UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

SCHEDULE 14A

Proxy Statement Pursuant to Section 14(a) of the

Securities Exchange Act of 1934

(Amendment No. )

Zimmer Biomet Holdings, Inc.

(Name of Registrant as Specified In Its Charter)

(Name of Person(s) Filing Proxy Statement, if Other Than the Registrant)

April [•], 2025

LETTER FROM OUR PRESIDENT AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER:

Dear Fellow Shareholders:

In 2024, we took deliberate steps to innovate, and building our pipeline both organically and inorganically, while also maintaining our focus on operational excellence and disciplined execution, to deliver shareholder value.

In the letter to shareholders included in our 2024 Annual Report, we discuss our results for the year just completed, as well as the long-term strategic choices that will continue to guide us in the months and years ahead.

We remain confident in our strategy and the team we have assembled who are driven by our Mission and committed to solving the most meaningful challenges in healthcare. Thank you for your continued support of Zimmer Biomet.

Annual Meeting Matters

On behalf of the Board of Directors, it is my pleasure to invite you to attend the 2025 annual meeting of shareholders on May 29, 2025 at 9:00 a.m. Eastern Time. This year’s annual meeting will be conducted virtually, via webcast.

You will be able to attend the annual meeting online by visiting www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/ZBH2025. You will be able to vote your shares electronically during the meeting by logging in using the 16-digit control number included on your Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials, on your proxy card or on the voting instruction form accompanying the proxy materials.

We continue to embrace the latest technology to provide expanded access, improved communication and cost savings for our shareholders and the company. As we’ve learned, hosting a virtual meeting enables increased shareholder participation from locations around the world. In addition, the online format allows us to communicate more effectively via a pre-meeting forum that you can enter by visiting www.proxyvote.com with your control number. We encourage you to log on and ask any questions you may have, which we will try to answer during the meeting. We recommend that you log in a few minutes before the meeting on May 29, 2025 to ensure you are logged in when the meeting starts.

The following Notice of Annual Meeting of Shareholders outlines the business to be conducted at the meeting. Only shareholders of record at the close of business on April 2, 2025 will be entitled to notice of and to vote at the meeting. Further details about how to attend the meeting online and the business to be conducted at the meeting are included in the accompanying Notice of Annual Meeting of Shareholders and Proxy Statement.

We are again providing access to our proxy materials online under the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s “notice and access” rules. As a result, we are mailing to many of our shareholders a Notice of Internet Availability instead of a paper copy of this proxy statement and our 2024 Annual Report. This electronic process gives shareholders fast, convenient access to the materials, reduces the impact on the environment and reduces our printing and mailing costs. The Notice of Internet Availability contains

instructions on how to access documents online. It also contains instructions on how shareholders can receive a paper copy of our materials, including this proxy statement, our 2024 Annual Report and a form of proxy card or voting instruction form.

Your vote is important. Regardless of whether you plan to attend the virtual annual meeting, we hope you vote as soon as possible. You may vote by proxy online, or, if you received paper copies of the proxy materials by mail, you may also vote by phone or mail by following the instructions on the proxy card or voting instruction form. Additionally, if you attend the virtual annual meeting, you may vote your shares during the meeting via the Internet even if you previously voted your proxy. Voting online or by phone, by written proxy or by voting instruction form ensures your representation at the annual meeting regardless of whether or not you attend the virtual meeting.

ZIMMER BIOMET HOLDINGS, INC.

345 East Main Street

Warsaw, Indiana 46580

NOTICE OF ANNUAL MEETING OF SHAREHOLDERS OF ZIMMER BIOMET HOLDINGS, INC.

PROXY STATEMENT SUMMARY

We are providing this proxy statement in connection with the solicitation of proxies by our Board of Directors for use at our 2025 annual meeting of shareholders to be held on Thursday, May 29, 2025. The Notice of Annual Meeting of Shareholders and related proxy materials, or a Notice of Internet Availability, were first sent to shareholders on or about April [•], 2025. This summary highlights information contained elsewhere in this proxy statement. It does not contain all of the information you should consider, and we urge you to read the entire proxy statement, as well as our 2024 Annual Report, before voting.

voting matters and board recommendations

Our Director Nominees

The following table provides summary information about each of the 10 director nominees. Each director is elected annually by a majority of votes cast.

