People and Management - Carlsberg Group

30 Management review / Carlsberg Annual Report 2006“The Group strives to enhance the skillsof managers and other employees, and todevelop a strong culture across nationalborders and functions.”

Carlsberg Annual Report 2006 / Management review 31A developing organisationThe Carlsberg brand is known and respected throughoutthe world. The Group is a global player and offers employeesgood opportunities to encounter a wide range ofchallenges and cultures. The rapid evolution of the businessalso means that individual employees can play anactive part in a dynamic process. Carlsberg is thereforean attractive employer with the best possible basis forrecruiting and retaining dynamic and talented people,which is a focus area in the organisation.The development of Carlsberg’s international activitiesand realisation of its ambitious business goals ask agreat deal of employees across the business. The Grouptherefore strives to enhance the skills of managers andother employees, and to develop a strong culture whichpulls the company together across national borders andfunctions, and promotes commitment in people’s everydaywork. Employee and management development area strategic focus area for the Group.Carlsberg also makes various demands of its employees.Importance is attached to managers and other employeeshaving a commercial mindset and focusing onconsumers and customers, and being able to contributeto value creation in the business. They must also feelcomfortable with Carlsberg’s values: innovation, ambition,responsibility and honesty.Carlsberg’s globalisation has brought a growing need topromote mobility. It is becoming increasingly importantto identify and recruit the best managers and other employeesthroughout the global organisation. More andmore employees are working outside their home countriesfor various lengths of time, and this mobility offersconsiderable development opportunities for the individualemployee and is a necessity for Carlsberg in its effortsto optimise the business.Importance is attached to developing the organisationand its employees so as to create the best possible basisfor realising Carlsberg’s business goals. Currentlythere is a particular focus on the following areas:• Further developing managers’ skills.• Further strengthening employees’ commitment andskills in terms of developing a strong winning culture.• Attracting the right employees to every part of thebusiness.• Developing a pay and incentive structure that motivatesand reflects the individual’s contribution.• Tailoring the organisational structure to commercialpriorities.Development of people and cultureContinuous development of the Group’s employees is animportant part of everyday life at Carlsberg. This continuousprocess is supplemented with a range of initiatives,including management and talent development; internalproduction, procurement and marketing academies; andpersonal development programmes for managers andother employees at various levels of the organisation.These programmes are put together with a view to aligningthe individual employee’s interest in and capacity forpersonal development with the Group’s need to enhanceskills and strengthen its corporate culture. The overall

32 Management review / Carlsberg Annual Report 2006“The rapid evolution of the Carlsberg Group meansthat individual employees can play an active part in adynamic process.”goal is for the organisation to be able to meet constantlychanging commercial challenges.One integral aspect of all development activities isstrengthening the corporate culture, but this culture isalso anchored and nurtured through collaboration acrossthe organisation on joint projects and through effectivecommunication.Commitment and satisfactionEmployees’ commitment and satisfaction play a majorrole in the Group’s ability to realise its business goals.Employee surveys covering these areas are thereforeconducted periodically.These surveys provide important information on whichfactors are important for employees’ commitment, satisfactionand motivation, and reveal areas for improvement.Information is also obtained on the corporate cultureat Carlsberg and the values that pull the organisationtogether. These surveys have helped to ensure anincreased focus on management and communication inrecent years.an ability to work and lead people across different cultures,and to run the business and achieve success underconditions that are constantly changing. It is managerswho are to put our strategies into action throughtheir people, and they must be in a position to motivate,involve, enthuse and empower the individual employee.To ensure that the company’s current and future managerspossess the right managerial skills, a number ofcore competences have been identifi ed. Firstly there isthe ability to generate growth: managers must be able tocreate new business opportunities for Carlsberg througha commercial mindset and in-depth understanding of thecustomer and the consumer. Secondly managers musthave a real hunger for success: they must be able topush the boundaries, set targets and achieve them.Finally there is the ability to achieve results through colleaguesand subordinates: managers must be able todeliver results through collaboration with other people,both in their own units and across the organisation.These core competences are to be strengthenedthrough management development activities.Calls on managers’ skillsCarlsberg’s globalisation and growth aspirations demandskilled managers. Managing a global business requires

Carlsberg Annual Report 2006 / Management review 33International Talent ProgrammeCarlsberg’s International Talent Programme waslaunched in 2004. It is aimed at managers who havepreviously shown good business sense and achievedgood results, have a degree of management experience,and are mobile. The aim of the programme is tobuild up an international pool of strong and skilledemployees with the desire and ability to deliver resultsand build an international, multidisciplinary networkwithin the Carlsberg Group.The programme aims to develop the participants’man agerial skills and give them an in-depth knowledgeof the Carlsberg Group’s global activities. Onecondition is that participants must be prepared totake on duties wherever the business can best makeuse of their particular skills.The programme will typically be the first step on theparticipants’ path towards a senior international postat Carlsberg, and is an important part of our successionmanagement. The programme is internal andruns for two years. The key elements are LeadershipExcellence, Communicative Competence, BusinessExcellence and Common Skills Training. As part of theprogramme, each participant is linked to an internalmentor who provides regular feedback and guidance.Leadership AcademyThis programme was launched in 2006 and is aimed atmiddle management. The idea is to increase participants’business insight and their understanding of theopportunities and challenges faced by the CarlsbergGroup. Participants gain a detailed insight into Carlsberg’sway of doing business and into local and globalaspects of the business. They also receive in-depthtraining in Carlsberg’s core management competences.To develop strong skills in middle management andgive middle managers an opportunity to build networksacross national borders and functions, the programmealso stimulates interest in sharing experienceand results across the organisation.The Leadership Academy includes topics such as customerand consumer trends, competition, key internaland external challenges, and management training.