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UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549




FORM 20-F

o  Registration statement pursuant to Section 12(b) or (g)
of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
or
ý  Annual report pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d)
of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2013
or
o  Transition report pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d)
of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
or
o  Shell company report pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d)
of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934

Date of event requiring this shell company report:
For the transition period from                          to                         

Commission file number: 1-14832



CELESTICA INC.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

Ontario, Canada
(Jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)

844 Don Mills Road
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M3C 1V7
(Address of principal executive offices)
Manny Panesar
416-448-2211
clsir@celestica.com
844 Don Mills Road
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M3C 1V7
(Name, Telephone, E-mail and/or Facsimile number and Address of Company Contact Person)



SECURITIES REGISTERED OR TO BE REGISTERED
PURSUANT TO SECTION 12(b) OF THE ACT:

Subordinate Voting Shares
(Title of each class)

  The Toronto Stock Exchange
New York Stock Exchange
(Name of each exchange on which registered)



SECURITIES REGISTERED OR TO BE REGISTERED
PURSUANT TO SECTION 12(g) OF THE ACT:
N/A



SECURITIES FOR WHICH THERE IS A REPORTING OBLIGATION
PURSUANT TO SECTION 15(d) OF THE ACT:

N/A



Indicate the number of outstanding shares of each of the issuer's classes of capital or common stock as of the close of the period covered by the annual report.

162,017,640 Subordinate Voting Shares

  0 Preference Shares

18,946,368 Multiple Voting Shares

   

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes ý No o

If this report is an annual or transition report, indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Yes o No ý

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes ý No o

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate web site, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files). Yes o No o

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, or a non-accelerated filer. See definition of "accelerated filer and large accelerated filer" in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act. (Check one):

ý Large accelerated filer                          o Accelerated filer                           o Non-accelerated filer

Indicate by check mark which basis of accounting the registrant has used to prepare the statements included in this filing:

U.S. GAAP o        International Financial Reporting Standards as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board ý        Other o

If "Other" has been checked in response to the previous question, indicate by check mark which financial statement item the registrant has elected to follow. Item 17 o Item 18 o

If this is an annual report, indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act). Yes o No ý

   



TABLE OF CONTENTS

 
   
   
  Page

Part I

  1

Item 1.

  Identity of Directors, Senior Management and Advisers   3

Item 2.

  Offer Statistics and Expected Timetable   3

Item 3.

  Key Information   3

  A.   Selected Financial Data   3

  B.   Capitalization and Indebtedness   7

  C.   Reasons for the Offer and Use of Proceeds   7

  D.   Risk Factors   7

Item 4.

  Information on the Company   23

  A.   History and Development of the Company   23

  B.   Business Overview   23

  C.   Organizational Structure   33

  D.   Property, Plants and Equipment   34

Item 4A.

  Unresolved Staff Comments   35

Item 5.

  Operating and Financial Review and Prospects   35

Item 6.

  Directors, Senior Management and Employees   70

  A.   Directors and Senior Management   70

  B.   Compensation   73

  C.   Board Practices   105

  D.   Employees   108

  E.   Share Ownership   109

Item 7.

  Major Shareholders and Related Party Transactions   111

  A.   Major Shareholders   111

  B.   Related Party Transactions   112

  C.   Interests of Experts and Counsel   113

Item 8.

  Financial Information   113

  A.   Consolidated Statements and Other Financial Information   113

  B.   Significant Changes   114

Item 9.

  The Offer and Listing   115

  A.   Offer and Listing Details   115

  B.   Plan of Distribution   116

  C.   Markets   116

  D.   Selling Shareholders   116

  E.   Dilution   116

  F.   Expenses of the Issue   116

i


 
   
   
  Page

Item 10.

  Additional Information   117

  A.   Share Capital   117

  B.   Memorandum and Articles of Incorporation   117

  C.   Material Contracts   117

  D.   Exchange Controls   117

  E.   Taxation   117

  F.   Dividends and Paying Agents   123

  G.   Statement by Experts   123

  H.   Documents on Display   123

  I.   Subsidiary Information   123

Item 11.

  Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk   123

Item 12.

  Description of Securities Other than Equity Securities   125

  A.   Debt Securities   125

  B.   Warrants and Rights   125

  C.   Other Securities   125

  D.   American Depositary Shares   125

Part II

  125

Item 13.

  Defaults, Dividend Arrearages and Delinquencies   125

Item 14.

  Material Modifications to the Rights of Security Holders and Use of Proceeds   125

Item 15.

  Controls and Procedures   125

Item 16.

  [Reserved.]   126

Item 16A.

  Audit Committee Financial Expert   126

Item 16B.

  Code of Ethics   126

Item 16C.

  Principal Accountant Fees and Services   126

Item 16D.

  Exemptions from the Listing Standards for Audit Committees   127

Item 16E.

  Purchases of Equity Securities by the Issuer and Affiliated Purchasers   128

Item 16F.

  Change in Registrant's Certifying Accountant   128

Item 16G.

  Corporate Governance   129

Item 16H.

  Mine Safety Disclosure   129

Part III

  130

Item 17.

  Financial Statements   130

Item 18.

  Financial Statements   130

Item 19.

  Exhibits   131

ii



Part I

        In this Annual Report, "Celestica", the "Corporation", "we", "us" and "our" refer to Celestica Inc. and its subsidiaries.

        In this Annual Report, all dollar amounts are expressed in United States dollars, except where we state otherwise. All references to "U.S.$" or "$" are to U.S. dollars and all references to "C$" are to Canadian dollars. Unless we indicate otherwise, any reference in this Annual Report to a conversion between U.S.$ and C$ is a conversion at the average of the exchange rates in effect for the year ended December 31, 2013. During that period, based on the relevant noon buying rates in New York City for cable transfers in Canadian dollars, as certified for customs purposes by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve Bank, the average daily exchange rate was U.S.$1.00 = C$1.03.

        Unless we indicate otherwise, all information in this Annual Report is stated as of February 14, 2014, the date as of which we prepared information for our annual report to shareholders and management information circular and proxy statement.

Forward-Looking Statements

        Item 4, "Information on the Company", Item 5, "Operating and Financial Review and Prospects" and other sections of this Annual Report contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the U.S. Securities Act, Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or the U.S. Exchange Act, and applicable Canadian securities laws including, without limitation: statements related to our future growth; trends in the electronics manufacturing services ("EMS") industry; our financial or operational results; the impact of acquisitions and program wins or losses on our financial results and working capital requirements; anticipated expenses, charges, capital expenditures and/or benefits; our expected tax and litigation outcomes; our cash flows, financial targets and priorities; changes in our mix of revenue by end market; our ability to diversify and grow our customer base and develop new capabilities; the effect of the global economic environment on customer demand; the expected impact of our pension obligations, and the number of subordinate voting shares and price thereof we repurchase under our Normal Course Issuer Bid ("NCIB"). Such forward-looking statements may, without limitation, be preceded by, followed by, or include words such as "believes", "expects", "anticipates", "estimates", "intends", "plans", "continues", "project", "potential", "possible", "contemplate", "seek", or similar expressions, or may employ such future or conditional verbs as "may", "might", "will", "could", "should" or "would", or may otherwise be indicated as forward-looking statements by grammatical construction, phrasing or context. For those statements, we claim the protection of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements contained in the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, and applicable Canadian securities laws.

        Forward-looking statements are provided for the purpose of assisting readers in understanding management's current expectations and plans relating to the future. Readers are cautioned that such information may not be appropriate for other purposes. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to risks that could cause actual results to differ materially from conclusions, forecasts or projections expressed in such forward-looking statements, including, in addition to those discussed in Item 3D, "Key Information — Risk Factors", and elsewhere in this Annual Report, risks related to:

1


        These and other material risks and uncertainties are discussed in our public filings at www.sedar.com and www.sec.gov, including in this Annual Report, subsequent reports on Form 6-K furnished to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, and our Annual Information Form filed with the Canadian Securities Administrators.

        Our forward-looking statements are based on various assumptions, many of which involve factors that are beyond our control. Our material assumptions include those related to:

2


        Our assumptions and estimates are based on management's current views with respect to current plans and events, and are and will be subject to the risks and uncertainties discussed above and elsewhere in this Annual Report. While management believes these assumptions to be reasonable under current circumstances, they may prove to be inaccurate.

        Except as required by applicable law, we disclaim any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. You should read this Annual Report, and the documents, if any, that we incorporate herein by reference, with the understanding that our actual future results may be materially different from what we expect. All forward-looking statements attributable to us are expressly qualified by the cautionary statements contained in this Annual Report.

Item 1.    Identity of Directors, Senior Management and Advisers

        Not applicable.

Item 2.    Offer Statistics and Expected Timetable

        Not applicable.

Item 3.    Key Information

A.    Selected Financial Data

        You should read the following selected financial data together with Item 5, "Operating and Financial Review and Prospects", the Consolidated Financial Statements in Item 18 and the other information in this Annual Report. The selected financial data presented below is derived from our Consolidated Financial Statements.

        The Consolidated Financial Statements for 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013 were prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards ("IFRS") as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board ("IASB"). See Item 18. Prior to adopting IFRS, we prepared our Consolidated Financial Statements using Canadian generally accepted accounting principles ("GAAP"). GAAP differs in some respects from IFRS. We have provided an explanation of our transition to IFRS in note 3 of our Consolidated Financial Statements in Item 18 of our 2011 Annual Report.

3


        The consolidated financial information in the below tables for 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013 was prepared in accordance with IFRS.

 
  Year ended December 31  
 
  2010(1)   2011(1)   2012(1)   2013  
 
  (in millions, except per share amounts)
 

Consolidated Statements of Operations Data (IFRS):

                         

Revenue

  $ 6,526.1   $ 7,213.0   $ 6,507.2   $ 5,796.1  

Cost of sales(1)

    6,082.0     6,724.4     6,068.8     5,406.6  
                   

Gross profit(1)

    444.1     488.6     438.4     389.5  

Selling, general and administrative expenses (SG&A)(2)

    252.1     267.2     252.2     239.7  

Amortization of intangible assets

    15.8     13.5     11.3     12.2  

Other charges(3)

    49.9     6.5     59.5     4.0  
                   

Earnings from operations(1)

    126.3     201.4     115.4     133.6  

Finance costs(4)

    6.9     5.4     3.5     2.9  
                   

Earnings before income taxes(1)

    119.4     196.0     111.9     130.7  

Income tax expense (recovery)

    18.2     3.7     (5.8 )   12.7  
                   

Net earnings(1)

  $ 101.2   $ 192.3   $ 117.7   $ 118.0  
                   

Other Financial Data (IFRS):

                         

Basic earnings per share

  $ 0.44   $ 0.89   $ 0.56   $ 0.64  

Diluted earnings per share

  $ 0.44   $ 0.88   $ 0.56   $ 0.64  

Property, plant and equipment and computer software cash expenditures

  $ 60.8   $ 62.3   $ 105.9   $ 52.8  

Shares used in computing per share amounts (in millions):

                         

Basic

    227.8     216.3     208.6     183.4  

Diluted

    230.1     218.3     210.5     185.4  

 

 
  As at December 31  
 
  2010(1)   2011(1)   2012(1)   2013  
 
  (in millions)
 

Consolidated Balance Sheet Data (IFRS):

                         

Cash and cash equivalents

  $ 632.8   $ 658.9   $ 550.5   $ 544.3  

Working capital(5)

    1009.1     1,116.0     911.8     1,011.3  

Property, plant and equipment

    332.2     322.7     337.0     313.6  

Total assets

    3,013.9     2,969.6     2,658.8     2,638.9  

Capital stock

    3,329.4     3,348.0     2,774.7     2,712.0  

Total equity(1)

    1,290.5     1,470.5     1,322.7     1,402.0  

(1)
Changes in accounting policies:


   
  As at December 31,  
   
  2010   2011   2012  
   
  (in millions) — increase (decrease)
 
 

Post-employment benefit obligations

  $ (7.6 ) $ (6.7 ) $ (6.0 )
 

Deficit *

    (7.6 )   (6.7 )   (6.0 )

4


 

   
  Year ended December 31,  
   
  2010   2011   2012  
   
  (in millions) — increase (decrease)
 
 

Cost of sales

  $   $ 2.8   $  
 

Net earnings

        (2.8 )  
 

(2)
SG&A expenses include research and development costs.

(3)
Other charges in 2010 totaled $49.9 million, comprised primarily of: (a) a $35.8 million restructuring charge, (b) a non-cash write-down of $9.1 million relating to the annual impairment assessment, primarily against computer software assets and property, plant and equipment and (c) an $8.8 million loss on repurchase of long-term debt.
(4)
Finance costs are comprised primarily of interest expenses and fees related to our credit facilities and our accounts receivable sales program.

(5)
Calculated as current assets less current liabilities.

5


        We were not required to retroactively apply IFRS to our financial statements for years prior to 2010. The consolidated financial information in the below tables for 2009 was prepared in accordance with GAAP, which conforms in all material respects with U.S. GAAP except as described in footnote 4 below.

 
  Year ended
December 31, 2009
 
 
  (in millions, except
per share amounts)

 

Consolidated Statements of Operations Data (Canadian GAAP):

       

Revenue

  $ 6,092.2  

Cost of sales

    5,662.4  
       

Gross profit

    429.8  

SG&A(1)

    244.5  

Amortization of intangible assets

    21.9  

Other charges(2)

    68.0  

Interest expense(3)

    35.0  
       

Earnings before income taxes

    60.4  

Income tax expense

    5.4  
       

Net earnings

  $ 55.0  
       

Other Financial Data (Canadian GAAP):

       

Basic earnings per share

  $ 0.24  

Diluted earnings per share

  $ 0.24  

Property, plant and equipment and computer software cash expenditures

  $ 77.3  

Consolidated Statements of Operations Data (U.S. GAAP)(4):

       

Net earnings

  $ 39.0  

Shares used in computing per share amounts (in millions):

       

Basic

    229.5  

Diluted

    230.9  

 

 
  As at
December 31, 2009
 
 
  (in millions)
 

Consolidated Balance Sheet Data (Canadian GAAP):

       

Cash and cash equivalents

  $ 937.7  

Working capital(5)

    1,023.0  

Property, plant and equipment

    393.8  

Total assets

    3,106.1  

Total long-term debt, including current portion(6)

    222.8  

Equity

    1,475.8  

Consolidated Balance Sheet Data (U.S. GAAP)(4):

       

Total assets

  $ 3,106.1  

Total long-term debt, including current portion(6)

    221.2  

Equity

    1,346.8  

(1)
SG&A expenses include research and development costs.

(2)
Other charges in 2009 totaled $68.0 million, comprised primarily of: (a)(i) a $83.1 million restructuring charge and (ii) a non-cash write-down of $12.3 million relating to the annual impairment assessment, primarily against property, plant and equipment, offset, in part, by (b)(i) a net $23.7 million recovery of damages from the settlement of a class action lawsuit and (ii) a net $2.8 million gain on repurchase of long-term debt, net of a write-down of the embedded options on the debt.

(3)
Interest expense is comprised of interest expense incurred on indebtedness (including indebtedness under our credit facilities) less interest income earned on cash and cash equivalents and the marked-to-market adjustments related to our subordinated debt and

6


(4)
The significant differences between the line items under Canadian GAAP and U.S. GAAP arose primarily from adjustments relating to financial instruments and hedging, and the timing of recording certain tax uncertainties.

(5)
Calculated as current assets less current liabilities.

(6)
Long-term debt includes capital lease obligations.

Exchange Rate Information

        The rate of exchange as of February 14, 2014 for the conversion of Canadian dollars into United States dollars was U.S.$0.9107 and for the conversion of United States dollars into Canadian dollars was C$1.0981. The following table sets forth the exchange rates for the conversion of U.S.$1.00 into Canadian dollars for the identified periods. The rates of exchange set forth herein are shown as, or are derived from, the reciprocals of the noon buying rates in New York City for cable transfers payable in Canadian dollars, as certified for customs purposes by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. The source of this data is the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve's website (http://www.federalreserve.gov).

 
  2009   2010   2011   2012   2013  

Average

    1.1412     1.0298     0.9887     0.9995     1.0300  

 

 
  February
2014
  January
2014
  December
2013
  November
2013
  October
2013
  September
2013
 

High

    1.1137     1.1171     1.0697     1.0597     1.0454     1.0532  

Low

    1.0952     1.0612     1.0577     1.0414     1.0282     1.0237  

B.    Capitalization and Indebtedness

        Not applicable.

C.    Reasons for the Offer and Use of Proceeds

        Not applicable.

D.    Risk Factors

        Any of the following risk factors, or a combination of them, could have a material adverse impact on our business, financial condition, and operating results. Our shareholders and prospective investors should carefully consider each of the following risks and all of the other information set forth in this Annual Report.

We are dependent on a limited number of customers and on our customers' ability to compete and succeed in the marketplace with the products we manufacture.

        Our customers include original equipment manufacturers ("OEMs") and service providers. A decline in revenue from any significant customer or the loss of any significant customer could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and operating results. During 2013, two customers (2012 and 2011 — two customers) individually represented more than 10% of our total revenue, and our top 10 customers represented 65% (2012 — 67%; 2011 — 71%) of our total revenue. In June 2012, we announced that we would wind down our manufacturing services for BlackBerry Limited ("BlackBerry"), formerly known as Research In Motion Limited. We completed our manufacturing services for BlackBerry and the related transition activities by the end of 2012. Our operating results are highly dependent upon our customers' ability to compete and succeed in the marketplace with the products we manufacture. These marketplaces are characterized by continued and rapid shifts in technology, commoditization of certain of our products, changes in preferences by the end customer or other changes in end-market demand, such as trends in enterprise infrastructure and virtualization, and increased competition. Certain of our customers have experienced, and may in the future experience, severe

7


revenue erosion, pricing and margin pressures, and excess inventories that, in turn, have adversely affected our operating results.

        We depend upon a small number of customers for a significant percentage of our revenue. The mix of our customers and the types of products or services we provide to these customers will have an impact on our operating results from period-to-period. There can be no assurance that our efforts to target new customers and services in our traditional and newly expanding markets, including the pursuit of acquisitions, will succeed in reducing our customer concentration. Acquisitions are also subject to integration risk, and revenues and margins could be lower than we anticipate. As we continue to pursue opportunities in new markets or technologies, we may encounter challenges as our knowledge or experience may be limited in these new markets or technologies.

        There can be no assurance that present or future significant customers will not terminate their manufacturing or service arrangements with us, or that they will not significantly change, reduce or delay the volume of manufacturing or other services they order from us, any of which would adversely affect our operating results. Customers may also shift business to our competitors or bring programs in-house or adjust the concentration of their supplier base. Significant reductions in, or the loss of, revenue from any of our customers may have a material adverse effect on us. We cannot assure the replacement of delayed, cancelled or reduced orders with new business. In addition, the ramping of new programs may take from several months to more than a year before production starts and may require significant up-front investments and increased working capital requirements. During this start-up period, these programs may generate losses or may not achieve the expected financial performance due to production ramp inefficiencies, lower than expected volume or delays in ramping to volume. Our customers may significantly change these programs, or even cancel them altogether, due to changes in end-market demand or changes in the viability of our customers' products in the marketplace.

We operate in an industry comprised of numerous competitors and aggressive pricing dynamics.

        We operate in a highly competitive industry. Our competitors include Benchmark Electronics, Inc., Flextronics International Ltd., Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd., Jabil Circuit, Inc., Plexus Corp., and Sanmina-SCI Corporation, as well as smaller EMS companies that often have a regional, product, service or industry-specific focus or original design manufacturers ("ODMs") that provide internally designed products and manufacturing services. We also face indirect competition from the manufacturing operations of our current and prospective customers, as these companies could choose to manufacture products internally rather than to outsource to EMS providers, or they may choose to insource previously outsourced business, particularly where internal excess capacity exists.

        The competitive environment in our industry is very intense and aggressive pricing is a common business dynamic. Some of our competitors have greater scale and a broader range of services than we offer. While we have increased our capacity in lower-cost regions to reduce our costs, these regions may not provide the same operational benefits that they have in the past due to rising costs and a continued aggressive pricing environment. Additionally, our current or potential competitors may increase or shift their presence in new lower-cost regions to try to offset continuous competitive pressure and increasing labor costs or to secure new business; may develop or acquire services comparable or superior to those we develop; combine or merge to form larger competitors; or adapt more quickly than we may to new technologies, evolving industry trends and changing customer requirements. Some of our competitors have increased their vertical capabilities by manufacturing modules or components used in the products they assemble, such as metal or plastic parts and enclosures, backplanes, circuit boards, cabling and related products. This expanded capability may provide them with a competitive advantage and greater cost savings and may lead to more aggressive pricing for electronics manufacturing services. Competition may cause pricing pressures, reduced profits or a loss of market share (for example, from program losses or customer disengagements). We may not be able to compete successfully against our current and future competitors.

8


We continue to operate in an uncertain global economic environment.

        The global economy continues to be uncertain and may continue to negatively impact our operations. Uncertainty surrounding the current global economic and geo-political outlook continues to limit the overall demand visibility of our end markets and may impact the future demand for some of the products we manufacture or services we provide. This environment may also impact the financial condition of our customers or suppliers, as well as the number and pace of further customer consolidation.

        A deterioration in the economic environment may accelerate the effect of the various risk factors described in this Annual Report and could result in other unforeseen events that may impact our business and financial condition.

We are dependent on a limited number of end markets for our revenue. We expect our mix of revenue by end market to continue to change, which may adversely affect our margins and our ability to grow our revenue and may increase the effects of seasonality on our business.

        To reduce our reliance on any one customer or end market, we have been targeting new customers and new services in our traditional markets, expanding our business in our diversified end market such as industrial, aerospace and defense, healthcare, solar, green technology and the semiconductor equipment market, among others, and exploring acquisition opportunities. As a result, our mix of revenue by end market in recent periods has changed and may continue to change. Our mix by end market is also impacted by, among other factors, the overall end market demand, the timing and extent of new program wins, program losses or customer disengagements, or follow-on business from customers and from acquisitions.

        Changes to our mix of revenue by end market, and the conditions that are specific to each end market, could lead to volatility in our revenue and operating margins and adversely impact our financial position and cash flows.

        In the past, we have experienced some level of seasonality in our quarterly revenue patterns across a number of the end markets we serve. As our revenue from quarter-to-quarter is dependent on the level of demand and mix in each of our end markets, it is difficult for us to predict the extent and impact of seasonality on our business.

Our customers may be affected by rapid technological changes, shifts in business strategy and/or the emergence of new business models that may have an impact on their success in their markets and, therefore, on our business.

        Many of our customers compete in markets that are characterized by rapidly changing technology, evolving industry standards, continuous improvements in products and services, and the emergence of competitors with new business models that deemphasize the traditional OEM distribution channels. These conditions frequently result in shorter product lifecycles and may lead to shifts in our customers' business strategy. Our success will depend largely on the success achieved by our customers in developing and marketing their products. If technologies or standards supported by our customers' products and services or their business models become obsolete, fail to gain widespread acceptance or are cancelled, our business could be adversely affected. As an example, declines in end-market demand for customer-specific proprietary systems in favor of open systems with standardized technologies could have an adverse impact on our business. Another example is the shift from traditional network infrastructures to highly virtualized and cloud-based environments, as well as software-defined networks, any or all of which could adversely impact our business. The highly competitive nature of our customers' products and services could also drive consolidation among OEMs, and result in product line consolidation that could adversely impact our customer relationships and our revenue.

Our results can be negatively affected by rising labor costs.

        There is some uncertainty with respect to the pace of rising labor costs in various regions in which we operate. Any increase in labor costs that we are unable to recover in our pricing to our customers could adversely impact our operating results.

9


Our operations could be adversely affected by global or local events, including natural disasters, extreme weather conditions, political instability, labor or social unrest, criminal activity and other risks present in the jurisdictions in which we operate.

        Our operations and those of our customers, component suppliers or our logistic partners may be disrupted by global or local events, including natural disasters (such as the 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Japan and the flooding in Thailand), political instability, terrorism, armed conflict, labor or social unrest, criminal activity, illness that affects local, national or international economies, unusually adverse weather conditions, and other risks present in the jurisdictions in which we, our customers, our suppliers and our logistics partners operate. Such events could materially adversely affect our results of operations and increase our costs. We carry insurance to cover damage to our facilities and interruptions to our operations, including those that may occur as a result of natural disasters, such as flooding and earthquakes, hurricanes, tsunamis or other events. However, our insurance policies are subject to deductibles, coverage limitations and exclusions, and may not provide adequate coverage.

        Increased international political instability, terrorism, enhanced national security measures, armed conflicts, security issues at the U.S./Mexico border related to illegal immigration or criminal activities associated with illegal drug activities, labor or social unrest, strained international relations and the related decline in consumer confidence arising from these and other factors may materially hinder our ability to conduct business, or may reduce demand for our products or services. Any escalation in these events or similar future events may disrupt our operations or those of our customers and suppliers and could adversely affect the availability of materials needed to manufacture our products or the means to transport those materials to manufacturing facilities and finished products to customers.

        We rely on a variety of common carriers for the transportation of materials and products and for their ability to route these materials and products through various international ports and other transportation hubs. A work stoppage, strike or shutdown of any important supplier's facility or operations, or at any major port or airport, or the inability to access any such facility for any reason, could result in manufacturing and shipping delays or expediting charges, which could have a material adverse effect on our operating results.

        Such events have had and may in the future have an adverse impact on the U.S. and world economy in general and customer confidence and spending in particular, which in turn could adversely affect our revenue and operating results. Such events could increase the volatility of the market price of our securities and may limit the capital resources available to us and our customers and suppliers.

We may encounter difficulties expanding our operations which could adversely affect our operating results.

        As we expand our business, enter into new markets, products and technologies, invest in research, design and development, acquire new businesses or capabilities, and transfer business from one region to another, we may encounter difficulties that result in higher than expected costs associated with such activities and/or customer dissatisfaction with our performance. Potential difficulties related to our growth and/or operations include our ability to:

        We may also encounter difficulties in ramping and execution of new programs from existing or new customers. We may require significant investments to support these new programs, including increased working capital requirements, and may generate lower margins during the ramp period. There can be no assurance that our increased investments will benefit us or result in business growth. As we pursue opportunities in new

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markets or technologies, we may encounter challenges due to our limited knowledge or experience. Any of these factors could prevent us from realizing the anticipated benefits of growth in new markets or technologies, which could materially adversely affect our business and operating results.

Inherent challenges in managing unanticipated changes in customer demand may impact our planning, supply chain execution and manufacturing and may affect our operating performance and results.

        Our customers are dependent on EMS providers for new product introductions and rapid response times to meet changes in volume requirements. Although we generally enter into master supply agreements with our customers, the level of business to be transacted under those agreements is not guaranteed. Instead, we bid on a program-by-program basis and typically receive customer purchase orders for specific quantities and timing of products. Most of our customers typically do not commit to production schedules for more than 30 days to 90 days in advance and we often experience volatility in customer orders. Additionally, a significant portion of our revenue can occur in the last month of the quarter and may be subject to change or cancellation that will affect our operating results. Accordingly, our forecasts of customer orders may be inaccurate. This situation may make it difficult to order appropriate levels of materials and to schedule production and maximize utilization of our manufacturing capacity and resources.

        Our customers may change their forecasts, production quantities or product type requirements, or may accelerate, delay or cancel production quantities for various reasons. When customers change production volumes or request different products to be manufactured than what they originally forecasted, the unavailability of components and materials for such changes could also impact our revenue and working capital performance. Further, to guarantee continuity of supply for many of our customers, we are required to manufacture and warehouse specified quantities of finished goods. The uncertainty of our customers' end markets, intense competition in our customers' industries and general order volume volatility may result in customers delaying or canceling the delivery of products we manufacture for them or placing purchase orders for lower volumes of products than previously anticipated.

        Changes or delays in customer orders that require us to carry higher than expected levels of inventory could have a material adverse impact on our operating results and working capital performance. We may not be able to return or re-sell this inventory, or we may be required to hold the inventory for a period of time, any of which may result in our having to record additional reserves for the inventory if it becomes excess or obsolete. Order cancellations and delays could lower our asset utilization, resulting in higher levels of unproductive assets, lower inventory turns, and lower margins.

Consolidation in the electronics industry may adversely affect our business relationships or the volume of business we conduct with our customers.

        Our customers, competitors and suppliers may be subject to consolidation. Future business combinations involving, or acquisitions of, our customers may result in a decrease in demand from our customers or a loss of business to our competitors as customers rationalize their business and consolidate their suppliers. Consolidation among our competitors may create a competitive advantage over us, which may also result in a loss of business and revenue if customers shift their production. Changes in OEM strategies, including the divestiture or exit from certain of their businesses, may also result in a loss of business for us.

We may encounter challenges in completing or integrating our acquisitions which could adversely affect our operating results.

        We expect to expand our presence in new end markets and expand our capabilities in current end markets and technologies, some of which may occur through acquisitions. These transactions may involve acquisitions of entire companies or acquisitions of selected assets. Potential challenges related to our acquisitions include:

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        Any of these factors may prevent us from realizing the anticipated benefits of an acquisition, including additional revenue, operational synergies and economies of scale. Our failure to realize the anticipated benefits of acquisitions may adversely affect our business and operating results and require us to write-down the carrying value of goodwill and intangible assets in periods subsequent to the acquisitions. For example, the majority of our $17.7 million impairment charge in 2012 was incurred to write-down goodwill related to the healthcare business we acquired in 2010, as our progress and our ability to ramp this business have been slower than we had anticipated.

Our results can be negatively affected by the availability and cost of components.

        The purchase of materials and electronic components represents a significant portion of our costs. A delay or interruption in supply from a component supplier, especially for single-sourced components, could have a significant impact on our operations and on our customers, if we are unable to deliver finished products in a timely manner. Additionally, quality or reliability issues at any of our component providers, or financial difficulties that affect their production and ability to supply us with components, could halt or delay production of a customer's product, which could materially adversely impact our operating results.

        Supply shortages for a particular component can delay production of, and revenue from, products using that component. Shortages also may result in our carrying higher levels of inventory and extended lead times, or result in increased component prices, which may require price increases in the products and services that we provide. Any increase in our costs that we are unable to recover in our pricing to our customers would negatively impact our margins and our operating results.

        At various times in our industry's history, there have been industry-wide shortages of electronic components. Shortages, or fluctuations in the cost of components, may have a material adverse effect on our business or cause our operating results to fluctuate from period-to-period. Changes in forecasted volumes or in our customers' requirements can negatively affect our ability to obtain components and adversely impact our operating results.

Rising oil and other commodity prices may negatively impact our operating results due to higher production and transportation costs.

        We rely on various energy sources in our production and transportation activities. The price of commodities, including oil, has been volatile and remains uncertain. Increased prices for energy and other commodities could result in higher raw material and component costs and transportation costs. Any increase in our costs that we are unable to recover in our pricing to our customers would negatively impact our margins and operating results.

We may experience increased financial risk due to non-performance by counterparties.

        A failure by a counterparty, which includes customers, suppliers, financial institutions and other third parties with which we conduct business, to fulfill its contractual obligations may result in a financial loss to us. We generally provide payment terms to our customers ranging from 30 days to 75 days. Our accounts receivable balance at December 31, 2013 was $654.1 million, with one customer individually representing more than 10% of our total accounts receivable. If any of our customers have insufficient liquidity, we could encounter significant delays or defaults in payments owed to us by such customers, or we may extend our payment terms, which could adversely impact our financial condition and operating results. We also may not be able to recover all of the amounts owed to us by a customer, including amounts to cover unused inventory or capital investments we acquired to support that customer's business. If a key supplier experiences financial difficulties, this may affect its ability to supply us with materials or components, which could halt or delay the production of a customer's product, and have a material adverse impact on our operations.

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We face financial risks due to foreign currency volatility.

        Global currency markets can be volatile. Although we conduct the majority of our business in U.S. dollars, our financial results are affected by the valuation of foreign currencies relative to the U.S. dollar.

        Our significant non-U.S. currency exposures include the Canadian dollar, Thai baht, Malaysian ringgit, Mexican peso, British pound sterling, Chinese renminbi, Euro, the Romanian leu and the Singapore dollar. We enter into forward exchange contracts, generally for periods of up to 15 months, intended to hedge our cash flows and significant balance sheet exposures against significant fluctuations in the foreign exchange rates of many of these foreign currencies. Our operating results may be adversely impacted by currency fluctuations to the extent our hedging program does not mitigate the impact of our foreign currency costs and exposures.

Our ability to successfully manage unexpected changes or risks inherent in our global operations and supply chain may adversely impact our financial performance.

        We have facilities in numerous countries, including Canada, the United States, China, Ireland, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Romania, Singapore, Spain and Thailand. During 2013, approximately 80% of our revenue was produced at locations outside of North America. We also purchase the majority of our components and materials from international suppliers.

        Global operations are subject to inherent risks which may adversely affect us, including:

Any of these risks could disrupt the supply of our products or increase our expenses. The costs of compliance with trade and foreign tax laws may increase our expenses and actual or alleged violations of such laws could result in enforcement actions or financial penalties that could result in substantial costs. In addition, the introduction or expansion of certain social programs in foreign jurisdictions will likely increase our cost, and certain supplier's costs, of doing business.

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We may not keep pace with rapidly evolving technology.