Demographic information is self-reported by directors in their annual directors’ and officers’ questionnaires. Demographic data is not standardized and director responses are not required.

Corporate Governance Strengths

CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

Every day, the Zimmer Biomet team works towards our mission of alleviating pain and improving quality of life for people around the world. We are committed to effective corporate governance, adhere to world-class integrity and ethical business practices and strive for the highest standards of patient safety and quality in our products and services.

Our business is managed under the direction of our Board of Directors. The Board has responsibility for establishing broad corporate policies and for our overall performance.

DIRECTOR NOMINEES

OUR BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND CORPORATE

GOVERNANCE FRAMEWORK

DIRECTOR CRITERIA, QUALIFICATIONS AND

EXPERIENCE

We are a global leader in musculoskeletal healthcare. We design, manufacture and market orthopedic reconstructive products; sports medicine, biologics, extremities and trauma products; craniomaxillofacial and thoracic products; surgical products; and a suite of integrated digital and robotic technologies that leverage data, data analytics and artificial intelligence. We have operations in more than 25 countries around the world and sell products in more than 100 countries. We operate in markets characterized by rapidly evolving technologies, complex regulatory requirements and significant competition.

The Corporate Governance Committee is responsible for reviewing and assessing with the Board, on an annual basis, the experience, qualifications, attributes and skills sought of Board members in the context of our business and the then-current membership of the Board. The director skills matrix below identifies some of the key skills and experiences the Board has identified as being important to its responsibilities and reflects how the director nominees, individually and in the aggregate, reflect these skills.

Demographic data is self-reported by directors in their annual directors’ and officers’ questionnaires. Demographic data is not standardized and director responses are not required.

A mark indicates a specific area of focus or expertise that the director brings to our Board. The matrix above does not encompass all of the knowledge, skills and experience of our directors, and the fact that a particular knowledge, skill or experience is not listed does not mean that a director does not possess it. In addition, the absence of a particular knowledge, skill or experience with respect to any of our directors does not mean the director in question is unable to contribute to the decision-making process in that area.

The Corporate Governance Committee looks for current and potential directors collectively to have a mix of experience, skills and qualifications, including those identified in the matrix. In evaluating director candidates and considering incumbent directors for nomination to the Board, the committee considers a variety of factors. These include each candidate’s experiences, skills and qualifications, character and integrity, reputation for working constructively in a collegial environment, personal and professional background, demographics and availability to devote sufficient time to Board matters. The committee further considers candidates in the context of the diversity of the current Board members, including as to gender, race, ethnicity, national origin, international work experience, disability status and age, to ensure an inclusive culture, sense of belonging and diverse perspectives. The committee also considers whether a candidate can meet the independence standards for directors and members of key committees under applicable stock exchange and SEC rules. With respect to incumbent directors, the committee considers the director’s past performance on the Board and contributions to the committees on which he or she serves.

One of the key responsibilities of the Board is to have a leadership structure that allows it to provide effective oversight of management and maximize the contributions of its members. Our Board believes that it is important that it retain flexibility to make the determination as to whether the interests of the company and our shareholders are best served by having the same individual serve as both CEO and Chairman or whether the roles should be separated based on the circumstances at any given time, and our Corporate Governance Guidelines and Restated Bylaws provide this flexibility. Under our Corporate Governance Guidelines, the Board appoints a Lead Independent Director when the CEO and Chairman roles are combined. At different times in the past, the Board has used both approaches, selecting the approach which it believes best serves the interests of the company and our shareholders at that time.

In the second half of 2024, after the first anniversary of the appointment of Mr. Tornos as President and CEO, and in light of our current Chairman of the Board, Mr. Begley, reaching the Board’s mandatory retirement policy at the 2025 annual meeting, our Corporate Governance Committee and Board of Directors began to reassess the Board’s leadership structure. In February 2025, our Board, upon the recommendation of the Corporate Governance Committee, determined that the company and its shareholders will be best served by Mr. Tornos assuming the role of Chairman and Mr. Farrell serving as Lead Independent Director effective as of May 29, 2025, the day of the annual meeting. The decision to combine the roles of Chairman and CEO reflected the Board’s strong belief that Mr. Tornos has demonstrated the leadership and vision necessary to lead the Board and the company. The Board believes that this leadership structure will promote efficient Board functioning, foster a constructive and cooperative relationship between the Board and management and reinforce Mr. Tornos' overall responsibility for the company’s business and strategy, under the oversight and subject to the review of the Board. However, the Board evaluates its leadership structure on an ongoing basis and is not opposed in concept to separating these roles in the future.

