Vodafone 2005 Annual Report Download - page 77

Employees
Governance |75
Employee involvement
The Board of directors’ aim is to ensure that employees understand the Company’s
strategic goals and the mutual obligations of working in a high performing, values-
based organisation.
Vodafone’s Vision and Values provide a common way of doing things and the Group
remains determined that they continue to flourish throughout the business; implicit in
all that the Group does for and with its shareholders, customers and employees.
Vodafone has now launched a global induction programme to ensure that all new
employees are introduced to the Group’s culture, vision and objectives.
The Board places a high priority on effective employee communications to promote
important messages and a wide range of mechanisms is used to achieve this. In
addition to the more traditional channels, such as the global team briefing programme,
the Group is increasingly using its own products and services such as SMS and audio
based messaging to reinforce their efficacy as internal communications media. This
will be developed further in the future. This year has also seen the launch of Vodafone
TV, the Group’s bespoke television service used to simultaneously disseminate key
messages and data worldwide via the Group’s global intranet. All of these initiatives
are supported and enhanced by a comprehensive range of award winning in-house
publications, for effectively sharing information with employees on key performance
indicators for the business.
Within European subsidiaries, employee representatives meet annually with members
of the executive management team in the Vodafone European Employee Consultative
Council to discuss the performance and prospects of the Group and significant
transnational issues.
During 2003, Vodafone conducted its first bi-annual Employee Survey in order to
measure the effectiveness of its communications initiatives and its standing as an
employer. 84% of employees shared their views with the Company and, as a result,
the Board initiated a Group level action plan with three themes. These, and the
initiatives put in place during 2003 and 2004 to address them, are summarised below:
•To communicate and bring the Vodafone strategy to life;
Chief Executive, Arun Sarin, and other members of the executive management team
continue to host the “Talkabout”roadshow programme which aims to visit each
mobile operating subsidiary annually. In the “Talkabout”sessions, management
discusses the shared vision for Vodafone’s future with as wide an audience of
Vodafone people as possible, listening to their views and talking about the issues
that matter most to them and exchanging ideas about how Vodafone can serve its
customers as a single, global team. This programme provides the perfect
opportunity to articulate the “Vodafone Journey”, which is how the Group has
chosen to identify its strategic goals and priorities and its progress in achieving
them.
•To ensure the world class development of Vodafone people;
One of the Group’s key strategic goals is to “Build the best Vodafone Team”. This
signifies a long-term investment in building the Group’s organisation capability. The
aim is to create a steady stream of talent at every level of the organisation, with a
continued emphasis on developing operational excellence. Vodafone’s Global
People Development function is working with the Group’s operating companies to
create common global approaches to people and management development. This
includes resourcing and assessment standards, consistent performance reviews,
formal training structures (including e-learning) and an annual process to review the
performance and potential of Vodafone’s most senior managers in order to plan
succession and development moves.
•To consider how the Group might anticipate and better respond to the needs of its
customers;
The Group has developed and launched a global Customer Delight system which
gathers monthly feedback from thousands of customers around the world to see
how Vodafone measures up to their expectations.
The second Employee Survey was conducted in February 2005 and over 89% of
employees took the opportunity to share their views. The results will be used to
measure progress and develop a further programme of action to support the objective
of creating a high performance, values based culture with people as a competitive
advantage.
Employment policies
The Group’s employment policies are consistent with the principles of the United
Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Labour
Organisation Core Conventions and are developed to reflect local legal, cultural and
employment requirements. High standards are maintained wherever the Group
operates, as Vodafone aims to ensure that the Group is recognised as an employer of
choice. Employees at all levels and in all companies are encouraged to make the
greatest possible contribution to the Group’s success. The Group considers its
employee relations to be good.
Equal opportunities
Vodafone does not condone unfair treatment of any kind and operates an equal
opportunities policy for all aspects of employment and advancement, regardless of
race, nationality, sex, marital status, disability or religious or political belief. In practice,
this means that the Group is able to select the best people available for positions on
the basis of merit and capability, making the most effective use of the talents and
experience of people in the business, providing them with the opportunity to develop
and realise their potential.
The disabled
The directors are conscious of the special difficulties experienced by people with
disabilities. Every effort is made to ensure ready access to the Group’s facilities and
services and a range of products has been developed for people with special needs. In
addition, disabled people are assured of full and fair consideration for all vacancies for
which they offer themselves as suitable candidates and efforts are made to meet their
special needs, particularly in relation to access and mobility. Where possible,
modifications to workplaces have been made to provide access and, therefore, job
opportunities for the disabled. Every effort is made to continue the employment of
people who become disabled via the provision of additional facilities, job design and the
provision of appropriate training.
Health, safety and wellbeing
The health, safety and wellbeing of the Group’s customers, employees and others who
could be affected by its activities, are of paramount importance to Vodafone and the
Group applies rigorous standards to all of its operations. Annually, each operating
subsidiary is audited against these standards and the results are submitted in a report
for discussion by the Board of directors.
The Group’s annual global health and safety audit has shown a consistent rise in
scores from the audits in 2002, 2003 and 2004. New standards and policies have
been produced and implemented with an increase in consultation, participation and
best practice sharing by health and safety professionals from the operating
subsidiaries. These include revised standards on radio frequency field exposure, health
and safety risk assessment and health and safety planning. Further standards and a
comprehensive health and safety management system are in the consultation phase.