        We continue to evaluate the advantages and feasibility of new manufacturing processes. Our future success will depend, in part, upon our ability to continually develop and deliver electronic and complex mechanical manufacturing services that meet our customers' evolving needs. This may involve investing in new processes, capabilities or equipment to support new technologies used in our customers' current or future products, and to support their supply chain processes. Additionally, as we expand our service offerings or pursue business in new end markets, such as the semiconductor equipment, precision machining or green technology markets, where our experience may be limited, we may be less effective in adapting to technological change. Our manufacturing and supply chain processes, test development efforts and design capabilities may not be successful due to rapid technological shifts in any of these areas.

        Various industry-specific standards, qualifications and certifications are required to produce certain types of products for our customers. Failure to obtain or maintain those certifications may adversely affect our ability to maintain existing levels of business or win new business.

We are subject to the risk of increasing income taxes, increased levels and scrutiny of tax audits globally and the challenges of successfully defending our tax positions or meeting the conditions of tax incentives and credits, any of which may adversely affect our financial performance.

        We conduct business operations in a number of countries, including countries where tax incentives or credits have been extended to encourage foreign investment or where income tax rates are low. Our tax expense could increase if certain tax incentives or credits from which we currently benefit are retracted. A retraction could occur if we fail to satisfy the conditions on which these tax incentives or credits are based, if they are not renewed upon expiration, if tax rates applicable to us in such jurisdictions are otherwise increased, or due to changes in legislation, regulation or administrative practices. We believe we comply with the conditions of the tax incentives and credits from which we currently benefit; however, changes in our outlook in any particular country could impact our ability to meet such conditions. See Item 5 "Operating and Financial Review and Prospects — Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations — Income Taxes".

        Our tax filing positions are based upon the anticipated nature and structure of our business and the tax laws, administrative practices and judicial decisions currently in effect in the jurisdictions in which we have assets or conduct business, all of which are subject to change or differing interpretations, possibly with retroactive effect.

        We are subject to increased levels and scrutiny of tax audits and reviews globally by various tax authorities of historical information which could result in additional tax expense in future periods relating to prior results. Any such increase in our income tax expense and related interest and penalties could have a significant impact on our future earnings and cash flows.

        Certain of our subsidiaries provide financing, products and services to, and may from time-to-time undertake certain significant transactions with, other subsidiaries in different jurisdictions. Moreover, several jurisdictions in which we operate have tax laws with detailed transfer pricing rules which require that all transactions with non-resident related parties be priced using arm's-length pricing principles, and that contemporaneous documentation must exist to support such pricing.

        We currently have ongoing tax audits. Tax authorities have asserted that income reported by one of our Canadian subsidiaries for certain years should have been materially higher as a result of certain inter-company transactions, and that certain interest amounts deducted by one of our Canadian entities on historical debt instruments should be re-characterized as capital losses. The successful pursuit of the assertions made by tax authorities arising from tax audits may result in our owing significant amounts of tax, interest and possibly penalties. The amounts we may be required to provide as security with (or pay to), the tax authorities in respect of the ongoing tax audit of certain inter-company transactions could be material. In connection with the appeal related to the interest re-characterization issue, we have provided the requisite security to the tax authorities, including a letter of credit in January 2014 of $5 million Canadian dollars (approximately $5 million at year-end exchange rates) in addition to amounts previously on account. If either of these claims or proceedings are

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determined adversely to us, the amounts we may be required to pay could be in excess of amounts currently accrued. See Item 5 "Operating and Financial Review and Prospects — Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations — Income Taxes".

        We have and expect to continue to recognize the future benefit of certain Brazilian tax losses on the basis that these tax losses can and will be fully utilized in the fiscal period ending on the date of dissolution of our Brazilian subsidiary. While we believe that our interpretation of applicable Brazilian law is correct, our ability to realize this benefit is not certain and a failure to do so could have a material adverse effect on our operating results and financial condition. See Item 5 "Operating and Financial Review and Prospects — Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations — Income Taxes".

        As at December 31, 2013, a significant portion of our cash and cash equivalents was held by foreign subsidiaries outside of Canada. Although substantially all of the cash and cash equivalents held outside of Canada could be repatriated, a significant portion may be subject to withholding taxes under current tax laws. We have not recognized deferred tax liabilities for cash and cash equivalents held by certain foreign subsidiaries related to unremitted earnings that are considered indefinitely reinvested outside of Canada and that we do not intend to repatriate in the foreseeable future (approximately $310 million of cash and cash equivalents as at December 31, 2013).

We have incurred significant restructuring charges, impairment charges and accounting losses in the past and may experience such charges and losses in future periods.

        In the past, we have recorded charges resulting primarily from restructuring actions and the write-down of goodwill and other intangible assets. These amounts have varied from period-to-period. We have undertaken numerous initiatives to restructure and reduce our capacity and cost structures in response to changes in the EMS industry and in end-market demand, with the intention of improving utilization and reducing our overall cost structure. See note 15 to the Consolidated Financial Statements in Item 18. We may not be able to retain all existing business or grow revenue as a result of significant headcount reductions, plant closures and product transfers resulting from our restructuring actions. We may also incur higher operating expenses during periods of transition. During 2012, we announced that we would take restructuring actions throughout our global network. These restructuring actions are now complete. In connection with this restructuring, we recorded aggregate restructuring charges of $72.0 million, comprised of $44.0 million in 2012 and $28.0 million in 2013, above the high end of our previously announced range of $55.0 million to $65.0 million. We exceeded our estimate as we decided to take additional restructuring actions in the fourth quarter of 2013 to further streamline and simplify our business and global operating network in response to the continued challenging market environment. Our restructuring charges (under a prior restructuring plan) were $14.5 million in 2011. We evaluate our operations from time to time and may propose additional restructuring actions in the future. Any failure to successfully execute or realize the expected benefits from these initiatives, including any delay in implementing these initiatives, may have a material adverse impact on our operating results. We will continue to evaluate the recoverability of the carrying amount of our goodwill, intangible assets, and property, plant and equipment on an ongoing basis, and we may incur impairment charges, which could be substantial and could adversely affect our financial results. Impairment assessments inherently involve judgment as to assumptions about expected future cash flows and the impact of market conditions on those assumptions. Future events and changing market conditions may impact our assumptions as to prices, costs, holding periods or other factors that may result in changes in our estimates of future cash flows. Factors that might reduce the fair value of goodwill, intangible assets, and property, plant and equipment below their respective carrying values include a decline in stock price and market capitalization, reduced future cash flow estimates, and slower growth rates in our industry. During 2013, we recorded no impairment of our goodwill, intangible assets or property, plant and equipment (2012 — $17.7 million; 2011 — nil).

Our operations and our customer relationships may be adversely affected by disruptions to our information technology ("IT") systems, including disruptions from cybersecurity breaches of our IT infrastructure.

        We rely on information technology networks and systems, including those of third-party service providers, to process, transmit and store electronic information. In particular, we depend on our information technology infrastructure for a variety of functions, including worldwide financial reporting, inventory and other data

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management, procurement, invoicing and email communications. Any of these systems may be susceptible to outages due to fire, floods, power loss, telecommunications failures, terrorist attacks, sabotage and similar events. Global cybersecurity threats and incidents can range from uncoordinated individual attempts to gain unauthorized access to our information technology systems to sophisticated and targeted measures known as advanced persistent threats. The ever-increasing use and evolution of technology, including cloud-based computing, creates opportunities for the unintentional dissemination or intentional destruction of confidential information stored in our systems or in non-encrypted portable media or storage devices. We could also experience a business interruption, information theft of confidential information, or reputational damage from industrial espionage attacks, malware or other cyber attacks, which may compromise our system infrastructure or lead to data leakage, either internally or at our third-party providers. Despite the implementation of network security measures and disaster recovery plans, our systems and those of third parties on which we rely may also be vulnerable to computer viruses, break-ins and similar disruptions. If we or our vendors are unable (or are perceived as unable) to prevent such outages and breaches, our operations may be disrupted and our business reputation could be adversely affected.

        We expect that risks and exposures related to cybersecurity attacks will remain high for the foreseeable future due to the rapidly evolving nature and sophistication of these threats.

If we are unable to recruit or retain highly skilled personnel, our business could be adversely affected.

        The recruitment of personnel in the EMS industry is highly competitive. We believe that our future success depends, in part, on our ability to attract and retain highly skilled executive, technical and management personnel. We do not have employment or non-competition agreements with the majority of our employees. The loss of the services of certain executive, management and technical employees, individually or in the aggregate, could have a material adverse effect on our operations.

We may not adequately protect our intellectual property or the intellectual property of others.

        We believe that certain of our proprietary intellectual property rights and information provide us with a competitive advantage. Accordingly, we take steps to protect this proprietary information, including entering into non-disclosure agreements with customers, suppliers, employees and other parties, and by implementing security measures. However, our protection measures may not be sufficient to prevent or detect the misappropriation or unauthorized use or disclosure of our property or information.

        There is also a risk that claims of intellectual property infringement could be brought against us, our customers or our suppliers. If such claims are successful, we may be required to spend significant time and money to develop processes that do not infringe upon the rights of another person or to obtain licenses for the technology, process or information from the owner. We may not be successful in such development, or any such licenses may not be available on commercially acceptable terms, if at all. In addition, any litigation could be lengthy and costly and could adversely affect us even if we are successful in the litigation. As we expand our service offerings and pursue business in new end markets, we may be less effective in anticipating or mitigating the intellectual property risks related to new manufacturing, design and other services, which could be significant.

If we are required to make larger contributions to our defined benefit pension plans in the future, this may have an adverse impact on our liquidity and our operating results.

        We maintain multiple defined benefit pension plans, as well as supplemental pension plans. Our pension funding policy is to contribute amounts sufficient, at minimum, to meet local statutory funding requirements that are based on actuarial calculations. Our obligations are based on certain assumptions relating to expected plan asset performance, salary escalation, employee turnover, retirement ages, life expectancy, expected healthcare costs, the performance of the financial markets and future interest rates. If actual results or future expectations differ from these assumptions or if statutory funding requirements change, the amounts we are obligated to contribute to the pension plans may increase and such increase could be significant.

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If our products or services are subject to warranty claims, our business reputation may be damaged and we may incur significant costs.

        In certain of our sales contracts, we provide warranties against defects or deficiencies in our products, services or designs. As we expand our service offerings (for example, the solar panel manufacturing business and Joint Design and Manufacturing offerings) and pursue business in new end markets, our warranty obligations may increase and we may not be successful in pricing our products to appropriately cover our warranty costs. A successful claim for damages arising from defects or deficiencies for which we are not adequately insured, and for which indemnification from a third party is not timely (or otherwise) available, could have a material adverse effect on our reputation and business, and our operating results and financial condition.

We may not be able to prevent or detect all errors or fraud.

        Due to the inherent limitations of a cost-effective internal control system, misstatements due to error or fraud may occur and may not be detected. All systems of internal control contain inherent limitations. Accordingly, we cannot provide absolute assurance that all control issues, errors or instances of fraud, if any, within the Corporation have been or will be prevented or detected. In addition, over time, certain aspects of a control system may become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate, which we may not be able to address quickly enough to prevent all instances of error or fraud.

We may not be able to increase revenue if outsourcing by OEMs or service providers slows.

        Future growth in our revenue includes a dependence on new outsourcing opportunities in which we assume additional manufacturing and supply chain management responsibilities from OEMs or service providers. Our future growth will be limited to the extent that these opportunities are not available as a result of OEMs or service providers deciding to perform these functions internally or delaying their decision to outsource or our inability to win new contracts. As a result of several factors, including the weak global economic environment, customers may shift production back to their own facilities to improve their factory utilization. Political pressures or negative sentiment by our customers' customers or local governments may adversely impact our customers' businesses. These and other factors could adversely affect the rate of outsourcing generally, or adversely affect the rate of outsourcing to EMS providers, such as Celestica.

Compliance with governmental laws and obligations could be costly and may negatively impact our financial performance.

        We are subject to various federal/national, state/provincial, local and supra-national environmental laws and regulations. Our environmental management systems and practices have been designed to provide for compliance with these laws and regulations. Maintaining compliance with and responding to increasingly stringent regulations require a significant investment of time and resources and may restrict our ability to modify or expand our facilities or to continue production. Our failure to comply with these laws and regulations may potentially result in significant fines and penalties, our operations may be suspended and our cost of related investigations could be material in any period.

        More complex and stringent environmental legislation continues to be imposed, including laws that place increased responsibility and requirements on the "producers" of electronic equipment and, in turn, their providers and suppliers. Such laws may relate to product inputs (such as hazardous substances and energy consumption), product use (such as energy efficiency and waste management/recycling), and/or operational outputs/by-products from our manufacturing processes that can result in environmental contamination (such as waste water, air emissions and hazardous waste). Noncompliance with these requirements may potentially result in substantial costs, including fines and penalties, and we may incur liability to our customers and consumers.

        Where compliance responsibility rests primarily with OEMs rather than with EMS companies, OEMs may turn to EMS companies such as Celestica for assistance in meeting their obligations. Our customers are becoming increasingly concerned about issues such as waste management (including recycling), climate change (including the reduction of carbon emissions) and product stewardship, and expect their suppliers to be environmental leaders. We strive to meet such customer expectations, although these demands may extend

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beyond our regulatory obligations and require significant investments of time and resources to attract and retain customers.

        We generally have obtained environmental assessment reports, or reviewed recent assessment reports undertaken by others, for most of our manufacturing facilities at the time of acquisition or leasing. Such assessments may not reveal all environmental liabilities and current assessments are not available for all facilities. In addition, some of our operations involve the use of hazardous substances that could cause environmental contamination. Although if deemed necessary, we may investigate, remediate or monitor air, soil and/or groundwater contamination at some of our owned or leased sites, we may not be aware of, or adequately address, all such conditions and we may incur significant costs to perform such work in the future. In many jurisdictions in which we operate, environmental laws impose liability for the costs of removal, remediation or risk assessment of hazardous or toxic substances on an owner, occupier or operator of real estate, even if such person or company was unaware of or not responsible for the discharge or migration of such substances. In some instances where soil or groundwater contamination existed prior to our ownership or occupation, landlords or former owners may have retained some contractual responsibility or regulatory liability, but this may not provide sufficient protection to reduce or eliminate liability to us. Third-party claims for damages or personal injury are also possible. Moreover, current remediation, mitigation and risk assessment measures may not be adequate to comply with future laws.

        In addition to the environmental regulations described above, which generally apply to all of our manufacturing operations and processes, certain end markets in which we operate (particularly the healthcare and aerospace and defense markets) are subject to additional regulatory oversight.

        Our healthcare business is subject to substantial regulation, primarily from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in the U.S., as well as other jurisdictions, relating to some of the medical devices we manufacture. Several of our sites around the world are certified in quality management standards applicable to the healthcare industry. We are required to comply with the various statutes and regulations related to the design, development, testing, manufacturing and labeling of our medical devices in addition to reporting of certain information with respect to the safety of such products. If we are unable to comply with these regulations, we may be faced with fines, injunctions, product recalls, or suspension of production, among other adverse outcomes. Failure to comply with these regulations may materially affect our relationships with customers and our operating results.

        We provide design, engineering and manufacturing related services to our customers in the aerospace and defense end market. As part of these services, we are subject to substantial regulation from government agencies including the U.S. Department of Defense ("DOD") and the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration. Several of our sites around the world are certified in quality management standards applicable to the aerospace and defense industry. Failure to comply with these regulations or the loss of any of our quality management certifications may result in fines, penalties and injunctions, and could prevent us from executing on current or winning future contracts, any of which may materially adversely affect our financial condition and operating results. In addition to quality management standards, there are several other U.S. regulations that we are also required to follow. These include, but are not limited to: the Federal Acquisition Regulations ("FAR"), which provides uniform policies and procedures for acquisition; the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement ("DFARS"), a DOD agency supplement to the FAR that provides DOD-specific acquisition regulations that DOD government acquisition officials, and those contractors doing business with DOD, must follow in the procurement process for goods and services; and the Truth in Negotiations Act ("TINA"), which is a law enacted for the purpose of providing for full and fair disclosure by contractors in the conduct of negotiations with the government.

        Our international operations require us to comply with various anti-bribery laws, including the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act ("FCPA"). In some countries in which we operate, it may be customary for businesses to engage in business practices that are prohibited by the FCPA or other laws and regulations. Although we have implemented policies and procedures designed to ensure compliance with the FCPA and similar laws, there can be no assurance that all of our employees and agents, as well as those of companies to which we outsource certain business operations, will not be in violation of our policies. In addition to the difficulty of monitoring compliance, any suspected activity would require a costly investigation by us. Failure to comply with these laws

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may subject us to, among other things, adverse publicity, penalties and legal expenses that may harm our reputation and have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and operating results.

        Government regulators or our customers may require us to comply with product or manufacturing standards that are more restrictive than current laws and regulations related to environmental matters or other social responsibility initiatives. An example is the U.S. Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act which contains provisions concerning specified minerals originating from the Democratic Republic of Congo ("DRC") and adjoining countries that are believed to benefit armed groups (referred to as "conflict minerals"). As required by this Act, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") has adopted due diligence, disclosure and reporting requirements for companies that manufacture, or contract to manufacture, products that include conflict minerals. We manufacture such products for our customers. Due to our complex supply chain, we expect compliance with these rules to be time-consuming and costly. If we are unable to ascertain the origins of all such minerals used in the manufacturing of our products through the due diligence procedures we implement, we may be unable to satisfy our customers' certification requirements. This may harm our reputation, damage our customer relationships and result in a loss of revenue. If the SEC rules or other new social or environmental standards limit our pool of suppliers in order to produce "conflict free" or "socially responsible" products, or otherwise adversely affect the sourcing, supply and pricing of materials used in our products, we could also experience cost increases and a material adverse impact on our operating results.

Compliance or the failure to comply with employment laws and regulations may negatively impact our financial performance.

        We are subject to a variety of domestic and foreign employment laws, including without limitation those related to: workplace safety, discrimination, whistle-blowing, wages and overtime, classification of employees and severance payments. Such laws are subject to change, and enforcement activity relating to these laws, particularly outside the United States, can increase as a result of increased media attention due to alleged violations by other companies, changes in law, political and other factors. There can be no assurance that, in the future, we will not be found to have violated elements of such laws. Any such violations could lead to the assessment of fines or damages against us by regulatory authorities or claims by employees, any of which could adversely affect our operating results.

Failure to comply with the conditions of government grants could lead to grant repayments and adversely impact our financial performance.

        We have received grants from government organizations or other third parties as incentives related to capital investments or other spending. These grants often have future conditions with which we must comply. If we do not meet these future conditions, we could be obligated to repay all or a portion of the grant, which could adversely affect our financial position and operating results.

Our credit agreement contains restrictive covenants that may impair our ability to conduct business.

        Our credit agreement contains financial and operating covenants that limit our management's discretion with respect to certain business matters. Among other factors, these covenants restrict our ability and our subsidiaries' ability to incur additional debt, create liens or other encumbrances, change the nature of our business, sell or otherwise dispose of assets, and merge or consolidate with other entities.

We are exposed to interest rate fluctuations.

        We have a $400.0 million revolving credit facility that matures in January 2015. Outstanding borrowings under this facility bear interest at LIBOR or Prime rate plus a margin. At December 31, 2013, we had no amounts outstanding under this facility (December 31, 2012 — $55.0 million outstanding; December 31, 2011 — no amounts outstanding). Our borrowings under this facility, which vary from time to time, expose us to interest rate risks due to fluctuations in these rates. If the amount we borrow under our credit facility is substantial, an increase in interest rates would have a more pronounced impact on our interest expense. Significant interest rate fluctuations may affect our business, operating results and financial condition.

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Deterioration in financial markets or in the macro-economic environment may adversely affect our ability to raise funds or increase the cost of raising funds.

        We currently have access to a revolving credit facility through financial institutions that matures in January 2015. We may also issue debt or equity securities to fund our operations or make acquisitions. Our ability to borrow or raise capital, or renew our facility, may be impacted if financial markets are unstable. In addition, a downgrade of our credit rating or an adverse change in the published outlook by a rating agency may impact our ability to raise funds in the time and amount necessary for us or increase our cost of capital. Unstable financial markets or a downgrade in our credit rating could adversely affect our business, operating results and financial condition.

The interest of our controlling shareholder, Onex Corporation, with a 75% voting interest, may conflict with the interests of other shareholders.

        Onex Corporation ("Onex"), owns, directly or indirectly, all of our outstanding multiple voting shares and less than 1% of our outstanding subordinate voting shares. The number of subordinate voting shares and multiple voting shares owned by Onex, together with those subordinate voting shares and multiple voting shares that Onex has the right to vote, represents 75% of the voting interest in Celestica. Accordingly, Onex has the ability to exercise a significant influence over our business and affairs and generally has the power to determine all matters submitted to a vote of our shareholders where our shares vote together as a single class. Onex may make decisions regarding Celestica and our business that are opposed to other shareholders' interests or with which other shareholders may disagree. Onex's voting power could have the effect of deterring or preventing a change in control of our Company that might otherwise be beneficial to our other shareholders.

        Through its shareholdings, Onex has the power to elect our directors and its approval is required for significant corporate transactions such as certain amendments to our articles of incorporation, the sale of all or substantially all of our assets and plans of arrangement. The directors so elected have the authority, subject to applicable laws, to appoint or replace senior management, cause us to issue additional subordinate voting shares or multiple voting shares or repurchase subordinate voting shares or multiple voting shares, declare dividends or take other actions. Under our credit agreement, it is an event of default entitling our lenders to demand repayment if Onex ceases to control Celestica unless the shares of Celestica become widely held ("widely held" meaning that no one person or entity owns more than 20% of the votes).

        Gerald W. Schwartz, the Chairman of the Board, President and Chief Executive Officer of Onex, is also one of our directors, and holds, indirectly or directly, shares representing the majority of the voting rights of the shares of Onex. The interests of Onex and Mr. Schwartz may differ from the interests of the remaining holders of subordinate voting shares. For additional information about shareholder rights and restrictions relative to our subordinate voting shares and multiple voting shares, see Item 10(B), "Memorandum and Articles of Incorporation". For additional information about our principal shareholders, see Item 7(A), "Major Shareholders". Onex has, from time-to-time, issued debentures exchangeable and redeemable under certain circumstances for our subordinate voting shares, entered into forward equity agreements with respect to our subordinate voting shares, sold our subordinate voting shares (after exchanging multiple voting shares for subordinate voting shares), or redeemed these debentures through the delivery of our subordinate voting shares, and could take similar actions in the future. These sales may impact our share price or have consequences on our debt and ownership structure.

We face securities class action and shareholder derivative lawsuits which may result in substantial litigation expenses, settlement costs or judgments, as well as the diversion of management resources and adverse publicity, any of which may negatively impact our financial performance.

        In 2007, securities class action lawsuits were commenced against us and our former Chief Executive and Chief Financial Officers in the United States District Court of the Southern District of New York by certain individuals, on behalf of themselves and other unnamed purchasers of our stock, claiming that they were purchasers of our stock during the period January 27, 2005 through January 30, 2007. The plaintiffs allege violations of United States federal securities laws and seek unspecified damages. They allege that during the purported period we made statements concerning our actual and anticipated future financial results that failed to disclose certain purportedly material adverse information with respect to demand and inventory in our

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Mexico operations and our information technology and communications divisions. In an amended complaint, the plaintiffs added one of our directors and Onex as defendants. On October 14, 2010, the District Court granted the defendants' motions to dismiss the consolidated amended complaint in its entirety. The plaintiffs appealed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit the dismissal of their claims against us and our former Chief Executive and Chief Financial Officers, but not as to the other defendants. In a summary order dated December 29, 2011, the Court of Appeals reversed the District Court's dismissal of the consolidated amended complaint and remanded the case to the District Court for further proceedings. The discovery phase of the case has been completed. Defendants have moved for summary judgment dismissing the case in its entirety and plaintiffs have moved for class certification and for partial summary judgment on certain elements of their claims. Those motions have been fully briefed and argued. In an order dated February 21, 2014, the District Court denied plaintiffs' motion for class certification because they sought to include in their proposed class persons who purchased Celestica stock in Canada. The District Court has indicated that plaintiffs may seek to renew their motion for class certification in the future. The District Court has reserved decision on the summary judgment and partial summary judgment motions. Parallel class proceedings, including a claim issued in October 2011, remain against us and our former Chief Executive and Chief Financial Officers in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice. On October 15, 2012, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice granted limited aspects of the defendants' motion to strike, but dismissed the defendants' limitation period argument. The defendants' appeal of the limitation period issue was heard together with other appeals in two other actions on the same issue in May 2013 and was dismissed on February 3, 2014 when the Court of Appeal for Ontario overturned its own prior decision on the limitation period issue. The leave and certification motions were heard from December 9 to 11, 2013 and the Ontario Superior Court of Justice released its decision on February 19, 2014. The Court granted the plaintiffs leave to proceed with a statutory claim under the Ontario Securities Act and certified the action as a class proceeding on the claim that the defendants made misrepresentations regarding the 2005 restructuring. The Court denied the plaintiffs leave and certification on the claims that the defendants did not properly report Celestica's inventory and revenue and that Celestica's financial statements did not comply with GAAP. The Court also denied certification of the plaintiffs' common law claims. The defendants have served a Notice of Motion for leave to appeal the portions of the Court's decision that grant leave to proceed and certify the action. We believe the allegations in the claims are without merit and we intend to continue to defend against them vigorously. However, there can be no assurance that the outcome of the litigation will be favorable to us or that it will not have a material adverse impact on our financial position or liquidity. In addition, we may incur substantial litigation expenses in defending the claims. As the matter is ongoing, we cannot predict its duration or resources required. We have liability insurance coverage that may cover some of our litigation expenses, and potential judgments or settlement costs.

Potential unenforceability of civil liabilities and judgments.

        We are incorporated under the laws of the Province of Ontario, Canada. A significant number of our directors, controlling persons and officers are residents of Canada. Also, a substantial portion of our assets and the assets of these persons are located outside of the United States. As a result, it may be difficult to effect service within the United States upon those directors, controlling persons and officers who are not residents of the United States, or to realize in the United States upon a judgment of courts of the United States predicated upon the civil liability provisions of U.S. federal securities laws.

Changes in accounting standards enacted by the relevant standard-setting bodies may adversely affect our reported operating results, profitability and financial performance.

        Accounting standards are revised periodically and/or expanded upon by the standard-setting bodies. We are required to adopt new or revised accounting standards and to comply with revised interpretations issued from time-to-time by these authoritative bodies, which include the Canadian Accounting Standards Board ("CASB"), the International Accounting Standards Board ("IASB"), the Financial Accounting Standards Board ("FASB") and SEC. In 2008, the CASB announced the adoption of IFRS for publicly accountable enterprises in Canada, effective 2011. The impact of our transition to IFRS is summarized in note 3 to our 2011 Consolidated Financial Statements included in our 2011 Annual Report. Our reported financial information may not be comparable to the information reported by our competitors because we are required to use different accounting standards. The FASB and IASB have been jointly collaborating on a series of projects to converge, improve and align the U.S. and

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international accounting standards as one global high quality standard. While there have been some delays in the convergence effort, we continue to monitor developments and consider the potential impacts. Future changes in accounting standards could adversely affect our reported operating results, profitability or financial condition.

Shares eligible for public sale may adversely affect our share price.

        Future sales of our subordinate voting shares in the public market, or the issuance of subordinate voting shares in connection with our equity-based compensation plans or otherwise could adversely affect the market price of the subordinate voting shares.

        At February 14, 2014, we had 161.5 million subordinate voting shares and 18.9 million multiple voting shares outstanding. All of the subordinate voting shares are freely transferable without restriction or further registration under the U.S. Securities Act, except for shares held by our affiliates (as defined in the U.S. Securities Act). Shares held by our affiliates include all of the multiple voting shares and 0.5 million subordinate voting shares held directly or indirectly by Onex. An affiliate may not sell shares in the United States unless the sale is registered under the U.S. Securities Act or an exemption from registration is available. Rule 144 of the U.S. Securities Act permits our affiliates to sell our shares in the United States subject to volume limitations and requirements relating to manner of sale, notice of sale and availability of current public information with respect to us.

        In addition, as of February 14, 2014, there were 18.5 million subordinate voting shares reserved for issuance from treasury under our employee equity-based compensation plans and for director compensation, including 4.8 million subordinate voting shares underlying stock options (whether vested or unvested), 1.2 million subordinate voting shares underlying restricted share units (all unvested), and up to 2.6 million subordinate voting shares underlying performance share units (all unvested). Moreover, pursuant to our articles of incorporation, we may issue an unlimited number of additional subordinate voting shares without further shareholder approval (subject to any required stock exchange approvals). As a result, a substantial number of our subordinate voting shares will be eligible for sale in the public market at various times in the future. The issuances and/or sale of such shares would dilute the holdings of our shareholders and could adversely affect the market price of the subordinate voting shares.

The market price of our stock may be volatile.

        The stock market in recent years has experienced significant price and volume fluctuations that have affected the market price of our stock. These fluctuations have often been unrelated to the operating performance of our company. Factors such as changes in our operating results, announcements by our customers, competitors or other events affecting companies in the electronics industry, currency fluctuations, general market fluctuations, and macro-economic conditions may cause the market price of our subordinate voting shares to decline.

A U.S. government shutdown could impact our results of operations.

        Approximately one-third of our cash equivalents are invested in money market funds that primarily hold U.S. government securities. As a result, a U.S. government shutdown and/or U.S. government debt ceiling impasse could result in a default by the U.S. government on such securities, which could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition. In addition, such events could result in a U.S. credit rating downgrade, significant U.S. and global economic and financial market dislocations, interest rate and foreign exchange rate impacts and other potential unforeseen consequences that could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.

We cannot assure our shareholders that our NCIB will enhance long-term shareholder value, and share repurchases could increase the volatility of the price of our stock.

        Under our current NCIB (approved in August 2013), we are authorized to repurchase our subordinate voting shares at times and prices we consider appropriate depending upon prevailing market conditions and other corporate considerations, up to an aggregate of approximately 9.8 million subordinate voting shares (representing approximately 5.3% of our then-total subordinate voting shares and multiple voting shares). The timing and actual number of shares repurchased depend on a variety of factors including the timing of open

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trading windows, price, corporate and regulatory requirements, and other market conditions. The existence of the NCIB, however, could also cause our subordinate voting share price to be higher than it would be in the absence of such a program and could potentially reduce the market liquidity for our subordinate voting shares.

Item 4.    Information on the Company

A.    History and Development of the Company

        We were incorporated in Ontario, Canada on September 27, 1996. Our legal and commercial name is Celestica Inc. We are a corporation domiciled in the Province of Ontario, Canada and operate under the Business Corporations Act (Ontario). Our principal executive offices are located at 844 Don Mills Road, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M3C 1V7 and our telephone number is (416) 448-5800. Our website is www.celestica.com. Information on our website is not incorporated by reference in this Annual Report.

        Prior to our incorporation, we were an IBM manufacturing unit that provided manufacturing services to IBM for more than 75 years. In 1993, we began providing electronics manufacturing services to non-IBM customers. In October 1996, we were purchased from IBM by an investor group, led by Onex.

        Certain information concerning our acquisition activities, our capital (including property, plant and equipment) expenditures, and financing activities, currently in progress and in the last three fiscal years, is set forth in notes 3, 7, 8, 11, 12, 21 and 24 to the Consolidated Financial Statements in Item 18, and Item 5, "Operating and Financial Review and Prospects — Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations".

        Certain information concerning our divestiture activities, including our restructurings, currently in progress and in the last three fiscal years, is set forth in notes 6 and 15 to the Consolidated Financial Statements in Item 18, and Item 5, "Operating and Financial Review and Prospects — Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations".

B.    Business Overview

General

        We deliver innovative supply chain solutions globally to customers in the Communications (comprised of enterprise communications and telecommunications), Consumer, Diversified (comprised of industrial, aerospace and defense, healthcare, solar, green technology, semiconductor equipment and other), and Enterprise Computing (comprised of servers and storage) end markets. We believe our services and solutions create value for our customers by accelerating their time-to-market, and by providing higher quality, lower cost, and reduced cycle times in our customers' supply chains, resulting in lower total cost of ownership, greater flexibility, higher return on invested capital and improved competitive advantage for our customers in their respective markets.

        Our global headquarters is located in Toronto, Canada. We operate facilities around the world with specialized supply chain management, including high-mix/low-volume manufacturing capabilities, to meet the specific market and customer product lifecycle requirements. In an effort to drive speed, quality and flexibility for our customers, we execute our business in centers of excellence strategically located in North America, Europe and Asia. We strive to align our preferred suppliers in close proximity to these centers of excellence to increase the speed and flexibility of our supply chain, deliver higher quality products, and reduce time to market.

        We offer a range of services to our customers including design and development, engineering services, supply chain management, new product introduction, component sourcing, electronics manufacturing, assembly and test, complex mechanical assembly, systems integration, precision machining, order fulfillment, logistics and after-market repair and return services.

        Although we supply products and services to over 100 customers, we depend upon a small number of customers for a significant portion of our revenue. In the aggregate, our top 10 customers represented 65% of revenue in 2013 and our largest customer represented 13% of total revenue. In 2013, our revenue by end market was as follows: Communications (42% of revenue); Consumer (6% of revenue); Diversified (25% of revenue); Servers (13% of revenue); and Storage (14% of revenue). The products and services we provide serve a wide variety of applications, including servers; networking, wireless and telecommunications equipment; storage

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devices; optical equipment; aerospace and defense electronics, such as in-flight entertainment and guidance systems; healthcare products for diagnostic imaging; audiovisual equipment; set top boxes; printer supplies; peripherals; semiconductor equipment; and a range of industrial and green technology electronic equipment, including solar panels and inverters.