The Board recognizes the importance of having a strong independent Board leadership structure to ensure accountability. Accordingly, our Corporate Governance Guidelines provide that if the Chairman is not an independent director, then the Board will appoint a Lead Independent Director. As such, the Board selected Mr. Farrell to assume the role of Lead Independent Director when Mr. Tornos assumes the role of Chairman.

The Board believes that a Lead Independent Director is an integral part of our Board structure and facilitates the effective performance of the Board in its role of providing governance and oversight. In fulfilling his or her responsibilities, the Lead Independent Director will:

Our Board of Directors oversees the risk management processes that have been designed and are implemented by our executives to determine whether those processes are consistent with our strategy and risk appetite, are functioning as intended, and that necessary steps are taken to foster a culture that recognizes and appropriately escalates and addresses risk-taking beyond our determined risk appetite. The Board executes its oversight responsibility for risk management directly and through its committees.

The Audit Committee is specifically tasked with overseeing our compliance with legal and regulatory requirements, including oversight of our Corporate Compliance Program, discussing our risk assessment and risk management processes with management, and receiving information on certain material legal and regulatory matters, including litigation, as well as on information technology, data privacy, business continuity and cybersecurity-related matters. Our Vice President, Internal Audit Services, who reports directly to the committee, coordinates our global risk assessment process. We use this process to identify, assess and prioritize internal and external risks, to develop processes for responding to, mitigating and monitoring risks and to inform the development of our internal audit plan, our annual operating plan and our long-term strategic plan. We also maintain an internal risk committee made up of members of senior management that has responsibility for overseeing the execution of enterprise risk management activities.

The Audit Committee receives detailed reports regarding our enterprise risk assessment process and its meeting agendas include discussions of individual risk areas throughout the year. Members of our management who have responsibility for designing and implementing our risk management processes regularly meet with the committee. The committee discusses our major financial risk exposures with our CFO and Chief Accounting Officer. The committee receives regular reports from our Chief Compliance Officer on our Corporate Compliance Program, which is designed to address risks related to, among other matters, anti-corruption and anti-kickback laws in the countries where we do business. The committee receives regular reports from our Chief Information Officer and our Chief Information Security Officer regarding cybersecurity risks and threats. The committee also receives reports from our General Counsel, Global Privacy Officer and other persons who are involved in our risk management processes.

The Board’s other committees oversee risks associated with their respective areas of responsibility. For example, the Compensation and Management Development Committee oversees risks relating to our executive compensation programs and practices. In addition, in conjunction with the full Board, the Compensation and Management Development Committee oversees risks relating to human capital management. The Corporate Governance Committee oversees risks relating to environmental, social and governance matters. The Quality, Regulatory and Technology Committee oversees risks relating to our compliance with laws and regulations enforced by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) and comparable foreign government regulators, including product quality and safety. The Board receives detailed regular reports from members of our executive leadership team and other personnel that include discussions of the risks and exposures involved with their respective areas of responsibility. Further, the Board is routinely informed of developments that could affect our risk profile or other aspects of our business. Primary areas of risk oversight for the full Board include, but are not limited to, general commercial risks in the musculoskeletal healthcare industry, such as competition, pricing pressures and the reimbursement landscape; risks associated with our strategic plan and annual operating plan; risks related to our capital structure; and risks pertaining to mergers, acquisitions, divestitures and other complex transactions.

The Board and its Compensation and Management Development Committee oversee executive succession planning for the company as part of building a high-performing and inclusive workforce. On an annual basis, the Board and committee evaluate the company's leadership team succession planning. Additionally, other Board committees receive annual talent review updates from relevant management teams, such as the Audit Committee receiving the Finance and Internal Audit teams’ talent reviews, and the Quality, Regulatory and Technology Committee receiving the Quality Affairs and Regulatory Affairs teams’ talent reviews. Additionally, Board members interact with internal succession candidates through candidates' participation in Board and committee meetings and other contacts, and high-potential individuals are often positioned to interact more frequently with our Board and its committees as part of our succession planning processes. During 2022, we introduced Global Leadership Competencies, behaviors that are informed by our culture promises, support our mission and enable successful outcomes aligned to our strategic pillars to help build a pipeline of talent who can fill future leadership roles.

