YouGov : FY22 Annual Report and Accounts

Annual Report and Accounts 2022

Strategic report

Governance report

Financial statements

Additional information

Highlights

YouGov is an international online

SUMMARY OF FINANCIAL RESULTS

FINANCIAL AND OPERATIONAL HIGHLIGHTS

research data and analyticstechnologygroup.

Revenue (£m)

£221.1 +31%

2021: £169.0

Adjusted operating profit margin1 (%)

16.4% +130bps

Adjusted operating profit1 (£m)

£36.3 +42%

2021: £25.5

Statutory operating profit(£m)

£30.0+58%

- Revenue growth of 31% (20% on an

underlying¹ basis) to £221.1m, with

double-digit growth across all

divisions and geographies

- Statutory operating profit up 58% to

£30.0m (FY21: £19.0m)

- Adjusted operating profit¹ up by 42%

(33% on an underlying¹ basis) to £36.3m,

as efficiencies in the business and

operational leverage benefits are

starting to come through

Our purpose

Our purpose is to give our global community a voice by collecting, measuring and analysing their opinions and behaviours and reporting the findings accurately and free from bias.

Who we are

YouGov is an international online research data and analytics

STRATEGIC REPORT

1. Highlights
2. At a Glance

4  Business Model 6  Investment Case

7	Chair's Statement
12	CEO's Review
16	Markets
18	Living Data
20	Our Strategic Priorities
22	Strategy in Action
24	Key Performance Indicators
26	Our Core Products

FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

103 Independent Auditors' Report to the Members of YouGov plc

111	Consolidated Income
	Statement
112	Consolidated Statement
	of Comprehensive Income
113	Consolidated Statement
	of Financial Position
114	Consolidated Statement
	of Changes in Equity
115	Consolidated Statement
	of Cash Flows

2021: 15.1%

Staff costs as a % of revenue (%)

49% -300bps

2021: 52%

Adjusted earnings per share1,2 (pence)

23.7p +9%

2021: 21.7p

2021: £19.0

Statutory basic earnings per share (pence)

15.7p +37%

2021: 11.5p

Operating cash generation2 (£m)

£69.7 +55%

2021: £45.1

- Adjusted operating profit margin¹ up

130 basis points ("bps") to 16.4%, despite

continued investment in the business

- Adjusted earnings per share1 of 23.7p

(FY21: 21.7p), impacted by adverse foreign

exchange movements

- Strong cash conversion1 of 113% (FY21: 98%)

enabling repayment of the £20.0m

revolving credit facility drawn in the first

half of this financial year

- Proposed dividend increase of 17% to 7.0p

per share, in line with our progressive

dividend policy

technology group. Our innovative solutions help the world's most recognised brands, media owners and government agencies to explore, plan, activate and track their marketing activities better.

With operations in the UK, the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, India and Asia Pacific, we have one of the world's largest research networks.

What we do

At the core of the YouGov Platform is an ever-growing source of consumer data that has been amassed over our 20 years of operation. Our products and services draw on this detailed understanding of our 22+ million registered panel members to deliver accurate, actionable consumer insights to our clients.

	and Services
28	Our Divisions
34	Our Stakeholders
38	Section 172 Statement
40	ESG Report
54	CFO's Review
60	Risk Management and
	Principal Risks

GOVERNANCE REPORT

66 Chair's Introduction to Governance

68 Board of Directors

1. Corporate Governance Report

1. Nomination Committee Report

1. Audit & Risk Committee Report

1. Directors' Remuneration Report

1. Remuneration Committee Chair's Statement

1. Directors' Remuneration Policy

1. Annual Report on Remuneration

1. Directors' Report

1. Statement of
   Directors' Responsibilities

116	Parent Company Statement
	of Financial Position
117	Parent Company Statement
	of Changes in Equity
118	Principal Accounting
	Policies of the Consolidated
	Financial Statements

133 Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements

168 Group Five-Year Financial Summary

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

169 Notice of Annual General Meeting

173 Guide to Compliance Disclosures

1. Defined in the explanation of non-IFRS measures on page 59.
2. Refer to the FY21 restatements section on page 118 for details.