        We continue to invest to increase the value we deliver to our customers, through investments in people, service offerings, new capabilities, technology and IT systems, software and tools. We intend to continuously work to improve our productivity, quality, delivery performance and flexibility in our efforts to be recognized as one of the leading companies in EMS operational excellence.

        Our current priorities include: (i) profitable growth in our targeted business areas; (ii) continuous improvement in our financial results, including revenue growth, operating margins, returns on invested capital (ROIC), and free cash flow; (iii) developing and building long-term profitable relationships with leading customers in our strategic target markets; and (iv) increasing and strengthening our capabilities in design, engineering, process technologies, software tools and various service offerings to expand beyond our traditional areas of electronics manufacturing services. We believe that continued investments in these areas support our long-term strategy, and will strengthen our competitive position, enhance customer satisfaction, and increase long-term shareholder value. We will continue to focus on expanding our revenue base in our higher-value-added services, such as design and development, engineering, supply chain management and after-market services, and to grow our business with new and existing customers in our enterprise computing, communications and diversified end markets. Note that operating margin, ROIC and free cash flow are non-IFRS measures without standardized meanings and may not be comparable to similar measures presented by other companies. See "Non-IFRS measures" in Item 5 — Operating and Financial Review and Prospects for a reconciliation of our non-IFRS measures to comparable IFRS measures (where a comparable IFRS measure exists).

Electronics Manufacturing Services Industry

Overview

        Leading EMS companies manage global networks that are capable of delivering customized supply chain solutions. They offer end-to-end services for the entire product lifecycle, including design and engineering services, manufacturing, assembly, test, and systems integration, fulfillment and after-market services. OEMs, service providers and other companies use these services to enhance their competitive positions. Outsourcing manufacturing and related services helps enable companies to overcome their business challenges related to cost, asset utilization, quality, time-to-market, demand volatility, and rapidly changing technologies.

        We believe outsourcing by OEMs and other companies will continue across a number of industries as a means to:

        Reduce Operating Costs and Invested Capital.    OEMs are under continued pressure to reduce total product lifecycle costs, and property, plant and equipment expenditures. The manufacturing process of electronics products has become increasingly automated, which requires greater levels of investment in property, plant and equipment. EMS companies enable OEMs to gain access to a global network of manufacturing facilities with supply chain management expertise, advanced engineering capabilities, flexible capacity and economies of scale. By working with EMS companies, OEMs can reduce their overall product lifecycle and operating costs, working capital and property, plant and equipment investment requirements, and improve their financial performance.

        Focus Resources on Core Competencies.    Our customers operate in a highly competitive environment characterized by rapid technological change and shortening product lifecycles. In this environment, many customers prioritize their resources on their core competencies of product development, sales, marketing and customer service, by outsourcing design, engineering, manufacturing, supply chain and other product support requirements to their EMS partners.

        Improve Time-to-Market.    Electronic products experience short lifecycles, requiring OEMs to continually reduce the time and cost of bringing products to market. OEMs can significantly improve product development cycles and enhance time-to-market by benefiting from the expertise and infrastructure of EMS providers, including capabilities relating to design and engineering services, prototyping and the rapid ramp-up of new products to high-volume production, all with the critical support of global supply chain management and manufacturing networks.

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        Utilize EMS Companies' Procurement, Inventory Management and Logistics Expertise.    We believe that successful manufacturing of electronic products requires significant resources to deal with the complexities in planning, procurement and inventory management, frequent design changes, short product lifecycles and product demand fluctuations. OEMs can address these complexities by outsourcing to those EMS providers that (i) possess sophisticated IT systems and global supply chain management capabilities and (ii) can leverage significant component procurement advantages to lower product costs.

        Access Leading Engineering Capabilities and Technologies.    Electronic products and the electronics manufacturing technology needed to support them are complex and require significant investment. As a result, some OEMs rely on EMS companies to provide design services, engineering services, supply chain management, and manufacturing and technological expertise. Through their design and engineering services, and through the knowledge gained from manufacturing and repairing products, EMS companies can assist OEMs in the development of new product concepts, or the re-design of existing products, as well as assist with improvements in the performance, cost and time required to bring products to market. In addition, OEMs can gain access to high-quality manufacturing expertise and capabilities in the areas of advanced process, interconnect and test technologies.

        Improve Access to Global Markets.    Some of our customers provide products or services to a global customer base. EMS companies with global infrastructure and support capabilities can provide customers with efficient global manufacturing solutions, distribution capabilities and after-market services.

        Access to Broadening Service Offerings.    EMS providers strive to expand their offerings to include services such as design, fulfillment and after-market services, including repair and recycling, in order to enable OEMs to benefit from outsourcing more of their cost of goods sold.

Celestica's Focus

        We are focused on building solid partnerships and delivering innovative supply chain solutions to our customers. To achieve this, we collaborate with our customers to implement solutions to identify and meet current and future requirements. We strive to exceed our customers' expectations by offering a range of services designed to deliver lower costs, increased flexibility and predictability, improved quality and more responsive service to their customers. We also investigate ways to invest in our customers' future by becoming knowledgeable about their businesses, to better position us to develop solutions to meet their needs. We constantly seek to advance our technical capabilities to help our customers achieve a competitive advantage. We will continue to focus on our pursuit of the following, intended to strengthen our competitive position and enhance customer satisfaction and shareholder value:

        Increase Penetration of Target End Markets.    We strive to establish a diverse customer base across several industries. We believe our expertise in technology, quality and supply chain management, in addition to our service offerings and centers of excellence, have positioned us as an attractive partner to companies across various markets. Our goal is to grow across our targeted end markets, with particular emphasis on growing our diversified end market, which is comprised of industrial, aerospace and defense, healthcare, solar, green technology, semiconductor equipment and other end markets. Revenue from our diversified end market has increased from 14% of total revenue in 2011 to 25% of total revenue in 2013, representing a 42% growth in revenue dollars over the same period.

        Our revenue by end market as a percentage of total revenue is as follows:

 
  2011   2012   2013  

Communications

    35%     35%     42%  

Consumer

    25%     18%     6%  

Diversified

    14%     20%     25%  

Servers

    15%     15%     13%  

Storage

    11%     12%     14%  

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        Selectively Pursue Strategic Acquisitions.    We will selectively seek acquisition opportunities in order to (i) profitably grow our revenue, (ii) further develop strategic relationships with customers in our target markets and (iii) enhance the scope of our capabilities and service offerings. As an example, in 2012 we acquired D&H Manufacturing Company ("D&H"), a manufacturer of precision machined components and assemblies, primarily for the semiconductor capital equipment market.

        Continuously Improve Financial Performance.    We will continue to focus on (i) managing the mix of business, service offerings and volume of business to improve our overall margins, (ii) leveraging our supply chain practices globally to lower material costs, minimize lead times and improve our planning cycle to better meet changes in customers' demand and improve asset utilization, (iii) improving operating efficiencies to reduce costs and improve margins, (iv) completing any restructuring actions undertaken to reduce costs and improve margins, and (v) maximizing free cash flow.

        Develop and Grow Profitable Relationships with Leading Customers.    We continue to seek to build profitable, strategic relationships with targeted industry leaders that we believe can benefit from our services and solutions. We strive to conduct ourselves as an extension of our customers' organizations, in our efforts to respond to their needs with speed, flexibility and predictability in delivering results. We have established and maintain strong relationships with a diverse mix of leading OEMs and service providers across several of our targeted markets. We believe that our customer base is a strong potential source of growth for us as we seek to strengthen these relationships through the delivery of additional services.

        Expand Range of Service Offerings.    We continually look to expand the services we offer to our customers, which currently include prototyping, design and development, engineering, supply chain services, systems assembly, logistics, fulfillment and after-market services. Our 2012 acquisition of D&H was intended to strengthen our offerings in precision machining to semiconductor capital equipment customers.

        Continue to Invest in Developing New Technology, Quality Products and Supply Chain Solutions and Services.    We are committed to meeting our customers' needs in the areas of technology, quality and supply chain management. We believe our expertise in these areas enables us to meet the rigorous demands of our customers, and allows us to produce a variety of electronic products ranging from high-volume consumer electronics to highly complex technology infrastructure products. We believe our commitment to quality allows us to deliver consistently reliable products to our customers. The systems and collaborative processes associated with our expertise in supply chain management generally have enabled us to rapidly adjust our operations to meet the lead time requirements of our customers, flexibly shift capacity in response to product demand fluctuations and quickly and effectively deliver products directly to end customers. We collaborate with our suppliers to influence component design for the benefit of our customers. As a result of the successes that we have had in these areas, we have been recognized with numerous customer and industry achievement awards.

Celestica's Business

Innovative Supply Chain Solutions and Services

        We are a global provider of innovative supply chain solutions. We offer a range of services including design and development, engineering services, supply chain management, new product introduction, component sourcing, electronics manufacturing, assembly and test, complex mechanical assembly, systems integration, precision machining, order fulfillment, logistics and after-market repair and return services. We leverage our global centers of excellence, information technology and supply chain expertise using collaborative processes and a team of highly skilled, customer-focused employees. We believe that our ability to deliver a range of supply chain solutions to our customers provides them with a competitive lead time, and advantages in quality, flexibility and total cost of ownership.

Quality and Lean Six Sigma Culture

        We believe one of our strengths is our ability to consistently deliver high-quality services and products. We have an extensive quality management system that focuses on continual process improvement and achieving high levels of customer satisfaction. We employ a variety of advanced statistical engineering techniques and other

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tools to assist in improving product and service quality. All of our principal facilities are ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 certified, and have other required industry-specific certifications.

        In addition to these standards, we continue to deploy Lean and Six Sigma initiatives (processes intended to improve product consistency, and reduce defects and waste) throughout our operations network. Implementing Lean initiatives throughout the manufacturing process helps improve efficiency, shorten cycle times and reduce waste in areas such as inventory on hand, set up times, floor space and the number of people required for production. Six Sigma is intended to ensure continuous improvement by reducing process variation. We also apply the knowledge we gain in our after-market services to help improve the quality and reliability of next-generation products for our customers. Success in these areas helps our customers lower their costs, positioning them more competitively in their respective markets.

Design and Engineering Services

        Our global design services and solutions architects are focused on opportunities that span the entire product lifecycle. Supported by a disciplined approach to program management, we strive to provide flexible design solutions and expertise to help customers optimize their development to reduce overall product costs, improve time-to-market and introduce competitively differentiated products. For customer-owned designs, we use design analysis capabilities to minimize design revisions, shorten time-to-market and provide improved manufacturing yields for our customers. Our Joint Design and Manufacturing offering is focused on developing design solutions in collaboration with customers as well as managing aspects of the supply chain and manufacturing. We continue to invest in leading-edge product roadmaps and design capabilities aligned with market standards and emerging technologies. Our goal is to deliver customized solutions to customers in the storage, servers and communications markets, allowing them to reach their markets faster, while reducing design costs and building valuable IP for their product portfolios. Through our collective experience with common technologies across multiple industries and product groups, we believe we can provide quality and cost-focused solutions for a wide range of our customers' design needs.

        As trusted design partners to some of our core customers, our teams collaborate with our customers' product designers in the early stages of product development, using advanced tools to enable new product ideas to progress from electrical and application-specific integrated circuit design, to simulation, physical layout and design for manufacturing. Collaborative links and databases between the customer and our design and manufacturing groups help to ensure that new designs are released rapidly, smoothly and cohesively into production.

        Celestica's engineering services team works as the extension of our customers' teams throughout the product life cycle. We believe our engineering expertise and experience in design review, product test solutions, assembly technology, quality and reliability enables us to deliver services and directly address the challenges facing our customers today, accelerating speed-to-market of new products, reducing total product cost and delivering high-quality products. We complement our resources and expertise with ties to key industry associations and engineering firms to help us stay apprised of advances in technical knowledge.

Prototyping and New Product Introduction

        Prototyping is a critical early-stage process in the development of new products. Our engineers collaborate with our customers' engineers to build early-stage products at our new product introduction centers. These centers are strategically located around the world to enable us to provide a quick response in the early stages of the product development lifecycle.

Supply Chain Management and Services

        We use advanced enterprise resource planning and supply chain management systems to optimize materials management from suppliers through to our customers' customers. The effective management of the supply chain is critical to our customers' success, as it directly impacts the time and cost required to deliver products to market and the capital requirements associated with carrying inventory.

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        We strive to provide our customers with lower total cost of ownership, by producing, delivering and supporting their products so that we can exceed their expectations for time-to-market and quality. We also strive to align our preferred suppliers in close proximity to our centers of excellence to increase the speed and flexibility of our supply chain, deliver higher quality products, and reduce time to market. We believe we deliver a differentiated supply chain offering.

        Through our global supply chain management processes and integrated information technology tools, we strive to provide our customers with enhanced visibility to balance their global demand and supply requirements, including inventory and order management.

Manufacturing Services

Printed Circuit Board Assembly

        Printed circuit board assembly includes the attachment of electronic components, such as capacitors, microprocessors, resistors and memory modules, to printed circuit boards. Our global network of engineers helps us to provide our customers with full printed circuit board ("PCB") assembly technology capabilities. These capabilities include design for manufacturing, PCB layout, packaging, assembly, lead-free soldering, test development and data analytics for complex flexible and rigid-flex circuits and hybrid PCBs.

Complex Mechanical Assembly

        We provide systems integration and precision machined components to our semiconductor capital equipment customers. Complex mechanical systems integration consists of multiple interconnected subsystems that interact with various materials, e.g., fluids, solids, particles and rigid bodies. Such systems are often used in advanced manufacturing applications such as semiconductor manufacturing and processes equipment, medical applications using robotics, and other applications such as cash handling machines where very exact standards are required.

Precision Machining

        We utilize specialized computer controlled machines to manufacture components to high quality and very tight tolerance requirements. Such components are often used in similar applications as noted above for complex mechanical assembly.

Systems Assembly and Test

        We use sophisticated technologies in the assembly and testing of our products. We continue to make investments in the development of new assembly and test process techniques intended to enhance product quality, reduce cost and improve delivery time to customers. We work independently and also collaborate with customers and suppliers to develop assembly and test technologies. Systems assembly and testing require sophisticated logistics capabilities to rapidly procure components, assemble products, perform complex testing and distribute products to customers around the world. Our full systems assembly services involve combining and testing a wide range of subassemblies and components before shipping to their final destination. Increasingly, customers require custom build-to-order system solutions with very short lead times and we are focused on using our advanced supply chain management capabilities to respond to our customers' needs.

Quality and Product Assurance

        We provide complete product reliability testing, inspection and qualification capabilities to support our customers' full product lifecycle requirements. Our quality and product assurance teams perform product life testing and full circuit characterization to ensure that designs meet or exceed required specifications. We are capable of testing to various industry standards, and we work closely with our customers to execute unique test protocols. We believe that this service allows our customers to assess certification risks early in the product development cycle, reducing cost and time-to-market.

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Failure Analysis and After-Market Services

        Our extensive failure analysis capabilities concentrate on identifying the root cause of product failures and determining corrective actions. The root causes of failures typically relate to inherent component defects and/or deficiencies in design specifications. Products are subjected to various environmental extremes, including temperature, humidity, vibration, voltage and contamination. Field conditions are simulated in failure analysis laboratories which employ electron microscopes, spectrometers and other advanced equipment. Our qualified engineers work proactively in partnership with suppliers and customers to discover any product failures before products are shipped, and to develop and implement resolutions if required.

        We seek to provide value to our customers through our after-market services offerings which include repair, fulfillment, reverse logistics, reclamation and returns processing and prevention. Our fulfillment offering includes the design and management of integrated supply chain and materials management for light manufacturing and final assembly. Our reverse logistics offering includes the design and management of transportation networks, warehousing and distribution of product, asset recovery services, and transportation and supply chain event monitoring. The returns processing and prevention offering provides our customers with product screening and testing and product design and process analysis. We offer these services individually or integrated through a 'Control Tower' model which combines our resources, systems and processes with those of our partner organizations to provide the customer with an increased level of visibility and analytics throughout the entire after-market value stream.

Geographies

        For 2013, approximately two-thirds (2012 and 2011 — one-half) of our revenue was produced in Asia and over one-fifth (2012 and 2011 — one-third) of our revenue was produced in North America. Revenue produced in Canada represented 7% of revenue in 2013 (2012 and 2011 — 8%). Our property, plant and equipment in Canada represented 11% of our property, plant and equipment at December 31, 2013 (December 31, 2012 — 12%; December 31, 2011 — 13%). A listing of our principal locations is included in Item 4(D), "Information on the Company — Property, Plants and Equipment". Certain geographic information for countries exceeding 10% of our external revenue or property, plant and equipment, intangible assets and goodwill is set forth in note 24 to the Consolidated Financial Statements in Item 18. All other countries individually represented less than 10% in each such category.

Marketing, Sales and Solutions

        We structure our business development teams by targeted end market, with a focus on offering complete manufacturing and supply chain solutions to our customers. We have customer-focused teams, each headed by a group general manager who oversees the global relationship with our key customers. These teams work with our solutions architects to develop specific solutions that meet the needs of each customer's product or supply chain requirements. Our global network is comprised of customer-focused teams, including direct sales representatives, operational and project managers, account executives, and supply chain management teams, as well as senior executives.

Customer Experience and Relationship Management

        As stated above, we supply products and services to over 100 customers. We target industry leading customers in our strategic markets. Our customers include Alcatel-Lucent, Applied Materials, Inc., Cisco Systems, Inc., EMC Corporation, Hewlett-Packard Company, Hitachi Global Storage Technologies, Honeywell Inc., IBM Corporation, Juniper Networks, Inc., NEC Corporation, and Oracle Corporation. We are focused on strengthening our relationships with these strategic customers through the delivery of new and expanding end-to-end solutions.

        During 2013, two customers individually represented more than 10% of total revenue (2012 and 2011 — two customers). Our top 10 customers represented 65%, 67%, and 71%, respectively, of total revenue for 2013, 2012 and 2011.

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        We generally enter into master supply agreements with our customers that provide the framework for our overall relationship, although the level of business under those agreements is not guaranteed. Instead, we bid on a program-by-program basis and typically receive customer purchase orders for specific quantities and timing of products. A majority of these agreements also require the customer to purchase unused inventory that we have purchased to fulfill that customer's forecasted manufacturing demand.

Research and Technology Development

        We use advanced technology in the design, assembly and test of the products we manufacture. We continue to deploy more resources in our global research and development organization to expand our design capabilities.

        We believe that our customer-focused factories are highly flexible and are reconfigured as needed to meet customer-specific product requirements and fluctuations in volumes. We have extensive capabilities across a broad range of specialized assembly, configuration and test processes. We work with a variety of substrates based on the products we build for our customers, from thin, flexible printed circuit boards to highly complex, dense multi-layer printed circuit boards as well as a broad array of advanced component and attachment technologies employed in our customers' products, and our own product designs. Increasing demand for full-system assembly solutions continues to drive technical advancement in complex mechanical assembly and configuration. We also develop and manufacture sub-components, such as optical modules and complex machined parts, intended to drive targeted technical advancements to support these opportunities.

        Our automated electronics assembly lines are continuously refreshed with the latest generation technology, with a focus on flexible lines with quick changeover, large board capability, and small component capability. Our assembly capabilities are complemented by advanced test capabilities. The technologies we use include high-speed functional testing, optical, burn-in, vibration, radio frequency, in-circuit and in-situ dynamic thermal cycling stress testing. Our inspection technology includes X-ray laminography, advanced automated optical inspection, three-dimensional paste volumetric inspection and scanning electron microscopy. We work directly with the leaders in the equipment industry to optimize their products and solutions or to jointly design solutions to better meet our needs and the needs of our customers. We apply automation solutions for higher volume products, where possible, to help lower product costs.

        Our ongoing research and development activities include the development of processes and test technologies, as well as some focused product development and technology building blocks that can be used by customers in the development of their products or to accelerate their products time-to-market. Our Joint Design and Manufacturing strategy is focused on developing these design solutions and subsequently managing the other aspects of the supply chain, including manufacturing. We focus our solutions in developing current and next generation storage, server and communications products, in particular, elements of data centers, an area we believe will grow in the future. We work directly with our customers to understand their product roadmaps and to develop the technology solutions to optimally meet their future needs. We are proactive in developing manufacturing techniques that take advantage of the latest component, product and packaging designs and we have worked with, and taken a leadership role in, industry and academic groups that strive to advance the state of technology in the industry. As we continue to pursue deeper relationships with our customers, and participate in additional services and revenue opportunities with them, we anticipate an increase in our spending in these development areas.

Supply Chain Management

        We share data electronically with our key suppliers and ensure speed of supply through strong relationships with our component suppliers and logistics partners. We view the size and scale of our procurement activities, including our IT systems, as an important competitive advantage, as they enhance our ability to obtain better pricing, influence component packaging and designs, and obtain a supply of components in constrained markets. We procure substantially all of our materials and components on behalf of our customers pursuant to individual purchase orders that are short-term in nature.

        Components and raw materials are sourced globally, with a majority of electronic components originating from Asian countries. In general, prices for our raw materials have been relatively stable, and we believe that

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such prices will remain relatively stable in the near term. See Item 3(D) — Key Information — Risk Factors for a discussion of various risks attendant to our foreign operations.

        We strive to align our preferred suppliers in close proximity to our centers of excellence to increase the speed and flexibility of our supply chain and to deliver the shortest overall product lead times.

        We utilize our enterprise systems, as well as specific supply chain IT tools, to provide comprehensive information on our logistics, financial and engineering support functions. These systems provide management with the data required to manage the logistical complexities of the business and are augmented by and integrated with other applications, such as shop floor controls, component and product database management, and design tools.

        To minimize the risk associated with inventory, we primarily order materials and components only to the extent necessary to satisfy existing customer orders and forecasts covered by the applicable customer contract terms and conditions. We have implemented specific inventory management strategies with certain suppliers, such as "supplier managed inventory" (pulling inventory at the production line on an as-needed basis) and on-site stocking programs. Our initiatives in Lean and Six Sigma also focus on eliminating excess inventory throughout the supply chain.

        All of the products we manufacture or assemble require one or more components. In many cases, there may be only one supplier of a particular component. Some of these components could be rationed in response to supply shortages. We work with our suppliers and customers to attempt to ensure continuity in the supply of these components. In cases where unanticipated customer demand or supply shortages occur, we attempt to arrange for alternative sources of supply, where available, or defer planned production in response to the availability of the critical components. See Item 3(D) Key Information — Risk Factors, "Our results can be negatively affected by the availability and cost of components".

Intellectual Property

        We hold licenses to various technologies which we have acquired in connection with acquisitions. In addition, we believe that we have secured access to all required technology that is material to the current conduct of our business.

        We regard our manufacturing processes and certain designs as proprietary trade secrets and confidential information. We rely largely upon a combination of trade secret laws, non-disclosure agreements with our customers, suppliers, employees and other parties, and upon our internal security systems, confidentiality procedures and employee confidentiality agreements to maintain the trade secrecy of our designs and manufacturing processes. Although we take steps to protect our trade secrets, there can be no assurance that misappropriation will not occur. See Item 3(D) Key Information — Risk Factors, "We may not adequately protect our intellectual property or the intellectual property of others".

        We currently have a limited number of patents and patent applications pending to protect our intellectual property. However, we believe that the rapid pace of technological change makes patent protection less significant than such factors as the knowledge and experience of management and personnel, and our ability to develop, enhance and market electronics manufacturing services.

        We license some technology from third parties that we use in providing electronics manufacturing services to our customers. We believe that such licenses are generally available on commercial terms from a number of licensors. Generally, the agreements governing such technology grant to us non-exclusive, worldwide licenses with respect to the subject technologies and terminate upon a material breach by us of the terms of such agreements.

Competition

        The EMS industry is highly competitive with multiple global EMS providers competing for the same customers and programs. Our competitors include Benchmark Electronics, Inc., Flextronics International Ltd., Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd., Jabil Circuit, Inc., Plexus Corp., and Sanmina-SCI Corporation, as well as

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smaller EMS companies that often have a regional, product, service or industry-specific focus or ODMs that provide internally designed products and manufacturing services.

        We also face indirect competition from current and prospective customers who evaluate our capabilities and commercial models against the merits of manufacturing products internally. We compete with different companies depending on the type of service or geographic area. Some of our competitors have greater scale and a broader range of services than we offer. We believe our competitive advantage in our targeted markets is our track record in manufacturing technology, quality, complexity, responsiveness and cost-effective, value-added services. To remain competitive, we believe we must continue to provide technologically advanced manufacturing services and solutions, maintain quality levels, offer flexible delivery schedules, deliver finished products and services on time and compete favorably on price. To enhance our competitiveness, we continue to focus on expanding our service offerings and capabilities beyond our traditional areas of EMS expertise. See Item 3(D) Key Information — Risk Factors — "We operate in an industry comprised of numerous competitors and aggressive pricing dynamics".

Environmental Matters

        We are subject to various federal/national, state/provincial, local and supra-national laws and regulations, including environmental measures relating to the release, use, storage, treatment, transportation, discharge, disposal and remediation of contaminants, hazardous substances and waste, and health and safety measures related to practices and procedures applicable to the construction and operation of our plants. We have management systems in place designed to maintain compliance with such laws and regulations.

        Our past operations and historical operations of others may have resulted in soil and groundwater contamination on our sites. From time-to-time we investigate, remediate and monitor soil and groundwater contamination at certain of our operating sites. Generally, Phase I or similar environmental assessments (which involve general inspections without soil sampling or groundwater analysis) were obtained for most of our manufacturing facilities at the time of acquisition or leasing. Where contamination is suspected at sites being acquired, Phase II intrusive environmental assessments (including soil and/or groundwater testing) are usually performed. We expect to conduct Phase I or similar environmental assessments in respect of future property acquisitions and intend to perform Phase II assessments where appropriate. Past environmental assessments have not revealed any environmental liability that we believe will have a material adverse effect on our operating results or financial condition, in part because of contractual retention of liability by landlords and former owners at certain sites. See Item 3(D) Key Information — Risk Factors, "Compliance with governmental laws and obligations could be costly and may negatively impact our financial performance".

        Environmental legislation also occurs at the product level. Since 2004, we have developed our Green Services™, offering a suite of services that help our customers comply with environmental legislation, such as the European Union's Restriction of Hazardous Substances ("RoHS") and Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment directive laws and China's RoHS legislation.

Backlog

        Although we obtain purchase orders from our customers, they typically do not commit to delivery of products more than 30 days to 90 days in advance. We do not believe that the backlog of expected product sales covered by purchase orders is a meaningful measure of future sales, since orders may be rescheduled or cancelled.

Seasonality

        Seasonality is reflected in the mix and complexity of the products we manufacture from quarter-to-quarter. In the past, we have experienced some level of seasonality, typically in our storage, servers, and consumer end markets. The pace of technological change, the frequency of customers transferring business among EMS competitors and the constantly changing dynamics of the global economy will also continue to impact us. As a result of these factors, the impact of new program wins or program losses, and limited visibility in technology end markets, it is difficult for us to predict the extent and impact of seasonality on our business.

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Controlling Shareholder Interest

        Onex is our controlling shareholder with a 75% voting interest in Celestica. Accordingly, Onex has the ability to exercise a significant influence over our business and affairs and generally has the power to determine all matters submitted to a vote of our shareholders where the subordinate voting shares and multiple voting shares vote together as a single class. Such matters include electing our board of directors and thereby influencing significant corporate transactions, including mergers, acquisitions, divestitures and financing arrangements. For further details, refer to footnote 2 in Item 7(A) "Major Shareholders and Related Party Transactions — Major Shareholders".

Government Regulation

        Information regarding material effects of government regulations on Celestica's business is provided in the risk factors entitled "We are subject to the risk of increasing income taxes, increased levels and scrutiny of tax audits globally and the challenges of successfully defending our tax positions or meeting the conditions of tax incentives and credits, any of which may adversely affect our financial performance", "Compliance with governmental laws and obligations could be costly and may negatively impact our financial performance," "Compliance or the failure to comply with employment laws and regulations may negatively impact our financial performance," and "A U.S. government shutdown could impact our results of operations" in Item 3(D) "Key Information — Risk Factors".

Sustainability

        Our belief in strong corporate citizenship is manifested in policies and principles focused across five key focus areas: energy and water, materials stewardship, sustainable solutions, our employees, and community giving.

        Our guiding policies and principles include:

        We publish a Sustainability Report and a Business Conduct Governance Policy, both of which are available on our corporate website at www.celestica.com. These documents outline our sustainability strategy, our high standards for business ethics, the policies we value and uphold, the progress we have made as a socially responsible organization and the key milestones we are working to achieve in 2014 and beyond.

Financial Information Regarding Geographic Areas

        Details of our financial information regarding geographic areas are disclosed in note 24 to the Consolidated Financial Statements in Item 18, Item 4(B) "Information on the Company — Business Overview — Geographies", and Item 4(D) "Information on the Company — Property, Plants and Equipment". Risks associated with the foreign operations are disclosed in Item 3(D) "Key Information — Risk Factors".

        Onex, a Canadian corporation, is the Corporation's controlling shareholder with a 75% voting interest in Celestica (via its direct and indirect beneficial ownership of approximately 18.9 million (or 100%) of the Corporation's multiple voting shares). Mr. Schwartz, a director of Celestica, is the Chairman of the Board,

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President and Chief Executive Officer of Onex, and owns, directly or indirectly, multiple voting shares of Onex carrying the right to elect a majority of the Onex Board of Directors (see footnotes 2 and 3 to Item 7A below). Celestica conducts its business through subsidiaries operating on a worldwide basis. The following companies are considered significant subsidiaries of Celestica, and each of them is wholly owned by Celestica:

        Celestica Cayman Holdings 1 Limited, a Cayman Islands corporation;

        Celestica Cayman Holdings 9 Limited, a Cayman Islands corporation;

        Celestica (Dongguan-SSL) Technology Limited, a China corporation;

        Celestica Electronics (S) Pte Ltd, a Singapore corporation;

        Celestica (Gibraltar) Limited, a Gibraltar corporation;

        Celestica Holdings Pte Limited, a Singapore corporation;

        Celestica Hong Kong Limited, a Hong Kong corporation;

        Celestica LLC, a Delaware, U.S. limited liability company;

        Celestica Liquidity Management Hungary Limited Liability Company, a Hungary corporation;

        Celestica (Luxembourg) S.À.R.L., a Luxembourg corporation;

        Celestica (Thailand) Limited, a Thailand corporation;

        Celestica (USA) Inc., a Delaware, U.S. corporation;

        Celestica (US Holdings) LLC, a Delaware, U.S. limited liability company;

        1681714 Ontario Inc., an Ontario, Canada corporation;

        3250297 Nova Scotia Company (formerly 1282087 Ontario Inc.), a Nova Scotia, Canada company.

        The following table summarizes our principal facilities as of February 14, 2014. Our facilities are used to provide manufacturing services and solutions, such as the manufacture of printed circuit boards, assembly and configuration of final systems, complex mechanical assembly, precision machining and other related manufacturing and customer support activities, including warehousing, distribution, fulfillment and after-market services.

Major locations
  Square Footage   Owned/Leased
 
  (in thousands)
   

Canada

    888   Owned

California(1)

    478   Leased

Oregon

    188   Leased

Texas

    51   Leased

Mexico(1)

    255   Leased

Ireland(1)

    241   Leased

Spain

    100   Owned

Romania

    186   Owned

China(1)

    1,054   Owned/Leased

Malaysia(1)

    1,549   Owned/Leased

Thailand(1)

    1,085   Leased

Singapore(1)

    260   Leased

Japan

    274   Owned

(1)
This represents multiple locations.

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        Our principal executive office is located at 844 Don Mills Road, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M3C 1V7. Our principal facilities are certified to ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 standards, as well as to other industry-specific certifications.

        Our land and facility leases expire between 2014 and 2060. We currently expect to be able to extend the terms of expiring leases or to find replacement facilities on commercially reasonable terms.

        Also see "Environmental Matters" in Item 4(B) above.

Item 4A.    Unresolved Staff Comments

        None.

Item 5.    Operating and Financial Review and Prospects


CELESTICA INC.

MANAGEMENT'S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS
OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS
FOR THE YEAR ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2013

        The following Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations (MD&A) should be read in conjunction with the 2013 consolidated financial statements, which we prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB). Unless otherwise noted, all dollar amounts are expressed in U.S. dollars. The information in this discussion is provided as of February 14, 2014 unless we indicate otherwise.

        Certain statements contained in this MD&A constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of section 27A of the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and section 21E of the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (U.S. Exchange Act), and contain forward-looking information within the meaning of Canadian securities laws. Such forward-looking information includes, without limitation: statements related to our future growth; trends in the electronics manufacturing services (EMS) industry; our financial or operational results; the impact of acquisitions and program wins or losses on our financial results and working capital requirements; anticipated expenses, charges, capital expenditures and/or benefits; our expected tax and litigation outcomes; our cash flows, financial targets and priorities; changes in our mix of revenue by end market; our ability to diversify and grow our customer base and develop new capabilities; the effect of the global economic environment on customer demand; the expected impact of our pension obligations, and the number of subordinate voting shares and price thereof we repurchase under our normal course issuer bid (NCIB). Such forward-looking statements may, without limitation, be preceded by, followed by, or include words such as "believes", "expects", "anticipates", "estimates", "intends", "plans", "continues", "project", "potential", "possible", "contemplate", "seek", or similar expressions, or may employ such future or conditional verbs as "may", "might", "will", "could", "should" or "would", or may otherwise be indicated as forward-looking statements by grammatical construction, phrasing or context. For those statements, we claim the protection of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements contained in the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and applicable Canadian securities laws.