The annual Board and committee review of leadership team succession planning represents the culmination of an ongoing process in which each member of the President and CEO's leadership team, in collaboration with our Human Resources Department, develops detailed succession plans designed to ensure the continuing strength and success of each function. These detailed succession plans identify high-performing internal and external candidates for leadership roles and are intended to develop and enhance well-rounded and experienced leaders. Among other factors, our executive succession planning processes:

We seek to continually improve our executive succession planning programs. For example, the executive leadership changes we began in August 2023 and continued through 2024 demonstrated successful operation of these processes, as well as provided valuable experience to inform further enhancements.

We are committed to maintaining the highest standards of business conduct and corporate governance, which we believe are essential to running our business efficiently, serving shareholders well and maintaining our integrity in the marketplace. Our Board has adopted Corporate Governance Guidelines, which, in conjunction with our Restated Certificate of Incorporation, Restated Bylaws, Board committee charters and key Board policies, form the framework for our governance. Our Board regularly reviews corporate governance developments and modifies its Corporate Governance Guidelines, committee charters and key policies as warranted.

The current versions of the following documents are available in the Investor Relations/Corporate Governance section of our website, www.zimmerbiomet.com:

If we make any substantive amendments to the finance code of ethics or grant any waiver, including any implicit waiver, from a provision of the code to our CEO, CFO, or Chief Accounting Officer/Corporate Controller, we will disclose the nature of that amendment or waiver in the Investor Relations section of our website.

Under our Corporate Governance Guidelines, our non-employee directors who are not executive officers of other public companies are limited to serving on a total of four public company boards, including ours, and our non-employee directors who serve as executive officers of other public companies are limited to serving on a total of three public company boards, including their own company’s board and our Board. Further, our Audit Committee members are limited to serving on a total of three public company audit committees, including ours.

Our Board is aware that certain of our investors, in recognition of the increased time required of boards of directors, have policies to limit directors who are CEOs of public companies to a total of two public company boards. While our Board recognizes that directors who are employed full-time, whether as executives of public companies or in other positions, naturally have greater demands placed on their time than directors who have retired from full-time employment, our Board has chosen not to adopt the more restrictive two-board limit for our non-employee directors who serve as public company executives so that our Board has more flexibility to assess the potential impact of directors’ additional commitments as they arise.

The Board’s Corporate Governance Guidelines, which are available on our website at www.zimmerbiomet.com, include criteria adopted by the Board to assist it in making determinations regarding the independence of its members. The criteria are consistent with the New York Stock Exchange listing standards regarding director independence. To be considered independent, the Board must determine that a director has no material relationship, directly or indirectly, with us. In assessing independence, the Corporate Governance Committee and the Board consider a wide range of relevant facts and circumstances. The Board has determined that each of our non-employee directors, Christopher Begley, Betsy Bernard, Michael Farrell, Robert Hagemann, Arthur Higgins, Maria Teresa Hilado, Syed Jafry, Sreelakshmi Kolli, Devdatt Kurdikar and Louis Shapiro, meets these standards and is independent. The remaining director, Ivan Tornos, is our CEO and is not independent.

Our Restated Bylaws require directors to be elected by the majority of the votes cast with respect to that director in uncontested elections (the number of shares voted “for” a director must exceed the number of votes cast “against” that director). In a contested election (a situation in which the number of nominees exceeds the number of directors to be elected), the standard for election of directors will be a plurality of the shares represented in person or by proxy at any such meeting and entitled to vote on the election of directors.