ESG HIGHLIGHTS

• Our social mission is to make people's opinions heard for the benefit of the wider community and social value. We have defined this mission as "Giving a Voice", which is a key strategic theme of our second ESG Roadmap.
• We are a naturally low-emission business, but we take a proactive approach to mitigating our environmental impact and have signed the MRS Net Zero Pledge to achieve net zero in the UK by 2026.
• Through our rigorous governance framework, we embed transparency and accountability through our policies and processes.
• Our CEO discusses his views on ESG in the Q&A on page 40.

- Robust balance sheet position maintained

with net cash at period end of £37.4m

(31 July 2021: £35.5m) and no outstanding debt

- Number of investments made during the

year to drive growth:

• Continued investment in technology to

drive long-term growth, including the

development of the YouGov Platform

into a public-facing dashboard, enabling

high-quality,self-service research

• Expanded product suite in response

to client demand, including the

launch of YouGov Global Profiles

and YouGov Finance

• Ongoing investment in the build-out of

our panel in recently established markets

• Established our newest Centre of

Excellence ("CenX") in Mexico City to

increase research operations coverage

for our rapidly growing US business

• Acquired Rezonence Limited and LINK

Marketing Services AG during the period

to expand our activation capabilities and

Mainland Europe operations, respectively

YouGov plc Annual Report & Accounts 2022

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Strategic report

At a Glance

YouGov is an international online research

data and analytics technology group.

Our proprietary global panel of 22+ million registered members across 59 markets provide us with millions of data points on consumer opinions and behaviour which are fully connected and constantly updated. We call it Living Data. We use Living Data to build tailored end-to-end solutions for the most effective strategy and marketing activities.

OUR DIVISIONS

Living Data underpins our broad suite of products. Our business is structured into three divisions, and the connectedness of our products and services serves as a strong differentiator.

Data Products

This division comprises our syndicated data products, which are available to clients on a

subscription basis.

34%

of Group revenue

Data Services

This division provides our clients fast-turnaround and cost-effective survey solutions for reaching

nationally representative and specialist samples.

23%

of Group revenue

Custom Research

OUR REACH

YouGov has one of the world's largest research networks

Americas

22%

employees 8 offices

Strategic report

YOUGOV GLOBAL AFFILIATE PARTNERSHIPS PROGRAMME

The YouGov Global Affiliate Partnerships Programme offers research agencies access to YouGov's platforms, expertise and (where required) panel, while establishing the YouGov brand and data products in the local market.

Learn more at: business.yougov.com/global-affiliate-partnerships

UK	Mainland Europe
27%	23%
employees	employees
3 offices	16 offices

Governance report

Financial statements

Additional information

Asia Pacific	Middle East & India
7%	21%
employees	employees
9 offices	4 offices

This division offers a wide range of quantitative and qualitative research that is tailored by sector specialist teams to meet clients'

specific requirements.

43%

of Group revenue

Key

  YouGov office locations

  YouGov proprietary panel

  YouGov Partnerships Programme panels   YouGov proprietary panel and YouGov Partnerships Programme panel

22m+	1,650+	4,000+	39	#1
registered	employees	clients worldwide	offices	most quoted
members1	worldwide		worldwide	market research
worldwide				source worldwide

1 All individuals that have joined the YouGov panel and not unsubscribed or requested erasure.

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Strategic report	Strategic report	Governance report	Financial statements	Additional information

Business Model

KEY STRENGTHS AND INPUTS

Innovation

Pioneer of online market research

Innovative market-leading technology and analytics

Technology platform connecting people, research experts and clients

Panel

Large proprietary panel with strong panellist relationships

Unparalleled depth and breadth of connected data

People

Talented, driven professionals

Strong culture and reputed management team

Global reach supported by CenX model

Reputation

Respected brand name and strong media presence

Ethical approach, fully embracing EU GDPR principles

Investment

Cash-generative business enabling continuous reinvestment

Robust financial position

WHAT WE DO

Activate

Living

Data

Track

Plan

Explore

We collect and analyse opinions and behavioural data from our proprietary global panel of over 22 million registered members to provide our clients with data and insights to help them explore, plan, activate and track the impact of their marketing and communication activities.

