Capital One 2015 Annual Report Download - page 32

13 Capital One Financial Corporation (COF)
that we are able to compete effectively in our current markets. There can be no assurance, however, that our ability to market
products and services successfully or to obtain adequate returns on our products and services will not be impacted by the nature
of the competition that now exists or may later develop, or by the broader economic environment. For a discussion of the risks
related to our competitive environment, please refer to “Part I—Item 1A. Risk Factors.”
EMPLOYEES
A central part of our philosophy is to attract and retain highly capable staff. We had approximately 45,400 employees, whom we
refer to as “associates,” as of December 31, 2015. None of our associates are covered under a collective bargaining agreement,
and management considers our associate relations to be satisfactory.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Technology/Systems
We leverage information technology to achieve our business objectives and to develop and deliver products and services that
satisfy our customers’ needs. A key part of our strategic focus is the development and use of efficient, flexible computer and
operational systems, such as cloud technology, to support complex marketing and account management strategies, the servicing
of our customers, and the development of new and diversified products. We believe that the continued development and integration
of these systems is an important part of our efforts to reduce costs, improve quality and provide faster, more flexible technology
services. Consequently, we continuously review capabilities and develop or acquire systems, processes and competencies to meet
our unique business requirements.
As part of our continuous efforts to review and improve our technologies, we may either develop such capabilities internally or
rely on third-party outsourcers who have the ability to deliver technology that is of higher quality, lower cost, or both. We continue
to rely on third-party outsourcers to help us deliver systems and operational infrastructure. These relationships include (but are
not limited to): Total System Services Inc. (“TSYS”) for processing services for our North American and U.K. portfolios of
consumer and small business credit card accounts, and Fidelity Information Services (“FIS”) for certain of our banking systems.
To protect our systems and technologies, we employ security, backup and recovery systems and generally require the same of our
third-party service providers. In addition, we perform, or cause to be performed, a variety of vulnerability and penetration testing
on the platforms, systems and applications used to provide our products and services in an effort to ensure that any attacks on these
platforms, systems and applications are unlikely to succeed.
Intellectual Property
As part of our overall and ongoing strategy to protect and enhance our intellectual property, we rely on a variety of protections,
including copyrights, trademarks, trade secrets, patents and certain restrictions on disclosure, solicitation and competition. We also
undertake other measures to control access to and distribution of our other proprietary information. Despite these precautions, it
may be possible for a third party to copy or otherwise obtain and use certain intellectual property or proprietary information without
authorization. Our precautions may not prevent misappropriation or infringement of our intellectual property or proprietary
information. In addition, our competitors and other third parties also file patent applications for innovations that are used in our
industry. The ability of our competitors and other third parties to obtain such patents may adversely affect our ability to compete.
Conversely, our ability to obtain such patents may increase our competitive advantage. There can be no assurance that we will be
successful in such efforts, or that the ability of our competitors to obtain such patents may not adversely impact our financial
results.
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
From time to time, we have made and will make forward-looking statements, including those that discuss, among other things,
strategies, goals, outlook or other non-historical matters; projections, revenues, income, returns, expenses, capital measures,
accruals for claims in litigation and for other claims against us; earnings per share or other financial measures for us; future financial
and operating results; our plans, objectives, expectations and intentions; and the assumptions that underlie these matters.