        Forward-looking statements are provided for the purpose of assisting readers in understanding management's current expectations and plans relating to the future. Readers are cautioned that such information may not be appropriate for other purposes. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to risks that could cause actual results to differ materially from conclusions, forecasts or projections expressed in such statements, including, among others, risks related to: our customers' ability to compete and succeed in the marketplace with the products we manufacture; price and other competitive factors generally affecting the EMS industry; managing our operations and our working capital performance during uncertain economic conditions; responding to rapid changes in demand and changes in our customers' outsourcing strategies, including the insourcing of programs; customer concentration and the challenges of diversifying our customer base and replacing revenue from lost programs or customer disengagements; changing commodity, material and component costs, as well as labor costs and conditions; disruptions to our operations, or those of our customers, component suppliers or logistics partners, including as a result of global or local events outside our control; retaining or expanding our business due to

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execution problems relating to the ramping of new programs; delays in the delivery and availability of components, services and materials; non-performance by counterparties; our financial exposure to foreign currency volatility; our dependence on industries affected by rapid technological change; managing our global operations and supply chain; increasing income taxes, increased levels and scrutiny of tax audits globally, and defending our tax positions or meeting the conditions of tax incentives and credits; completing any restructuring actions and integrating any acquisitions; computer viruses, malware, hacking attempts or outages that may disrupt our operations; any U.S. government shutdown or delay in the increase of the U.S. government debt ceiling; and compliance with applicable laws, regulations and social responsibility initiatives. These and other material risks and uncertainties are discussed in our public filings at www.sedar.com and www.sec.gov, including in this MD&A, our Annual Report on Form 20-F, and subsequent reports on Form 6-K filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, and our Annual Information Form filed with the Canadian Securities Administrators.

        Our forward-looking statements are based on various assumptions, many of which involve factors that are beyond our control. The material assumptions include those related to the following: production schedules from our customers, which generally range from 30 days to 90 days and can fluctuate significantly in terms of volume and mix of products or services; the timing and execution of, and investments associated with, ramping new business; the success in the marketplace of our customers' products; the stability of general economic and market conditions, currency exchange rates, and interest rates; our pricing, the competitive environment and contract terms and conditions; supplier performance, pricing and terms; compliance by third parties with their contractual obligations, the accuracy of their representations and warranties, and the performance of their covenants; components, materials, services, plant and capital equipment, labor, energy and transportation costs and availability; operational and financial matters including the extent, timing and costs of replacing revenue from lost programs or customer disengagements; technological developments; overall demand improvement in the semiconductor industry, and revenue growth and improved profitability in our semiconductor business; the timing and execution of our restructuring actions; and our ability to diversify our customer base and develop new capabilities. While management believes these assumptions to be reasonable under the current circumstances, they may prove to be inaccurate. Except as required by applicable law, we disclaim any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

        All forward-looking statements attributable to us are expressly qualified by these cautionary statements.

Overview

What Celestica does:

        We deliver innovative supply chain solutions globally to customers in the Communications (comprised of enterprise communications and telecommunications), Consumer, Diversified (comprised of industrial, aerospace and defense, healthcare, solar, green technology, semiconductor equipment and other), and Enterprise Computing (comprised of servers and storage) end markets. We believe our services and solutions create value for our customers by accelerating their time-to-market, and by providing higher quality, lower cost and reduced cycle times in our customers' supply chains, resulting in lower total cost of ownership, greater flexibility, higher return on invested capital and improved competitive advantage for our customers in their respective markets.

        Our global headquarters is located in Toronto, Canada. We operate facilities around the world with specialized supply chain management, including high-mix/low-volume manufacturing capabilities, to meet the specific market and customer product lifecycle requirements. In an effort to drive speed, quality and flexibility for our customers, we execute our business in centers of excellence strategically located in North America, Europe and Asia. We strive to align our preferred suppliers in close proximity to these centers of excellence to increase the speed and flexibility of our supply chain, deliver higher quality products, and reduce time to market.

        We offer a range of services to our customers including design and development, engineering services, supply chain management, new product introduction, component sourcing, electronics manufacturing, assembly and test, complex mechanical assembly, systems integration, precision machining, order fulfillment, logistics and after-market repair and return services.

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        Although we supply products and services to over 100 customers, we depend upon a small number of customers for a significant portion of our revenue. In the aggregate, our top 10 customers represented 65% of revenue in 2013 (2012 — 67%).

        The products and services we provide serve a wide variety of applications, including: servers; networking, wireless and telecommunications equipment; storage devices; optical equipment; aerospace and defense electronics, such as in-flight entertainment and guidance systems; healthcare products for diagnostic imaging; audiovisual equipment; set top boxes; printer supplies; peripherals; semiconductor equipment; and a range of industrial and green technology electronic equipment, including solar panels and inverters.

        We continue to invest to increase the value we deliver to our customers, through investments in people, service offerings, new capabilities, technology and IT systems, software and tools. We intend to continuously work to improve our productivity, quality, delivery performance and flexibility in our efforts to be recognized as one of the leading companies in EMS operational excellence.

        Our current priorities include (i) profitable growth in our targeted business areas, (ii) continuous improvement in our financial results, including revenue growth, operating margins, return on invested capital (ROIC), and free cash flow, (iii) developing and building long-term profitable relationships with leading customers in our strategic target markets and (iv) increasing and strengthening our capabilities in design, engineering, process technologies, software tools and various service offerings to expand beyond our traditional areas of electronics manufacturing services. We believe that continued investments in these areas supporting our long-term strategy will strengthen our competitive position, enhance customer satisfaction, and increase long-term shareholder value. We will continue to focus on expanding our revenue base in our higher-value-added services, such as design and development, engineering, supply chain management and after-market services, and to grow our business with new and existing customers in our enterprise computing, communications and diversified end markets.

        Operating margin, ROIC and free cash flow are non-IFRS measures without standardized meanings and may not be comparable to similar measures presented by other companies. See "Non-IFRS measures" below for a reconciliation of our non-IFRS measures to comparable IFRS measures (where a comparable IFRS measure exists).

        Our financial results vary from period to period and are impacted by such factors as the changing demand for our customers' products in various end markets, our revenue mix, changes in our customers' supply chain strategies, the size and timing of customer program wins by end markets, the costs, terms and timing of ramping new business, program losses or customer disengagements, and the margins achieved and capital deployed for the services we provide to customers, among other factors discussed below.

Overview of business environment:

        The EMS industry is highly competitive with multiple global EMS providers competing for the same customers and programs. Although the industry is characterized by a large revenue base and new business opportunities, revenue is volatile on a quarterly basis, and aggressive pricing is a common business dynamic. Capacity utilization, customer mix and the types of products and services we provide are important factors affecting our margins. The number and location of qualified people, manufacturing capacity, and the mix of business through that capacity are vital considerations for EMS providers. The EMS industry is also working capital intensive. As a result, we believe that ROIC, which is primarily affected by operating margin and investments in working capital and equipment, is an important metric for measuring an EMS provider's financial performance.

        EMS companies service a variety of customers and end markets. Demand visibility is limited, making revenue from customers and by end markets difficult to predict. Short product life cycles inherent in technology markets, short production lead times expected by our customers, rapid shifts in technology, model obsolescence, commoditization of certain of our products, shifting patterns of demand, such as trends in enterprise infrastructure and virtualization, and general volatility in the economy are contributing factors. While there may be some indications of improvement, the global economy and financial markets continue to be uncertain and may continue to negatively impact end market demand and the operations of EMS providers, including

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Celestica. Continued uncertainty surrounding the extent and timing of the global economic recovery may impact future demand for our products and services. We continue to monitor the dynamics and impacts of the global economic environment and work to manage our priorities, costs and resources to address changes as they occur.

        External factors that could impact the EMS industry and our business include natural disasters, political instability, terrorism, armed conflict, labor or social unrest, criminal activity, disease or illness that affects local, national or international economies, and other risks present in the jurisdictions in which we, our customers, our suppliers, and our logistics partners operate. These types of local events could disrupt operations at one or more of our facilities or those of our customers, component suppliers or our logistics partners. These events could lead to higher costs or supply shortages or may disrupt the delivery of components to us or our ability to provide finished products or services to our customers, any of which could adversely affect our operating results. We carry insurance to cover damage to our facilities and interruptions to our operations, including those that may occur as a result of natural disasters, such as flooding and earthquakes, or other events. Our insurance policies, however, are subject to deductibles, coverage limitations and exclusions, and may not provide adequate coverage.

        Our business is also affected by customers who sometimes shift production between EMS providers for a number of reasons, including pricing concessions, more favorable terms and conditions, or their preference or need to consolidate their supply chain capacity or the number of supply chain partners. Customers may also choose to accelerate the amount of business they outsource, insource previously outsourced business, or change the concentration or location of their EMS suppliers to better balance their supply continuity risk. As we respond to the impact of these customer decisions, these changes may impact, among other items, our revenue and margins, the need for future restructuring, the level of capital expenditures and our cash flows.

        The overall demand environment continues to be volatile across our end markets. Our revenue and margins will continue to be impacted by overall end market demand, the timing, extent and pricing of new or follow-on business, including the costs, terms and timing of ramping new business, and program losses or customer disengagements. Despite the challenging demand environment, we remain committed to making the appropriate investments we believe are required to support our long-term objectives and create shareholder value. Simultaneously, we intend to continue to manage costs and resources to maximize productivity. The costs of these investments and ramping activities may be significant and could negatively impact our margins in the short and medium term. However, we achieved continued improvements in margin performance throughout 2013, primarily due to a favorable program mix and our continued focus on cost containment.

        We completed the acquisitions of the semiconductor equipment contract manufacturing operations of Brooks Automation, Inc. (Brooks acquisition) in 2011 and D&H Manufacturing Company (D&H acquisition) in 2012 in support of our efforts to expand our offerings in our diversified end market. We believe that these acquisitions have established and enhanced our presence in the semiconductor capital equipment market. The semiconductor market is highly cyclical due to changes in customer requirements for new manufacturing capacity and technology transitions, and is also impacted by general economic conditions. Our semiconductor business has been negatively impacted by the overall downturn in the semiconductor industry in recent years and the cost of investments we have made, and has performed below our expectations. However, we remain focused on expanding our presence in this market and may commit further investment and resources in order to capitalize on perceived market potential and outsourcing opportunities, in part, based on anticipated overall demand improvement in the semiconductor industry (see further discussions below). We will continue our efforts to strengthen our existing relationships and develop new business opportunities with the leading customers in this market. Although there are indications of demand improvements, our margins have been, and may in the short and medium term continue to be, negatively impacted by this downturn, the cost of our investments, and may also be negatively impacted by the costs, terms and timing of ramping any new business. Any further growth in our presence in the semiconductor industry may lead to increased volatility in our profitability and may adversely impact our financial position and cash flows.

Summary of 2013

        Our consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with IFRS as issued by the IASB and accounting policies we adopted in accordance with IFRS. These consolidated financial statements reflect all

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adjustments that are, in the opinion of management, necessary to present fairly our financial position as at December 31, 2013 and the financial performance, comprehensive income and cash flows for the year ended December 31, 2013. See "Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates" below.

        The following table shows certain key operating results and financial information for the years indicated (in millions, except per share amounts):

 
  Year ended December 31  
 
  2011(i)   2012   2013  

Revenue

  $ 7,213.0   $ 6,507.2   $ 5,796.1  

Gross profit

    488.6     438.4     389.5  

Selling, general and administrative expenses (SG&A)

    253.4     237.0     222.3  

Other charges

    6.5     59.5     4.0  

Net earnings

  $ 192.3   $ 117.7   $ 118.0  

Diluted earnings per share

  $ 0.88   $ 0.56   $ 0.64  

(i)
Effective January 1, 2013, we adopted the amendments to IAS19 (Employee Benefits), which required a retroactive restatement of prior periods. Our gross profit and net earnings for 2011 decreased by $2.8 million, and the impact on 2012 was not significant. See notes 2(x) and 18 to our consolidated financial statements.

 

 
  December 31
2011
  December 31
2012
  December 31
2013
 

Cash and cash equivalents

  $ 658.9   $ 550.5   $ 544.3  

Total assets

    2,969.6     2,658.8     2,638.9  

        Revenue of $5.8 billion for 2013 decreased 11% from $6.5 billion for 2012, primarily due to our disengagement from BlackBerry Limited (BlackBerry), formerly known as Research In Motion Limited, in 2012. After excluding revenue from BlackBerry, our revenue for 2013 increased 1% compared to 2012. Compared to 2012, revenue dollars from our consumer end market decreased 68% due to our disengagement from BlackBerry, and revenue dollars from our server end market decreased 27% primarily due to the insourcing of a server program by one of our customers and overall weaker demand. These decreases were offset in part by an 11% increase in revenue from our diversified end market, an 8% increase in revenue from our communications end market, and a 1% increase in revenue from our storage end market. The revenue increase in our diversified end market was primarily due to new program wins and our D&H acquisition. This acquisition contributed approximately one-third of the revenue increase in our diversified end market compared to 2012, with the balance driven primarily by revenue growth across our industrial and aerospace and defense businesses. The revenue increase in our communications end market was primarily driven by new program wins and, to a lesser extent, stronger customer demand compared to 2012. The modest revenue increase in our storage end market from 2012 was primarily due to new program wins, offset by weaker demand from one customer. Communications and diversified continued to be our largest end markets for 2013, representing 42% and 25%, respectively, of total revenue.

        Gross profit decreased 11% to $389.5 million for 2013 from $438.4 million for 2012, in line with the revenue decrease in 2013. Gross profit as a percentage of total revenue (gross margin) for 2013 of 6.7% was flat compared to 2012 despite the 11% revenue decrease due to improved program mix and our continued focus on cost containment in 2013. SG&A for 2013 decreased 6% to $222.3 million from $237.0 million for 2012, primarily due to our overall spending reductions, offset in part by higher variable compensation expenses in 2013. During 2013, we recorded lower restructuring charges, a $24.0 million recovery in connection with the settlement of certain class action lawsuits in which we were a plaintiff (see "Other charges" below), no impairment charges, and lower income tax recoveries compared to 2012. Net earnings for 2013 of $118.0 million were relatively flat compared to $117.7 million for 2012.

        Due to our disengagement from BlackBerry in 2012 and in response to the challenging demand environment, we announced in 2012 restructuring actions throughout our global network intended to reduce our overall cost structure and improve our margin performance. These restructuring actions are now complete.

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Compared to our previously announced range of $55 million to $65 million, we recorded aggregate restructuring charges of $72.0 million, comprised of $44.0 million in 2012 and $28.0 million in 2013. We exceeded our estimate as we decided to take additional restructuring actions in the fourth quarter of 2013 to further streamline and simplify our business and global operating network in response to the continuing challenging market environment. The restructuring charges we recorded in 2013 were primarily cash charges related to employee termination costs throughout our global network.

        We believe that our balance sheet remains strong. Our cash and cash equivalents at December 31, 2013 were $544.3 million (December 31, 2012 — $550.5 million). At December 31, 2013, there were no amounts outstanding (December 31, 2012 — $55.0 million outstanding) under our revolving credit facility and we had sold $50.0 million of accounts receivable (A/R) under our A/R sales facility as of December 31, 2013 (December 31, 2012 — $50.0 million of A/R sold).

        On August 2, 2013, we received approval from the TSX to launch a new NCIB (our prior NCIB expired on February 8, 2013). Under our current NCIB, we may repurchase in the open market, at our discretion, until the earlier of August 6, 2014 or the completion of purchases under the NCIB, up to approximately 9.8 million subordinate voting shares (representing approximately 5.3% of our total subordinate voting shares and multiple voting shares), subject to the normal terms and limitations of such bids. The maximum number of subordinate voting shares we are permitted to repurchase for cancellation under the NCIB is reduced by the number of subordinate voting shares we purchase for equity-based compensation plans. In December 2013, we entered into an Automatic Share Purchase Plan (ASPP) (our previous ASPP expired in October 2013) with a broker that allows the broker to purchase, on our behalf, up to approximately 1.3 million of our subordinate voting shares (for cancellation under the NCIB) at any time through February 2, 2014, including during any applicable trading blackout periods. During 2013, we paid $43.6 million, including transaction fees, to repurchase for cancellation under the NCIB 4.1 million subordinate voting shares at a weighted average price of $10.70 per share. At December 31, 2013, we recorded a liability of $9.8 million, representing the estimated cash required to repurchase the remaining 0.9 million subordinate voting shares available for purchase under the December 2013 ASPP.

        In February 2014, we received approval from the TSX to amend our NCIB in order to permit the repurchase of our subordinate voting shares under one or more program share repurchases (each a PSR) during the term of the NCIB. On February 12, 2014, we entered into a PSR with a broker and prepaid approximately $27 million to the broker for the right to receive a variable number of our subordinate voting shares upon program completion. Under the PSR, the price and the number of subordinate voting shares to be repurchased by us will be determined based on a discount to the volume weighted-average market price of our subordinate voting shares during the term of the PSR, subject to certain terms and conditions. The subordinate voting shares repurchased under the PSR will be cancelled under our current NCIB.

Summary of 2012

        In June 2012, we announced the wind down of our manufacturing services for BlackBerry. We completed our manufacturing services for BlackBerry and the related transition activities in 2012. BlackBerry represented 12% of revenue in 2012, down from 19% in 2011 and 20% in 2010.

        As discussed above, we announced in 2012 restructuring actions throughout our global network intended to reduce our overall cost structure and improve our margin performance. In connection with these restructuring actions, we recorded $44.0 million of restructuring charges in 2012. In 2012, we recorded cash restructuring charges of $27.8 million, primarily related to employee termination costs throughout our global network, including for our BlackBerry operations, and we recorded non-cash restructuring charges of $16.2 million, primarily to write down to recoverable amounts the BlackBerry-related equipment that was no longer in use in Mexico, Romania and Malaysia. We recorded restructuring charges of $14.5 million in 2011 related to a previous restructuring program.

        Revenue of $6.5 billion for 2012 decreased 10% from $7.2 billion for 2011; approximately 90% of this decrease was due to our disengagement from BlackBerry. After excluding revenue from BlackBerry for both years, our revenue for 2012 decreased 1% compared to 2011. Compared to 2011, revenue dollars from our consumer end market decreased 37% primarily due to our disengagement from BlackBerry, and revenue dollars

40


from our communications and servers end markets decreased 10% and 6%, respectively, due to overall demand weakness. These decreases were offset in part by increases in our diversified end market, which increased 27%, or $285 million, compared to 2011, primarily driven by new program wins and acquisitions. Revenue from our acquisitions contributed approximately one-half of the revenue increase in this end market year-over-year. Revenue dollars from our storage end market in 2012 were flat compared to 2011. Communications and diversified were our largest end markets for 2012, representing 35% and 20%, respectively, of total revenue.

        Gross profit decreased 10% to $438.4 million (6.7% of total revenue) for 2012 from $488.6 million (6.8% of total revenue) for 2011, in line with the revenue decrease in 2012. SG&A for 2012 decreased 6% to $237.0 million (3.6% of total revenue) from $253.4 million (3.5% of total revenue) for 2011, reflecting lower variable compensation expenses and overall cost savings. The change in gross margin and SG&A as a percentage of total revenue in 2012 was primarily driven by lower revenue levels in 2012. Net earnings for 2012 of $117.7 million were $74.6 million lower than for 2011, primarily due to overall lower sales volumes, higher restructuring charges, and $17.7 million of impairment charges, offset in part by higher income tax recoveries in 2012 compared to 2011.

        In September 2012, we completed the acquisition of D&H, a manufacturer of precision machined components and assemblies based in California, U.S.A. D&H provides manufacturing and engineering services, coupled with dedicated capacity and equipment for prototype and quick-turn support, to some of the world's leading semiconductor capital equipment manufacturers. We financed the purchase price of $71.0 million, net of cash acquired, from cash on hand. This acquisition did not have a significant impact on our consolidated results of operations for 2012.

        During the fourth quarter of 2012, we launched and successfully completed a substantial issuer bid (SIB) and paid $175 million to repurchase for cancellation 22.4 million subordinate voting shares at a price of $7.80 per share. We funded the share repurchases using a combination of cash on hand ($120 million) and cash from our revolving credit facility ($55 million). During 2012, we also paid $113.8 million to repurchase for cancellation 13.3 million subordinate voting shares at a weighted average price of $8.52 per share under our prior NCIB that expired in February 2013. During 2012, we returned over $280 million to our shareholders through share repurchases under our SIB and NCIB.

Other performance indicators:

        In addition to the key operating results and financial information described above, management reviews the following non-IFRS measures:

 
  1Q12   2Q12   3Q12   4Q12   1Q13   2Q13   3Q13   4Q13  

Cash cycle days:

                                                 

Days in A/R

    42     41     46     45     46     42     41     42  

Days in inventory

    52     50     53     51     54     53     57     58  

Days in A/P

    (59 )   (57 )   (60 )   (57 )   (60 )   (58 )   (58 )   (56 )
                                   

Cash cycle days

    35     34     39     39     40     37     40     44  

Inventory turns

    7.0x     7.3x     7.0x     7.2x     6.7x     6.9x     6.4x     6.3x  
                                   

 

 
  2012   2013  
 
  March 31   June 30   September 30   December 31   March 31   June 30   September 30   December 31  

Amount of A/R sold (in millions)

  $ 60.0   $ 45.0   $ 60.0   $ 50.0   $ 60.0   $ 50.0   $ 50.0   $ 50.0  

Amount of customer deposits (in millions)

  $ 99.0   $ 57.6   $ 30.0   $   $   $   $   $

 

        Days in A/R is calculated as the average A/R for the quarter divided by the average daily revenue. Days in inventory is calculated as the average inventory for the quarter divided by the average daily cost of sales. Days in accounts payable (A/P) is calculated as the average A/P for the quarter divided by average daily cost of sales.

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Cash cycle days is calculated as the sum of days in A/R and days in inventory, minus the days in A/P. Inventory turns is calculated as 365 divided by the number of days in inventory. These non-IFRS measures do not have comparable measures under IFRS to which we can reconcile.

        Cash cycle days for the fourth quarter of 2013 increased by 5 days, to 44 days, compared to the same period in 2012 as a result of a 7-day increase in days in inventory, a 1-day decrease in days in A/P, offset by a 3-day decrease in days in A/R. The increase in the days in inventory for the fourth quarter of 2013 compared to the same period in 2012 was driven by increased inventory levels primarily related to the transition of customer programs and, to a lesser extent, the increased forecast variability we continue to experience with certain customers. The decrease in the days in A/P for the fourth quarter of 2013 compared to the same period in 2012 was primarily due to the timing of purchases and payments in the respective quarters. The decrease in the days in A/R for the fourth quarter of 2013 was primarily due to changes in our customer mix, in particular a decline in revenue from customers with longer payment terms compared to the same period in 2012.

        Compared to the third quarter of 2013, cash cycle days increased 4 days in the fourth quarter of 2013 as a result of a 1-day increase in inventory and A/R, and a 2-day decrease in A/P. The decrease in the days in A/P was primarily due to the timing of purchases and payments in the respective quarters.

        We believe the cash cycle days (and the components thereof) and inventory turns are useful measures in providing investors with information regarding our cash management performance and are accepted measures of working capital management efficiency. These are not measures of performance under IFRS, and may not be defined and calculated by other companies in the same manner. These measures should not be considered in isolation or as an alternative to working capital as an indicator of performance.

        Management reviews other non-IFRS measures including adjusted net earnings, operating margin, ROIC and free cash flow. See "Non-IFRS measures" below.

Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates

        The preparation of financial statements in conformity with IFRS requires management to make judgments, estimates and assumptions that affect the application of accounting policies and the reported amounts of assets and liabilities, revenue and expenses and the related disclosures of contingent assets and liabilities. Actual results could differ materially from these estimates and assumptions. We review our estimates and underlying assumptions on an ongoing basis and make revisions as determined necessary by management. Revisions are recognized in the period in which the estimates are revised and may impact future periods as well. Significant accounting policies and methods used in the preparation of our consolidated financial statements are consistent with those described in note 2 to our 2013 consolidated financial statements.

Key sources of estimation uncertainty and judgment:

        We have applied significant estimates and assumptions in the following areas which we believe could have a significant impact on our reported results and financial position: our valuations of inventory, assets held for sale and income taxes; the amount of our restructuring charges or recoveries; the measurement of the recoverable amount of our cash generating units (CGUs), which we define as a group of assets that cannot be tested individually and that generates cash inflows that are largely independent of the cash inflows from other assets or groups of assets; our valuations of financial assets and liabilities, pension and non-pension post-employment benefit costs, stock-based compensation, provisions and contingencies; and the allocation of our purchase price and other valuations we use in our business acquisitions. The near-term economic environment could also impact certain estimates necessary to prepare our consolidated financial statements, in particular, the recoverable amount used in our impairment testing of our non-financial assets, and the discount rates applied to our net pension and non-pension post-employment benefit assets or liabilities.

        We have also applied significant judgment to the following areas: the determination of our CGUs and whether events or changes in circumstances during the period are indicators that a review for impairment should be conducted; and the timing of the recognition of charges and recoveries associated with restructuring actions. In 2013, we did not identify any triggering event that would indicate the carrying amount of our CGUs may not be recoverable.

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Inventory valuation:

        We procure inventory and manufacture based on specific customer orders and forecasts and value our inventory on a first-in, first-out basis at the lower of cost and net realizable value. The cost of our finished goods and work-in-progress includes direct materials, labor and overhead. We may require valuation adjustments if actual market conditions or demand for our customers' products are less favorable than we had projected. The determination of net realizable value involves significant management judgment. We consider factors such as shrinkage, the aging of and future demand for the inventory, and contractual arrangements with customers. We attempt to utilize excess inventory in other products we manufacture or return inventory to the suppliers or customers. We use future sales volume forecasts to estimate excess inventory on-hand. A change to these assumptions may impact our inventory valuation and our gross margins. Should circumstances change, we may adjust our previous write-downs in our consolidated statement of operations in the period a change in estimate occurs.

Income taxes:

        We record an income tax expense or recovery based on the income earned or loss incurred in each tax jurisdiction at the enacted or substantively enacted tax rate applicable to that income or loss. In the ordinary course of business, there are many transactions for which the ultimate tax outcome is uncertain and estimates are required for exposures related to examinations by taxation authorities. We review these transactions and exposures and record tax liabilities for open years based on our assessment of many factors, including past experience and interpretations of tax law applied to the facts of each matter. The determination of tax liabilities is subjective and generally involves a significant amount of judgment. We believe that our income tax liability reflects the probable outcome of our income tax obligations based on the facts and the circumstances; however, the final income tax outcome may be different from our estimates. A change to these estimates could impact our income tax provision.

        We recognize deferred income tax assets to the extent we believe it is probable that the amount will be realized. We consider factors such as the reversal of taxable temporary differences, projected future taxable income, the character of the income tax asset, tax planning strategies, changes in tax laws and other factors. A change to these factors could impact the amount of deferred income tax assets we recognize.

Goodwill, intangible assets and property, plant and equipment:

        We estimate the useful lives of intangible assets and property, plant and equipment based on the nature of the asset, historical experience, the projected period of future economic benefits to be provided by the assets, the terms of any related customer contract, and expected changes in technology. We review the carrying amounts of goodwill, intangible assets and property, plant and equipment for impairment on an annual basis and whenever events or changes in circumstances (triggering events) indicate that the carrying amount of an asset or CGU may not be recoverable. If any such indication exists, we test the carrying amount of an asset or a CGU for impairment. Absent triggering events during the year, we conduct our impairment assessment in the fourth quarter of each year to correspond with our planning cycle. Judgment is required in the determination of our CGUs and whether events or changes in circumstances during the year are indicators that a review for impairment should be conducted prior to the annual assessment.

        We recognize an impairment loss when the carrying amount of an asset, CGU or group of CGUs exceeds the recoverable amount. The recoverable amount of an asset, CGU or group of CGUs is measured as the greater of its value-in-use and its fair value less costs to sell. The process of determining the recoverable amount is subjective and requires management to exercise significant judgment in estimating future growth and discount rates and projecting cash flows, among other factors. The process of determining fair value less costs to sell requires valuations and use of appraisals. Where applicable, we work with independent brokers to obtain market prices to estimate our real property values. We recognize impairment losses in our consolidated statement of operations. We first allocate impairment losses in respect of a CGU to reduce the carrying amount of goodwill and then to reduce the carrying amount of other assets in the CGU or group of CGUs on a pro rata basis.

        We do not reverse impairment losses for goodwill in future periods. We reverse impairment losses other than for goodwill, if the losses we recognized in prior periods no longer exist or have decreased. At each

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reporting date, we review for indicators that could change the estimates we used to determine the recoverable amount. The amount of the reversal is limited to restoring the carrying amount to the amount that would have been determined, net of depreciation or amortization, had we recognized no impairment loss in prior periods.

Restructuring charges:

        We incur restructuring charges relating to workforce reductions, facility consolidations and costs associated with exiting businesses. Our restructuring charges include employee severance and benefit costs, gains, losses or impairments related to owned facilities and equipment we no longer use and which are available for sale, impairment of related intangible assets, and costs related to leased facilities and equipment we no longer use.

        The recognition of these charges requires management to make certain judgments and estimates regarding the nature, timing and amounts associated with these restructuring plans. Our major assumptions include the timing and number of employees we will terminate, the measurement of termination costs, and the timing of disposition and estimated fair values less costs to sell for assets we no longer use and which are available for sale. We recognize employee termination costs in the period the detailed plans are approved and when the employees are informed of their termination. For owned facilities and equipment that are no longer in use and are available for sale, we recognize an impairment loss based on the fair value less costs to sell, with fair value estimated based on market prices for similar assets. We may engage independent third parties to determine the fair value less costs to sell for these assets. For leased facilities that we have vacated, we discount the lease obligation based on future lease payments net of estimated sublease income. We recognize the change in provisions due to the passage of time as finance costs. To estimate future sublease income, we work with independent brokers to determine the estimated tenant rents we can expect to realize. At the end of each reporting period, we evaluate the appropriateness of the remaining balances. We may require adjustments to the recorded amounts to reflect actual experience or changes in future estimates.

Pension:

        We have pension and non-pension post-employment benefit costs and liabilities that are determined from actuarial valuations. Actuarial valuations require management to make certain judgments and estimates relating to salary escalation, compensation levels at the time of retirement, retirement ages, the discount rate used in measuring the liability and expected plan investment performance, and expected healthcare costs. These actuarial assumptions could change from period-to-period and actual results could differ materially from the estimates originally made by management. The fair values of our pension assets were based on a measurement date of December 31, 2013. We evaluate our assumptions on a regular basis, taking into consideration current market conditions and historical data. There can be no assurance that our pension plan assets will earn the assumed rate of return. Market driven changes may affect our discount rates and other variables which could cause actual results to differ from our estimates, and such differences may be material. Changes in assumptions could impact our pension plan valuations and our future pension expense and funding. See notes 2(n) and 18 to our consolidated financial statements.

Stock-based compensation:

        We recognize the grant date fair value of options granted to employees as compensation expense in our consolidated statement of operations, with a corresponding charge to contributed surplus in our consolidated balance sheet, over the vesting period. We adjust compensation expense to reflect the estimated number of options we expect to vest at the end of the vesting period. When options are exercised, we credit the proceeds to capital stock in our consolidated balance sheet. We measure the fair value of options using the Black-Scholes option pricing model. Measurement inputs include the price of our subordinate voting shares on the grant date, the exercise price of the option, and our estimates of the following: expected price volatility of our subordinate voting shares (based on weighted average historic volatility), weighted average expected life of the option (based on historical experience and general option holder behavior), expected dividends, and the risk-free interest rate.

        The cost we record for equity-settled RSUs, for PSUs granted prior to 2011, and for 40% of the PSUs granted in 2013 is based on the market value of our subordinate voting shares at the time of grant. The cost we record for PSUs that vest based on a non-market performance condition is based on our estimate of the

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outcome of the performance conditions. We adjust the cost of PSUs as new facts and circumstances arise; the timing of these adjustments is subject to judgment. We generally record adjustments to the cost of PSUs during the last year of the three-year term based on management's estimate of the achievement of the performance conditions. We amortize the cost of RSUs and PSUs to compensation expense in our consolidated statement of operations, with a corresponding charge to contributed surplus in our consolidated balance sheet, over the vesting period. Historically, we have generally settled these awards with subordinate voting shares purchased in the open market by a trustee. We have also cash-settled certain awards which we account for as liabilities and re-measure them based on our share price at each reporting date and at the settlement date. We record the corresponding charge or recovery to compensation expense in our consolidated statement of operations.

