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Business review 17 TomTom Annual Report 2006
Geographical presence
Our global reach was widened with the
launch of our products in Ireland, South
Africa and Taiwan. TomTom products are
now available in 25 countries worldwide.
In Europe they are available in 20
countries and we continue to expand as
new high-quality maps become available.
As TomTom started to build the PND
category in Europe, retailers know and
trust the TomTom brand and that is
illustrated by our leading market share
which is stable at around 50%. In North
America we grew our market share from
approximately 13% in 2005 to 20% in
2006. In Australia we built our presence
to the number one position in two years.
Customer support
We believe that TomTom products are the
best available in the market, and we back
this up with the best after-sales support –
perhaps one of the most valuable
resources we can offer to our customers.
Customer support is a real strategic asset
to our Company. This is how we find out
what our customers need or do not
understand. Synchronising what we hear
with our product development plans
delivers value beyond solving customer
problems, as it helps us identify areas
where we can further expand our
business. Additionally, by keeping
customer support in clear and direct
feedback with our product management
and marketing teams, we identify areas
where our products and services can
further improve.
Our customer support department
continued to grow this year, in line with
the rapid expansion of the TomTom user
base. Due to all the feedback we have
received we have been able to regularly
update our knowledge database with
frequently asked questions, a useful tool
consulted regularly by large numbers
of users. This has helped TomTom
customers learn tips and tricks from other
users, which at the same time leverages
our support function efficiently and
cost-effectively. TomTom now supports
users in 15 different languages across
25 countries.
Human resources
TomTom’s human resources strategy is
based on developing scalable, transparent
and easy-to-use HR tools and activities
that enable our business growth strategy,
help us retain key staff and allow us to
operate effectively and efficiently.
A significant part of our effort to drive
the growth of our business in 2006 was
the careful execution of our employee
growth strategy. During the year we grew
the number of employees from 435 to
818 people.
We strive to create and nurture a culture
where people can communicate openly,
where creativity can flourish and where
talent is rewarded fairly. We succeed in
encouraging balance and diversity
in our workforce: our male:female split
this year was 71%:29% and we
employed staff from 35 different
nationalities within the various TomTom
offices around the world.
Thanks!
“…I am writing to express my thanks
to one of your team for the technical
help he gave me on the telephone.
Not being of a very technical nature,
I needed help in updating my
TomTom GO and downloading
a map of Australia...
...The TomTom employee I spoke
with was patient, sympathetic and
extremely helpful... So often,
technical support people do not
explain clearly and fully, and leave us
in the dark, only to feel frustrated. It
made a refreshing change to have
someone who did not rush the
situation, and took the care and time
to ensure that I was fully up-to-date
before signing off…”
TomTom user
Talent development
TomTom invests a significant amount
of time and effort in the training and
development of its staff. Its
employee base has almost doubled
each year since 2003.