Audi 2009 Annual Report Download - page 162

159
Management Report
132 Audi Group
140 Business and
underlying situation
153 Financial performance
indicators
157 Social and ecological aspects
157 Employees
159 Audi in society
160 Location-based
environmental aspects
163 Product-based
environmental aspects
168 Risks, opportunities
and outlook
177 Disclaimer
Anniversary celebrations for Audi employees
The Audi Group held celebrations for the entire workforce in fall 2009 to mark the anniversaries
of various plants and as a way of saying “thank you” to its current and former employees for all
their efforts. The two events “60 Years of Audi at Ingolstadt” and “40 Years of Audi at Neckar-
sulm” attracted some 150,000 visitors in total. In Brussels, the “60 Years of Car Manufacturing”
anniversary was attended by around 8,000 people.
The employee events to mark the anniversaries of the various locations took place alongside the
festivities to mark the centennial of the Audi brand in 2009. The highlights of the celebrations
included the festive gala evening, attended by numerous guests from the worlds of culture,
sport and politics, and the world debut of the Audi A5 Sportback.
Training and advancement
AUDI AG recruited an extra 40 apprentices in the past fiscal year. To mark the 100th anniversary
of the Audi brand, in addition the Company launched a drive to create more apprenticeships,
with an additional 100 places for apprentices available in 2010. They will be trained mainly in
the careers of the future, with an emphasis on electronics and mechatronics.
The Audi Group promotes voluntary activities by apprentices because these can help them to
acquire skills that will benefit them later on in their career, as well as being socially useful. The
Training Departments of the Ingolstadt and Neckarsulm plants therefore stepped up their social
involvement in the respective regions in 2009.
In addition, around 120 apprentices visited high schools and further education colleges in the
Ingolstadt region to present their vocational careers and tell students about their experiences as
apprentices of AUDI AG. Internships were also offered to school students in order to promote an
understanding of and interest in technology among high school students.
Another area of the qualification initiative in 2009 focused specifically on educators. Teachers
were able to take internships at the Training Department and in the Company in order to get to
know the world of work at AUDI AG better.
AUDI AG launched the “Promoting Top Employees” program during the year under review. It is
designed to assist employees of the Company who wish to embark on a technical or non-
technical further training course and have already distinguished themselves with very good
grades and levels of commitment. In the first year, 40 employees were selected for this form of
fast-tracking.
AUDI IN SOCIETY
Record-breaking Christmas donation
In 2009 the Christmas fundraising campaign pioneered by the Works Council of AUDI AG raised
the highest sum since its inception in 1977. About 99 percent of employees at Neckarsulm and
Ingolstadt donated an amount of around EUR 547,000, which the Company topped up to pro-
duce a total donation of some EUR 740,000. The money raised will be distributed among over
100 social institutions and charities in the regions around the Company’s locations.
Research partnerships
The AUDI AG University Strategy Group has been coordinating the strategic direction of partner-
ships with universities since 2008, with the aim of building up expertise and promoting up-and-
coming academics.
Over 120 research students are currently preparing their doctoral theses at the Audi Group as
part of two different doctoral student programs, each lasting three years.
80 of these doctoral projects are being run in partnership with universities. The proportion of
economics, humanities and social sciences topics for these doctoral theses rose to ten percent.