        We determine the cost we record for all PSUs granted in 2011 and 2012, and 60% of our PSUs granted in 2013 using a Monte Carlo simulation model. The number of awards expected to be earned is factored into the grant date Monte Carlo valuation for the award. The number of these PSUs that will vest depends on the level of achievement of a market performance condition, over a three-year period, based on our total shareholder return (TSR) relative to the TSR of a pre-defined electronics manufacturing services (EMS) competitor group. We do not adjust the grant date fair value regardless of the eventual number of awards that are earned based on the market performance condition. We recognize compensation expense in our consolidated statement of operations on a straight-line basis over the requisite service period and we reduce this expense for the estimated PSU awards that are not expected to vest because the employment conditions will not be satisfied.

        We grant deferred share units (DSU) to certain members of our Board of Directors as part of their compensation, which is comprised of an annual equity award, an annual retainer, and meeting fees. In the case of the annual equity award, which is granted in equal amounts each quarter, the number of DSUs we grant is determined by dividing the dollar value of the award by the closing price of our subordinate voting shares on the NYSE on the last business day of the quarter. In the case of the annual retainer and meeting fees, the number of DSUs we grant is determined by dividing either 50% or 100% (depending on the election made by each director), of the dollar value of the retainer and fees earned in the quarter by the closing price of the subordinate voting shares on the NYSE on the last business day of the quarter. Each DSU represents the right to receive one subordinate voting share or an equivalent value in cash after the individual ceases to serve as a director. For DSUs granted prior to January 1, 2007, we may settle these share units with subordinate voting shares, issued from treasury or purchased in the open market, or with cash. For DSUs granted after January 1, 2007, we may only settle these share units with subordinate voting shares purchased in the open market or with cash. We record the cost of DSUs to compensation expense in the period the services are rendered.

Operating Results

        Our annual and quarterly operating results, including working capital performance, vary from period-to-period as a result of the level and timing of customer orders, mix of revenue, and fluctuations in materials and other costs and expenses. The level and timing of customer orders will vary due to changes in demand for their products, general economic conditions, their attempts to balance their inventory, availability of components and materials, and changes in their supply chain strategies or suppliers. Our annual and quarterly operating results are specifically affected by, among other factors: our mix of customers and the types of products or services we provide; the rate at which, and the costs associated with, new program ramps; volumes and seasonality of business; price competition; the mix of manufacturing or service value-add; capacity utilization; manufacturing efficiency; the degree of automation used in the assembly process; the availability of components or labor; the timing of receiving components and materials; costs and inefficiencies of transferring programs between facilities; the loss of programs, customer disengagements and the timing and the margin of any replacement business; the impact of foreign exchange fluctuations; the performance of third-party providers; our ability to manage inventory, production location and equipment effectively; our ability to manage changing labor, component, energy and transportation costs effectively; fluctuations in variable compensation costs; the timing of our expenditures in anticipation of forecasted sales levels; and the timing of our acquisitions and the related integration costs. Our operations may also be affected by natural disasters or other local risks present in the jurisdictions in which we, our suppliers and our customers operate. These events could lead to higher costs or supply shortages or may disrupt the delivery of components to us or our ability to provide finished products or services to our customers, any of which could adversely affect our operating results.

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        In the EMS industry, customers can award new programs or shift programs to other EMS providers for a variety of reasons including changes in demand for the customers' products, pricing benefits offered by other EMS providers, execution or quality issues, preference for consolidation or a change in their supplier base, rebalancing the concentration or location of their EMS providers, consolidation among customers, and decisions to adjust the volume of business being outsourced. Customer or program transfers between EMS providers are part of the competitive nature of our industry. Some customers use more than one EMS provider to manufacture a product and/or may have the same EMS provider support them from more than one geographic location. Customers may choose to change the allocation of demand amongst their EMS providers and/or may shift programs from one region to another region within an EMS provider's global network. Customers may also decide to insource production they had previously outsourced to utilize their excess internal capacity or for other reasons. Our operating results for each period include the impacts associated with new program wins, follow-on business or program losses, as well as acquisitions. The volume, profitability and the location of new business awards will vary from period-to-period and from program-to-program. Significant period-to-period variations can also result from the timing of new programs reaching full production or programs reaching end-of-life, the timing of follow-on or next generation programs and/or the timing of existing programs being fully or partially transferred internally or to a competitor.

Operating results expressed as a percentage of revenue:

 
  Year ended December 31  
 
  2011   2012   2013  

Revenue

    100.0 %   100.0 %   100.0 %

Cost of sales

    93.2     93.3     93.3  
               

Gross profit

    6.8     6.7     6.7  

SG&A

    3.5     3.6     3.8  

Research and development costs

    0.2     0.2     0.3  

Amortization of intangible assets

    0.2     0.2     0.2  

Other charges

    0.1     0.9     0.1  

Finance costs

        0.1     0.1  
               

Earnings before income tax

    2.8     1.7     2.2  

Income tax expense (recovery)

    0.1     (0.1 )   0.2  
               

Net earnings

    2.7 %   1.8 %   2.0 %
               

Revenue:

        Revenue of $5.8 billion for 2013 decreased 11% from $6.5 billion for 2012, primarily due to our disengagement from BlackBerry in 2012. After excluding revenue from BlackBerry, our revenue for 2013 increased 1% compared to 2012. Compared to 2012, revenue dollars from our consumer end market decreased 68% due to our disengagement from BlackBerry, and revenue dollars from our server end market decreased 27% primarily due to the insourcing of a server program by one of our customers and overall weaker demand. These decreases were offset in part by an 11% increase in revenue from our diversified end market, an 8% increase in revenue from our communications end market, and a 1% increase in revenue from our storage end market. The revenue increase in our diversified end market was primarily due to new program wins and our D&H acquisition. This acquisition contributed approximately one-third of the revenue increase in our diversified end market compared to 2012, with the balance driven primarily by revenue growth across our industrial and aerospace and defense businesses. The revenue increase in our communications end market was primarily driven by new program wins and, to a lesser extent, stronger customer demand compared to 2012. The modest revenue increase in our storage end market from 2012 was primarily due to new program wins, offset by weaker demand from one customer. Communications and diversified continued to be our largest end markets for 2013, representing 42% and 25%, respectively, of total revenue.

        Revenue of $6.5 billion for 2012 decreased 10% from $7.2 billion for 2011; approximately 90% of this decrease was due to our disengagement from BlackBerry. After excluding revenue from BlackBerry for both

46


years, our revenue for 2012 decreased 1% compared to 2011. Compared to 2011, revenue dollars from our consumer end market decreased 37% primarily due to our disengagement from BlackBerry, and revenue dollars from our communications and servers end markets decreased 10% and 6%, respectively, due to overall demand weakness. These decreases were offset in part by increases in our diversified end market, which increased 27%, or $285 million, compared to 2011, primarily driven by new program wins and acquisitions. Revenue from our acquisitions contributed approximately one-half of the revenue increase in this end market year-over-year. Revenue dollars from our storage end market in 2012 were flat compared to 2011. Communications and diversified were our largest end markets for 2012, representing 35% and 20%, respectively, of total revenue.

        The following table shows revenue from the end markets we serve as a percentage of revenue for the years indicated:

 
  2011   2012   2013  

Communications

    35%     35%     42%  

Consumer

    25%     18%     6%  

Diversified

    14%     20%     25%  

Servers

    15%     15%     13%  

Storage

    11%     12%     14%  

Revenue (in billions)

 
$

7.21
 
$

6.51
 
$

5.80
 

        Our product and service volumes, revenue and operating results vary from period-to-period depending on the success in the marketplace of our customers' products, changes in demand from our customers for the products we manufacture, the impact of seasonality on various end markets, the mix and complexity of the products or services we provide, the timing of receiving components and materials, the extent, timing and rate of new program wins, follow-on business, or program losses, the transfer of programs among our facilities at our customers' request and the costs, terms, timing and rate at which new programs are ramped up, among other factors. We are dependent on a limited number of customers for a substantial portion of our revenue. We also expect that the pace of technological change, the frequency of customers' transferring business among EMS competitors or customers changing the volumes they outsource, and the dynamics of the global economy will continue to impact our business from period to period. See "Overview" above.

        In the past, we have experienced some level of seasonality in our quarterly revenue patterns across some of the end markets we serve. We expect that the numerous factors described above that affect our period-to-period results will continue to make it difficult for us to predict the extent and impact of seasonality and other external factors on our business.

        The significant decrease in revenue from our consumer end market attributable to our disengagement from BlackBerry in 2012 resulted in proportionately higher percentages of total revenue for all of our other end markets in 2013 compared to their respective revenue percentages in prior years.

        Our communications end market represented 42% of total revenue for 2013 compared to 35% of total revenue for both 2012 and 2011, due in part to our disengagement from BlackBerry described above. Revenue dollars from this end market for 2013 increased 8% compared to 2012, primarily due to new program wins and, to a lesser extent, stronger demand from a number of our customers. Revenue dollars from this end market decreased 10% in 2012 compared to 2011, primarily due to weaker demand across a number of customers in 2012.

        Our consumer end market represented 6% of total revenue for 2013, down from 18% of total revenue for 2012 and 25% of total revenue for 2011. Revenue dollars from our consumer end market for 2013 decreased 68% compared to 2012 and 80% compared to 2011, primarily as a result of our disengagement from BlackBerry in 2012. BlackBerry was our largest customer and had historically represented approximately three-quarters of our consumer end market business. Our revenue from BlackBerry was nil for 2013, down from 12% of total revenue for 2012 and 19% for 2011.

        Our diversified end market represented 25% of total revenue for 2013, up from 20% of total revenue in 2012 and 14% of total revenue in 2011, in part due to the significant decrease in consumer end market revenue

47


described above. Revenue dollars from our diversified end market for 2013 increased 11% compared to 2012 and 42% compared to 2011, primarily due to new program wins and acquisitions. While our diversified end market experienced year-over-year growth, our results in this end market were not as strong as we expected, resulting in part from continued weak demand particularly in the semiconductor business, as discussed above.

        For 2013, revenue dollars from our server end market decreased 27% and 32%, compared to 2012 and 2011, respectively, primarily as a result of the insourcing of a server program by one of our top customers and overall weaker demand in this end market. The insourcing of this program was completed in the third quarter of 2013. Revenue dollars from our server end market for 2012 decreased 6% compared to 2011 as a result of demand weakness from one of our top customers.

        Revenue dollars from our storage end market for 2013 increased 1% compared to both 2012 and 2011, primarily driven by new program wins, partially offset by weaker demand from one customer. Revenue dollars from our storage end market for 2012 were flat compared to 2011.

        For 2013, we had two customers (Cisco Systems and Juniper Networks) that individually represented more than 10% of total revenue (2012 and 2011 — two customers (BlackBerry and Cisco Systems)).

        Whether any of our customers individually accounts for more than 10% of our total revenue in any period depends on various factors affecting our business with that customer and with other customers, including overall changes in demand for our customers' products, seasonality of business, the extent and timing of new program wins, follow-on business or program losses, the phasing in or out of programs, the relative growth rate or decline of our business with our various customers, price competition and changes in our customers' supplier base or supply chain strategies.

        In the aggregate, our top 10 customers represented 65% of total revenue for 2013 (2012 — 67%; 2011 — 71%). We are dependent to a significant degree upon continued revenue from our largest customers. We generally enter into master supply agreements with our customers that provide the framework for our overall relationship. These agreements typically do not guarantee a particular level of business or fixed pricing. Instead, we bid on a program-by-program basis and typically receive customer purchase orders for specific quantities and timing of products. There can be no assurance that revenue from any of our major customers will continue at historical levels or will not decrease in absolute terms or as a percentage of total revenue. A significant revenue decrease or pricing pressures from these or other customers, or a loss of a major customer or program, could have a material adverse impact on our business, our operating results and our financial position.

        In the EMS industry, customers may cancel contracts and volume levels can be changed or delayed. Customers may also shift business to a competitor or bring programs in-house to improve their own utilization or to adjust the concentration of their supplier base to manage supply continuity risk. We cannot assure the timely replacement of delayed, cancelled or reduced orders with new business. In addition, we cannot assure that any of our current customers will continue to utilize our services. Order cancellations and changes or delays in production could have a material adverse impact on our results of operations and working capital performance, including requiring us to carry higher than expected levels of inventory. Order cancellations and delays could also lower our asset utilization, resulting in lower margins. Significant period-to-period changes in margins can also result if new program wins or follow-on business are more competitively priced than past programs.

        We believe that delivering profitable revenue growth depends on increasing sales to existing customers for their current and future product generations and expanding the range of services we provide to these customers. We also continue to pursue new customers and acquisition opportunities to expand our end market penetration, diversify our end market mix, and to enhance and add new technologies and capabilities to our offerings.

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Gross profit:

        The following table is a breakdown of gross profit and gross margin (gross profit as a percentage of total revenue) for the years indicated:

 
  Year ended December 31  
 
  2011   2012   2013  

Gross profit (in millions)

  $ 488.6   $ 438.4   $ 389.5  

Gross margin

    6.8%     6.7%     6.7%  

        Gross profit for 2013 decreased 11% from 2012, in line with the revenue decrease in 2013. Gross margin was 6.7% for both 2012 and 2013 despite the 11% revenue decrease due to improved program mix and our continued focus on cost containment in 2013.

        Gross profit for 2012 decreased 10% from 2011, in line with the revenue decrease in 2012. Gross margin decreased from 6.8% for 2011 to 6.7% for 2012, primarily due to lower revenue levels in 2012.

        In addition to fluctuations in revenue, multiple factors cause gross margin to fluctuate including, among the factors described above and others: volume and mix of products or services; higher/lower revenue concentration in lower gross margin products and end markets; pricing pressure; contract terms and conditions; production efficiencies; utilization of manufacturing capacity; changing material and labor costs, including variable labor costs associated with direct manufacturing employees; manufacturing and transportation costs; start-up and ramp-up activities; new product introductions; disruption in production at individual sites; cost structures at individual sites; foreign exchange volatility; and the availability of components and materials.

        Our gross profit and SG&A are impacted by the level of variable compensation expense we record in each period. Variable compensation includes our team incentive plans available to eligible employees, sales incentive plans and equity-based compensation, such as stock options, performance share units (PSUs) and restricted share units (RSUs). See "Stock-based compensation" below. The amount of variable compensation expense varies each period depending on the level of achievement of pre-determined performance goals and financial targets.

Selling, general and administrative expenses:

        SG&A for 2013 of $222.3 million (3.8% of total revenue) decreased 6% compared to $237.0 million (3.6% of total revenue) for 2012. The decrease in SG&A dollars reflected our overall spending reductions, offset in part by higher variable compensation expenses in 2013. The increase in SG&A as a percentage of revenue in 2013 compared to 2012 reflected the lower revenue levels in 2013.

        SG&A for 2012 of $237.0 million (3.6% of total revenue) decreased 6% compared to $253.4 million (3.5% of total revenue) for 2011, reflecting lower variable compensation expenses and overall cost savings. The increase in SG&A as a percentage of total revenue for 2012 compared to 2011 reflects the lower revenue levels in 2012.

Stock-based compensation:

        Our stock-based compensation expense, which excludes DSU expense, varies each period, and includes mark-to-market adjustments for awards we settle in cash and any plan adjustments. The portion of our expense that relates to performance-based compensation generally varies depending on our level of achievement of pre-determined performance goals and financial targets. We recorded the following stock-based compensation expense in cost of sales (2013 — $12.5 million; 2012 — $13.4 million; 2011 — $15.5 million) and SG&A (2013 — $16.7 million; 2012 — $22.2 million; 2011 — $28.7 million) for the years indicated (in millions):

 
  Year ended December 31  
 
  2011   2012   2013  

Stock-based compensation

  $ 44.2   $ 35.6   $ 29.2  

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        Compared to 2012, stock-based compensation expense for 2013 decreased $6.4 million, primarily due to an adjustment recorded in 2012 to reflect the estimated level of achievement related to our performance-based compensation.

        Compared to 2011, stock-based compensation expense for 2012 decreased $8.6 million, reflecting lower mark-to-market and plan adjustments, as described below, and higher expense reversals due to forfeited awards related to terminated employees.

        In 2010, we elected to cash-settle certain awards vesting in the first quarter of 2011 due to limitations on the number of subordinate voting shares that could be purchased in the open market during the term of a prior share buy-back program. We also elected to cash-settle certain RSUs vesting in the fourth quarter of 2012 due to a prohibition on the purchase of subordinate voting shares in the open market during the SIB. We account for cash-settled awards as liabilities and we re-measure these based on the closing price of our subordinate voting shares at each reporting date and at the settlement date, with a corresponding charge or recovery to compensation expense. The mark-to-market adjustment on these cash-settled awards was $0.2 million for 2012 (2011 — $2.7 million). When we made the decision in the fourth quarter of 2012 to settle these awards with cash, we reclassified $3.4 million in 2012 (2011 — nil, as such reclassification was recorded in the fourth quarter of 2010 when we made the decision to cash-settle those awards), representing the fair value of these awards, from contributed surplus to accrued liabilities. We did not cash-settle any vested share unit awards in 2013. As management currently intends to settle all other outstanding share unit awards with subordinate voting shares purchased in the open market by a trustee or by issuing subordinate voting shares from treasury, we have accounted for these share unit awards as equity-settled awards. See "Cash requirements" below.

        We made changes in 2011 to the retirement eligibility clauses in our equity-based compensation plans which required us to accelerate the recognition of the related compensation expense. The adjustment we recorded to stock-based compensation expense for 2011 was $1.7 million higher than the adjustment we recorded in 2012; the adjustment in 2011 also included an adjustment for unvested awards granted prior to 2011.

Other charges:

 
  Year ended December 31  
 
  2011   2012   2013  

Restructuring charges

  $ 14.5   $ 44.0   $ 28.0  

        Due to our disengagement from BlackBerry in 2012 and in response to the challenging demand environment, we announced in 2012 restructuring actions throughout our global network intended to reduce our overall cost structure and improve our margin performance. These restructuring actions are now complete. Compared to our previously announced estimated range of $55 million to $65 million, we recorded aggregate restructuring charges of $72.0 million, comprised of $44.0 million in 2012 and $28.0 million in 2013, including $17.5 million in the fourth quarter of 2013 (fourth quarter of 2012 — $16.7 million). We exceeded our estimate as we decided to take additional restructuring actions in the fourth quarter of 2013 to further streamline and simplify our business and global operating network in response to the continuing challenging market environment. The restructuring charges we recorded in 2013 were primarily cash charges related to employee termination costs throughout our global network. At December 31, 2013, our restructuring liability was $18.0 million, comprised primarily of employee termination costs and contractual lease obligations which we expect to pay during 2014. All cash outlays have been, and the balance is expected to be, funded from cash on hand.

        During 2012, we recorded cash restructuring charges primarily related to employee termination costs throughout our global network, including for our BlackBerry operations, and we recorded non-cash restructuring charges primarily to write down the BlackBerry-related equipment to recoverable amounts.

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        During 2011, we recorded restructuring charges of $14.5 million related to a previous restructuring program. These restructuring charges were primarily for employee termination costs and contractual lease obligations.

        We evaluate our operations from time-to-time and may propose future restructuring actions or divestitures as a result of changes in the marketplace and/or our exit from less profitable, non-core or non-strategic operations. An increase in the frequency of customers transferring business to our EMS competitors, changes in the volumes they outsource, or requests to transfer their programs among our facilities, may also result in our taking future restructuring actions.

 
  Year ended December 31  
 
  2011   2012   2013  

Asset impairment

  $   $ 17.7   $

 

        We conduct our annual impairment assessment of goodwill, intangible assets and property, plant and equipment in the fourth quarter of each year and whenever events or changes in circumstance indicate that the carrying amount of an asset, CGU or a group of CGUs may not be recoverable. We recognize an impairment loss when the carrying amount of an asset, CGU or a group of CGUs exceeds the recoverable amount, which is measured as the greater of its value-in-use and its fair value less costs to sell.

        During 2013, we did not identify any triggering event that would indicate the carrying amount of our assets or CGUs may not be recoverable. In the fourth quarter of 2013, we completed our annual impairment assessment of goodwill, intangible assets, and property, plant and equipment and determined that the recoverable amount of our assets and CGUs exceeded their respective carrying values and that no impairment existed as of the date of the impairment assessment.

        In the second quarter of 2012, we tested the carrying amounts of the CGUs that were impacted by the wind down of our manufacturing services for BlackBerry in Mexico, Romania and Malaysia. We recorded an impairment loss on the BlackBerry-related assets that were available for sale in restructuring charges (see note 15(a) of our consolidated financial statements, and the discussion of restructuring charges above). We then compared the remaining carrying amounts of these CGUs to their recoverable amounts and determined there was no impairment to these assets that had not been recorded to restructuring charges in 2012.

        In the fourth quarter of 2012, we performed our annual impairment assessment of goodwill, intangible assets and property, plant and equipment. We recorded non-cash impairment charges totaling $17.7 million, comprised of $14.6 million against goodwill, $0.7 million against computer software assets and $2.4 million against property, plant and equipment. See notes 7 and 8 of our consolidated financial statements. The majority of our impairment related to goodwill that arose from a prior acquisition in the healthcare industry, primarily because our overall progress and the ability to ramp our healthcare business were slower than we originally anticipated. As a result, we recorded a goodwill impairment loss of $11.9 million in 2012 related to that acquisition.

        Our CGU arising from our 2011 Brooks acquisition and our 2012 D&H acquisition, which includes an aggregate of $60.3 million of goodwill and an aggregate of $28.6 million of customer intangible assets, has been negatively impacted by the downturn in the semiconductor industry in recent years and the cost of investments we have made, and has performed below our expectations. However, we continue to develop new business opportunities with our semiconductor customers. For purposes of our impairment assessment, we have assumed growth for this CGU in 2014 and future years from new business awarded in 2013, future awards of new business, and overall improvement in semiconductor end market demand based on certain market trend analyses published by external sources. We have also assumed improvements to the profitability of this CGU as we ramp new business and leverage our capital investments. Failure to realize the assumed revenues at an appropriate profit margin or failure to improve the profitability of this CGU could result in an impairment loss in a future period for this CGU. Based on our sensitivity analysis, no impairment would arise if we reduced both

51


the CGU's projected annual revenue by 5% and its projected profitability as a percentage of revenue by approximately 40 basis points, or if we increased the discount rate to 21%.

        During the fourth quarter of 2011, we performed our annual impairment assessment of goodwill, intangible assets and property, plant and equipment and determined there was no impairment.

        (iii) In July 2013, in connection with the settlement of certain class action lawsuits in which we were a plaintiff, we received recoveries of damages in the amount of $24.0 million related to certain purchases we made in prior periods. We recorded these recoveries in other charges (recoveries) in our consolidated statement of operations in 2013.

        In connection with the 2009 settlement of certain other class action lawsuits in which we were a plaintiff, we recorded a provision related to the 2009 recovery of damages. Based on management's assessment of the potential outcomes, we deemed this provision was no longer necessary and released $5.2 million during 2011 in other charges (recoveries) in our consolidated statement of operations.

Income taxes:

        We had an income tax expense of $12.7 million on earnings before tax of $130.7 million for 2013, compared to an income tax recovery of $5.8 million on earnings before tax of $111.9 million for 2012 and an income tax expense of $3.7 million on earnings before tax of $196.0 million for 2011. Current income taxes for 2013 consisted primarily of the tax expense in jurisdictions with current taxes payable and changes to our net provisions related to tax uncertainties. Deferred income taxes for 2013 consisted primarily of net deferred income tax recoveries for changes in temporary differences in various jurisdictions.

        Current income taxes for 2012 consisted primarily of the tax expense in jurisdictions with current taxes payable and tax benefits arising from changes to our provisions related to certain tax uncertainties. Deferred income taxes for 2012 were comprised primarily of the deferred income tax assets of $10.4 million we recognized in the United States as a result of our D&H acquisition, offset in part by net deferred income tax expense for changes in temporary differences in various jurisdictions. In addition, during the fourth quarter of 2012, we commenced a corporate tax reorganization involving certain of our European subsidiaries. As a result, we recognized $17.0 million of deferred income tax assets as it became probable that the temporary differences associated with our investment in these subsidiaries would reverse in the foreseeable future.

        Current income taxes for 2011 consisted primarily of the tax expense in jurisdictions with current taxes payable and changes to our net provisions related to tax uncertainties, including current tax recoveries resulting from the settlement of tax audits. Deferred income taxes for 2011 were comprised primarily of the deferred tax recovery we recognized in Canada for an inter-company investment we wrote off relating to a restructured subsidiary.

        We conduct business operations in a number of countries, including countries where tax incentives have been extended to encourage foreign investment or where income tax rates are low. Our effective tax rate can vary significantly from period to period for various reasons, including the mix and volume of business in lower tax jurisdictions in Europe and Asia, and in jurisdictions with tax holidays and tax incentives that have been negotiated with the respective tax authorities (which expire between 2014 and 2026). Our effective tax rate can also vary as a result of restructuring charges, foreign exchange fluctuations, operating losses, certain tax exposures, the time period in which losses may be used under tax laws and whether management believes it is probable that future taxable profit will be available to allow us to recognize deferred income tax assets.

        Certain countries in which we do business negotiate tax incentives to attract and retain our business. Our taxes could increase if certain tax incentives from which we benefit are retracted. A retraction could occur if we fail to satisfy the conditions on which these tax incentives are based, if they are not renewed upon expiration, if tax rates applicable to us in such jurisdictions are otherwise increased, or due to changes in legislation or administrative practices. Changes in our outlook in any particular country could impact our ability to meet the required conditions.

        During the first quarter of 2014, Malaysian investment authorities concluded their evaluation, and approved our request to revise certain required conditions related to income tax incentives for one of our Malaysian

52


subsidiaries. The benefits of these tax incentives were not previously recognized, as prior to this revision we had not anticipated meeting the required conditions. As a result of this approval, we recognized an income tax benefit of approximately $14 million in the first quarter of 2014 relating to years 2010 through 2013.

        In certain jurisdictions, primarily in the Americas and Europe, we currently have significant net operating losses and other deductible temporary differences, which we expect will reduce taxable income in these jurisdictions in future periods.

        We develop our tax filing positions based upon the anticipated nature and structure of our business and the tax laws, administrative practices and judicial decisions currently in effect in the jurisdictions in which we have assets or conduct business, all of which are subject to change or differing interpretations, possibly with retroactive effect. We are subject to tax audits and reviews by local tax authorities of historical information which could result in additional tax expense in future periods relating to prior results. Reviews by tax authorities generally focus on, but are not limited to, the validity of our inter-company transactions, including financing and transfer pricing policies which generally involve subjective areas of taxation and a significant degree of judgment. Any such increase in our income tax expense and related interest and/or penalties could have a significant impact on our future earnings and future cash flows.

        Certain of our subsidiaries provide financing, products and services, and may from time-to-time undertake certain significant transactions with other subsidiaries in different jurisdictions. Moreover, several jurisdictions in which we operate have tax laws with detailed transfer pricing rules which require that all transactions with non-resident related parties be priced using arm's length pricing principles, and that contemporaneous documentation must exist to support such pricing.

        Tax authorities in Canada have taken the position that income reported by one of our Canadian subsidiaries should have been materially higher in 2001 and 2002 and materially lower in 2003 and 2004 as a result of certain inter-company transactions, and have imposed limitations on benefits associated with favorable adjustments arising from inter-company transactions and other adjustments. We have appealed this decision with the Canadian tax authorities and will also seek assistance from the relevant Competent Authorities in resolving the transfer pricing matter under relevant treaty principles. We could be required to provide security up to an estimated maximum range of $20 million to $25 million Canadian dollars (approximately $19 million to $23 million at year-end exchange rates) in the form of letters of credit to the tax authorities in connection with the transfer pricing appeal. If tax authorities are successful with their challenge, we estimate that the maximum net impact for additional income taxes and interest charges associated with the proposed limitations of the favorable adjustments could be approximately $41 million Canadian dollars (approximately $38 million at year-end exchange rates).

        Canadian tax authorities have taken the position that certain interest amounts deducted by one of our Canadian entities in 2002 through 2004 on historical debt instruments should be re-characterized as capital losses. If tax authorities are successful with their challenge, we estimate that the maximum net impact for additional income taxes and interest charges could be approximately $31 million Canadian dollars (approximately $29 million at year-end exchange rates). We have appealed this decision with the Canadian tax authorities and have provided the requisite security to the tax authorities, including a letter of credit in January 2014 of $5 million Canadian dollars (approximately $5 million at year-end exchange rates), in addition to amounts previously on account, in order to proceed with the appeal. We believe that our asserted position is appropriate and would be sustained upon full examination by the tax authorities and, if necessary, upon consideration by the judicial courts. Our position is supported by our Canadian legal tax advisors.

        Tax authorities in Brazil had taken the position that income reported by our Brazilian subsidiary in 2004 should have been materially higher as a result of certain inter-company transactions. In 2011 and 2012, we received favorable Administrative Court decisions that were largely consistent with our original filing position. In June 2013, we received the official report affirming the Higher Administrative Court's favorable decision and notification of the extinguishment of the proceeding. We did not previously accrue for any potential adverse tax impact for the 2004 tax audit and this matter is now closed.

        We have and expect to continue to recognize the future benefit of certain Brazilian tax losses on the basis that these tax losses can and will be fully utilized in the fiscal period ending on the date of dissolution of our

53


Brazilian subsidiary. While our ability to do so is not certain, we believe that our interpretation of applicable Brazilian law will be sustained upon full examination by the Brazilian tax authorities and, if necessary, upon consideration by the Brazilian judicial courts. Our position is supported by our Brazilian legal tax advisors. An adverse change to the benefit realizable on these Brazilian losses could increase our net deferred tax liabilities by approximately 37 million Brazilian reais (approximately $16 million at year-end exchange rates).

        The successful pursuit of the assertions made by any taxing authority related to the above noted tax audits or others could result in our owing significant amounts of tax, interest and possibly penalties. We believe we have substantial defenses to the asserted positions and have adequately accrued for any probable potential adverse tax impact. However, there can be no assurance as to the final resolution of these claims and any resulting proceedings. If these claims and any ensuing proceedings are determined adversely to us, the amounts we may be required to pay could be material, and could be in excess of amounts currently accrued.

Acquisitions:

        We may, at any time, be engaged in ongoing discussions with respect to possible acquisitions that could expand our service offerings, increase our penetration in various industries, establish strategic relationships with new or existing customers and/or enhance our global supply chain network. In order to enhance our competitiveness and expand our revenue base or the services we offer our customers, we may also look to grow our services or capabilities beyond our traditional areas of EMS expertise. There can be no assurance that any of these discussions will result in a definitive purchase agreement and, if they do, what the terms or timing of any such agreement would be. There can also be no assurance that an acquisition will be successfully integrated or will generate the returns we expected.

        We did not complete any acquisitions in 2013.

        In September 2012, we completed the acquisition of D&H, a manufacturer of precision machined components and assemblies based in California, U.S.A. See "Summary of 2012" above. We financed the purchase price of $71.0 million, net of cash acquired, from cash on hand. The amount of goodwill arising from the acquisition was $26.4 million (none of which was deductible for tax purposes) and the amount of amortizable customer intangible assets was $24.0 million. We expensed acquisition-related transaction costs of $0.9 million in 2012 in other charges. This acquisition did not have a significant impact on our consolidated results of operations for 2012.

        In June 2011, we completed the Brooks acquisition. The operations, based in Oregon, U.S.A. and Wuxi, China, specialize in manufacturing complex mechanical equipment and providing systems integration services to some of the world's largest semiconductor equipment manufacturers. We financed the purchase price of $80.5 million with cash on hand and $45.0 million from our revolving credit facility, which we repaid in full in 2011. This acquisition was intended to strengthen our service offerings by providing our customers with additional capabilities in complex mechanical and systems integration services.

        Revenue and earnings for each of the reporting periods would not have been materially different had the acquisitions occurred at the beginning of their respective years.

Liquidity and Capital Resources

Liquidity

        The following table shows key liquidity metrics for the years indicated (in millions):

 
  December 31  
 
  2011   2012   2013  

Cash and cash equivalents

  $ 658.9   $ 550.5   $ 544.3  

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  Year ended December 31  
 
  2011   2012   2013  

Cash provided by operating activities

  $ 196.3   $ 312.4   $ 149.4  

Cash used in investing activities

    (125.7 )   (168.0 )   (48.6 )

Cash used in financing activities

    (44.5 )   (252.8 )   (107.0 )

                   

Changes in non-cash working capital items (included with operating activities above):

                   

A/R

  $ 147.0   $ 116.7   $ 46.4  

Inventories

    2.0     147.3     (71.5 )

Other current assets

    3.9     6.7     3.6  

A/P, accrued and other current liabilities and provisions

    (216.9 )   (193.1 )   (47.5 )
               

Working capital changes

  $ (64.0 ) $ 77.6   $ (69.0 )
               

Cash provided by operating activities:

        Cash generated from operations for 2013 decreased $163.0 million to $149.4 million from $312.4 million for 2012. The decrease was primarily due to unfavorable changes to our working capital components in 2013 compared to 2012. Compared to 2012, the change in A/R reflects primarily changes in our customer mix with different payment terms, the change in A/P, accrued and other current liabilities and provisions was primarily driven by the timing of purchases and payments, and the change in inventories reflects increased inventory levels primarily to support customer program transitions in 2013 and, to a lesser extent, increased customer forecast variability. Cash generated from operations for 2012 benefited in part, by our disengagement from BlackBerry in 2012, which contributed to lower A/R and inventory balances at the end of 2012. The change in A/R in 2012 also benefited from the shortened payment terms of one of our significant customers.

