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ORGANISATIONAL GROWTH
2007 saw TomTom grow by 63.4% to 1,337 employees worldwide by year-end, from 818 at the end of 2006.
During the year we opened new operations in Austria, Denmark, Finland, Japan and New Zealand, and substantially increased our headcount in Australia, Germany, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Taiwan and the US. We also successfully integrated 90 new employees who joined the workforce from Siemens VDO in June 2007.
HUMAN RESOURCES POLICY
Organisational structure
At TomTom, the human resources function is organised centrally. In principle, all our staff worldwide are serviced by the Human Resources department based in Amsterdam. However, there are also dedicated Human Resources staff in the US and Taiwan; while our London, Paris, Leipzig and North Ryde (Australia) sites each have staff who combine human resources work with other functions.
Competencies
The work of every employee is built around three core competencies: Open Spirit, Passion for Results and Innovative Thinking. These core competencies, combined with role-specific competencies, are at the heart of TomTom’s Human Resources strategy. They are used as the basis for recruiting, training, developing and compensating employees, and form the backbone of the General Performance Scheme (GPS), our performance appraisal scheme.
General Performance Scheme
GPS was successfully introduced in 2007, with a comprehensive training programme for managers and staff alike, along with the development of a range of largely web-based support tools. Like GPS, the core competencies were also successfully embedded during 2007, and both have now become an integral part of the TomTom spirit and work culture.
RECRUITMENT
During 2007, TomTom was recruiting 70 new employees per month. To ensure quality standards were maintained, a new recruitment process was developed and implemented, in which we have embedded the ‘Talentlink’ recruitment system to ensure fairness and consistency, and to provide feedback opportunities.
Through a search process that includes our company website, international job boards, advertisements, fairs and specialised agencies, TomTom was in 2007 able to attract a large number of highly motivated and talented young professionals from all over the world.
The three core competencies, combined with the role-specific competencies, form the basis of our selection process. In 2007, all managers and recruiters were offered competency-based interviewing training to help them select the best candidates.
To enhance the TomTom employer brand in the international labour market, in the second half of 2007 TomTom successfully introduced the TomTom Challenge, a unique selection process based around the TomTom core competencies.
COMPENSATION & BENEFITS
Compensation
TomTom’s approach to compensation is geared to serving the company’s worldwide strategy, and consists of a mix of base salary (How) and performance bonus (What), plus a long-term incentive for employees in mission-critical roles and for employees identified as high potential.
In addition to these basic pillars, individual, role-specific output bonuses are offered as an incentive for certain employees around areas such as patent creation and individual recognition.
Bonuses
The performance bonus is a significant part of every employee’s total cash compensation, and divided into an Individual element and a Company element. This fits with our vision that success for TomTom as a business should also mean success for the individual employee. The proportion of the individual and company elements of an employee’s bonus varies, depending on the level of their influence on the delivery of TomTom’s strategy.
Employee share plan
Until 2007, TomTom operated an Employee Stock Option Plan. During 2007 this was replaced by a Performance Share Plan, which provides for the awarding of “Performance Shares”. A “Performance Share” is a virtual unit linked to the actual cash value of TomTom shares. The final number of Performance Shares available depends on two performance criteria. The external criterion is Total Shareholder Return (TSR) benchmarked against AEX funds. The internal criterion is measured against Earnings Per Share (EPS) growth targets. Performance is measured over a three year period, with the final pay out dependent on (i) the extent to which the two performance criteria have been met (the number of Performance Shares) and (ii) the stock market value of a TomTom share at vesting (the value of each Performance Share).
Benefits
TomTom is determined to be a good employer and provide all employees with sufficient security in terms of pension, health and disability cover. Our worldwide benefit programme therefore focuses primarily on these subjects. However, depending on local circumstances and practices, additional programmes may be put in place locally.
TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT
Strategy
With the implementation of GPS, involving competency profiles for each job within the organisation, it was felt a new Training and Development (T&D) strategy was needed, which we developed and implemented during 2007.
The GPS Cycle
T&D needs are now mainly, though not exclusively, identified through the GPS cycle. When a particular developmental need is identified for a large enough group of employees, we develop specific programmes to meet those needs. In 2007 these included Project Management, Project Planning, Personal Effectiveness and Computer Literacy programmes.
Induction
During 2007, TomTom was typically recruiting 70 new employees a month. It is vital for the business that these people enjoy a smooth ‘on-boarding’ so they can hit the ground running when starting their jobs. At the same time it also ensures the huge influx of personnel does not undermine or dilute TomTom’s much-valued work culture, but rather enhances the ability of our core values of Open Spirit, Passion for Results and Innovative Thinking to thrive.
We therefore replaced the standard induction programme with a new programme that splits induction into an overall TomTom induction day followed up by a discipline-specific induction component.
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“At TomTom we have always developed all our core technologies in-house, from the ground up. Technological innovation is at the core of everything TomTom does.” |
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Talent development
In late 2007, TomTom introduced its Young Talent Development programme. In 2007, 24 people were taken onto the programme, which is designed to broaden the participant’s knowledge-base, while improving their technical and personal skills.
The programme has been developed in cooperation with Erasmus University, Rotterdam School of Management (RSM), and includes modules to improve understanding of business processes (such as innovative development, innovative market approach and supply-chain management), competency-based training (such as project management and negotiation skills), and a coaching and supervision programme, which, amongst other things, helps participants to build cross-discipline peer group networks.
Health Policy
During 2007, the important step was taken to implement a new, worldwide health policy.
The goals of TomTom’s health policy have always been to minimise absenteeism and maximise employee well-being. The health policy now provides consistency across all countries, while accommodating local legislation and practices.
The policy itself clearly defines everybody’s roles & responsibilities in terms of health. Meanwhile Health Officers have been appointed in every region, processes developed to foster a pro-active healthy environment, and during roll-out of the policy, steps were taken to raise awareness of relevant health issues amongst managers and employees alike.
In 2007 a new worldwide company doctor service was also put in place.
Works Council 2007
In June 2007, the joint Works Council of TomTom International BV and TomTom Sales BV was elected in accordance with the Works Council Act. Employees elected 13 representatives from 29 candidates, with good representation from across the TomTom organisation.
All Works Council members received professional training to help them in their new role.
With the incorporation into the workforce of the automotive team from Siemens VDO in Eindhoven, it was decided to recognise their existing Works Council until its next due elections in the second half of 2008, after which it will be integrated into TomTom’s Works Council. |
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