates in China, Asia, Europe and North America. Through its global footprint and vertical integration, Adient leverages its capabilities to drive growth in the automotive seating industry. Adient's business model is focused on developing and maintaining long-term customer relationships, which allows Adient to successfully grow with leading global OEMs. Adient and its engineers work closely with customers as vehicle platforms are developed, which results in close ties with key decision makers at OEM customers. Adient plc | Form 10-K | 4 Business Organization and Strategy Global Manufacturing Footprint Adient is a global leader in automotive seating. With more than 70,000 employees operating in more than 200 manufacturing and assembly plants in 29 countries worldwide, Adient produces and delivers automotive seating for all vehicle classes and all major OEMs. From complete seating systems to individual components, Adient’s manufacturing capabilities span every aspect of the automotive seat-making process. Integrated, in-house skills allows Adient to take products from research and design all the way to engineering and manufacturing and into millions of vehicles every year. Operational Efficiencies Adient intends to maintain high capacity utilization and increase its efficiency through continued use of standardized manufacturing processes, which represent a core competency. These standardized manufacturing processes allow Adient to deliver high quality levels and minimize waste. Adient achieves scale advantages through a global manufacturing footprint and an integrated supply chain. Adient fosters an environment of continuous improvement and identifies best business practices through the analysis of process and cost metrics, which are then shared globally throughout Adient's manufacturing network. To ensure appropriate service levels, minimal inventory and optimal factory utilization, Adient employs a Sales & Operational Planning, or S&OP, process. A well-executed S&OP process provides two strategic advantages: focused customer service and on-time delivery which result in both customer retention and the opportunity for market share gain. Longstanding Customer Relationships with Leading Global OEMs Adient works with OEMs to develop complete seating solutions to meet consumer expectations for performance, safety and comfort. Adient does business with all major global OEM customers, and in many cases, works closely with those customers to develop a seating solution integrated into the overall vehicle appearance and architecture. Through dedicated customer teams, Adient maintains close relationships with its global OEM customers. These relationships enable Adient to clearly understand its customers' needs so that it is positioned to meet its customers' requirements. Adient's customer teams also lead the new business acquisition process, which ensures alignment with Adient's product, process and manufacturing strategies. Product Innovation and Process Leadership Adient has a strong record for developing winning product and process technologies over many years, which has created a competitive advantage for Adient and its customers. Management expects to increase investment in innovation. Adient utilizes a global Core Product Portfolio, or CPP, strategy for part and design reuse in all of its product applications. Adient intends to continue investing in its CPP to sustain and expand its market success and to leverage its existing modular and scalable systems and interchangeable components. Through the CPP strategy, Adient provides high quality products for its customers with market competitive cost and mass (low weight to improve fuel economy) while meeting their performance requirements. Adient continues to use its CPP to advance Adient's lean manufacturing initiatives by providing standard, flexible processes that reduce complexity, inventory and floor space. This will yield reductions in development time, product cost and investment. Global Development Network Adient participates in innovating and developing key competitive differentiators in the automotive seating business. In the development process, key downstream elements of the product are locked in, including material costs, plant conversion costs, quality characteristics and certain technical requirements. Adient uses a common product development process globally that ensures that these elements are correct at the outset of the development process, reflects the best practices of Adient's operations worldwide and meets the expectations of Adient's diverse customer base. Its product launch system is customizable and scalable based on customer and product requirements. Adient's worldwide engineering network includes ten core development centers. These development centers utilize a globally consistent approach to the process for developing seating products. By leveraging a network of subject matter technical experts, Adient efficiently implements best practices and improves product cost and quality. Adient's product development practices also entail leveraging low cost country development centers in India, China, Czech Republic and Slovakia. Adient plc | Form 10-K | 5 Development Centers Plymouth (USA) Trencin (Slovakia) Burscheid (Germany) Yokohama (Japan) Solingen (Germany) Chongqing (China) Kaiserslautern (Germany) Ceska Lipa (Czech Republic) Ansan (South Korea) Pune (India) Leadership Position in China Adient is a leading supplier of "just-in-time" seating in China. It operates through its