If a nominee who is serving as a director is not elected at the annual meeting, under Delaware law the director would continue to serve on the Board as a “holdover director.” However, under our Restated Bylaws, any director who fails to be elected must tender his or her resignation to the Board. The Corporate Governance Committee would then make a recommendation to the Board whether to accept or reject the resignation, or whether other action should be taken. The Board will act on the Corporate Governance Committee’s recommendation and publicly disclose its decision and the rationale behind it within 90 days from the date the election results are certified. The director who tenders his or her resignation will not participate in the Board’s decision. Furthermore, our Corporate Governance Guidelines provide that, if an incumbent director fails to be elected in an uncontested election, and regardless of the

Board's decision with respect to the related tendered resignation, the Board will not nominate such person to be a candidate for election as a director at the next annual shareholder meeting.

If a nominee who was not already serving as a director is not elected at the annual meeting, under Delaware law that nominee would not become a director and would not serve on the Board as a “holdover director.” All nominees for election as directors at the 2025 annual meeting are currently serving on the Board.

The Corporate Governance Committee screens candidates and recommends candidates for nomination to the full Board. In seeking and evaluating director candidates, the committee considers individuals in accordance with the criteria described above under “Director Criteria, Qualifications and Experience.” Director candidates may be recommended by Board members, a third-party search firm or shareholders.

The committee considers candidates proposed by shareholders and evaluates them using the same criteria as for other candidates. A shareholder who wishes to recommend a director candidate for consideration by the committee should send such recommendation to our Corporate Secretary at Zimmer Biomet Holdings, Inc., 345 East Main Street, Warsaw, Indiana 46580, who will then forward it to the committee. Any such recommendation should include a description of the candidate’s qualifications for board service, the candidate’s written consent to be considered for nomination and to serve if nominated and elected, and addresses and telephone numbers for contacting the shareholder and the candidate for more information.

A shareholder who wishes to nominate an individual as a candidate for election, rather than recommend the individual to the committee as a nominee, but does not intend to have the candidate included in our proxy materials, must comply with the advance notice requirements set forth in our Restated Bylaws. (See “What is the deadline to propose actions for consideration or to nominate individuals to serve as directors at the 2026 annual meeting of shareholders? – Notice Requirements for Other Director Nominees or Shareholder Proposals to Be Brought Before the 2026 Annual Meeting of Shareholders” on page 86 for more information.) In addition, in 2019, our Board adopted “proxy access,” which permits eligible shareholders to nominate and include in our proxy materials director nominees if certain requirements are met. (See “What is the deadline to propose actions for consideration or to nominate individuals to serve as directors at the 2026 annual meeting of shareholders? – Requirements for Director Nominees to Be Considered for Inclusion in our Proxy Materials (“Proxy Access”)” on page 86 for more information.) Further, shareholders who intend to solicit proxies in support of director nominees other than our nominees must comply with Rule 14a-19 under the Exchange Act. (See “What is the deadline to propose actions for consideration or to nominate individuals to serve as directors at the 2026 annual meeting of shareholders? – Notice Requirements under Universal Proxy Rules” on page 86 for more information.)

Shareholders or other interested parties may contact our directors by writing to them either individually or as a group or partial group (such as all independent directors), c/o Corporate Secretary, Zimmer Biomet Holdings, Inc., 345 East Main Street, Warsaw, Indiana 46580. If you wish your communication to be treated confidentially, please write the word “CONFIDENTIAL” prominently on the envelope and address it to the director by name so that it can be forwarded without being opened. Communications addressed to multiple recipients, such as to “Board of Directors,” “Audit Committee,” “Independent Directors,” etc., will necessarily have to be opened and copied by the Office of the Corporate Secretary in order to forward them, and hence cannot be treated confidentially.

The Board meets on a regularly scheduled basis during the year to review significant developments affecting us and to act on matters requiring Board approval. It also holds special meetings when an important matter requires Board action between scheduled meetings. Members of senior management regularly attend meetings of the Board and its committees to report on and discuss their areas of responsibility. Directors are expected to attend Board meetings, meetings of committees on which they serve and shareholder meetings. Directors are expected to spend the time needed and meet as frequently as necessary to properly discharge their responsibilities. During 2024, the Board held 6 meetings and the standing committees of the Board held a total of 22 meetings. All directors attended 75% or more of the meetings of the Board and committees on which they served. All current directors then standing for election attended the 2024 annual meeting of shareholders.

