BMW 2010 Annual Report Download - page 31

29 GROUP MANAGEMENT REPORT
combining work with study have been designed both for
graduate employees and those with technical qualifica-
tions. Further opportunities aimed at other areas are also
currently being prepared.
Effective measures to counter the shortage of
skilled workers
The BMW Group has been working for many years now
on ways to counter the threat of a shortage of skilled
workers. Two issues play a particularly important role in
a forward-looking strategy for recruiting new staff.
Firstly, we are determined to remain one of the most at-
tractive employers in the world. Our excellent reputation
quite clearly facilitates the recruitment of suitably qualified
employees. Our success in this endeavour is confirmed
by the excellent results we achieve in international sur-
veys, such as the Top Global 50 Study conducted by Uni-
versum. The BMW Group was once again found to be the
most attractive employer in Germany as well as the most
highly rated automobile company.
Secondly, existing recruitment measures have been
enhanced and new programmes initiated, including new
programmes for management trainees (BMW Group
Graduate Programme) and school leavers (SpeedUp – the
BMW Bachelor programme) during the year under re-
port. The new doctorate programme, ProMotion, was
also developed and is due to commence in 2011 with
roughly 200 participants. The programme encourages
highly talented young people to work on innovative
projects, either in close conjunction with universities or
within the company. Other measures complement the
range of
programmes; one example of this is the “Formula
Student”
programme, designed to establish contact with
interested students.
Workforce diversity as key factor for future
We believe it is essential to aim for social diversity within
the workforce to ensure future competitiveness. With
this in mind, the BMW Group’s Diversity Concept has an
important part to play in the company’s new strategic
direction. The concept of diversity is not just a matter of
providing opportunities for women. Only when we have
successfully combined the following three factors – an
international workforce, a mixture of ages and an ade-
quate representation of women – will we have access to
the knowledge and skills needed to service existing sales
markets and engage in new ones. Achieving this aim is
seen as a prerequisite for a strong business both now and
in the future.
We have identified gender, cultural background and age
as key diversity criteria in the face of challenges such as
demographic change and gaining access to new sales
markets. These criteria will be applied in future through-
out the BMW Group to the extent that local conditions
permit.
Since we consider the aptitude of an employee as the
paramount consideration, we are not aiming to have
a
strict quota for female employees, but rather to recruit
the best candidate for the business in each individual
case.
Visible progress has been achieved in the past in terms of
the proportion of female employees. Between 2005 and
2010 the number of female non-tariff employees rose
from 7.4% to 8.8%. The proportion of women in manage-
ment positions worldwide in the BMW Group exceeds
10%. With regard to endeavours to increase the propor-
tion of women working for the BMW Group, particularly
in programmes offered for new recruits, it is important
tobear in mind that women are extremely poorly repre-
sented on engineering courses at universities and in
technical fields.
Managing demography – Today for Tomorrow
As a result of demographic change, the future performance
of the BMW Group will depend on a workforce with a
much higher average age than at present. In order to
remain ahead of competitors, the BMW Group must
strengthen the health and skills of its workforce and
adapt the working environment to accommodate the
changing age structure.
Employee attrition ratio at BMW AG1
as a percentage of workforce
6.0
5.0
4.0
3.0
2.0
1.0
06 07 08 09 10
2.68 2.66 5.85
2 4.59 2 2.74
1 number of employees on unlimited employment contracts leaving the company
2 after implementation of previously reported measures to reduce the size of the
workforce (voluntary employment contract termination agreements)