        Our non-IFRS free cash flow for 2013 decreased $113.3 million to $98.1 million from $211.4 million for 2012. The decrease was primarily due to the decline in cash generated from operations (discussed above), offset in part by lower capital expenditures in 2013 compared to 2012. See the section captioned "Non-IFRS Measures" below for a discussion of, among other items, the definition and components of non-IFRS free cash flow, as well as a reconciliation of this measure to cash provided by operations measured under IFRS.

        Cash generated from operations for 2012 increased $116.1 million to $312.4 million from $196.3 million for 2011, despite the lower net earnings in 2012 compared to 2011. The increase in cash generated from operations in 2012 was primarily due to lower A/R and inventory at the end of 2012, due in part to our disengagement from BlackBerry.

        Included in our cash and A/P balances at December 31, 2011 was a $120 million deposit we received from BlackBerry, which we repaid in 2012. We did not have any customer deposits as at December 31, 2012 or December 31, 2013.

Cash used in investing activities:

        Our capital expenditures for 2013 were $52.8 million (2012 — $105.9 million; 2011 — $62.3 million). The capital expenditures were incurred primarily to enhance our manufacturing capabilities in various geographies and to support new customer programs. We spent approximately $30 million in 2012 related to a building we acquired in Malaysia. From time-to-time, we receive cash proceeds from the sale of surplus equipment and property.

        In September 2012, we completed the D&H acquisition. The purchase price of $71.0 million, net of cash acquired, was financed from cash on hand. In June 2011, we completed the Brooks acquisition. We financed the purchase price of $80.5 million with cash on hand and $45.0 million from our revolving credit facility, which we repaid in full in 2011.

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Cash used in financing activities:

        On August 2, 2013, we received approval from the TSX to launch a new NCIB. During 2013, we paid $43.6 million, including transaction fees, to repurchase for cancellation 4.1 million subordinate voting shares under this NCIB. During 2012, we paid $113.8 million (2011 — nil), including transaction fees, to repurchase for cancellation 13.3 million subordinate voting shares, under our previous NCIB that expired February 8, 2013. We also paid $175.0 million to repurchase for cancellation 22.4 million subordinate voting shares under our SIB.

        During 2013, we paid $12.8 million, including transaction fees, for the trustee's purchase of 1.3 million subordinate voting shares in the open market for our equity-based compensation plans. During 2012, we paid $21.7 million (2011 — $49.4 million), including transaction fees, for the trustee to purchase our subordinate voting shares in the open market for the same purpose.

        At December 31, 2012, we had $55.0 million outstanding under our revolving credit facility, which we repaid during the first half of 2013. At December 31, 2013, there were no amounts outstanding under our revolving credit facility.

        In June 2011, we borrowed $45.0 million under our revolving credit facility to fund a portion of our Brooks acquisition which we repaid in full in 2011.

Cash requirements:

        We maintain a revolving credit facility and an A/R sales program to provide short-term liquidity and to have funds available for working capital and other investments to support our strategic priorities. Our working capital requirements can vary significantly from month-to-month due to a range of business factors which includes the ramping of new programs, timing of purchases, higher levels of inventory for new programs and anticipated customer demand, timing of payments and A/R collections, and customer forecasting variations. The international scope of our operations may also create working capital requirements in certain countries while other countries generate cash in excess of working capital needs. Moving cash between countries on a short-term basis to fund working capital is not always expedient due to local currency regulations, tax considerations, and other factors. To meet our working capital requirements and to provide short-term liquidity, we may draw on our revolving credit facility or sell A/R through our A/R sales program. The timing and the amounts we borrow or repay under these facilities can vary significantly from month-to-month depending upon our cash requirements. In addition, since our accounts receivable sales program is on an uncommitted basis, there can be no assurance that either participant bank will purchase the accounts receivable we wish to sell to them under this program. See "Capital Resources" below.

        We had $544.3 million in cash and cash equivalents at December 31, 2013 (December 31, 2012 — $550.5 million). We believe that cash flow from operating activities, together with cash on hand, borrowings available under our revolving credit facility and intraday and overnight bank overdraft facilities, and cash from the sale of A/R, will be sufficient to fund our currently anticipated working capital needs, planned capital spending and restructuring costs and obligations. We may issue debt, convertible debt or equity securities in the future to fund operations or make acquisitions. Equity or convertible debt securities could dilute current shareholders' positions; debt or convertible debt securities could have rights and privileges senior to those of equity holders and the terms of these debt securities could impose restrictions on our operations. The pricing of any such securities would be subject to market conditions at the time of issuance.

        As at December 31, 2013, a significant portion of our cash and cash equivalents was held by foreign subsidiaries outside of Canada. Although substantially all of the cash and cash equivalents held outside of Canada could be repatriated, a significant portion may be subject to withholding taxes under current tax laws. We have not recognized deferred tax liabilities for cash and cash equivalents held by certain foreign subsidiaries that relate to unremitted earnings that are considered indefinitely reinvested outside of Canada and that we do not intend to repatriate in the foreseeable future (December 31, 2013 and 2012 — approximately $310 million and $325 million of cash and cash equivalents, respectively).

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        As at December 31, 2013, we have contractual obligations that require future payments as follows (in millions):

 
  Total(i)   2014   2015   2016   2017   2018   Thereafter  

Operating leases

  $ 70.5   $ 26.6   $ 17.4   $ 8.3   $ 5.7   $ 5.4   $ 7.1  

Pension plan contributions(ii)

    26.4     26.4                      

Non-pension post-employment plan payments

    36.0     3.4     2.8     3.4     3.2     3.2     20.0  

Total

  $ 132.9   $ 56.4   $ 20.2   $ 11.7   $ 8.9   $ 8.6   $ 27.1  

(i)
The contractual obligations chart above does not include our agreement with a third party for the outsourcing of our IT support. Our costs under this IT support agreement fluctuate based on our usage.

(ii)
Based on our latest actuarial valuations, we estimate our minimum funding requirement for 2014 to be $26.4 million (2013 — $18.4 million; 2012 — $30.8 million). See further details in note 18 to our consolidated financial statements. A significant deterioration in the asset values or asset returns could lead to higher than expected future contributions. Risks and uncertainties associated with actuarial valuation measurements may also result in higher future cash contributions. We fund our pension contributions from cash on hand. Although we have defined benefit plans that are currently in a net unfunded position, we do not expect our pension obligations will have a material adverse impact on our future results of operations, cash flows or liquidity.

        As at December 31, 2013, we have commitments that expire as follows (in millions):

 
  Total   2014   2015   2016   2017   2018   Thereafter  

Foreign currency contracts(i)

  $ 809.8   $ 774.1   $ 35.7   $   $   $   $  

Letters of credit, letters of guarantee and surety bonds(ii)

    40.5     36.3     0.8     1.1         0.1     2.2  

Capital expenditures(iii)

    18.9     18.9                      

Total

  $ 869.2   $ 829.3   $ 36.5   $ 1.1   $   $ 0.1   $ 2.2  

(i)
Represents the aggregate notional amounts of the forward currency contracts.

(ii)
Includes $29.7 million in letters of credit that we issued under our revolving credit facility.

(iii)
Our capital spending varies each period based on the timing of new business wins and forecasted sales levels. Based on our current operating plans, we anticipate capital spending for 2014 to be approximately 1.0% to 1.5% of revenue, and expect to fund these expenditures from cash on hand. As at December 31, 2013, we had committed $18.9 million in capital expenditures, principally for machinery and equipment to support new customer programs. In addition, based on the tax incentives we have benefited from as at December 31, 2013, we have met the capital expenditure commitments as at that date and have other ongoing conditions for retaining these tax incentives which we currently expect to meet.

        Cash outlays for our contractual obligations and commitments identified above are expected to be funded from cash on hand. We also have outstanding purchase orders with certain suppliers for the purchase of inventory. These purchase orders are generally short-term in nature. Orders for standard items can typically be cancelled with little or no financial penalty. Our policy regarding non-standard or customized orders dictates that such items are generally ordered specifically for customers who have contractually assumed liability for the inventory. In addition, a substantial portion of the standard items covered by our purchase orders were procured for specific customers based on their purchase orders or forecasts under which the customers have contractually assumed liability for such material. We cannot quantify with a reasonable degree of accuracy the amount of our liability from purchase obligations under these purchase orders.

        We have granted share unit awards to employees under our equity-based compensation plans. Although we have the option to satisfy the delivery of shares upon vesting of the awards by purchasing subordinate voting shares in the open market or by settling in cash, we expect to satisfy these awards with subordinate voting shares purchased in the open market. Under one of these plans, we also have the option to satisfy the delivery of shares by issuing new subordinate voting shares from treasury, subject to certain limits.

        On August 2, 2013, we received approval from the TSX to launch a new NCIB. Under the new NCIB, we may repurchase on the open market, at our discretion, up to approximately 9.8 million subordinate voting shares, representing approximately 6.0% of our outstanding subordinate voting shares (5.3% of our total

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subordinate voting shares and multiple voting shares), subject to the normal terms and limitations of such bids. The maximum number of subordinate voting shares we are permitted to repurchase for cancellation under the NCIB is reduced by the number of subordinate voting shares we purchase for equity-based compensation plans. In December 2013, we entered into an ASPP (our previous ASPP expired October 2013) with a broker that allows the broker to purchase, on our behalf, up to approximately 1.3 million of our subordinate voting shares (for cancellation under the NCIB) at any time through February 2, 2014, including during any applicable trading blackout periods. During 2013, we paid $43.6 million, including transaction fees, to repurchase for cancellation under the NCIB 4.1 million subordinate voting shares, at a weighted average price of $10.70 per share. At December 31, 2013, we also recorded a liability of $9.8 million, representing the estimated cash required to repurchase the remaining 0.9 million subordinate voting shares available for purchase under the December 2013 ASPP. We have funded, and expect to continue to fund, our share repurchases under the NCIB from cash on hand.

        In February 2014, we received approval from the TSX to amend our NCIB in order to permit the repurchase of our subordinate voting shares under one or more program share repurchases (each a PSR) during the term of the NCIB. On February 12, 2014, we entered into a PSR with a broker and prepaid approximately $27 million to the broker for the right to receive a variable number of our subordinate voting shares upon program completion. Under the PSR, the price and the number of subordinate voting shares to be repurchased by us will be determined based on a discount to the volume weighted-average market price of our subordinate voting shares during the term of the PSR, subject to certain terms and conditions. The subordinate voting shares repurchased under the PSR will be cancelled under our current NCIB. We funded the prepayment to the broker from cash on hand.

        The NCIB that was accepted by the TSX in February 2012 allowed us to repurchase up to 16.2 million subordinate voting shares in the open market. During 2012, we paid $113.8 million, including transaction fees, to repurchase for cancellation 13.3 million subordinate voting shares at a weighted average price of $8.52 per share. The maximum number of subordinate voting shares we were permitted to repurchase for cancellation under the NCIB was reduced by 2.6 million subordinate voting shares purchased for equity-based compensation plans. This NCIB expired on February 8, 2013. We did not purchase any subordinate voting shares for cancellation under this NCIB during 2013.

        During the fourth quarter of 2012, we launched and successfully completed an SIB. We paid $175 million to repurchase for cancellation 22.4 million subordinate voting shares at a price of $7.80 per share, representing approximately 12% of our subordinate voting shares issued and outstanding prior to completion of the SIB. We funded the share repurchases using a combination of cash on hand and cash from our revolving credit facility. During 2012, we returned over $280 million to our shareholders through share repurchases under our NCIB and SIB.

        We provide routine indemnifications, the terms of which range in duration and often are not explicitly defined. These may include indemnifications against third-party intellectual property infringement claims and third-party claims for property damage resulting from our negligence. We have also provided indemnifications in connection with the sale of certain businesses and real property. The maximum potential liability from these indemnifications cannot be reasonably estimated. In some cases, we have recourse against other parties to mitigate our risk of loss from these indemnifications. Historically, we have not made significant payments relating to these types of indemnifications.

Litigation and contingencies:

        In the normal course of our operations, we may be subject to lawsuits, investigations and other claims, including environmental, labor, product, customer disputes and other matters. Management believes that adequate provisions have been recorded in the accounts where required. Although it is not always possible to estimate the extent of potential costs, if any, management believes that the ultimate resolution of all such pending matters will not have a material adverse impact on financial performance, financial position or liquidity.

        In 2007, securities class action lawsuits were commenced against us and our former Chief Executive and Chief Financial Officers in the United States District Court of the Southern District of New York by certain individuals, on behalf of themselves and other unnamed purchasers of our stock, claiming that they were

58


purchasers of our stock during the period January 27, 2005 through January 30, 2007. The plaintiffs allege violations of United States federal securities laws and seek unspecified damages. They allege that during the purported period we made statements concerning our actual and anticipated future financial results that failed to disclose certain purportedly material adverse information with respect to demand and inventory in our Mexico operations and our information technology and communications divisions. In an amended complaint, the plaintiffs added one of our directors and Onex as defendants. On October 14, 2010, the District Court granted the defendants' motions to dismiss the consolidated amended complaint in its entirety. The plaintiffs appealed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit the dismissal of their claims against us and our former Chief Executive and Chief Financial Officers, but not as to the other defendants. In a summary order dated December 29, 2011, the Court of Appeals reversed the District Court's dismissal of the consolidated amended complaint and remanded the case to the District Court for further proceedings. The discovery phase of the case has been completed. Defendants have moved for summary judgment dismissing the case in its entirety and plaintiffs have moved for class certification and for partial summary judgment on certain elements of their claims. Those motions have been fully briefed and argued. In an order dated February 21, 2014, the District Court denied plaintiffs' motion for class certification because they sought to include in their proposed class persons who purchased Celestica stock in Canada. The District Court has indicated that plaintiffs may seek to renew their motion for class certification in the future. The District Court has reserved decision on the summary judgment and partial summary judgment motions. Parallel class proceedings, including a claim issued in October 2011, remain against us and our former Chief Executive and Chief Financial Officers in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice. On October 15, 2012, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice granted limited aspects of the defendants' motion to strike, but dismissed the defendants' limitation period argument. The defendants' appeal of the limitation period issue was heard together with other appeals in two other actions on the same issue in May 2013 and was dismissed on February 3, 2014 when the Court of Appeal for Ontario overturned its own prior decision on the limitation period issue. The leave and certification motions were heard from December 9 to 11, 2013 and the Ontario Superior Court of Justice released its decision on February 19, 2014. The Court granted the plaintiffs leave to proceed with a statutory claim under the Ontario Securities Act and certified the action as a class proceeding on the claim that the defendants made misrepresentations regarding the 2005 restructuring. The Court denied the plaintiffs leave and certification on the claims that the defendants did not properly report Celestica's inventory and revenue and that Celestica's financial statements did not comply with GAAP. The Court also denied certification of the plaintiffs' common law claims. The defendants have served a Notice of Motion for leave to appeal the portions of the Court's decision that grant leave to proceed and certify the action. We believe the allegations in the claims are without merit and we intend to continue to defend against them vigorously. However, there can be no assurance that the outcome of the litigation will be favorable to us or that it will not have a material adverse impact on our financial position or liquidity. In addition, we may incur substantial litigation expenses in defending the claims. As the matter is ongoing, we cannot predict its duration or resources required. We have liability insurance coverage that may cover some of our litigation expenses, and potential judgments or settlement costs.

        See "Income Taxes" above for a description of various tax audits and positions, and contingencies associated therewith.

Capital Resources

        Our main objectives in managing our capital resources are to ensure liquidity and to have funds available for working capital or other investments required to grow our business. Our capital resources consist of cash, short-term investments, access to a revolving credit facility, intraday and overnight bank overdraft facilities, an A/R sales program and capital stock. We regularly review our borrowing capacity and make adjustments, as available, for changes in economic conditions and changes in our requirements.

        At December 31, 2013, we had cash and cash equivalents of $544.3 million (December 31, 2012 — $550.5 million), of which approximately 54% was cash and 46% consisted of cash equivalents. Our current portfolio consists of bank deposits and certain money market funds that hold primarily U.S. government securities. A U.S. government shutdown and/or U.S. government debt ceiling impasse could result in a default by the U.S. government on such securities, which could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.

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        The majority of our cash and cash equivalents is held with financial institutions each of which had at December 31, 2013 a Standard and Poor's short-term rating of A-1 or above. Our cash and cash equivalents are subject to intra-quarter swings, generally related to the timing of A/R collections, inventory purchases and payments, and other capital uses.

        We have a $400.0 million revolving credit facility that matures in January 2015. The facility has restrictive covenants, including those relating to debt incurrence, the sale of assets and a change of control. We are also required to comply with financial covenants relating to indebtedness, interest coverage and liquidity and we have pledged certain assets as security. At December 31, 2013, there were no amounts outstanding under this facility (December 31, 2012 — $55.0 million). At December 31, 2013, we were in compliance with all restrictive and financial covenants of this facility.

        At December 31, 2013, we had $29.7 million (December 31, 2012 — $31.1 million) outstanding in letters of credit under our revolving credit facility. We also arrange letters of credit and surety bonds outside of our revolving credit facility. At December 31, 2013, we had $10.8 million (December 31, 2012 — $12.1 million) of such letters of credit and surety bonds outstanding.

        We also have a total of $70.0 million of uncommitted bank overdraft facilities available for intraday and overnight operating requirements. There were no amounts outstanding under these overdraft facilities at December 31, 2013 or December 31, 2012.

        In November 2012, we entered into an agreement to sell up to $375.0 million in A/R on an uncommitted basis (subject to pre-determined limits by customer) to two third-party banks. In November 2013, we amended the agreement to reduce its overall capacity to $250.0 million based upon our annual review of our requirements under this agreement. Both banks had a Standard and Poor's short-term rating of A-1 and a long-term rating of A at December 31, 2013. This agreement can be terminated at any time by the banks or us. At December 31, 2013, we had sold $50.0 million of A/R under this facility (December 31, 2012 — sold $50.0 million of A/R). Since our A/R sales program is on an uncommitted basis, there can be no assurance that either of the banks will purchase the A/R we intend to sell to them under this program.

        The timing and the amounts we borrow and repay under our revolving credit and overdraft facilities, or sell under our A/R sales program, can vary significantly from month-to-month depending upon our working capital and other cash requirements.

        Standard and Poor's assigns a corporate credit rating to Celestica. This rating is not a recommendation to buy, sell or hold securities, inasmuch as it does not comment as to market price or suitability for a particular investor. This rating may be subject to revision or withdrawal at any time by the rating organization. At December 31, 2013, our Standard and Poor's corporate credit rating was BB, with a stable outlook. A reduction in our credit rating could adversely impact our future cost of borrowing.

        Our strategy on capital risk management has not changed significantly since the end of 2012. Other than the restrictive and financial covenants associated with our revolving credit facility noted above, we are not subject to any contractual or regulatory capital requirements. While some of our international operations are subject to government restrictions on the flow of capital into and out of their jurisdictions, these restrictions have not had a material impact on our operations or cash flows.

Financial instruments:

        Our short-term investment objectives are to preserve principal and to maximize yields without significantly increasing risk, while at the same time not materially restricting our short-term access to cash. To achieve these objectives, we maintain a portfolio consisting of a variety of securities, including bank deposits and certain money market funds that hold primarily U.S. government securities.

        The majority of our cash balances are held in U.S. dollars. We price the majority of our products in U.S. dollars and the majority of our materials costs are also denominated in U.S. dollars. However, a significant portion of our non-materials costs (including payroll, pensions, facility costs and costs of locally sourced supplies and inventory) are denominated in various other currencies. As a result, we may experience foreign exchange gains or losses on translation or transactions due to currency fluctuations.

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        We have a foreign exchange risk management policy in place to control our hedging activities. We do not enter into speculative trades. Our current hedging activity is designed to reduce the variability of our foreign currency costs where we have local manufacturing operations. We enter into forward exchange contracts to hedge against our cash flows and significant balance sheet exposures in certain foreign currencies. Balance sheet hedges are based on our forecasts of the future position of net monetary assets or liabilities denominated in foreign currencies and, therefore, may not mitigate the full impact of any translation impacts in the future. There can be no assurance that our hedging transactions will be successful in mitigating our foreign exchange risk.

        At December 31, 2013, we had forward exchange contracts to trade U.S. dollars in exchange for the following currencies:

Currency
  Amount of
U.S. dollars
(in millions)
  Weighted average
exchange rate of
U.S. dollars
  Maximum period
in months
  Fair value
gain/(loss)
(in millions)
 

Canadian dollar

  $ 315.3   $ 0.95     15   $ (5.7 )

Thai baht

    142.3     0.03     15     (7.9 )

Malaysian ringgit

    107.0     0.31     15     (3.4 )

Mexican peso

    34.5     0.08     12     (0.1 )

British pound

    76.4     1.63     4     (0.9 )

Chinese renminbi

    69.0     0.16     12     0.6  

Euro

    25.1     1.37     4     (0.1 )

Romanian leu

    15.9     0.30     12     0.5  

Singapore dollar

    15.1     0.80     12     (0.2 )

Other

    9.2         4     (0.1 )
                       

Total

  $ 809.8               $ (17.3 )
                       

        These contracts, which generally extend for periods of up to 15 months, will expire by the end of the first quarter of 2015. The fair value of these contracts at December 31, 2013 was a net unrealized loss of $17.3 million (December 31, 2012 — net unrealized gain of $4.2 million). The unrealized gains or losses are a result of fluctuations in foreign exchange rates between the date the currency forward contracts were entered into and the valuation date at period end.

Financial risks:

        We are exposed to a variety of market risks associated with financial instruments.

        Currency risk: Due to the global nature of our operations, we are exposed to exchange rate fluctuations on our cash receipts, cash payments and balance sheet exposures denominated in various currencies. The majority of our currency risk is driven by the operational costs incurred in local currencies by our subsidiaries. We manage our currency risk through our hedging program using forecasts of future cash flows and balance sheet exposures denominated in foreign currencies. We do not use derivative financial instruments for speculative purposes.

        Interest rate risk: Borrowings under our revolving credit facility bear interest at LIBOR or Prime rate plus a margin. Our borrowings under this facility expose us to interest rate risk due to fluctuations in these rates.

        Credit risk: Credit risk refers to the risk that a counterparty may default on its contractual obligations resulting in a financial loss to us. We believe our credit risk of counterparty non-performance is low. To mitigate the risk of financial loss from defaults under our foreign currency forward exchange contracts, our contracts are held by counterparty financial institutions each of which had at December 31, 2013 a Standard and Poor's rating of A-1 or above. Each financial institution with which we have our A/R sales program had a Standard and Poor's short-term rating of A-1 and a long-term rating of A at December 31, 2013. We also provide unsecured credit to our customers in the normal course of business. We mitigate this credit risk by monitoring our customers' financial condition and performing ongoing credit evaluations as appropriate. We consider credit risk in establishing our allowance for doubtful accounts and we believe our allowances are adequate.

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        Liquidity risk: Liquidity risk is the risk that we may not have cash available to satisfy our financial obligations as they come due. The majority of our financial liabilities recorded in accounts payable, accrued and other current liabilities and provisions are due within 90 days. We believe that cash flow from operations, together with cash on hand, cash from the sale of A/R, and borrowings available under our revolving credit facility and intraday and overnight bank overdraft facilities are sufficient to fund our currently anticipated financial obligations.

Related Party Transactions

        Onex Corporation (Onex) owns, directly or indirectly, all of our outstanding multiple voting shares. Accordingly, Onex has the ability to exercise a significant influence over our business and affairs and generally has the power to determine all matters submitted to a vote of our shareholders where the subordinate voting shares and multiple voting shares vote together as a single class. Gerald Schwartz, the Chairman of the Board, President and Chief Executive Officer of Onex, is also one of our directors, and holds, directly or indirectly, shares representing the majority of the voting rights of Onex.

        We have, or had, manufacturing agreements with certain companies related to or under the control of Onex or Gerald Schwartz. During 2013, we recorded revenue of $10.8 million from two related companies and had no amounts due from these two related companies at December 31, 2013. During 2012, we recorded revenue of $38.0 million from one related company and had $6.5 million due from this related company at December 31, 2012. During 2011, we recorded revenue of $90.9 million from two related companies and had $15.5 million due from these related companies at December 31, 2011. All transactions with these related companies were executed in the normal course of operations and were recorded at the exchange amounts as agreed to by the parties based on arm's length terms.

        In January 2009, we entered into a Services Agreement with Onex for the services of Gerald Schwartz, as a director of Celestica. The initial term of this agreement was one year and it automatically renews for successive one-year terms unless either party provides a notice of intent not to renew. Onex receives compensation under the Services Agreement in an amount equal to $200,000 per year, payable in DSUs in equal quarterly installments in arrears.

Outstanding Share Data

        As of February 14, 2014, we had 161.5 million outstanding subordinate voting shares and 18.9 million outstanding multiple voting shares. We also had 4.8 million outstanding stock options, 4.2 million outstanding RSUs, 6.3 million outstanding PSUs (based on a maximum payout of 200%), and 1.0 million outstanding DSUs, each such option or unit entitling the holder to receive one subordinate voting share (or in certain cases, cash at our option) pursuant to the terms thereof (subject to time or performance-based vesting).

Controls and Procedures

Evaluation of disclosure controls and procedures:

        Our management is responsible for establishing and maintaining a system of disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) under the U.S. Exchange Act) designed to ensure that information we are required to disclose in the reports that we file or submit under the U.S. Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's rules and forms. Disclosure controls and procedures include, without limitation, controls and procedures designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed by an issuer in the reports that it files or submits under the U.S. Exchange Act is accumulated and communicated to the issuer's management, including its principal executive officer or officers and principal financial officer or officers, or persons performing similar functions, as appropriate, to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure.

        Under the supervision of and with the participation of management, including our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, we have evaluated the effectiveness of the design and operation of our disclosure controls and procedures as of December 31, 2013. Based on that evaluation, our Chief Executive Officer and

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Chief Financial Officer have concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures are effective to meet the requirements of Rules 13a-15 and 15d-15 under the U.S. Exchange Act.

        A control system, no matter how well conceived and operated, can provide only reasonable, not absolute, assurance that its objectives are met. Due to inherent limitations in all such systems, no evaluation of controls can provide absolute assurance that all control issues within a company have been detected. Accordingly, our disclosure controls and procedures are designed to provide reasonable, not absolute, assurance that the objectives of our disclosure control system are met.

Changes in internal control over financial reporting:

        During 2013, there were no changes in our internal control over financial reporting that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.

Management's report on internal control over financial reporting:

        Reference is made to our Management's Report on page F-1 of our Annual Report on Form 20-F for 2013. Our auditors, KPMG LLP, an independent registered public accounting firm, have issued an audit report on our internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2013. This report appears on page F-2 of such Annual Report.

        Unaudited Quarterly Financial Highlights (in millions, except percentages and per share amounts):

 
  2012   2013  
 
  First
Quarter
  Second
Quarter
  Third
Quarter
  Fourth
Quarter
  First
Quarter
  Second
Quarter
  Third
Quarter
  Fourth
Quarter
 

Revenue

  $ 1,690.9   $ 1,744.7   $ 1,575.4   $ 1,496.2   $ 1,372.4   $ 1,495.1   $ 1,491.9   $ 1,436.7  

Gross profit %

    6.6%     6.7%     6.9%     6.7%     6.3%     6.4%     6.9%     7.2%  

Net earnings

  $ 43.2   $ 23.6   $ 43.7   $ 7.2   $ 10.5   $ 28.0   $ 57.4   $ 22.1  

Weighted average # of basic shares

    215.7     210.4     207.0     201.5     183.4     184.2     184.0     182.0  

Weighted average # of diluted shares

    217.9     212.3     208.8     203.4     185.0     185.9     186.4     184.5  

# of shares outstanding

    211.6     207.8     205.1     182.8     184.0     184.3     182.9     181.0  

Net earnings per share:

                                                 

basic

  $ 0.20   $ 0.11   $ 0.21   $ 0.04   $ 0.06   $ 0.15   $ 0.31   $ 0.12  

diluted

  $ 0.20   $ 0.11   $ 0.21   $ 0.04   $ 0.06   $ 0.15   $ 0.31   $ 0.12  

Comparability quarter-to-quarter:

        The quarterly data reflects the following: the fourth quarters of 2012 and 2013 include the results of our annual impairment testing of goodwill, intangible assets and property, plant and equipment; and all quarters of 2012 and 2013 were impacted by our restructuring actions. The amounts attributable to these items vary from quarter-to-quarter.

Fourth quarter 2013 compared to fourth quarter 2012:

        Revenue for the fourth quarter of 2013 decreased 4% to $1.4 billion from $1.5 billion for the same period in 2012. Compared to revenue from our end markets in the fourth quarter of 2012, revenue dollars from our server end market decreased 39% primarily due to the insourcing of a program by a customer and overall demand weakness, and revenue dollars from our consumer end market decreased 36% primarily due to program transitions, as we de-emphasize parts of our consumer portfolio. These decreases were offset in part by an 11% increase in our diversified end market, a 9% increase in our storage end market, and a 6% increase in our communications end market. The growth in our diversified, storage and communications end markets were primarily driven by new program wins. Gross margin increased to 7.2% of revenue for the fourth quarter of 2013 from 6.7% for the same period in 2012, primarily due to favorable program mix and our continued focus on cost containment. Net earnings for the fourth quarter of 2013 of $22.1 million were $14.9 million higher than the fourth quarter of 2012, primarily due to impairment charges of $17.7 million we recorded in the fourth quarter of 2012.

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Fourth quarter 2013 compared to third quarter 2013:

        Revenue for the fourth quarter of 2013 decreased 4% to $1.4 billion from $1.5 billion for the third quarter of 2013. Compared to revenue from our end markets in the third quarter of 2013, revenue dollars from our communications and diversified end markets decreased 12% and 2%, respectively, primarily due to overall weaker customer demand in these end markets. Revenue dollars from our server end market increased 10% sequentially as a result of improved customer demand in the fourth quarter of 2013. Revenue dollars from our storage end market grew 7% sequentially, primarily due to improved customer demand in the fourth quarter of 2013 and a new program win. Revenue dollars from our consumer end market were relatively flat compared to the previous quarter. Gross margin for the fourth quarter of 2013 improved to 7.2% from 6.9% for the previous quarter primarily due to one-time recoveries and our continued focus on cost containment and improved efficiency. Net earnings decreased $35.3 million from the third quarter of 2013, primarily due to a $24.0 million recovery we recorded in the third quarter of 2013, related to certain class action lawsuits in which we were a plaintiff (see "Other Charges" above), and higher restructuring charges in the fourth quarter of 2013.

Fourth quarter 2013 actual compared to guidance:

        IFRS net earnings per share for the fourth quarter of 2013 were $0.12 on a diluted basis. IFRS net earnings for the fourth quarter included an aggregate charge of $0.14 (pre-tax) per share comprised of stock-based compensation, amortization of intangible assets (excluding computer software) and restructuring charges. This is slightly higher than the range we provided on October 22, 2013 of an aggregate charge of between $0.06 and $0.13 per share (diluted) for these items due to higher than expected restructuring charges in the fourth quarter of 2013.

        On October 22, 2013, we provided the following guidance for the fourth quarter of 2013:

 
  Q4 2013  
 
  Guidance   Actual  

IFRS revenue (in billions)

  $1.4 to $1.5   $ 1.437  

Non IFRS adjusted net earnings per share (diluted)

  $0.20 to $0.26   $ 0.24  

        For the fourth quarter of 2013, revenue and non-IFRS adjusted net earnings per share were within the range of our published guidance. Included in the fourth quarter of 2013 adjusted EPS (non-IFRS) of $0.24 is a net income tax benefit of $0.02 per share arising primarily from changes to our tax provisions related to certain tax uncertainties.

        Our guidance includes a range for adjusted net earnings per share (which is a non-IFRS measure and is defined below). We believe non-IFRS adjusted net earnings is an important measure for investors to understand our core operating performance and to compare our operating results with those of our competitors. A reconciliation of non-IFRS adjusted net earnings to IFRS net earnings is set forth below.

Non-IFRS measures:

        Management uses adjusted net earnings and the other non-IFRS measures described herein to (i) assess operating performance and the effective use and allocation of resources, (ii) provide more meaningful period-to-period comparisons of operating results, (iii) enhance investors' understanding of the core operating results of our business, and (iv) to set management incentive targets. We believe the non-IFRS measures we present herein are useful to investors, as they enable investors to evaluate and compare our results from operations and cash resources generated from our business in a more consistent manner (by excluding specific items we do not consider to be reflective of our ongoing operating results) and provide an analysis of operating results using the same measures our chief operating decision makers use to measure performance. The non-IFRS financial measures that can be reconciled to IFRS measures result largely from management's determination that the facts and circumstances surrounding the excluded charges or recoveries are not indicative of the ordinary course of the ongoing operation of our business.

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        We believe investors use both IFRS and non-IFRS measures to assess management's past, current and future decisions associated with strategy and allocation of capital, as well as to analyze how businesses operate in, or respond to, swings in economic cycles or to other events that impact core operations.

        Our non-IFRS measures include: adjusted gross profit, adjusted gross margin (adjusted gross profit as a percentage of revenue), adjusted SG&A, adjusted SG&A as a percentage of revenue, operating earnings (adjusted EBIAT), operating margin (operating earnings as a percentage of revenue), adjusted net earnings, adjusted net earnings per share, net invested capital, ROIC, free cash flow, cash cycle days and inventory turns. Adjusted EBIAT, net invested capital, ROIC and free cash flow are further described in the tables below. In calculating these non-IFRS financial measures, management excludes the following items, as applicable: stock-based compensation, amortization of intangible assets (excluding computer software), restructuring and other charges, net of recoveries (most significantly restructuring charges), the write-down of goodwill, intangible assets and property, plant and equipment, and gains or losses related to the repurchase of shares or debt, net of tax adjustments, and significant deferred tax write-offs or recoveries.

