BMW 2011 Annual Report Download - page 176

176
152 STATEMENT ON
CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
(Part of Management Report)
152 Information on the Company’s
Governing Constitution
153 Declaration of the Board of
Management and of the
Supervisory Board pursuant to
§ 161 AktG
154 Members of the Board of
Management
155 Members of the Supervisory Board
158 Work Procedures of the
Board of Management
160 Work Procedures of the
Supervisory Board
165 Compensation Report
173 Information on Corporate
Governance Practices
175 Compliance in the BMW Group
apply to individual countries or specific lines of busi-
ness, these are covered by supplementary compliance
measures.
The BMW Group Legal Compliance Code is at the core
of the Compliance Organisation. This document, which
explains the significance of legal compliance and pro-
vides an overview of the various areas relevant for the
BMW Group, is available both as a printed brochure and
to download in German and English. In addition, trans-
lations into nine other languages are available (French,
Italian, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, Portuguese,
Russian, Spanish and Thai).
In July 2011, the Board of Management supplemented
the BMW Group Legal Compliance Code by endorsing
the BMW Group Policy “Corruption Prevention”, setting
out the framework for dealing legitimately with gifts,
hospitalities and other benefits and defining appropriate
value limits and approval procedures for specified ac-
tions. The requirements for acceptable courses of action
are described in detail for a range of typical business
situations.
Managers in particular bear a high degree of responsi-
bility and must set a good example in the process of
preventing infringements. All managers are required to
inform the staff working for them of the content and
significance of the Legal Compliance Code and to make
staff aware of legal risks. Managers must, at regular
intervals and on their own initiative, check compliance
with the law and communicate regularly with staff on
this issue. Any indication of non-compliance with the
law must be rigorously investigated.
More than 13,000 managers and staff have received
training worldwide in essential compliance matters since
the introduction of the BMW Group Compliance Organi-
sation. The training material is available on an inter-
net-based training platform in German and English and
includes a final test. Successful participation in the
training programme, which is documented by a certifi-
cate, is mandatory for all BMW Group managers. Ap-
propriate processes are in place to ensure that all newly
recruited managers and promoted staff undergo com-
pliance training.
In addition to this basic training, in-depth training is
also provided to certain groups of staff on specific com-
pliance issues. This includes a training programme
(“Compliance Advanced – Competition and Antitrust
Law”) aimed at employees who come into contact with
antitrust-related issues as a result of their functions
within sales or purchasing.
In order to avoid legal risks, all members of staff are ex-
pected to discuss matters with their managers and with
the relevant departments within the BMW Group, in
particular Legal Affairs, Corporate Audit and Corporate
Security. As a further point of contact, the BMW Group
Compliance Contact has been set up both for employees
and non-employees to answer any questions that may
arise regarding compliance.
Since July 2011, employees have the opportunity to sub-
mit information – anonymously and confidentially –
via the BMW Group SpeakUP Line about possible breaches
of the law within the Company . The BMW Group
SpeakUP Line is available in a total of 34 languages and
can be reached via local free-of-charge telephone numbers
in all of the countries in which BMW Group employees
carry out activities.
Compliance-related queries and all matters to which
attention has been drawn are documented and followed
up by the BMW Group Compliance Committee Office
using an electronic Case Management System. If neces-
sary, Corporate Audit, Corporate Security, the Works
Council and Legal Affairs may be called upon to assist in
the investigation process.
A reporting system has been established for the BMW
Group Compliance Organisation which enables com-
pliance-relevant issues to be reported to the Compliance
Committee on a regular basis, and, if necessary, on an ad
hoc basis. A total of 140 Compliance Managers covering
all areas of the BMW Group report on compliance mat-
ters. This includes reporting on the compliance status of
the relevant entities, on identified legal risks and inci-
dences of non-compliance as well as on corrective /pre-
ventative measures implemented.
Compliance with and the implementation of the Legal
Compliance Code are audited regularly by Corporate
Audit and subjected to control checks by Corporate
Security and the BMW Group Compliance Committee
Office. As part of its regular activities, Corporate Audit
carries out on-site audits. The BMW Group Compliance
Committee also engages Corporate Audit to perform
compliance-specific tests. In addition, sample checks