Inclusion of diversity

• Promoting diversity as part of company culture
• First global goals for increasing percentage of women in leadership positions

We want to utilize diversity for the development of our business. That is why promoting diversity is one of the mainstays of our corporate culture. The strong global character of our markets translates into different customer requirements. We want to reflect this diversity in our workforce in order to even better understand the needs of our customers. The aim is to increase our teams’ performance and power of innovation, and boost creativity, motivation and identification with the company. We are therefore further promoting the appreciation and inclusion of diversity. Leaders play an important role here. We support them in strengthening diversity and making the best possible use of it in day-to-day business. For example, specific goals and measures are being developed for such topics as recognizing and developing different kinds of talent.

For the first time, BASF set itself global goals in 2015 for increasing the percentage of women in leadership positions. In the BASF Group, the global proportion of female leaders with disciplinary responsibility was 19.5% at the end of 2015 (2014: 19.1%). We aim to increase this figure to 22–24% worldwide by 2021, so that the proportion of women in leadership reflects that of women in the global company workforce. Considering the relatively low rate of turnover in the BASF Group’s leadership team, this is an ambitious goal.

In Germany, BASF is putting into practice the Law on Equal Participation of Women and Men in Leadership Positions in the Private and Public Sector. In accordance with these legal requirements, the Board of Executive Directors determined target figures for the proportion of women in the two leadership levels below the Board of Executive Directors of BASF SE: 9.4% for the leadership level directly below the Board, and 11.8% for the level below that. This corresponds to the status at the time these target figures were determined. Target figures were likewise defined for German Group companies subject to co-determination. The deadline for achieving these goals has been set for December 31, 2016. After that, the company will review the numbers and subsequently decide on new target figures.

Furthermore, BASF wants to continue increasing the global percentage of senior executives¹ that come from countries other than Germany. This figure was at 35.6% by the end of 2015. Moreover, we intend to maintain the proportion of senior executives with international experience at over 80%. We exceeded this figure by the end of 2015, reaching 82.9%. With these goals, we continue to drive our globally integrated approach to promoting diversity and leadership development.

Work-life balance

• Worldwide offers help combine career, family and private life

Our identity as an employer includes our belief in enabling our employees to better combine their work, family and private lives. Through various offers and opportunities, we create working conditions that give fair consideration to our employees’ individual needs. We want to strengthen employee identification with the company and bolster our position as an attractive employer in the competition for qualified personnel.

Our offer includes flexible working hours, part-time employment and mobile working. In 2015, a total of 11.7% of BASF SE employees held part-time positions, of which 68.5% were women. Numerous BASF SE employees also made use of parental leave, including more and more fathers.

Combining career, family and private life
(Total BASF SE employees: 35,972, thereof 21.4% women, as of December 31, 2015)

Our regional initiatives specifically address the needs of our employees at a local level. In South America, for example, we introduced the Equilibre program comprising a range of possibilities for flexible working hours. At our Work-Life Management employee center in Ludwigshafen (“LuMit”), there are numerous opportunities for exercise and health, employee assistance, and balancing career, family and personal life – such as the company childcare center, “LuKids.” Around 600 employees take advantage of these options each day.