wholly owned entities and 6 joint ventures (nonconsolidated and consolidated) with 36 manufacturing locations in 22 cities, which are supported by additional technical centers. Adient's strong position with European and American automakers is complemented by partnerships with all major auto groups in China, which has resulted in Adient's broad market penetration relative to seating competitors and market leadership in the industry's largest market. Adient leverages its operating expertise and innovation capabilities developed worldwide to further support its growth in China. Platform for Global Growth Adient's current global platform creates multiple opportunities for growth, such as: • Market share expansion in seating and seating components. Adient has relationships with global OEM customers. These relationships, combined with Adient's product offerings, enhance Adient's ability to expand its business with regional customers who are growing and expanding globally and also with new entrants to the automotive market. • Regional growth opportunities. Adient is able to leverage its position as the market leader in Europe, North America and China to grow in other markets, such as Southeast Asia. • Vertical integration. Adient's operations provide opportunities for continued vertical integration in areas that could enhance Adient's capabilities, expand profit margins and grow revenues with customers who employ component sourcing strategies. Product/Systems Adient designs and manufactures a full range of seating systems and components for passenger cars, commercial vehicles and light trucks, including vans, pick-up trucks and sport/crossover utility vehicles. Adient's technologies extend into virtually every area of automotive seating solutions including complete seating systems, frames, mechanisms, foam, head restraints, armrests and trim covers. Customers Adient is a supplier to all of the global OEMs and has longstanding relationships with premier automotive manufacturers, including BMW, Mercedes-Benz Group, Ford Motor Company, General Motors Company, Honda Motor Company, Hyundai Motor Company, Jaguar Land Rover, Kia Corporation, Mazda Motor Corporation, Mitsubishi Motor Corporation, Nissan Motor Corporation, Renault Group, Stellantis N.V., Suzuki Motor Corporation, Toyota Motor Corporation, Volkswagen Group and Volvo Car Group. Adient also supplies most of the growing regional OEMs such as Beijing Automotive Group CO., Ltd., Changan Automobile (Group) Co., Ltd., FAW Group Corporation, Proton Holdings Berhad, Ashok Leyland, Tata Motors Limited and Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co., Ltd. and newer auto manufacturers such as NIO and Xpeng Motors. Additionally, Adient has more than 6 joint venture partnerships with key OEMs, including Guangzhou Automobile Group Co., Ltd., Beijing Automobile Group Co., Ltd. and FAW Group Corporation. Further details regarding Adient's customers is provided in Part II, Item 8 of this Form 10-K in Note 1, "Organization and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies," of the notes to consolidated financial statements. Industry The Automotive Seating industry provides OEMs with complete seats on a "just-in-time" or "in-sequence" basis. Seats are assembled to specific order and delivered on a predetermined schedule directly to an automotive assembly line. The components for these complete seat assemblies such as seating foam, metal structures, fabrics, seat covers and seat mechanisms are shipped to Adient or competitor seating assembly plants. Adient is a global leader in complete seat assembly and one of the largest in all major seating components, operating manufacturing plants that produce seating foam, metal structures, seat covers and seat mechanisms. Adient plc | Form 10-K | 6 Demand for automotive parts in the OEM market is generally a function of the number of new vehicles produced, which is primarily driven by macro-economic factors such as credit availability, interest rates, fuel prices, consumer confidence, employment and other trends. Although OEM demand is tied to actual vehicle production, participants in the automotive supplier industry also have the opportunity to grow through increasing product content per vehicle by further penetrating business with existing customers and in existing markets, gaining new customers and increasing their presence in global markets. Adient believes that, as a company with a global presence and advanced technology, engineering, manufacturing and customer support capabilities, it is well positioned to benefit from these opportunities. Sourcing Patterns by OEMs Most OEMs have adopted global vehicle platforms to increase standardization, reduce per unit cost and increase capital efficiency and profitability. In seating, three sourcing patterns exist: 1. Core seat structures : By developing common front seat frames and mechanisms across multiple vehicle platforms, OEMs are reducing costs. 2. Component sourcing : Several OEMs have shifted from sourcing a complete seating system to a components approach where the OEM sources each of the different components of the seat and seating assembly as separate business awards. 