        These non-IFRS measures do not have any standardized meaning prescribed by IFRS and may not be comparable to similar measures presented by other companies. Non-IFRS measures are not measures of performance under IFRS and should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for any standardized measure under IFRS. The most significant limitation to management's use of non-IFRS financial measures is that the charges and credits excluded from the non-IFRS measures are nonetheless charges and credits that are recognized under IFRS and that have an economic impact on us. Management compensates for these limitations primarily by issuing IFRS results to show a complete picture of our performance, and reconciling non-IFRS results back to IFRS where a comparable IFRS measure exists.

        The economic substance of these exclusions and management's rationale for excluding these from non-IFRS financial measures is provided below:

        Stock-based compensation, which represents the estimated fair value of stock options, RSUs and PSUs granted to employees, is excluded because grant activities vary significantly from quarter-to-quarter in both quantity and fair value. In addition, excluding this expense allows us to better compare core operating results with those of our competitors who also generally exclude stock-based compensation from their core operating results, who may have different granting patterns and types of equity awards, and who may use different valuation assumptions than we do.

        Amortization charges (excluding computer software) consist of non-cash charges against intangible assets that are impacted by the timing and magnitude of acquired businesses. Amortization of intangible assets varies among our competitors, and we believe that excluding these charges permits a better comparison of core operating results with those of our competitors who also generally exclude amortization charges.

        Restructuring and other charges, net of recoveries, include costs relating to employee severance, lease terminations, facility closings and consolidations, write-downs to owned property and equipment which are no longer used and are available for sale, reductions in infrastructure and acquisition-related transaction costs. We exclude restructuring and other charges, net of recoveries, because they are not directly related to ongoing operating results and do not reflect expected future operating expenses after completion of these activities. We believe this exclusion permits a better comparison of our core operating results with those of our competitors who also generally exclude these charges, net of recoveries, in assessing operating performance.

        Impairment charges, which consist of non-cash charges against goodwill, intangible assets and property, plant and equipment, result primarily when the carrying value of these assets exceeds their recoverable amount. Our competitors may record impairment charges at different times, and we believe that excluding these charges permits a better comparison of our core operating results with those of our competitors who also generally exclude these charges in assessing operating performance.

        Gains or losses related to the repurchase of shares or debt are excluded as these gains or losses do not impact core operating performance and vary significantly among those of our competitors who also generally exclude these charges or recoveries in assessing operating performance.

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        Significant deferred tax write-offs or recoveries are excluded as these write-offs or recoveries do not impact core operating performance and vary significantly among those of our competitors who also generally exclude these charges or recoveries in assessing operating performance.

        The following table sets forth, for the periods indicated, various non-IFRS measures, and a reconciliation of IFRS to non-IFRS measures, where a comparable IFRS measure exists (in millions, except percentages and per share amounts):

 
  Three months ended December 31   Year ended December 31  
 
  2012   2013   2012   2013  
 
   
  % of revenue    
  % of revenue    
  % of revenue    
  % of revenue  

IFRS Revenue

  $ 1,496.2         $ 1,436.7         $ 6,507.2         $ 5,796.1        

IFRS gross profit

  $ 99.8     6.7%   $ 103.6     7.2%   $ 438.4     6.7%   $ 389.5     6.7%  

Stock-based compensation

    2.9           3.1           13.4           12.5        
                                           

Non-IFRS adjusted gross profit

  $ 102.7     6.9%   $ 106.7     7.4%   $ 451.8     6.9%   $ 402.0     6.9%  
                                           

IFRS SG&A

 
$

54.7
   
3.7%
 
$

56.2
   
3.9%
 
$

237.0
   
3.6%
 
$

222.3
   
3.8%
 

Stock-based compensation

    (4.9 )         (3.5 )         (22.2 )         (16.7 )      
                                           

Non-IFRS adjusted SG&A

  $ 49.8     3.3%   $ 52.7     3.7%   $ 214.8     3.3%   $ 205.6     3.5%  
                                           

IFRS earnings before income taxes

 
$

2.2
       
$

20.8
       
$

111.9
       
$

130.7
       

Finance costs

    1.0           0.8           3.5           2.9        

Stock-based compensation

    7.8           6.6           35.6           29.2        

Amortization of intangible assets (excluding computer software)

    1.5           1.6           4.1           6.5        

Restructuring and other charges (recoveries)

    34.5           17.5           59.5           4.0        
                                           

Non-IFRS operating earnings (adjusted EBIAT)(1)

  $ 47.0     3.1%   $ 47.3     3.3%   $ 214.6     3.3%   $ 173.3     3.0%  
                                           

IFRS net earnings

 
$

7.2
   
0.5%
 
$

22.1
   
1.5%
 
$

117.7
   
1.8%
 
$

118.0
   
2.0%
 

Stock-based compensation

    7.8           6.6           35.6           29.2        

Amortization of intangible assets (excluding computer software)

    1.5           1.6           4.1           6.5        

Restructuring and other charges (recoveries)

    34.5           17.5           59.5           4.0        

Adjustments for taxes(2)

    (0.7 )         (3.4 )         (11.1 )         (3.2 )      
                                           

Non-IFRS adjusted net earnings

  $ 50.3     3.4%   $ 44.4     3.1%   $ 205.8     3.2%   $ 154.5     2.7%  
                                           

Diluted EPS

                                                 

Weighted average # of shares (in millions)

    203.4           184.5           210.5           185.4        

IFRS earnings per share

  $ 0.04         $ 0.12         $ 0.56         $ 0.64        

Non-IFRS adjusted net earnings per share

  $ 0.25         $ 0.24         $ 0.98         $ 0.83        

# of shares outstanding at period end (in millions)

    182.8           181.0           182.8           181.0        

IFRS cash provided by operations

  $ 104.6         $ 34.1         $ 312.4         $ 149.4        

Purchase of property, plant and equipment, net of sales proceeds

    (13.4 )         (9.8 )         (97.0 )         (48.6 )      

Finance costs paid

    (1.0 )         (0.6 )         (4.0 )         (2.7 )      
                                           

Non-IFRS free cash flow(3)

  $ 90.2         $ 23.7         $ 211.4         $ 98.1        
                                           

Non-IFRS ROIC %(4)

    18.4%           19.2%           21.5%           17.9%        

(1)
Management uses adjusted EBIAT as a measure to assess our operational performance related to our core operations. Adjusted EBIAT is defined as earnings before finance costs (consisting of interest and fees related to our credit facilities and accounts receivable sales program), amortization of intangible assets (excluding computer software) and income taxes. Adjusted EBIAT also excludes, in periods where such charges have been recorded, stock-based compensation, restructuring and other charges, net of recoveries, gains or losses related to the repurchase of shares or debt, and impairment charges.

(2)
The adjustments for taxes, as applicable, represent the tax effects on the non-IFRS adjustments and significant deferred tax write-offs or recoveries that do not impact our core operating performance.

(3)
Management uses free cash flow as a measure, in addition to cash flow from operations, to assess our operational cash flow performance. We believe free cash flow provides another level of transparency to our liquidity as it is defined as cash generated from or used in operating activities after the purchase of property, plant and equipment (net of proceeds from sale of certain surplus equipment and property) and finance costs paid.

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(4)
Management uses non-IFRS ROIC as a measure to assess the effectiveness of the invested capital we use to build products or provide services to our customers. Our non-IFRS ROIC measure includes operating margin, working capital management and asset utilization. Non-IFRS ROIC is calculated by dividing non-IFRS adjusted EBIAT by average non-IFRS net invested capital. Net invested capital (calculated in the table below) is a non-IFRS measure and consists of the following IFRS measures: total assets less cash, accounts payable, accrued and other current liabilities and provisions, and income taxes payable. We use a two-point average to calculate average net invested capital for the quarter and a five-point average to calculate average net invested capital for the year. There is no comparable measure under IFRS.

        The following table sets forth, for the periods indicated, our calculation of non-IFRS ROIC % (in millions, except ROIC %):

 
  Three months ended
December 31
  Year ended
December 31
 
 
  2012   2013   2012   2013  

Non-IFRS operating earnings (adjusted EBIAT)

  $ 47.0   $ 47.3   $ 214.6   $ 173.3  

Multiplier

    4     4     1     1  
                   

Annualized non-IFRS adjusted EBIAT

  $ 188.0   $ 189.2   $ 214.6   $ 173.3  
                   

Average non-IFRS net invested capital for the period

  $ 1,021.1   $ 987.8   $ 997.1   $ 968.7  

Non-IFRS ROIC %(1)

    18.4%     19.2%     21.5%     17.9%  

 

 
  December 31
2012
  March 31
2013
  June 30
2013
  September 30
2013
  December 31
2013
 

Non-IFRS net invested capital consists of:

                               

Total assets

  $ 2,658.8   $ 2,643.4   $ 2,705.5   $ 2,714.4   $ 2,638.9  

Less: cash

    550.5     531.3     553.5     546.8     544.3  

Less: accounts payable, accrued and other current liabilities, provisions and income taxes payable

    1,143.9     1,145.7     1,214.8     1,177.5     1,109.2  
                       

Non-IFRS net invested capital at period end(1)

  $ 964.4   $ 966.4   $ 937.2   $ 990.1   $ 985.4  
                       

 

 
  December 31
2011
  March 31
2012
  June 30
2012
  September 30
2012
  December 31
2012
 

Non-IFRS net invested capital consists of:

                               

Total assets

  $ 2,969.6   $ 2,955.4   $ 2,951.2   $ 2,885.5   $ 2,658.8  

Less: cash

    658.9     646.7     630.6     598.2     550.5  

Less: accounts payable, accrued and other current liabilities, provisions and income taxes payable

    1,346.6     1,317.8     1,332.1     1,209.6     1,143.9  
                       

Non-IFRS net invested capital at period end(1)

  $ 964.1   $ 990.9   $ 988.5   $ 1,077.7   $ 964.4  
                       

(1)
Management uses non-IFRS ROIC as a measure to assess the effectiveness of the invested capital we use to build products or provide services to our customers. Our non-IFRS ROIC measure includes operating margin, working capital management and asset utilization. Non-IFRS ROIC is calculated by dividing non-IFRS adjusted EBIAT by average non-IFRS net invested capital. Net invested capital is a non-IFRS measure and consists of the following IFRS measures: total assets less cash, accounts payable, accrued and other current liabilities and provisions, and income taxes payable. We use a two-point average to calculate average net invested capital for the quarter and a five-point average to calculate average net invested capital for the year. There is no comparable measure under IFRS.

Recent Accounting Developments:

IFRS 7, Financial Instruments, Disclosures:

        Effective 2012, we adopted the amendment issued by the IASB to IFRS 7 which requires enhanced disclosures relating to the de-recognition of financial assets that have been transferred, including quantitative and qualitative disclosures of the nature and extent of risks arising from the transfer. The adoption of this

67


amendment did not have a material impact on the disclosures related to our accounts receivable sales program in our consolidated financial statements.

IFRS 10, Consolidated Financial Statements:

        Effective January 1, 2013, we adopted this standard issued by the IASB which replaces certain sections of IAS 27, Consolidated and Separate Financial Statements. This standard is intended to ensure the same criteria are applied to all types of entities when determining control for consolidated reporting. The adoption of this standard did not have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements.

IFRS 11, Joint Arrangements:

        Effective January 1, 2013, we adopted this standard issued by the IASB which replaces the existing standards on joint ventures. It distinguishes joint ventures from joint operations and establishes the accounting for interests in each of these joint arrangements. The adoption of this standard did not impact our consolidated financial statements.

IFRS 12, Disclosure of Interests in Other Entities:

        Effective January 1, 2013, we adopted this standard issued by the IASB which supplements the existing disclosure requirements about interests in subsidiaries, joint arrangements, associates and unconsolidated structured entities, and focuses on the nature, risks and financial effects associated with such interests on financial position, financial performance and cash flows. The adoption of this standard did not have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements.

IFRS 13, Fair Value Measurement:

        Effective January 1, 2013, we prospectively adopted this standard issued by the IASB which provides extensive guidance on determining fair value for measurement or disclosure purposes. The adoption of this standard did not have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements.

IAS 1, Presentation of Financial Statements (revised):

        Effective January 1, 2013, we adopted the amendment issued by the IASB to IAS 1 which requires changes to the presentation of items in OCI. The adoption of this amendment did not have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements.

IAS 19 — Employee Benefits:

        Effective January 1, 2013, we adopted the amendment issued by the IASB to IAS 19, Employee Benefits, which requires a retroactive restatement of prior periods. As of January 1, 2011, we had $7.6 million of unrecognized past service credits that we had been amortizing to operations on a straight-line basis over the vesting period (January 1, 2012 — $6.7 million and December 31, 2012 — $6.0 million). Upon retroactive adoption of this amendment, we recognized these past service credits on our balance sheet and decreased our post-employment benefit obligations and our deficit by $7.6 million as of January 1, 2011. Our net earnings for 2011 decreased by $2.8 million, reflecting the reversal of past service credits that we retroactively recorded directly to deficit on January 1, 2011 and the changes in the calculation of the interest component of pension expense. The impact on our net earnings for 2012 was not significant. Under this amendment, we continue to recognize actuarial gains or losses on plan assets or obligations in other comprehensive income and to reclassify the amounts to deficit. Our actuarial gains on pension and non-pension post-employment benefit plans for 2011 increased by $1.9 million and our actuarial losses for 2012 increased by $0.7 million.

IFRS 9 — Financial Instruments:

        This standard replaces IAS 39, Financial Instruments: Recognition and Measurement, in phases, and currently does not have a mandatory effective date. IFRS 9 (2009) reflects the IASB's first phase of the project relating to the classification and measurement of financial assets. Under IFRS 9 (2009), financial assets are classified and

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measured based on the business model in which they were held and the characteristics of their contractual cash flows. IFRS 9 (2010) provides guidance on the classification and measurement of financial liabilities and the requirements of IAS 39 for the de-recognition of financial assets and liabilities. IFRS 9 (2013) introduces a new general hedge accounting model which provides guidance on the eligibility of hedging instruments and hedged items, accounting for the time value component of options, qualifying criteria for applying hedge accounting, modification and discontinuation of hedging relationships, and required disclosures. In subsequent phases, the IASB plans to make limited amendments to the classification and measurement requirements of IFRS 9 and to add new requirements to address macro hedge accounting and impairment of financial assets. We will evaluate the overall impact on our consolidated financial statements when the final standard, including all phases, is issued, and we do not intend to adopt this standard early due to possible further changes in the standard before it becomes final.

IAS 32 — Financial Instruments — Presentation (revised):

        This amendment is effective January 1, 2014 and clarifies the requirements for offsetting financial assets and liabilities. We do not expect the adoption of this amendment to have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements.

IAS 36 — Impairment of Assets (revised):

        Effective January 1, 2013, we adopted the amendment issued by the IASB to IAS 36 which clarifies the recoverable amount disclosures for non-financial assets in reporting periods when an impairment loss is recognized or reversed. The adoption of this amendment did not have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements.

IFRIC Interpretation 21 — Levies:

        This interpretation of IAS 37, Provisions, Contingent Liabilities, and Contingent Assets, is effective January 1, 2014 and clarifies that a liability for a levy should be recognized when the activity that triggers payment, as identified by the relevant legislation, occurs. We are currently evaluating the impact of adopting this interpretation on our consolidated financial statements.

Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements

        Not applicable.

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Item 6.    Directors, Senior Management and Employees

A.    Directors and Senior Management

        Each director of Celestica is elected by the shareholders to serve until close of the next annual meeting of shareholders or until a successor is elected or appointed, unless such office is earlier vacated in accordance with the Corporation's by-laws. The following table sets forth certain information regarding the current directors and executive officers of Celestica, as of February 14, 2014.

Name
  Age   Position with Celestica   Residence

William A. Etherington

    72   Chair of the Board and Director   Ontario, Canada

Daniel P. DiMaggio

    63   Director   Georgia, U.S.

Laurette T. Koellner

    59   Director   Florida, U.S.

Joseph M. Natale

    49   Director   Ontario, Canada

Carol S. Perry

    63   Director   Ontario, Canada

Eamon J. Ryan

    68   Director   Ontario, Canada

Gerald W. Schwartz

    72   Director   Ontario, Canada

Michael M. Wilson

    62   Director   Alberta, Canada

Craig H. Muhlhauser

    65   Director, President and Chief Executive Officer   New Jersey, U.S.

Darren G. Myers

    40   Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer   Ontario, Canada

Elizabeth L. DelBianco

    54   Executive Vice President, Chief Legal and Administrative Officer and Corporate Secretary   Ontario, Canada

Glen D. McIntosh

    52   Executive Vice President, Global Operations and Supply Chain Management   Ontario, Canada

Michael L. Andrade

    50   Executive Vice President, Diversified Markets   Ontario, Canada

Michael P. McCaughey

    51   Executive Vice President, Communications, Enterprise and Managed Services   Québec, Canada

Mary A. Gendron

    48   Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer   Illinois, U.S.

        The following is a brief biography of each of Celestica's directors and executive officers:

        William A. Etherington has been a director of Celestica since 2001 and Chair of the Board of Directors of Celestica since April 2012. He is also a director of Onex Corporation, which holds a 75% voting interest in Celestica, and of SS&C Technologies, Inc., each of which is a public corporation, and of St. Michael's Hospital. He is a former director and non-executive Chairman of the board of directors of the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce. In 2001, Mr. Etherington retired as Senior Vice President and Group Executive, Sales and Distribution, IBM Corporation, and as Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of IBM World Trade Corporation. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering and a Doctor of Laws (Hon.) from the University of Western Ontario.

        Daniel P. DiMaggio has been a director of Celestica since 2010. Prior to retiring in 2006, he spent 35 years with United Parcel Services ("UPS"), most recently as Chief Executive Officer of the UPS Worldwide Logistics Group. Prior to leading UPS' Worldwide Logistics Group, Mr. DiMaggio held a number of positions at UPS with increasing responsibility, including leadership roles for the UPS International Marketing Group, as well as the Industrial Engineering function. In addition to his senior leadership roles at UPS, Mr. DiMaggio was a member of the board of directors of Greatwide Logistics Services, Inc. and CEVA Logistics. Mr. DiMaggio was serving as a director of Greatwide Logistics Services, Inc., a privately held company, when that entity filed for

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bankruptcy in 2008. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the Lowell Technological Institute (now the University of Massachusetts Lowell).

        Laurette T. Koellner has been a director of Celestica since 2009. She is the Executive Chairman of International Lease Finance Corporation ("ILFC"), an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of American International Group and the world's largest aircraft lessor. She retired as President of Boeing International, a division of The Boeing Company (an aerospace company), in 2008. Prior to May 2006, she was President of Connexion by Boeing and prior to that was a member of the Office of the Chairman and served as the Executive Vice President, Internal Services, Chief Human Resources and Administrative Officer, President of Shared Services, as well as Corporate Controller for The Boeing Company. In addition to acting as chair of the board of directors of ILFC, Ms. Koellner currently serves on the board of directors and is the Chair of the Audit Committee of Hillshire Brands Company (formerly Sara Lee Corporation), a public corporation. She is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and a member of the University of Central Florida Dean's Executive Council. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Management from the University of Central Florida and a Masters of Business Administration from Stetson University. She holds a Certified Professional Contracts Manager designation from the National Contracts Management Association.

        Joseph M. Natale has been a director of Celestica since 2012. Mr. Natale joined TELUS Corporation (an integrated telecommunication services company), a public company, in 2003 and is currently Executive Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer, a position he has held since May 2010. Prior to 2003, Mr. Natale held successive senior leadership roles within KPMG Consulting, which he joined after it acquired the company he co-founded, PNO Management Consultants Inc., in 1997. Mr. Natale served on the board of directors of KPMG Canada in 1998 and 1999. Mr. Natale is a member of the board of directors of Soulpepper Theatre and acted as Technology & Telecommunications Chair for United Way Toronto's 2012 Campaign Cabinet. He is a past recipient of Canada's Top 40 Under 40 Award and holds a Bachelor of Applied Science degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Waterloo.

        Carol S. Perry has been a director of Celestica since October, 2013. She is also a member of the independent review committee of the mutual funds managed by 1832 Asset Management L.P. (formerly Scotia Asset Management L.P.), a mutual fund manager and wholly-owned affiliate of The Bank of Nova Scotia, and a former Director of Softchoice Corporation, a North American provider of information technology solutions and services. Previously, she was a Commissioner of the Ontario Securities Commission, and has served on adjudicative panels and acted as a Director and Chair of its Governance and Nominating Committee. With over 20 years of experience in the investment industry as an investment banker, Ms. Perry held senior positions with leading financial services companies including RBC Capital Markets, Richardson Greenshields of Canada Limited and CIBC World Markets and later founded MaxxCap Corporate Finance Inc., a financial advisory firm. Ms. Perry has a Bachelor of Engineering Science (Electrical) degree from the University of Western Ontario and a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Toronto. She also holds the professional designation ICD.D from the Institute of Corporate Directors.

        Eamon J. Ryan has been a director of Celestica since 2008. He is the former Vice President and General Manager, Europe, Middle East and Africa for Lexmark International Inc., a publicly traded company. Prior to that, he was the Vice President and General Manager, Printing Services and Solutions Manager, Europe, Middle East and Africa. Mr. Ryan joined Lexmark International Inc. in 1991 as the President of Lexmark Canada. Prior to that, he spent 22 years at IBM Canada, where he held a number of sales and marketing roles in its Office Products and Large Systems divisions. Mr. Ryan's last role at IBM Canada was Director of Operations for its Public Sector, a role he held from 1986 to 1990. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Western Ontario.

        Gerald W. Schwartz has been a director of Celestica since 1998. He is the Chairman of the Board, President and Chief Executive Officer of Onex Corporation, a public corporation which holds a 75% voting interest in Celestica. Mr. Schwartz was inducted into the Canadian Business Hall of Fame in 2004 and was appointed as an Officer of the Order of Canada in 2006. He is also an honorary director of the Bank of Nova Scotia and is a director of Indigo Books & Music Inc., each of which is a public corporation. Mr. Schwartz is Vice Chairman of Mount Sinai Hospital and is a director, governor or trustee of a number of other organizations, including Junior Achievement of Toronto and The Simon Wiesenthal Center. He holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree and a

71


Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of Manitoba, a Master of Business Administration degree from the Harvard University Graduate School of Business Administration, a Doctor of Laws (Hon.) from St. Francis Xavier University and a Doctor of Philosophy (Hon.) from Tel Aviv University.

        Michael M. Wilson has been a director of Celestica since 2011. Until his retirement in December 2013, he was the President and Chief Executive Officer of Agrium Inc. (an agricultural crop inputs company), a public company, and has over 30 years of international and executive management experience. Prior to joining Agrium Inc., Mr. Wilson served as President of Methanex Corporation, a public company, and held various senior positions in North America and Asia during his 18 years with The Dow Chemical Company, also a public company. Mr. Wilson also serves on Agrium Inc.'s board of directors and is the Chair of the Calgary Prostate Cancer Foundation. Additionally, he is currently a director of Finning International Inc., and Suncor Energy Inc. (Finning International Inc. and Suncor Energy Inc. are public companies). He holds a degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Waterloo.

        Craig H. Muhlhauser is President and Chief Executive Officer, and since 2007, is also a director of Celestica. Prior to his current position, he was President and Executive Vice President of Worldwide Sales and Business Development. Before joining Celestica in May 2005, Mr. Muhlhauser was the President and Chief Executive Officer of Exide Technologies. He was serving as President of Exide Technologies when that entity filed for bankruptcy in 2002, was named Chief Executive Officer of Exide Technologies shortly thereafter and successfully led the company out of bankruptcy protection in 2004. Prior to that, he held the role of Vice President, Ford Motor Company and President, Visteon Automotive Systems. Throughout his career, he has worked in a range of industries spanning the consumer, industrial, communications, utility, automotive and aerospace and defense sectors. He was a director of Intermet Corporation, a privately held company, which filed for bankruptcy in the U.S. in August 2008 and emerged from Chapter 11 protection in September 2009. He holds a Master of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering and a Bachelor of Science degree in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Cincinnati.

        Darren G. Myers is Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. In this role, he is responsible for overseeing Celestica's accounting, financial and investor relations functions. He also leads Celestica's corporate development organization which focuses on creating value through acquisitions and partnerships. Mr. Myers joined Celestica in 2000 and has held numerous financial roles of increasing responsibility. Mr. Myers left Celestica and joined Bell Canada during the period of 2006-2008, where he was the Vice President of Finance for their Small and Medium Business Division. He re-joined Celestica in 2008 and most recently was the Senior Vice President and Corporate Controller with responsibilities including external reporting, corporate tax, investor relations and all corporate finance and treasury-related matters. Prior to joining Celestica, Mr. Myers held various roles at PricewaterhouseCoopers. Mr. Myers holds a Bachelor of Commerce (Honours) degree from McMaster University and is a Chartered Professional Accountant (Chartered Accountant).

        Elizabeth L. DelBianco is Executive Vice President, Chief Legal and Administrative Officer and Corporate Secretary. In this role, she oversees human resources, legal, contracts, communications and sustainability. Ms. DelBianco joined Celestica in 1998 and since that time has been responsible for managing legal, governance, and compliance matters for Celestica on a global basis. In March 2007, Ms. DelBianco assumed the leadership of the global human resources function. In this role, she oversees all human resources policies and practices and leads Celestica's efforts to attract, develop and retain key talent. Her role now also includes responsibility for overseeing Celestica's global branding and sustainability organizations. Prior to joining Celestica, Ms. DelBianco was a senior corporate legal advisor in the telecommunications industry. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Toronto, a Bachelor of Laws degree from Queen's University, and a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Western Ontario. She is admitted to practice in Ontario and New York.

        Glen D. McIntosh is Executive Vice President, Global Operations and Supply Chain Management. In this role, he is responsible for the strategy and execution of Celestica's operations and supply chain network across North America, Europe and Asia. Previously, he was Senior Vice President, Global Customer Business Unit, with responsibility for the strategy and execution for one of Celestica's largest customer business units. Mr. McIntosh joined Celestica in 1997 and has held roles of increasing responsibility with Celestica business units that supported customers in the enterprise and communications markets. Prior to joining Celestica, he held

72


progressively senior engineering and sales roles with other companies in the technology industry. He holds a Bachelor of Applied Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Waterloo.

        Michael L. Andrade is Executive Vice President, Diversified Markets. In this role, he is responsible for the strategy and execution of Celestica's industrial, healthcare, aerospace and defense, semiconductor equipment and smart energy businesses. Previously, he was Senior Vice President, North America Business Development, where he was responsible for leading the company's North American business strategy. He has also held the role of Senior Vice President, Strategic Business Development and Sales Operations. Mr. Andrade joined Celestica from IBM in 1994 as part of the Corporation's original management team and has held positions of increasing responsibility with the Corporation. He holds a Bachelor of Engineering Science degree from the University of Western Ontario and a Master of Business Administration degree from York University.

        Michael P. McCaughey is Executive Vice President, Communications, Enterprise and Managed Services. In this role, he is responsible for the strategic direction of the Corporation's enterprise and communications market segments, and managed services businesses. He also oversees key activities for all customer accounts in the enterprise and communications segments. Prior to that, he was the Senior Vice President, Enterprise and Communications Markets, with responsibility for the strategic direction of Celestica's enterprise and communications business. Prior to joining Celestica in June 2005, Mr. McCaughey held the role of Senior Vice President, Wireline Network Systems, at Sanmina-SCI. Before joining Sanmina-SCI, Mr. McCaughey held senior roles at Hyperchip Inc. and SCI Systems (prior to that company's merger with Sanmina). He holds a DEC in Electrotechnology from Vanier College and studied Electrical Engineering at McGill University.

        Mary A. Gendron is Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer. She is responsible for aligning Celestica's information technology strategy and its investments in IT tools and processes with Celestica's business goals. Ms. Gendron joined Celestica in October 2008 following a five-year career at The Nielsen Company, one of the largest global information measurement and media companies, where she was the Senior Vice President, IT Infrastructure Shared Services. Prior to that, she was the Chief Information Officer at ACNielsen U.S. Over the course of her career, Ms. Gendron has held management positions of increasing seniority in information technology and supply chain management at Motorola and Bell Canada. Ms. Gendron holds a Bachelor of Engineering degree from McGill University.

        There are no family relationships among any of the foregoing persons, and there are no arrangements or understandings with any person pursuant to which any of our directors or executive officers were selected.

        None of the directors of the Corporation serve together as directors of other corporations other than Messrs. Schwartz and Etherington who serve together on the board of directors of Onex.

B.    Compensation

Director Compensation

        Director compensation is set by the Board of Directors of Celestica (the "Board") on the recommendation of the Compensation Committee and in accordance with director compensation guidelines and principles established by the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee. Under these guidelines and principles, the Board seeks to maintain director compensation at a level that is competitive with director compensation at comparable companies. The Compensation Committee engaged Towers Watson Inc. (the "Compensation Consultant") to provide market comparison information in this regard (see Compensation Discussion and Analysis — Compensation Objectives — Independent Advice for a discussion regarding the role of the Compensation Consultant). In 2013, the Compensation Consultant conducted a competitive review of director compensation using the same comparator group used to conduct the 2012 competitive review of the Corporation's senior executive compensation. Based on the results of the review, the Compensation Committee determined that the current structure and levels of the Corporation's director compensation remained competitive and no adjustments were required, apart from an increase to the annual retainer for the Compensation Committee Chair. See Table 1 below. The director compensation guidelines and principles also contemplate that a portion of each director's compensation be paid in SVSs, including on a deferred basis in the form of DSUs.

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        The following table sets out the annual retainers and meeting fees payable in 2013 to the Corporation's directors, other than Mr. Muhlhauser, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Corporation, whose compensation is set out in Table 12.

Table 1: Retainers and Meeting Fees for 2013

Annual Retainer for Chair of the Board(1)

  $ 130,000  

Annual Board Retainer (for directors other than the Chair)

  $ 65,000  

Annual Retainer for Audit Committee Chair

  $ 20,000  

Annual Retainer for Compensation Committee Chair(2)

  $ 15,000  

Board and Committee Per Day Meeting Fee(3)

  $ 2,500  

Travel Fee(4)

  $ 2,500  

Annual DSU Grant (for directors other than the Chair)

  $ 120,000  

Annual DSU Grant — Chair

  $ 180,000  

(1)
The Chair of the Board also served as the Chair of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee, for which no additional fee is paid.

(2)
Annual Retainer for Compensation Committee Chair was increased from $10,000 to $15,000 effective as of July 1, 2013.

(3)
Attendance fees are paid per day of meetings, regardless of whether a director attends more than one meeting in a single day.

(4)
The travel fee is available only to directors who travel outside of their home state or province to attend a Board or Committee meeting.

        Directors receive half of their annual retainer and meeting fees (or all of such retainer and fees, subject to their election or deemed election) in DSUs. Subject to the terms of the governing plan, each DSU represents the right to receive one SVS or an equivalent value in cash when the director both (a) ceases to be a director of the Corporation and (b) is not an employee of the Corporation or a director or employee of any corporation that does not deal at arm's-length with the Corporation (collectively, "Retires"). The date used in valuing the DSUs for settlement is the date that is 45 days following the date on which the director Retires, or as soon as practicable thereafter. DSUs are redeemed and payable on or prior to the 90th day following the date on which the director Retires.

        The number of DSUs granted in lieu of cash meeting fees is calculated by dividing the cash fee that would otherwise be payable by the closing price of SVS on the New York Stock Exchange (the "NYSE") on the last business day of the quarter in which the applicable meeting occurred. In the case of annual retainer fees, the number of DSUs granted is calculated by dividing the notional cash amount for the quarter by the closing price of SVS on the NYSE on the last business day of the quarter.

        Directors who receive annual retainers also receive annual grants of DSUs, credited on a quarterly basis. In 2013, each director receiving a retainer received an annual grant of $120,000 in value of DSUs, except for the Chair, who received an annual grant of $180,000. The number of DSUs granted is calculated by dividing the notional cash amount for the quarter by the closing price of SVS on the NYSE on the last business day of the quarter.

        Eligible directors also receive an initial grant of DSUs when they are appointed to the Board. Currently, the initial grant is equal to the value of the annual DSU grant to eligible directors (i.e., $120,000) multiplied by 150% and divided by the closing price of SVS on the NYSE on the last business day of the fiscal quarter immediately preceding the date when the individual becomes an eligible director. If an eligible director Retires within a year of becoming an eligible director, all of the DSUs comprising the initial grant are forfeited and cancelled. If an eligible director Retires less than two years but at least one year after becoming an eligible director, then two-thirds of the DSUs comprising the initial grant are forfeited and cancelled. If an eligible director Retires within three years but at least two years after becoming an eligible director, then one-third of the DSUs comprising the initial grant are forfeited and cancelled. Forfeiture does not apply if a director Retires

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due to a change of control of the Corporation. Ms. Perry received an initial grant of $180,000 in value of DSUs upon her appointment to the Board on October 20, 2013.

