Strengthening our global team is one of our three strategic priorities. The skills and performance of our employees are key factors for ensuring the future success of our Company. We therefore encourage and develop our employees from 110 countries so that they can achieve their full potential, and we link personal commitment to the Company’s success. Target-oriented management, performance-related remuneration, regular assessments, and continuous learning create the conditions for this.

Excellence in leadership is another of our key success factors. The demands placed on specialists and managers are steadily increasing. It is therefore crucial that we continuously foster the development of employees at different management levels in accordance with the growing demands they face.

Our corporate culture plays a key role in motivating our employees and ensuring a positive work climate. It is based on employees who think and act independently. We recognize our obligation to respect the personal dignity and guard the privacy rights of all of our employees, and to apply the principles of equality and fairness. Both of these elements are embodied as essential behavioral rules in our Code of Conduct.

A top priority at Henkel is the health and safety of all employees. We strive to continuously improve occupational health and safety. Specially designed programs promote good health and ensure our employees’ long-term capacity to work.

Henkel is constantly growing and developing. Our internationality requires the creation of worldwide human resources structures. One of the greatest challenges is the development of a global corporate culture that encourages all employees to think and act independently. At the same time, a number of social changes – such as the aging population of western industrialized states, with the associated shortage of prospective young recruits, and the rapid growth of many emerging economies – present us with major new challenges. To ensure our long-term success in this environment, we rely on our well-qualified, flexible, and highly motivated employees. Their experience, talents and skills reflect the diversity of our markets and customers.

At the end of 2008, Henkel had 55,142 employees worldwide.