3. Engineering "in-sourcing" : Some OEMs are conducting the design and engineering internally and are selecting suppliers that have the capability to manufacture products on a worldwide basis and adapt to regional variations. As a supplier with global scale and strong design, engineering and lean manufacturing capabilities in both complete seat systems and components, Adient is well positioned to accommodate each of these three sourcing patterns. Shorter Product Development Cycles As a result of new safety and environmental regulations, as well as a trend of more rapid customer preference changes, OEMs are requiring suppliers to respond faster with new designs and product innovations. Although these trends are more significant in mature markets, emerging markets are moving rapidly towards the regulatory standards and consumer preferences of the more mature markets. Suppliers with strong technologies, robust global engineering and development capabilities will be best positioned to meet OEM demands for rapid innovation. Electric Vehicles Electric vehicles (“EVs”) continue to be a focus in the global automotive industry driven by a variety of product offerings from legacy manufacturers and from new entrants. The rollout of EVs platforms vary across the regions with factors such as pricing, affordability, government incentives, infrastructure and overall consumer acceptance influencing the pace of adoption. While seating systems are not largely impacted by the shift to EVs, key attributes of seat design are evolving as the market pivots toward EVs. This movement provides Adient with unique opportunities to provide value added solutions through Adient’s Evolution of Seating Systems Sustainability (“ES 3 ”) and to capture market share through new entrants based on Adient’s existing leading market position. Advanced Driver Assist Systems (“ADAS”) and Automated Driving Systems (“ADS”) As the global automotive industry continues to incorporate ADAS/ADS into its vehicles and as alternative usage models evolve, such as car sharing and urban mobility, Adient is poised to capitalize on greater seating content that may accompany these new innovations. Adient has developed an interiors concept for autonomous driving which addresses major seating and other interior trends that are expected to drive the automotive industry of the future. Adient will continue to partner with OEMs and other customers in the development of ADAS and ADS concepts. Competition Adient faces competition from other automotive suppliers and, with respect to certain products, from the automobile OEMs who produce or have the capability to produce certain products the business supplies. The automotive supply industry competes on the basis of technology, quality, reliability of supply and price. Design, engineering and product planning are increasingly important factors. The competitive landscape for seating and components can be categorized into three segments: (1) traditional seating suppliers, (2) component specialists and (3) competitors who are partnered with an OEM through ownership or interlocking business relationships. Independent suppliers that represent the principal competitors of Adient include Lear Corporation, Toyota Boshoku Corporation, Forvia SE and Magna International Inc. Adient's deep vertical integration, global footprint and broad product offering make it well positioned to compete against the traditional global Tier-1 suppliers and component specialists. Adient plc | Form 10-K | 7 Raw Materials Raw materials used by Adient in connection with its operations include steel, aluminum, polyurethane chemicals, fabrics, leather, vinyl and polypropylene. Continuing into fiscal 2023, the automotive industry has experienced a period of significant volatility in commodity prices. This price volatility may continue into the future as demand increases and/or supply remains constrained. Price volatility has resulted in an overall increase of input costs for Adient that may not be, or may only be partially, offset through customer negotiations. During fiscal 2024, commodity prices and availability could fluctuate throughout the year and significantly affect Adient's results of operations. Refer to the Environmental, Social and Governance heading in this Item 1, “Business” for information on sustainability actions Adient is taking with its products and related materials, and refer to Item 1A, “Risk Factors” of this Form 10-K for additional information on risks associated with the supply of Adient’s raw materials. Intellectual Property Generally, Adient seeks statutory protection for strategic or financially important intellectual property developed in connection with its business. Certain intellectual property, where appropriate, is protected by contracts, licenses, confidentiality or other agreements. Adient owns numerous U.S. and non-U.S. patents (and their respective counterparts), the more important of which cover those technologies and inventions embodied in current products or which are used in the manufacture of those products. While Adient believes patents are important to its business operations and in the aggregate constitute a valuable asset, no single patent, or group of patents, is critical to the success of the business. Adient, from time to time, grants licenses under its patents and technology and receives licenses under patents and technology of others. Adient's trademarks are registered or otherwise legally protected in the United States and many non-U.S. countries where products and services of Adient are sold. Most works of authorship produced for Adient, such as computer programs, catalogs and sales literature, carry appropriate notices indicating Adient's claim to copyright protection under U.S. law and appropriate international treaties. Regulation Adient operates in a