Directors' Fees Earned in 2013

        The compensation paid in 2013 by the Corporation to its directors is set out in Table 2, except for Mr. Muhlhauser, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Corporation, whose compensation is set out in Table 12.

Table 2: Director Fees Earned in 2013

Name
  Board
Annual
Retainer
(a)
  Board
Chair
Annual
Retainer
(b)
  Committee
Chair
Annual
Retainer
(c)
  Total
Meeting
Attendance
Fees(1)
(d)
  Total Annual
Retainer and
Meeting Fees
Payable
((a)+(b)+(c)+(d))
(e)
  Portion of Fees
Applied to
DSUs
and Value of
DSUs(2)
(f)
  Annual
DSU Grant (#)
and Value of
DSUs(2)
(g)
  Initial DSU
Grant (#) and
Value of DSUs
(h)
  Total
((e)+(g)+(h))
 

Daniel P. DiMaggio

  $ 65,000           $ 37,500   $ 102,500   50%/$51,250   12,487/$ 120,000     $ 222,500  

William A. Etherington

      $ 130,000    

(3)
$ 27,500   $ 157,500   100%/$157,500   18,731/$ 180,000     $ 337,500  

Laurette T. Koellner

  $ 65,000       $ 20,000 (4) $ 37,500   $ 122,500   50%/$61,250   12,487/$ 120,000     $ 242,500  

Joseph M. Natale

  $ 65,000           $ 27,500   $ 92,500   100%/$92,500   12,487/$ 120,000     $ 212,500  

Carol S. Perry(5)

  $ 16,250           $ 7,500   $ 23,750   100%/$23,750   2,884/$ 30,000   16,319/$180,000   $ 233,750  

Eamon J. Ryan

  $ 65,000       $ 12,500 (6) $ 27,500   $ 105,000   100%/$105,000   12,487/$ 120,000     $ 225,000  

Gerald W. Schwartz(7)

                                 

Michael M. Wilson

  $ 65,000           $ 35,000   $ 100,000   100%/$100,000   12,487/$ 120,000     $ 220,000  

(1)
Includes travel fees payable to directors.

(2)
Represents grant date fair value. The annual retainer, and meeting fees elected to be received in DSUs, and the annual grant for 2013 were credited quarterly, and the number of DSUs granted in respect of the amounts credited quarterly for each such item was determined using the closing prices of SVS on the NYSE on the last business day of each quarter, which were $8.09 on March 28, 2013, $9.45 on June 28, 2013, $11.03 on September 30, 2013 and $10.40 on December 31, 2013. For directors who elected to receive 100% of their annual retainer and meeting fees in DSUs, no cash amounts were paid by the Corporation in respect of amounts set forth in column (e).

(3)
During 2013, Mr. Etherington was Chair of the Board and Chair of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee. Mr. Etherington does not receive a committee chair annual retainer in his capacity as Chair of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee.

(4)
During 2013, Ms. Koellner was Chair of the Audit Committee.

(5)
Ms. Perry was appointed to the Board and to each of the Audit, Compensation, and Nominating and Corporate Governance Committees effective October 20, 2013 and received a prorated Board annual retainer for 2013. The number of DSUs granted in respect of Ms. Perry's initial grant of DSUs was determined using the closing price of SVS on the NYSE on September 30, 2013 ($11.03), being the last business day of the fiscal quarter immediately preceding the date when Ms. Perry became an eligible director.

(6)
During 2013, Mr. Ryan was Chair of the Compensation Committee. The committee chair annual retainer was increased from $10,000 to $15,000 effective July 1, 2013.

(7)
Mr. Schwartz is an officer of Onex and did not receive any compensation in his capacity as a director of the Corporation in 2013. However, Onex did receive compensation for providing the services of Mr. Schwartz as a director pursuant to a Services Agreement between the Corporation and Onex entered into on January 1, 2009. The initial term of the Services Agreement was one year and the agreement automatically renews for successive one-year terms unless either the Corporation or Onex provide notice of intent not to renew. The Services Agreement terminates automatically and the rights of Onex to receive compensation (other than accrued and unpaid compensation) will terminate (a) 30 days after the first day on which Onex ceases to hold at least one MVS of Celestica or any successor company or (b) the date Mr. Schwartz ceases to be a director of Celestica, for any reason. Onex receives compensation under the Services Agreement in an amount equal to $200,000 per year, payable in DSUs in equal quarterly instalments in arrears. The number of DSUs is determined using the closing price of the SVS on the NYSE on the last day of the fiscal quarter in respect of which the instalment is to be credited.

        The total annual retainer and meeting fees earned by the Board in 2013 were $703,750. In addition, total annual grants of DSUs in the amount of $810,000, and an initial grant of DSUs in the amount of $180,000, were issued in 2013.

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Directors' Ownership of Securities

        In 2005, the Corporation amended its Long-Term Incentive Plan ("LTIP") to prohibit the granting to directors of options to acquire SVS. Table 3 sets out under "Option-Based Awards" information relating to options granted to Mr. Etherington prior to the foregoing amendment and which remain outstanding. Mr. Schwartz, as an employee of Onex during that period, was not granted options. Messrs. DiMaggio, Natale, Ryan and Wilson and Mss. Koellner and Perry, all of whom became directors after 2005, have not been granted any options under the LTIP.

        DSUs that were granted prior to January 1, 2007 may be settled in the form of SVS issued from treasury, SVS purchased in the open market, or an equivalent value in cash. DSUs granted after January 1, 2007 may only be settled in SVS purchased in the open market or an equivalent value in cash. The total number of DSUs outstanding for each director is included in Table 3 under "Share-Based Awards".

        The following table sets out information concerning all option-based and share-based awards of the Corporation outstanding as of December 31, 2013 (this includes awards granted before the most recently completed financial year) for each director proposed for election at the Meeting (other than Mr. Muhlhauser, whose information is set out in Table 13).

Table 3: Outstanding Option-Based and Share-Based Awards

 
  Option-Based Awards(1)   Share-Based Awards(2)  
Name
  Number of
Securities
Underlying
Unexercised
Options
(#)
  Option
Exercise
Price
($)
  Option
Expiration
Date
  Value of
Unexercised
In-the-Money
Options
($)
  Number of
Outstanding
DSUs
(#)
  Payout Value
of Outstanding
DSUs
($)
 

Daniel P. DiMaggio

   

   

   

   

   
107,328
 
$

1,116,211
 

William A. Etherington

                                     

May 10, 2004

    5,000
  $
18.25
    May 10, 2014
   

   

262,808
 

$


2,733,203
 

Laurette T. Koellner

   

   

   

   

   
126,856
 
$

1,319,302
 

Joseph M. Natale

   

   

   

   

   
73,113
 
$

760,375
 

Carol S. Perry

   

   

   

   

   
21,487
 
$

223,465
 

Eamon J. Ryan

   

   

   

   

   
170,421
 
$

1,772,378
 

Gerald W. Schwartz(3)

   

   

   

   

   

   

 

Michael M. Wilson

   

   

   

   

   
83,465
 
$

868,036
 

(1)
All option-based awards have vested.

(2)
Represents all outstanding DSUs, including the regular quarterly grant of DSUs issued on January 1, 2014 in respect of the fourth quarter of 2013. The payout value of such share-based awards was determined using a share price of $10.40, which was the closing price of the SVS on the NYSE on December 31, 2013.

(3)
Mr. Schwartz did not have any option-based or share-based awards from the Corporation outstanding as of December 31, 2013; however, 688,807 MVS are subject to options granted to Mr. Schwartz pursuant to certain management investment plans of Onex. For further information see footnote 3 to the Major Shareholders Table and footnote 7 to Table 2.

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        The following table sets out, for each director proposed for election at the Meeting, such director's direct or indirect beneficial ownership of, or control or direction over, equity in the Corporation, and any changes therein since February 15, 2013.

Table 4: Equity Interest Other than Options and
Outstanding Share-Based Awards(1)(3)

Name
  Date   SVS
#
  Market Value*  

Daniel P. DiMaggio

   
Feb. 15, 2013
Feb. 14, 2014
Change
   




   

 

William A. Etherington

   
Feb. 15, 2013
Feb. 14, 2014
Change
   
10,000
10,000
 

$


96,600
 

Laurette T. Koellner

   
Feb. 15, 2013
Feb. 14, 2014
Change
   


   

 

Craig H. Muhlhauser

   
Feb. 15, 2013
Feb. 14, 2014
Change
   
965,489
969,706
4,217
 

$


9,367,360
 

Joseph M. Natale

   
Feb. 15, 2013
Feb. 14, 2014
Change
   


   

 

Carol S. Perry

   
Feb. 15, 2013
Feb. 14, 2014
Change
   


   

 

Eamon J. Ryan

   
Feb. 15, 2013
Feb. 14, 2014
Change
   


   

 

Gerald W. Schwartz(2)

   
Feb. 15, 2013
Feb. 14, 2014
Change
   
666,324
660,864
(5,460



)


$


6,383,946
 

Michael M. Wilson

   
Feb. 15, 2013
Feb. 14, 2014
Change
   


   


 

*
Based on the NYSE closing share price of $9.66 on February 14, 2014.

(1)
Information as to securities beneficially owned, or controlled or directed, directly or indirectly, is not within the Corporation's knowledge and therefore has been provided by each nominee.

(2)
As described in note 3 to the Major Shareholders Table, Mr. Schwartz is deemed to be the beneficial owner of the 18,946,368 MVS owned by Onex. Mr. Schwartz is also the beneficial owner, directly or indirectly, of 100,000 multiple voting shares of Onex and 20,108,018 subordinate voting shares of Onex as of February 14, 2014.

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(3)
Mr. Etherington also owns 10,000 subordinate voting shares of Onex. Other than Messrs. Schwartz and Etherington, no other director of the Corporation owns shares of Onex.

        The Corporation has minimum shareholding requirements for directors who are not employees or officers of the Corporation or Onex (the "Guideline"). The Guideline provides that such a director who has been on the Board:

        Although directors will not be deemed to have breached the Guideline by reason of a decrease in the market value of the Corporation's securities, the directors are required to purchase further securities within a reasonable period of time to comply with the Guideline. Each director's holdings of securities, which for the purposes of the Guideline include all SVS and DSUs, are reviewed annually each year on December 31. The following table sets out, for each director proposed for election at the Meeting, whether such director was in compliance with the Guideline as of December 31, 2013.

Table 5: Shareholding Requirements

 
  Shareholding Requirements
Director
  Target Value as of
December 31, 2013(1)
  Value as of
December 31, 2013(2)
  Met Target as of
December 31, 2013

Daniel P. DiMaggio

  $ 195,000   $ 1,116,211   Yes

William A. Etherington

  $ 650,000   $ 2,837,203   Yes

Laurette T. Koellner

  $ 255,000   $ 1,319,302   Yes

Craig H. Muhlhauser(3)

    N/A     N/A   N/A

Joseph M. Natale

  $ 65,000   $ 760,375   Yes

Carol S. Perry(4)

    N/A     N/A   N/A

Eamon J. Ryan

  $ 400,000   $ 1,772,378   Yes

Gerald W. Schwartz(5)

    N/A     N/A   N/A

Michael M. Wilson

  $ 195,000   $ 868,036   Yes

(1)
Directors' target values are calculated by applying the applicable multiple from the Guideline to the sum of the director's Board annual retainer and committee chair annual retainer (if applicable).

(2)
The value of the aggregate number of SVS and DSUs held by each director is determined using a share price of $10.40, which was the closing price of the SVS on the NYSE on December 31, 2013.

(3)
Mr. Muhlhauser, as an officer of the Corporation, is not subject to the minimum shareholding requirements of the Guideline applicable to directors. See Executive Share Ownership for share ownership guidelines applicable to Mr. Muhlhauser in his role as President and Chief Executive Officer of the Corporation.

(4)
Ms. Perry was appointed to the Board on October 20, 2013. As she has been a director for less than a year, she is not yet subject to the minimum shareholding requirements of the Guideline.

(5)
Mr. Schwartz, as an officer of Onex, is not subject to the minimum shareholding requirements of the Guideline applicable to directors of the Corporation.

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Attendance of Directors at Board and Committee Meetings

        The following table sets forth the attendance of directors at Board and Committee meetings from the beginning of 2013 to February 14, 2014.

Table 6: Directors' Attendance at Board and Committee Meetings

 
   
   
   
   
  Meetings Attended
%
 
 
   
   
   
  Nominating and
Corporate
Governance
 
Director
  Board   Audit   Compensation   Board   Committee  

Daniel P. DiMaggio

    9 of 9     7 of 7     6 of 6     5 of 5     100%     100%  

William A. Etherington

    9 of 9     7 of 7     6 of 6     5 of 5     100%     100%  

Laurette T. Koellner

    9 of 9     7 of 7     6 of 6     5 of 5     100%     100%  

Craig H. Muhlhauser

    9 of 9                 100%      

Joseph M. Natale

    9 of 9     7 of 7     6 of 6     5 of 5     100%     100%  

Carol S. Perry(1)

    4 of 4     3 of 3     3 of 3     2 of 2     100%     100%  

Eamon J. Ryan

    9 of 9     7 of 7     6 of 6     5 of 5     100%     100%  

Gerald W. Schwartz

    8 of 9                 89%      

Michael M. Wilson

    8 of 9     7 of 7     5 of 6     5 of 5     89%     94%  

(1)
Ms. Perry was appointed to the Board and to each of the Audit, Compensation, and Nominating and Corporate Governance Committees effective October 20, 2013.

COMPENSATION DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS

        This Compensation Discussion and Analysis sets out the policies of the Corporation for determining compensation paid to the Corporation's CEO, its Chief Financial Officer ("CFO"), and the three other most highly compensated executive officers (collectively, the "Named Executive Officers" or "NEOs"). A description and explanation of the significant elements of compensation awarded to the NEOs during 2013 is set out in the section Compensation Discussion and Analysis — 2013 Compensation Decisions.

Compensation Objectives

        The Corporation's executive compensation philosophies and practices are designed to attract, motivate and retain the leaders who will drive the success of the Corporation. The Compensation Committee reviews compensation policies and practices regularly, considers related risks, and makes any adjustments it deems necessary to ensure the compensation policies are not reasonably likely to have a material adverse effect on the Corporation.

        A substantial portion of the compensation of our executives is linked to the Corporation's performance. A comparator group of similarly sized technology companies (the "Comparator Group") is set out in Table 8. The Corporation establishes target compensation with reference to the median compensation of the Comparator Group, however, neither each element of compensation nor total compensation must match such median exactly. NEOs have the opportunity for higher compensation for performance that exceeds target performance goals, and will receive lower compensation for performance that is below target performance goals.

        The compensation package is designed to:

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        The Compensation Committee, which has the sole authority to retain and terminate an executive compensation consultant, initially engaged the Compensation Consultant in October 2006 as its independent compensation consultant to assist in identifying appropriate comparator companies against which to evaluate the Corporation's compensation levels, to provide data about those companies, and to provide observations and recommendations with respect to the Corporation's compensation practices versus those of both the Comparator Group and the market in general.

        The Compensation Consultant may also assist management to review and, where appropriate, develop and recommend compensation programs that will ensure the Corporation's practices are competitive with market practices. The Compensation Consultant also provides advice to the Compensation Committee on the policy recommendations prepared by management and keeps the Compensation Committee apprised of market trends in executive compensation. The Compensation Consultant attended portions of all Compensation Committee meetings held in 2013, in person or by telephone, as requested by the Chair of the Compensation Committee. At each of its meetings, the Compensation Committee held an in camera session with the Compensation Consultant without any member of management being present.

        Decisions made by the Compensation Committee, however, are the responsibility of the Compensation Committee and may reflect factors and considerations supplementary to the information and recommendations provided by the Compensation Consultant.

        Each year, the Compensation Committee reviews the scope of activities of the Compensation Consultant and, if it deems appropriate, approves the corresponding budget. The Compensation Consultant meets with the Chair of the Compensation Committee and management at least annually to identify any initiatives requiring external support as well as agenda items for each Compensation Committee meeting throughout the year. Any service in excess of $25,000 provided by the Compensation Consultant at the request of management relating to executive compensation must be pre-approved by the Chair of the Compensation Committee. In addition, any non-executive compensation consulting service in excess of $25,000 must be submitted by management to the Compensation Committee for approval, and any services that will cause total non-executive compensation consulting fees to exceed $25,000 in aggregate in a calendar year must also be pre-approved by the Compensation Committee.


Table 7: Fees of the Compensation Consultant

 
  Year Ended December 31  
 
  2013   2012  

Executive Compensation-Related Fees

  C$ 227,998 (1) C$ 255,013 (2)

All Other Fees

  C$ 6,927 (3) C$ 17,522 (3)

(1)
Comprised of annual retainer fee of C$200,000 (for services that include, among other things, compensation program risk assessment) and fees related to performance share unit valuation, preparation for and attendance at Celestica strategy meeting and review of director compensation.

(2)
Comprised of annual retainer fee of C$200,000 (for services that include, among other things, compensation program risk assessment) and fees related to performance share unit valuation, Celestica Team Incentive (CTI) plan design for executives and non-executives, long-term incentive plan design analysis for executives and non-executives, competitive market analysis and other ad hoc market research.

(3)
Represents fees for non-executive compensation surveys.

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        The Compensation Committee reviews and approves compensation for the CEO and the other NEOs, including base salaries, annual incentive awards and equity-based incentive grants. The Committee evaluates the performance of the CEO relative to financial and business goals and objectives approved by the Board from time to time for such purpose. The Committee reviews competitive data for the Comparator Group and consults with the Compensation Consultant before exercising its independent judgment to determine appropriate compensation levels. The CEO reviews the performance evaluations of the other NEOs with the Committee and provides compensation recommendations. The Committee considers these recommendations, reviews market compensation information, consults with the Compensation Consultant and exercises its independent judgment to determine if any adjustments are required prior to approval.

        The Compensation Committee generally meets five times a year in January, April, July, October and December. At the July meeting, the Compensation Committee, based on recommendations from the Compensation Consultant, selects the comparator group that will be used for the compensation review. At the October meeting, the Compensation Consultant presents a competitive analysis of the total compensation for each of the NEOs, including the CEO, based on the established comparator group. Using this analysis, the Chief Legal and Administrative Officer (the "CLAO"), who has responsibility for Human Resources, and the CEO, together with the Compensation Consultant, develop base salary and equity-based incentive recommendations for the NEOs, except that the CEO and CLAO do not participate in the preparation of their own compensation recommendations. At the December meeting, preliminary compensation proposals for the NEOs for the following year are reviewed, including base salary recommendations and the value and mix of their equity-based incentives. By reviewing the compensation proposals in advance, the Compensation Committee is afforded sufficient time to discuss and provide input regarding proposed compensation changes prior to the January meeting at which time the Compensation Committee approves the compensation proposals, revised as necessary or appropriate, based on input provided at the December meeting. Previous grants of equity-based awards and the current retention value of same are reviewed and may be taken into consideration when making decisions related to equity-based compensation. The CEO and the CLAO are not present at the Compensation Committee meetings when their respective compensation is discussed.

        The foregoing process is also followed for determining the CEO's compensation, except that the CLAO works with the Compensation Consultant to develop a proposal for base salary and equity-based incentive grants. The Compensation Committee then reviews the proposal with the Compensation Consultant in the absence of the CEO. At that time, the Compensation Committee also considers the potential value of the total compensation package for the CEO at different levels of performance and different stock prices to ensure that there is an appropriate link between pay and performance, taking into consideration the range of potential total compensation.

        Based on a management plan approved by the Board, the annual incentive plan targets are approved by the Compensation Committee at the beginning of the year. The Compensation Committee reviews the Corporation's performance relative to these targets and the projected payment at the October and December meetings. At the January meeting of the following year, final payments under the annual incentive plan, as well as the vesting percentages for any previously granted equity-based incentives that have performance vesting criteria, are calculated and approved by the Compensation Committee based on the Corporation's year-end results as approved by the Audit Committee. The amounts related to the annual incentive plan are then paid in February.

        The Compensation Committee, in performing its duties and exercising its powers under its mandate, considers the implications of the risks associated with the Corporation's compensation policies and practices. This includes: identifying any such policies or practices that encourage executive officers to take inappropriate or excessive risks, including those identified by the Canadian Securities Administrators ("CSA"); identifying risks arising from such policies and practices that are reasonably likely to have a material adverse effect on the Corporation; and considering the risk implications of the Corporation's compensation policies and practices and any proposed changes to them.

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        In 2011, the Compensation Committee engaged the Compensation Consultant, to assist with a comprehensive risk assessment of compensation programs provided to the senior executive team, including the annual performance incentive and the Corporation's two long-term incentive plans. The compensation risk assessment included interviews with key Board and management representatives to (a) identify significant risks; (b) understand the role of compensation in supporting appropriate risk-taking; and (c) understand how risk is governed and managed at the Corporation. The Compensation Consultant also reviewed documentation relating to the Corporation's risk factors and compensation governance processes and programs. The Corporation's executive compensation programs for the NEOs were reviewed against the Compensation Consultant's compensation risk assessment framework. Results of the review were presented to the Compensation Committee.

        In April 2012 and July 2013, the Compensation Consultant reviewed actions taken by the Corporation and applicable governance trends in risk oversight of executive compensation since the comprehensive risk assessment had been conducted in 2011. In each case, based on the results of such assessments and its own independent analysis, the Compensation Committee concluded that the Corporation's compensation programs did not promote excessive risk-taking that is reasonably likely to have a material adverse effect on the Corporation, and that proper risk mitigation features are in place within the Corporation's compensation programs.

        The Corporation's compensation programs are designed with a balanced approach aligned with its business strategy and risk profile. A number of compensation practices have been implemented to mitigate potential compensation risk. Key risk-mitigating features in the Corporation's compensation governance processes and compensation structure include:

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        It is the Compensation Committee's view that the Corporation's compensation policies and practices do not encourage inappropriate or excessive risk-taking.

        The Compensation Committee establishes salary, annual incentive and equity-based incentive awards with reference to the median of such elements for the Comparator Group, which is comprised of companies in the technology sector that are of comparable size, scope, market presence and/or complexity to the Corporation. The revenues of the Comparator Group companies are generally in the range of half to twice the Corporation's revenues. Because of the international scope and the size of the Corporation, the Comparator Group is composed of companies with international operations, thus allowing the Corporation to offer its executives total compensation that is competitive in the markets in which it competes for talent. In 2013, changes were made to the Comparator Group used in 2012. Two companies were removed that exceeded the guideline revenue range and had significantly higher asset values and market capitalization than the Corporation. Two companies were added that were reasonably similar to the Corporation's size and scope and representative of companies with which the Corporation may compete for executive talent.

        The following table, which was reviewed by the Compensation Committee at its July 2013 meeting, sets out the Corporation's 2013 Comparator Group companies.

Table 8: Comparator Group(1)

Company Name
  2012 Annual
Revenue
(millions)
 
Company Name
  2012 Annual
Revenue
(millions)
 

Advanced Micro Devices Inc.

  $ 5,422  

NVIDIA Corp.(2)

  $ 4,280  

Agilent Technologies Inc.

  $ 6,858  

Plexus Corp.

  $ 2,307  

Applied Materials Inc.

  $ 8,719  

Sanmina-SCI Corp.

  $ 6,093  

Benchmark Electronics, Inc.

  $ 2,468  

SanDisk Corp.

  $ 5,053  

Broadcom Corp.

  $ 7,820  

Texas Instruments Inc.

  $ 12,825  

Corning Inc.

  $ 8,012  

TE Connectivity Ltd. (formerly Tyco

       

Flextronics International Ltd.(2)

  $ 23,569  

Electronics Ltd.)

  $ 13,282  

Harris Corp.

  $ 5,451  

Western Digital Corp.

  $ 12,478  

Jabil Circuit Inc.

  $ 17,152  

25th Percentile

  $ 4,344  

Juniper Networks, Inc.

  $ 4,365  

50th Percentile

  $ 6,213  

Lexmark International Inc.

  $ 3,798  

75th Percentile

  $ 9,659  

Micron Technology Inc.

  $ 8,234            

Molex Inc.

  $ 3,489            

NCR Corp.

  $ 5,730  

Celestica Inc.

  $ 6,507  

NetApp, Inc.

  $ 6,332  

Percentile    54th percentile  

 

(1)
All data was provided by the Compensation Consultant and sourced by it from Standard & Poor's Capital IQ as at June 30, 2013.

(2)
Figures shown for these companies reflect fiscal 2013 revenue.

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        Additionally, broader market compensation survey data for other similarly-sized organizations provided by the Compensation Consultant is referenced in accordance with a process approved by the Compensation Committee. The Compensation Committee considered such survey data, among other things, in making compensation decisions. In addition to the survey data, proxy disclosure of the Comparator Group companies for the most recently completed fiscal year was considered when determining compensation for the CEO and the other NEOs.

Compensation Hedging Policy

        The Corporation has adopted a policy regarding executive officer and director hedging. The policy prohibits executives and directors from, among other things, entering into speculative transactions and transactions designed to hedge or offset a decrease in market value of equity securities of the Corporation granted as compensation. Accordingly, executives may not sell short, buy put options or sell call options on the Corporation's securities or purchase financial instruments (including prepaid variable contracts, equity swaps, collars or units of exchange funds) which hedge or offset a decrease in the market value of the Corporation's securities.

"Clawback" Provisions

        The Corporation is subject to the "clawback" provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. Accordingly, if the Corporation is required to restate financial results due to misconduct or material non-compliance with financial reporting requirements, the CEO and CFO would be required to reimburse the Corporation for any bonuses or incentive-based compensation they had received during the 12-month period following the period covered by the restatement, as well as any profits they had realized from the sale of securities of the Corporation during that period.

        In addition, under the terms of the stock option grants and the PSU and RSU grants made under the LTIP and the SUP, an NEO may be required by the Corporation to repay an amount equal to the market value of the shares at the time of release, net of taxes, if, within 12 months of the release date, the executive:

        Executives who are terminated for cause also forfeit all unvested RSUs, PSUs and stock options as well as all vested and unexercised stock options.

Compensation Elements for the Named Executive Officers

        The compensation of the NEOs is comprised of the following elements:

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        The at-risk portion of total compensation has the highest weighting at the most senior levels of management. Annual and equity-based incentive plan rewards are contingent upon the Corporation's performance, aligning senior management incentives with shareholder interests. The target weighting of compensation elements for NEOs for 2013 is set out in the following table.

Table 9: Target Weighting of Compensation Elements

 
  Base Salary   Annual
Incentive
  Equity-based
Incentives
 

CEO

    12.9%     16.1%     71.0%  

Executive Vice Presidents

    20.1%     16.0%     63.9%  

        The Compensation Committee may exercise its discretion to either award compensation absent attainment of a relevant performance goal or similar condition, or to reduce or increase the size of any award or payout to any NEO. The Compensation Committee did not exercise such discretion in 2013 with respect to any NEO.

        The objective of base salary is to attract, reward and retain top talent. Base salaries for executive positions are reviewed against those in the Comparator Group, with base salary determined with reference to the market median of this group. Base salaries are reviewed annually and adjusted as appropriate, with consideration given to individual performance, relevant knowledge, experience and the executive's level of responsibility within the Corporation.

        The objective of the Celestica Team Incentive Plan ("CTI") is to reward all eligible employees, including the NEOs, for the achievement of annual corporate and individual goals and objectives. CTI awards for the NEOs are based on the achievement of pre-determined corporate and individual goals, and are paid in cash. Actual payouts can vary from 0% for performance below a threshold up to a maximum capped at 200% of the Target Award. Awards are determined in accordance with the following formula:

GRAPHIC

        Business Results Factor: The Business Results Factor of CTI is based on certain corporate financial goals (described in more detail below) established at the beginning of the performance period and approved by the Compensation Committee and can vary from 0% to 200%.

        Individual Performance Factor: Individual contribution is recognized through the individual performance factor of CTI ("IPF"). The IPF is determined through the annual performance review process and is based on an evaluation of the NEO's performance measured against specific criteria established at the beginning of each year. The criteria may include factors such as the NEO's individual performance relative to business results, teamwork and the executive's key accomplishments. The IPF can adjust the executive's actual award by a factor of between 0.0x and 2.0x (for exceptional performance).

        Actual results relative to the targets, as described above, determine the amount of the annual incentive subject to the following: (i) a minimum corporate profitability threshold must be achieved for the Business Results Factor to exceed zero, and (ii) the maximum CTI payment is two times the target incentive.

        Target Award: The Target Award is calculated as each NEO's Eligible Earnings (i.e., base salary) multiplied by the Target Incentive (expressed as a percentage of base salary in the applicable plan year).

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        The Corporation's equity-based incentives for the NEOs consist of RSUs, PSUs and stock options. The objectives of equity-based compensation are to:

        At the December or January meeting, as the case may be, the Compensation Committee determines the dollar value and mix of the equity-based grants to be awarded to the NEOs based on the Comparator Group data analysis. On the grant date, the dollar value is converted into the number of units that will be granted using the closing price of the SVS on the day prior to the grant. The annual grants are made following the blackout period that ends 48 hours after the Corporation's year-end results have been released.

        Target equity-based incentives are determined with reference to the median awards of the Comparator Group; however, consideration is given to individual performance when determining actual awards. The mix of equity-based incentives is reviewed and approved by the Compensation Committee each year.

        The CEO has the discretion to issue equity-based awards throughout the year to attract new hires and to retain current employees within limits set by the Compensation Committee. The number of units available throughout the year for these grants is pre-approved by the Compensation Committee at the January meeting. Subject to the Corporation's blackout periods, these grants typically take place at the beginning of each month. Any such grants to NEOs must be reviewed with the Compensation Committee at the next meeting following such grant and in practice are reviewed in advance with the Chair of the Compensation Committee.

        NEOs are granted RSUs under either the LTIP or the SUP as part of the Corporation's annual grant. Each RSU entitles the holder to one SVS on the release date. The issuance of such shares may be subject to vesting requirements, including such time or other conditions as may be determined by the Board of Directors in its discretion. RSUs granted by the Corporation generally are released in instalments of approximately one-third per year, over three years. The payout value of the award is based on the number of RSUs being released and the market price of the SVS at the time of release. The Corporation has the right under the LTIP to authorize the settlement of, and has the right under the SUP to settle, RSUs in either cash or SVS. See Compensation of Named Executive Officers — Equity Compensation Plans.

        NEOs are granted PSUs under the LTIP or the SUP. Each PSU entitles the holder to receive one SVS on the applicable release date. The issuance of such shares may be subject to vesting requirements, including any time-based conditions established by the Board of Directors at its discretion. The vesting of PSUs also requires the achievement of specified performance-based conditions as determined by the Compensation Committee. PSUs granted by the Corporation generally vest at the end of a three-year performance period subject to pre-determined performance criteria. The payout value of the award is based on the number of PSUs that vest and the market price of the SVS at the time of release. The Corporation has the right under the LTIP to authorize the settlement of, and has the right under the SUP to settle, the PSUs in either cash or SVS. See Compensation of Named Executive Officers — Equity Compensation Plans.

        If applicable, NEOs are awarded stock options under the LTIP. The exercise price of a stock option is the closing market price on the business day prior to the date of the grant. In determining the number of stock options to be granted, the Corporation keeps within a maximum level for option "burn rate", which refers to the number of shares issuable pursuant to stock options granted under the LTIP in a given year relative to the total number of shares outstanding. Stock options granted by the Corporation generally vest at a rate of 25% annually on each of the first four anniversaries of the date of grant and expire after a ten-year term. The plan is not an evergreen plan and no stock options have been re-priced.

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        NEOs participate in the Corporation's health, dental, pension, life insurance and long-term disability programs. Benefit programs are based on market median levels in the local geography.

        NEOs are entitled to a bi-annual comprehensive medical examination at a private health clinic. The Corporation also pays housing expenses for Mr. Muhlhauser in Toronto, travel costs between his home in New Jersey and Toronto, the services of a tax advisor and the tax equalization payments, if any, associated with the fact that Mr. Muhlhauser performs a portion of his services in the United States.

2013 Compensation Decisions

        Each element of compensation is considered independently of the other elements. However, the total package is reviewed to ensure that the achievement of target levels of corporate and individual performance will result in total compensation comparable to the median of the Comparator Group.

        Salary, target annual incentive and equity-based incentive grants for the NEOs were established with reference to the market median of the Comparator Group for each such element.

        The base salaries for the NEOs were reviewed taking into account individual performance and experience, level of responsibility and median competitive data.

        Messrs. Muhlhauser and Myers did not receive increases in 2013 as their existing base salaries were competitive with the Comparator Group. The Compensation Committee granted increases to Messrs. McCaughey and Andrade and Ms. DelBianco on April 1, 2013 to improve alignment with the median base salaries of the Comparator Group. Mr. McCaughey's salary increased from $400,000 to $450,000, Ms. DelBianco's salary increased from $444,000 to $460,000, and Mr. Andrade's salary increased from $413,000 to $450,000.

        For equity grants made in 2014 in respect of 2013 performance, the Compensation Committee determined that the mix should be comprised of RSUs (50% weight) and PSUs (50% weight) and that no stock options would be granted to NEOs. Previously, for equity grants made in 2013 in respect of 2012 performance, the mix consisted of RSUs (40% weight), PSUs (35% weight) and stock options (25% weight). In reaching its decision to modify the mix in respect of 2013 performance as compared to the mix in respect of 2012 performance, the Committee took into account competitive equity compensation trends and practices among the Corporation's Comparator Companies and