Each regularly scheduled Board meeting normally begins with a session between the CEO and the independent directors. This provides a platform for discussions outside the presence of the non-Board management attendees, as well as an opportunity for the independent directors to go into executive session (without the CEO) if requested by any director. The independent directors may meet

in executive session, without the CEO, at any time, and are scheduled for such independent executive sessions at each regularly scheduled Board meeting. Currently, Mr. Begley, in his capacity as non-executive Chairman, presides at these executive sessions.

On an annual basis, each director and executive officer is obligated to complete a director and officer questionnaire which requires disclosure of any transactions with us in which the director or executive officer, or any member of his or her immediate family, has an interest. Under our Audit Committee’s charter, which is available on our website at www.zimmerbiomet.com, our Audit Committee must review and approve all related person transactions in which any executive officer, director, director nominee or more than 5% shareholder of the company, or any of their immediate family members, has a direct or indirect material interest. The Audit Committee may not approve a related person transaction unless (1) it is in or not inconsistent with our best interests and (2) where applicable, the terms of such transaction are at least as favorable to us as could be obtained from an unrelated third party.

Under our Code of Business Conduct and Ethics, which is available on our website at www.zimmerbiomet.com, and related policies and procedures, actual or potential conflicts of interest involving any other employee must be disclosed to and resolved by our Human Resources Department, in consultation with our Compliance Office.

We have adopted a Stock Trading Policy that governs the purchase, sale and other disposition of the Company's common stock by our directors, officers and employees and certain of their family members and related parties that is reasonably designed to promote compliance with insider trading laws, rules, and regulations, including applicable listing standards. The policy prohibits buying or selling the Company's common stock while aware of material non-public information about the Company and from disclosing ("tipping") such information to others. It is also the Company's policy to comply with all applicable insider trading laws when transacting in its own securities.

Our Stock Trading Policy prohibits all members of our Board, all executive officers, all employees at or above a director level and certain other designated employees (as well as such individuals’ family members, others living in their home and any entities that such individuals influence or control) from the following:

The prohibition on hedging included in our Stock Trading Policy does not preclude covered persons from engaging in general portfolio diversification or investing in broad-based index funds.

Our Restated Bylaws provide that the Board may delegate certain of its responsibilities to committees. During 2024, the Board had four standing committees: an Audit Committee; a Compensation and Management Development Committee; a Corporate Governance Committee; and a Quality, Regulatory and Technology Committee. Each of the standing committees is composed entirely of independent directors. In addition, the members of the Audit Committee and the Compensation and Management Development Committee meet the heightened standards of independence required by SEC rules and New York Stock Exchange listing standards.

The table below shows the current membership of each standing Board committee and the number of meetings held during 2024.

STANDING COMMITTEE ASSIGNMENTS

The Audit Committee is directly responsible for the appointment, retention, compensation and oversight of our independent registered public accounting firm, including the review and approval of audit fees. The principal functions of the Audit Committee include:

The Board of Directors has determined that Mses. Bernard and Hilado and Mr. Hagemann qualify as “audit committee financial experts” as defined by SEC rules. Shareholders should understand that this designation is an SEC disclosure requirement related to these directors’ experience and understanding with respect to certain accounting and auditing matters. The designation does not impose upon these directors any duties, obligations or liabilities that are greater than those that are generally imposed on them as members of the Audit Committee and the Board, and their designation as audit committee financial experts pursuant to this SEC requirement does not affect the duties, obligations or liability of any other member of the Audit Committee or the Board.

See also the “Audit Committee Matters” section of this proxy statement for additional information about the Audit Committee’s responsibilities and actions and the Audit Committee Report.

The report of the Audit Committee appears on page 26.

The Compensation and Management Development Committee has overall responsibility for approving and evaluating our executive compensation plans, policies and programs. The duties of the Compensation and Management Development Committee include:

None of the members of the Compensation and Management Development Committee during 2024 or as of the date of this proxy statement is or has been our officer or employee or had any relationship requiring disclosure under Item 404 of Regulation S-K of the Exchange Act. None of our executive officers served on the compensation committee or board of any company that employed any member of the Compensation and Management Development Committee or the Board or otherwise under circumstances requiring disclosure under Item 404 of Regulation S-K.

The report of the Compensation and Management Development Committee appears on page 49.