constantly evolving global regulatory environment and is subject to numerous and varying regulatory requirements for its product performance and material content. Adient's practice is to identify potential regulatory and quality risks early in the design and development process and proactively manage them throughout the product lifecycle through the use of routine assessments, protocols, standards, performance measures and audits. New regulations and changes to existing regulations are managed in collaboration with the OEM customers and implemented through Adient's global systems and procedures designed to ensure compliance with existing laws and regulations. Adient demonstrates material content compliance through the International Material Data System (“IMDS”) which is the automotive industry material data system. In the IMDS, all materials used for automobile manufacturing are archived and maintained, in order to meet the obligations placed on the automobile manufacturers and thus on their suppliers by national and international standards, laws and regulations. Adient works collaboratively with a number of stakeholder groups including government agencies ( e.g. , National Highway Traffic Safety Administration), its customers and its suppliers to proactively engage in federal, state and international public policy processes. Legal Matters Adient is involved in various lawsuits, claims and proceedings incident to the operation of its businesses, including those pertaining to product liability, environmental, safety and health, intellectual property, employment, commercial and contractual matters, and various other matters. Although the outcome of such lawsuits, claims and proceedings cannot be predicted with certainty and some may be disposed of unfavorably to Adient, it is management's opinion that none of these will have a material adverse effect on Adient's financial position, results of operations or cash flows. Costs related to such matters were not material to the periods presented. Further details regarding Adient's commitments and contingencies is provided in Part II, Item 8 of this Form 10-K in Note 19, "Commitments and Contingencies," of the notes to consolidated financial statements. Adient plc | Form 10-K | 8 Environmental, Social and Governance At Adient, we recognize robust and responsible environmental, social and governance (“ESG”) policies and practices are essential to the long-term success of our business and the well-being of our stakeholders, including our investors, employees, suppliers, customers and communities. We embed sustainability into our company by integrating ESG principles into our product development initiatives, manufacturing processes, procurement practices, corporate governance activities and other key business areas. Our board of directors and senior managers ensure we operate our business ethically and in accordance with applicable laws and regulations, and, as appropriate, they oversee and implement our ESG policies and strategies with input from a cross-functional team of subject matter experts across our organization. We regularly communicate our ESG targets and related actions to our stakeholders through our SEC filings, media releases, quarterly earnings reports and our annual corporate sustainability report. Production Processes Adient remains committed to improving sustainability in its global operations and utilizing standardized processes to reduce energy consumption, conserve water and generate less waste and emissions at our facilities globally. In fiscal year 2021, Adient set a goal of reducing its scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions 75% by 2030 (with 2019 as our base year), and continues to make progress toward that goal. In 2023, Adient expanded its goal with a longer term target of achieving carbon neutrality at its manufacturing locations for scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions by 2040. Some recent examples of how Adient is reducing emissions and improving sustainability in its operations include: • Replacing company pool vehicles with EVs as leases end. • Recovering waste heat from air compressors and using it to help warm buildings. • Adding occupant sensors to plant floors and other areas to automatically turn lights on and off as needed. • Optimizing how foam mold temperature machines are connected in parallel to ensure only heating the necessary number of machines. • Replacing cardboard boxes with reusable packaging and eliminating unnecessary cardboard inserts to cut waste and optimize loads. • Collecting, storing and using rainwater in sanitary applications such as toilets. In addition, Adient has set a goal to attribute 100% of the electricity needed worldwide to renewable sources by 2035. Several of Adient’s facilities already generate renewable electricity on-site via solar panel installations, and more than 60 Adient locations now consume electricity from a renewable source. Products Sustainability has been an inherent part of product development and innovation at Adient for more than three decades, and customers’ sustainability targets are closely tracked to ensure its efforts align with the needs and goals of its customers. More recently, vehicle electrification and a general move toward increasingly efficient transportation have emphasized the need for automotive seating products that are lighter, slimmer and made of more environmentally friendly materials than traditional seating products. To help meet this need, Adient has