Mercedes 2010 Annual Report Download - page 115

Management Report | Risk Report | 111
Specific risks in the area of human resources. Daimler’s suc-
cess is highly dependent on the expertise and commitment of
its workforce. Competition for highly qualified staff and manage-
ment is still very intense in the industry and the regions in
which we operate. Our future success also depends on the extent
to which we succeed over the long term in recruiting, integrating
and retaining executives, engineers and other specialists.
The application of our human resources instruments takes such
personnel risks into consideration, while contributing towards
the recruitment and retention of staff with high potential and exper-
tise and ensuring transparency with regard to our resources.
One focus of our human resources management is on the targeted
personnel development and further training of our workforce.
Our employees profit for example from the range of courses offered
by the Daimler Corporate Academy and from the transparency
created by LEAD, our uniform worldwide performance and poten-
tial management system.
Because of demographic developments, the Group has to cope
with the changes relating to an aging workforce and has to secure
a sufficient number of qualified young persons with the potential
to become the next generation of highly skilled specialists and
executives.
Risks relating to equity holdings and cooperations as well
as other business risks. Daimler bears in principle a propor-
tionate share of the risks of its associated companies, of EADS
and joint ventures in growth markets for example. In order to
make use of additional growth opportunities, particularly in the
emerging markets, cooperation with partners in joint ventures
and the associated risks are of increasing significance. The Group
includes associated companies and joint ventures in the con-
solidated financial statements using the equity method of account-
ing; any factors with a negative impact on those companies’
earnings have a proportionate negative impact on our net results.
Such factors can also mean that impairment losses have to
be recognized on the carrying values of the equity interests or
the amounts entered on the basis of the equity method. Further-
more, failures or delays in the development of joint ventures
could negatively affect our growth targets in important markets.
The successful implementation of cooperations with other com-
panies is also of key importance to realize cost advantages and
combat the competitive pressure in the automotive industry.
The Group is also exposed to a number of risks because it has
issued guarantees for and holds an equity interest in the system
for recording and charging tolls for the use of highways in Ger-
many by commercial vehicles of more than 12 metric tons gross
vehicle weight. The operation of the electronic toll-collection
system is the responsibility of the operator company, Toll Collect
GmbH, in which Daimler holds a 45% stake and which is included
in the consolidated financial statements using the equity method
of accounting. In addition to Daimler’s membership of the Toll
Collect consortium and its equity interest in Toll Collect GmbH,
risks also arise from guarantees that Daimler AG issued support-
ing obligations of Toll Collect GmbH towards the Federal Republic
of Germany concerning the completion and operation of the toll
system. Claims could be made under these guarantees, if toll rev-
enue is lost for technical reasons or if certain contractually
defined parameters are not fulfilled, if additional claims are made
by the Federal Republic of Germany, or if the final operating
permit is not granted. Additional information on contingent obliga-
tions from guarantees granted and on the electronic toll collection
system and the related risks can be found in Note 28 (Legal pro-
ceedings) and Note 29 (Guarantees and other financial commit-
ments) of the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements.