BMW 2006 Annual Report Download - page 26

25
The credit card business continued to grow
strongly and was expanded further in 2006. At 31
December 2006,339,824 customers owned a BMW
or MINI Card,16.5 % more than at the end of 2005.
The BMW Card was introduced in the United
Arab Emirates and in Bahrain in June 2006 and was
already available in Australia, Germany, the United
Kingdom, Japan, New Zealand, Austria, Spain,
Thailand and the USA. As part of the expansion of
banking activities, the MINICard has also been avail-
able since mid-2006 in the USA and the United
Kingdom (previously only in Germany and Japan).
Balanced risk situation
During the financial year 2006, the credit risk for
credit and lease financing activities was at a similar
level to the previous year. Bad debts increased
slightly by 4 basis points to 0.41%. The interest rate
risk is managed using a risk-return approach. Di-
versified value-at-risk, as measured by the Financial
Services segment to quantify the interest rate risk*,
decreased from euro 44.2 million to euro 34.9 million.
*based on a 99% confidence level and a holding period of 10 days
Softlab: premium advice from a single provider
The Softlab Group operates in the IT consultancy
services market, working with its customers’ systems
along the whole value-added chain from process
consultancy, the implementation of tailored IT solu-
tions through to their operation. Strategic acquisi-
tions made by the Softlab Group in recent years have
contributed to this development. In 2006, it took
over F.A.S.T. Gesellschaft für angewandte Software-
technologie mbH, Munich, thus enabling it to
strengthen its market position, particularly in the
field of consulting.
Slight increase in workforce
The BMW Group’s workforce increased by 777 em-
ployees (+0.7%) during the financial year 2006 to
reach 106,575 employees at 31 December 2006.
Approximately 75% of the workforce is employed in
Germany, where the number of employees remained
practically unchanged.
The employee fluctuation rate at BMW AG has
been low for many years, both in comparison with
other car manufacturers and other sectors.
The BMW Group recruits staff continuously on
a targeted basis in order to compensate for fluctua-
tion. In 2006, for example, in addition to more than
1,200 newly filled apprenticeship positions, 664 posts
were also advertised and filled externally.
Number of apprenticeship positions remains
at high level
1,207 young people commenced their training with
the BMW Group at the start of the training year. In
total, the BMW Group employed 4,359 apprentices
at the year-end, 2.4% fewer than one year earlier.
The slight reduction was partly due to the earlier
final examination dates for some apprentices. These
vacated positions will not be replaced until the next
recruitment round. For this reason, the apprentice
ratio in Germany (i.e. the ratio of apprentices to the
total workforce) fell by 0.1 percentage points in 2006
to a level of 4.9%.
Starter programmes for high school leavers and
university graduates are also in place to complement
the range of opportunities available to those about
to start their careers at the BMW Group.
Further training tailored to suit requirements
Both primary and further training of employees are
especially significant for a premium manufacturer
like the BMW Group in order to maintain high quality
BMW Group apprentices at 31 December
5,500
5,000
4,500
4,000
3,500
3,000
2,500
02
4,199
03
4,306
04
4,464
05
4,464
06
4,359