developed products such as the Soft Back Panel and Soft Side Valance components, which integrate up to 70% recycled polyethylene terephthalate (“PET”) while improving knee clearance and reducing the weight of each seat by as much as 2 kg. Adient has also developed an innovative, EV-ready concept seat - the Pure Essential - that combines a high degree of comfort with a sleek appearance while reducing cost, complexity, weight and the seat’s overall carbon footprint. The Pure Essential seat promotes product circularity by using just two primary eco-friendly material types: green steel for the seat structure and recyclable polyester for comfort features and trim covers. Through Adient’s ES 3 approach to product design, Adient is continuously identifying and integrating materials and manufacturing methods that minimize environmental impact and promote a circular economy. Adient also recognizes the importance of its supply chain’s environmental risks and impacts and are working with its suppliers to reduce scope 3 (value chain) emissions 35% by 2030 (with 2019 as the base year). In fiscal year 2024, Adient plans to expand the use of its proprietary Product Carbon Footprint Tool - data-based software that calculates the carbon footprint of a specific product based on its bill of materials - impacting designer, engineer and customer decisions and supporting its scope 3 emissions-reduction goal. As noted in Adient’s recently updated Deforestation Commitment and Policy and natural resources webpage, Adient is making progress on its commitments in procuring forest commodities from more sustainable sources to reduce the impact on deforestation and protect natural habitats globally. Adient plc | Form 10-K | 9 People Adient continues to work to protect the human rights and well-being of its employees, suppliers, customers and communities in which Adient operates globally. To those ends, Adient updated its Ethics Policy in 2023 to address evolving laws and regulations, including those regarding ESG. Employees reviewed the updated Ethics Policy as part of the annual ethics certification campaign. In 2023, Adient also initiated ESG-related due diligence questionnaires for top suppliers to promote transparency in supply chain human rights policies and practices. Additionally, Adient is proud to support women-, minority- and veteran-owned businesses by spending more than $1 billion with diverse suppliers every year. Human Capital Resources Adient's ability to sustain and grow its business requires it to hire, retain and develop a highly skilled and diverse workforce. Adient values character and integrity as much as qualifications and fosters an empowerment culture where employees have ownership in business outcomes. The highest levels of Adient’s management drive these practices with the alignment and support of all levels within the organization. Our Executive Vice President, Chief Legal and Human Resources Officer, and Corporate Secretary, reporting directly to the Chief Executive Officer (“CEO”), oversees Adient’s global talent processes to attract, develop and retain the most valuable asset - its employees. Adient has more than 70,000 employees worldwide who represent a wide variety of backgrounds. Adient’s workforce composition (including employees at consolidated joint ventures), as of September 30, 2023, consists of approximately: • 45% work in the Americas, 42% work in EMEA and 13% work in our Asia-Pacific region • 41% of the global workforce is female • 49% of employees in the U.S. have identified themselves as an ethnic minority Adient ensures its people are engaged and working collaboratively to achieve company goals through positive employee relations activities that focus on supporting employees and their families. Adient also provides and encourages many forms of corporate communication such as town hall meetings, open-door policy and an ethics Integrity Helpline so that employees can hear directly from Adient leadership and have the opportunity to ask questions, make suggestions and provide input. Because the attraction, development and retention of the employee base is significant to its business strategy, executive management provides frequent updates on these metrics to the board of directors. Health and Safety We are committed to protecting the safety and well-being of our colleagues, customers, suppliers and people using our premises by providing and maintaining a safe working environment that protects both physical and mental well-being. Adient requires protective equipment, enforces comprehensive safety policies and procedures, and encourages employees and leaders to look regularly for ways to improve workplace safety. Adient has implemented and maintains a health and safety management system that is certified to the ISO 45001 Occupational Health and Safety standard. Globally, 100% of Adient’s facilities are internally audited and compliant, and 60% are also third-party audited and certified. We work together across the globe, sharing best practice ideas, procedures, and information regarding accidents and injuries. At Adient, every new machine, operation, building or workstation change requires a safety risk assessment. When our employees come to work, they can know that where they work has undergone an extensive review of associated risks of injury or illness and that those risks are eliminated and/or minimized through robust controls. Adient provides regular updates on health and safety to its board of directors. Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Adient strives to build a culture of diversity and inclusion through our purchasing and human resource practices and policies, and we strive to eliminate discrimination and harassment in all its forms, including but not limited to discrimination against women, minorities and other protected groups. Adient President and CEO Doug Del Grosso signed the "CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion" pledge promulgated by the CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion initiative, the largest CEO-driven business commitment to advance diversity and inclusion in the workplace. In addition, Adient is a member of the Center for Automotive Diversity, Inclusion and Advancement (“CADIA”). In fiscal 2022, Adient published two documents - a Human Rights Policy Statement and a Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (“DE&I”) Commitment Statement - both of which emphasize Adient’s commitment to protecting the safety, well-being and human rights of our people while driving a diverse and inclusive work culture. Adient developed and tracks human capital metrics relating to diversity and inclusion, which the Chief Legal and Human Resources Officer reviews semi-annually with the board of directors. Since success in this area requires listening to diverse voices, Adient established DE&I Councils in each of its three business regions: 1) the Americas, which is inclusive of North America and South America; 2) Europe, the Middle East and Africa Adient plc | Form 10-K | 10 (“EMEA”) and 3) Asia Pacific/China (“Asia”). These councils drive strategic and tactical actions in the areas of talent acquisition and retention, communications and employee feedback, training and education, metrics and key performance indicators, and Adient’s diverse and employee-led business resource groups (“BRGs”). While the three councils primarily work within their regions, they also communicate and collaborate across regions to ensure alignment and progress toward enterprise-wide DE&I goals. Additionally, Adient has an annual global online training to all salaried employees focused on DE&I. In 2023, Adient employees launched a new BRG in the Americas region - the South Asian Community (“SAC”) BRG - in addition to growing the existing HOLA! (Hispanic Origins • Latino Ancestry) BRG, African Ancestry BRG (“AABRG”), True Colors Network (“TCN”), and Women’s Resource Network (“WRN”). We continue to develop and refine our diversity initiatives to achieve our DE&I vision of being a premier employer that champions an inclusive and equitable work culture enriched by our diversity, where all employees are valued and respected. Succession and Talent Development At Adient, we believe that attracting, developing, motivating and retaining employees is key to our sustainable and profitable growth. We understand that, like customers, our employees and potential employees have choices of where to work, and we must compete for the best talent. Adient supports employee development in multiple ways. Adient has a global performance management process through which employees provide a self-assessment and managers provide evaluation and feedback on performance. This process informs employee development goals. Adient's Leadership Talent Review (“LTR”) is its annual process for identifying and evaluating talent for the purposes of aligning individual aspirations and development plans with the organization's needs and building a diverse pipeline of leaders to mitigate leadership vacancy risk. LTR is designed to be an inclusive process that promotes visibility of talent, increases the validity of succession plans and ensures development efforts are applied efficiently. Talent potential assessments and succession plans are calibrated with broader groups of leaders to drive consistency, awareness and alignment on decisions and development actions. Adient's executive leadership provides annual updates on succession and talent development to the board of directors. Seasonal Factors Adient's principal operations are directly related to the automotive industry. Consequently, Adient may experience seasonal fluctuations to the extent automotive vehicle production slows, such as in the summer months when many customer plants close for model year changeovers and in December when many customer plants close for the holidays. Available Information Adient's Annual Report on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K and amendments to reports filed pursuant to Sections 13(a) and 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the "Exchange Act"), are filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"). Adient is subject to the informational requirements of the Exchange Act and files or furnishes reports, proxy statements and other information with the SEC. Such reports and other information filed by Adient with the SEC are available free of charge on Adient's website at www.adient.com when such reports are available on the SEC's website. The SEC maintains an internet site that contains reports, proxy and information statements and other information regarding issuers that file electronically with the SEC at www.sec.gov. The contents of these websites are not incorporated into this filing. Further, Adient's references to website URLs are intended to be inactive textual references only. Adient plc | Form 10-K | 11 Information about our Executive Officers The following table sets forth certain information with respect to Adient's executive