At the request of the Compensation and Management Development Committee, the committee’s compensation consultant conducts an in-depth qualitative review of the potential risks associated with our executive compensation program each year. The components of our executive compensation program are part of our global compensation structure, and the majority of the compensation policies or practices that apply to other levels of our employees or to any of our subsidiaries or divisions are included in our executive compensation program. For 2024, Semler Brossy Consulting Group, LLC (“Semler Brossy”), the committee’s current independent compensation consultant, found that our executive compensation program is in alignment with current market practices, contains an appropriate balance of risk versus rewards and incorporates appropriate risk mitigating factors. Semler Brossy found no design features in our executive compensation practices that pose a significant concern from the perspective of motivating senior officers to knowingly expose us to excessive enterprise risk. We believe that our compensation policies and practices do not encourage excessive risk-taking and are not reasonably likely to have a material adverse effect on us.

The Corporate Governance Committee oversees the Board’s corporate governance policies and practices and assists the Board in its oversight with respect to matters that involve our image, reputation and standing as a responsible corporate citizen. In its oversight of corporate governance policies and practices, the Corporate Governance Committee’s duties include:

In assisting the Board in its oversight with respect to matters that involve our image, reputation and standing as a responsible corporate citizen, the Corporate Governance Committee reviews and considers, among other items, the following from time to time as it deems appropriate:

The Quality, Regulatory and Technology (“QR&T”) Committee assists the Board in its oversight of product quality and safety and our research, innovation and technology initiatives in the context of our overall corporate strategy, goals and objectives. In its oversight of risk management, the QR&T Committee reviews and considers, among other items, the following:

In overseeing our research, innovation and technology initiatives, the QR&T Committee reviews and considers, among other items, the following as it deems appropriate:

The Board believes that providing competitive compensation is necessary to attract and retain qualified non-employee directors. The key components of director compensation include annual retainers, committee chair annual fees and equity-based awards. It is the Board’s practice to provide a mix of cash and equity-based compensation to more closely align the interests of directors with our shareholders.

The following table sets forth information regarding the compensation we paid to our non-employee directors for 2024. Mr. Tornos is not included in this table because he received no additional compensation for his service as a director.

2024 Director Compensation Table

The following table sets forth the grant date fair value of annual grants of restricted stock units ("RSU") and DSUs awarded to each director elected or reelected at the 2024 annual meeting of shareholders and the grant date fair value of DSUs granted during 2024 pursuant to the mandatory deferral provisions of the Deferred Compensation Plan for Non-Employee Directors.

2024 STOCK AWARDS

We pay non-employee directors quarterly, on the last day of March, June, September and December. During 2024, we paid non-employee directors an annual retainer of $110,000 subject to mandatory deferral requirements as described below. We paid our non-executive Chairman of the Board an additional retainer at an annual rate of $130,000. We paid our Audit Committee chair an additional annual retainer of $25,000, we paid our Compensation and Management Development Committee chair an additional annual retainer of $20,000, and we paid each of the chairs of our other standing Board committees additional annual retainers of $15,000. Accordingly, we paid the following amounts during 2024:

Additionally, in connection with the appointment of Mr. Farrell as our Lead Independent Director effective as of May 29, 2025, the Board approved an additional retainer for our Lead Independent Director at an annual rate of $40,000, to be paid in DSUs.

Directors who commence service on the Board, as a standing committee chair, Lead Independent Director or non-executive Chairman are paid applicable quarterly fees beginning with the quarter during which they commence such service. Similarly, directors who terminate service on the Board, as a standing committee chair, Lead Independent Director or non-executive Chairman are paid applicable quarterly fees through the quarter during which such service terminated.

We awarded each non-employee director who was elected or reelected at the 2024 annual meeting of shareholders DSUs as of the date of the annual meeting with a value of $75,000, determined by dividing such value by the average high and low price of our common stock on that date. We require that these annual DSU awards be credited to a deferred compensation account under the provisions of the Deferred Compensation Plan for Non-Employee Directors. DSUs represent an unfunded, unsecured right to receive shares of our common stock or the equivalent value in cash, and the value of DSUs varies directly with the price of our common stock. We also require that 50% of a director’s annual retainer be deferred and credited to his or her deferred compensation account in the form of DSUs with a value equal to six times the director's annual fees.

