We attach great importance to the satisfaction of our employees in order to remain a consistently attractive employer. The feedback given by our staff is taken very seriously and used as a basis for continuous improvement.

For many years now we have obtained a reliable picture of our employees' satisfaction through the survey of our workforce carried out at the Hannover location. In the autumn of 2015, with the support of an external opinion research and management consulting firm, we also conducted a survey of employee satisfaction internationally and Group-wide for the first time.

Based on solid participation of around 70%, a very high degree of overall satisfaction among our staff was identified as a central finding. This was true both of the average evaluation across all questions and for virtually all individual questions. The considerable motivation and dedication expressed by our staff was especially gratifying. As far as potential scope for improvement is concerned, they identified a more broad-based system of remuneration and further optimisation of the support provided for their ongoing individual training. On the basis of these insights we evaluated the findings in detail, with decentralised measures subsequently initiated and implemented in the individual units and entities.

The staff turnover ratio at the Hannover location of 1.9% (3.1%) was substantially lower than the level of the previous year and hence continues to be well below the average expected for the industry as a whole (5.3%). The average length of service to the company at the Hannover location stood at 12 years in 2017.