Vilmorin & Cie - Annual report 2017-2018

ANNUAL REPORT Vilmorin & Cie 109 2017-2018 4 In order to develop in France and internationally, Vilmorin & Cie carries out its activities with responsibility, respecting all the players in its environment, whether they are women and men working in its organization, its shareholders, its customers, its suppliers, without forgetting the associative and political authorities, as well as the final consumers and civil society. The values of progress, perseverance and cooperation guide the behavior of employees and preside over decisions in a long-term perspective. The group is supported in its reasoned approach by the know-how, innovative spirit, international development, multiculturalism, emblematic brands and the commitment of all involved. At the same time, Vilmorin & Cie strives to develop the talents of all those who want to share this adventure, to anticipate and meet human resource needs, in line with the Group's values and strategic orientations. The group is aware of the environmental challenges in a context of limited agricultural land and natural resources. To help meet these challenges, the teams work every day to strive for operational excellence to become an exemplary partner and to achieve a positive footprint in the regions where Vilmorin & Cie operates, through its research and plant breeding efforts and targeted actions in all its projects. Furthermore, the fundamental themes of UN Global Compact – human rights, labor rights, the environment and the fight against corruption – are integrated into the development strategy. These principles are at the heart of the human resources policy, corporate ethics and environmental protection commitments. 4.3.1. Fostering the long-termdevelopment of employees and the transmission of their knowledge Developing human capital is key to motivating the employees who make up the company, which is essential to insure the survival of its activities in the future and crucial for the enrichment of skills more broadly in society. It is this human capital that Vilmorin & Cie intends to develop to enable all of its employees to contribute to the Company's development and to blossom in their jobs. The Group implements programs that reinforce the employability of its employees and guarantee high standards of occupational health and safety. Particular attention is paid to the equity of social policy throughout the world, and to the allocation of fair remuneration. All of the company's employees also benefit from the Group's results and those of their respective Business Units, as part of a global incentive plan. This profit-sharing program is available in all the countries in which the Group operates. Finally, Vilmorin & Cie makes every effort to make its employees feel proud of their company. During fiscal year 2017-2018, Human Resources (HR) teams continued to deploy the Group's employer brand and optimize the visibility of job offers to potential candidates, including students and recent graduates as well as employees. The objective is to make the Group's offer as an employer attractive to the various audiences while reinforcing a feeling of belonging with all Vilmorin & Cie’s employees. The efforts of the HR teams have also focused on deploying international HR information systems for the management of recruitment, follow-up of annual appraisals and career monitoring, enabling automatic consolidation of information and thus optimizing HR processes. The internationalization of health and welfare programs and the deployment of Limagrain Academy's knowledge-sharing center across European borders were also pursued over this fiscal year. 4.3. Conducting activities in an ethical, sustainable and effective manner Key figures 2.9 million euros invested in 125,959 hours of training 77 new recruits less than 26 years of age taken on with permanent contracts out of 817 throughout the world 372 new recruits graduated from higher education 347 trainees throughout the world 4.3. Conducting activities in an ethical, sustainable and effective manner Social, environmental and societal INFORMATION