Non-employee directors may elect to defer receipt of compensation in excess of their mandatory deferral and annual DSU award. Elective deferrals are credited to the director’s deferred compensation account in the form of either treasury units, dollar units or DSUs with an initial value equal to the amount of fees deferred. The value of treasury units and dollar units does not change after the date of deferral. Amounts deferred as treasury units are credited with interest at a rate based on the six-month U.S. Treasury bill discount rate for the preceding year. Amounts deferred as dollar units are credited with interest at a rate based on the rate of return of our invested cash during the preceding year. When we pay cash dividends on our common stock, amounts deferred as DSUs are credited with additional DSUs equal to the number of shares of our common stock that could have been purchased if we paid cash dividends on the DSUs held in directors’ deferred compensation accounts and such cash was reinvested in our common stock. These additional DSUs are subject to mandatory deferral.

All treasury units, dollar units and DSUs are immediately vested and payable following termination of the non-employee director’s service on the Board. We settle annual DSU awards and mandatory deferral DSUs in shares of our common stock. We pay the value of treasury units, dollar units and elective deferral DSUs in cash. Non-employee directors may elect to receive the cash payment in a lump sum or in not more than ten annual installments.

During 2024, we also awarded each non-employee director RSUs as of the date of the annual meeting of shareholders with an initial value of $130,000 based on the average high and low price of our common stock on that date. These awards were made under the Stock Plan for Non-Employee Directors. The RSUs vested immediately and are subject to mandatory deferral until May 10, 2027, or, if later, the director’s retirement or other termination of service from the Board. We will settle the RSUs in shares of our common stock.

We provide non-employee directors with travel accident insurance and reimburse reasonable expenses they incur for transportation, meals and lodging when on Zimmer Biomet business. We also reimburse non-employee directors for reasonable out-of-pocket expenses, including tuition costs incurred in attending director education programs.

AUDIT COMMITTEE MATTERS

RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE AUDIT COMMITTEE

The Audit Committee is responsible for overseeing the integrity of our financial statements, the qualifications, performance and independence of the independent registered public accounting firm, the performance of our internal audit function and compliance with certain legal and regulatory requirements, including oversight of our Corporate Compliance Program. The committee is directly responsible for the appointment, retention, compensation and oversight of our independent registered public accounting firm.

Management is responsible for the financial reporting process, including the system of internal control, for the preparation of consolidated financial statements in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States and for management’s report on internal control over financial reporting.

The independent registered public accounting firm is responsible for auditing the consolidated financial statements and expressing an opinion as to their conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States as well as rendering an opinion on the company’s internal control over financial reporting.

The committee’s responsibility is to oversee and review the financial reporting process and to review and discuss management’s report on internal control over financial reporting. Committee members are not, however, professionally engaged in the practice of accounting or auditing and do not provide any expert or other special assurance as to such financial statements concerning compliance with laws, regulations or accounting principles generally accepted in the United States or as to the independence of the independent registered public accounting firm. The committee relies, without independent verification, on the information provided to it and on the representations made by management and the independent registered public accounting firm.

See also “CORPORATE GOVERNANCE – Committees of the Board – Audit Committee” on page 18 for additional information about the Audit Committee’s functions and composition.

The committee held 8 meetings during 2024. The meetings were designed, among other things, to facilitate and encourage communication among the committee, management, our internal auditor and PwC. At these meetings, the committee:

The Audit Committee has adopted a policy for pre-approval of audit and permitted non-audit services by our independent registered public accounting firm. The Audit Committee will consider annually and, if appropriate, pre-approve the provision of audit and permitted non-audit services. The Audit Committee will also consider on a case-by-case basis and, if appropriate, pre-approve specific services that are not otherwise pre-approved. Any proposed engagement that does not fit within the definition of a pre-approved service may be presented to the Audit Committee for consideration at its next regular meeting or, if earlier consideration is required, to the Chair of the Audit Committee between regular meetings. The Audit Committee Chair has the delegated authority to pre-approve such services up to a specified fee amount. These pre-approval decisions are reported to the full Audit Committee at its next scheduled meeting.

The following table shows the fees that we paid or accrued for audit and other services provided by PwC for the years 2024 and 2023. All of the services described in the following fee table were approved in conformity with the Audit Committee’s pre-approval process described above.