Our internet-based approach is a key differentiator as it allows us to keep panellists engaged for longer, connect longitudinal data in a high- value, structured manner and analyse it faster and more accurately.

See more about Living Data on page 18

VALUE WE CREATE FOR OUR STAKEHOLDERS

Panel members	£		m+
Rewards for participation
in surveys, and having their		16
opinions shape agendas	in panel redemptions
and policies
Employees	4/5
Competitive remuneration,
attractive culture and personal
development opportunities	mean overall satisfaction
score in the Employee
	Engagement Survey
Community	7	m
Public data as a resource for
organisations to understand
public opinion	unique visitors to our UK
and US public data websites
Clients			%
Research data and insights
that fulfil their business needs	20
	underlying¹ revenue growth

Suppliers and partners 15

Mutually beneficial relationships

built on shared values days taken on average to pay third-party suppliers

Shareholders	%
Return on investment
through share price growth	30
and dividends	dividend payout ratio
Media	#
Topical data and research to
support editorial teams	1
	most quoted market
	research source globally
Environment	tCO e
Proactive mitigation of
environmental impact	0.60	2
	carbon emissions per FTE

including Scope 1, 2 & 3

1 Defined as growth in business excluding impact of current and prior period acquisitions and business closures, and movement in exchange rates.

UNDERPINNED BY OUR COMPANY VALUES

We are driven by a set of shared values. Our teams are encouraged to demonstrate our company values in their day-to-day work and bring them into everything that we do.

Be fast

Things are ever changing and as a company we know we are in constant competition. We must always be fast to adapt, and fast to deliver.

Be fearless

Be brave and believe we can do anything. We've proven we can. So innovate,

take savvy risks, don't follow the crowd.

Get it right

We are judged on our ethics, our methodology, and our accuracy - we will do the right thing as scientists, as technologists, and as citizens.

Trust each other	Respect
We have a mission, a strategy, and a plan	We will respect everyone and
for implementation. Let's all work together	be considerate of our differences,
in trust - challenging, pushing, improving	always supporting each other to
each other to fulfil our ambition.	succeed. Diversity helps us thrive.

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Strategic report

Investment Case

	Sustainable growth	1.
	Successful track
		record of scaling
		the business and
		delivering profitable
		growth

Connected data

2.

Unparalleled depth and breadth of connected data increasingly being valued by clients

Resilience

3.

Digital business model providing significant operating leverage and strong resilience in volatile environments

Strategic report

Governance report

Financial statements

Additional information

Chair's Statement

Continued resilience demonstrated

in an uncertain

environment ROGER PARRY CBE, CHAIR

Innovative

4.

Culture of innovation combined with sector expertise ensures our offering is constantly evolving to meet client needs

Global reach

5.

Increasing focus on account management and global panel expansion driving the current phase

of growth

Recurring revenue

6.

Growing subscription business and long-term tracking work provides high visibility and strong margin expansion potential

Platform play

7.

Developing from a supplier of data products and services into a true platform that includes activation to drive next phase of growth

Profitable

8.

Solid profitability and strong balance sheet provides foundation to deliver on growth ambitions

Strong leadership

9.

Highly motivated leadership team with a clear goal of enhancing shareholder value and employee experience

"YouGov has shown great resilience in the face of ongoing uncertainty, as we continue to demonstrate the strength of our business model."

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