officers as of the date of this filing: Name Age Position(s) Held Year Appointed to Present Position Michel Berthelin 53 Executive Vice President, EMEA 2019 James Conklin 51 Executive Vice President, Americas 2022 Douglas G. Del Grosso 62 President and Chief Executive Officer 2018 Jerome J. Dorlack 43 Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer 2022 James Huang 62 Executive Vice President, Asia 2019 Gregory S. Smith 55 Senior Vice President and Chief Accounting Officer 2019 Heather M. Tiltmann 51 Executive Vice President, Chief Legal and Human Resources Officer, and Corporate Secretary 2021 Michel P. Berthelin. Mr. Berthelin is the Executive Vice President, EMEA of Adient. Mr. Berthelin was the Vice President, EMEA of Delphi Technologies during 2018. He served as the Global Steering Vice President of ZF Friedrichshafen AG from 2016 to 2018 and the Vice President, North America-Braking of ZF Friedrichshafen AG during 2015. He was also Vice President, Europe-Braking for TRW Automotive Holdings Corp. from 2012 to 2015. James Conklin. Mr. Conklin is the Executive Vice President, Americas of Adient. Mr. Conklin served as Adient’s Vice President, Americas Operations from 2016 to 2022. He previously served as Vice President of Operations of Johnson Controls, Inc. Mr. Conklin had various roles with increasing responsibilities since 2000 while at Johnson Controls, Inc; such as Executive Director, Continuous Improvement and Best Business Practices, and leadership positions within Advanced Manufacturing, Lean Manufacturing, Operations and Quality. Douglas G. Del Grosso. Mr. Del Grosso is the President and Chief Executive Officer (“CEO”) and a Director of Adient. In November 2023, Adient announced that Mr. Del Grosso will be retiring from Adient effective December 31, 2023. Mr. Del Grosso joined Adient in October 2018 from automotive supplier Chassix, where he served as president and CEO. From 2012 to 2015, he served as president and CEO at Henniges Automotive. Mr. Del Grosso held leadership roles at TRW Automotive from 2007 to 2012, where he last served as vice president and general manager for Adient’s global braking and suspension operations. Prior to joining TRW Automotive, Mr. Del Grosso spent more than 20 years at Lear Corporation in a variety of engineering and operational roles, the last being president and chief operating officer. Mr. Del Grosso holds a Master of Business Administration from the Eli Broad College of Business at Michigan State University, as well as a Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering from Lawrence Technological University. He serves as a director and member of the Safety, Health, Environment and Sustainability Committee at Cabot Corp., and as a trustee of The Committee for Economic Development of The Conference Board (“CED”). His CED activities include co-chairing the CED Trade and Economic Globalization Committee, being a member of the Education Committee and serving as a member of the CED Task Force on Climate, The Environment, and Energy. Jerome J. Dorlack. Mr. Dorlack is the Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Adient. In November 2023, Adient announced that Mr. Dorlack will be appointed as President and Chief Executive Officer and a Director of Adient effective January 1, 2024. Mr. Dorlack served as Vice President, Americas of Adient from 2019 to 2022 and Vice President and Chief Purchasing Officer of Adient from 2018 to 2019. He also served as Senior Vice President and President, Electrical Distribution System and President, South America of Aptiv plc from 2017 to 2018, and Vice President, Powertrain Systems and General Manager, Global Powertrain Products of Delphi Automotive plc from 2016 to 2017. Prior to that, Mr. Dorlack served as Executive Vice President – Global Procurement of ZF Friedrichshafen from 2015 to 2016, and Vice President, Global Purchasing, Supplier Development and Logistics of ZF Friedrichshafen from 2013 to 2015. James J. Huang. Mr. Huang is the Executive Vice President, Asia of Adient. Mr. Huang served as Vice President, Complete Seat Asia of Adient from 2016 to 2018, and Vice President Complete Seat Asia of Johnson Controls, Inc. from 2014 to 2016. Gregory S. Smith. Mr. Smith is the Senior Vice President and Chief Accounting Officer of Adient. Mr. Smith served as Adient’s Assistant Corporate Controller from 2016 to 2019. Prior to that, he served as Corporate Controller of Jason Industries, Inc. in 2015 and was with PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP from 1995 to 2015. Adient plc | Form 10-K | 12 Heather M. Tiltmann. Ms. Tiltmann is the Executive Vice President, Chief Legal and Human Resources Officer, and Corporate Secretary of Adient. Ms. Tiltmann served as Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary of Adient from 2020 to 2021. Prior to that, Ms. Tiltmann was Adient’s Vice President and General Counsel, Labor & Employment, Litigation and Compliance, and has served in other legal roles at Adient since 2016. Ms. Tiltmann was an attorney at Johnson Controls, Inc. with increasing levels of responsibility from 2011 to 2016, and an attorney with the law firm of Whyte Hirschboeck Dudek S.C. from 2000 to 2011. With the appointment of Mr. Dorlack as President and Chief Executive Officer, Mark A. Oswald, the current Vice President, Treasurer, Investor Relations, and Corporate Communications, will be appointed as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer effective January 1, 2024. Adient plc | Form 10-K | 13