ANNUAL REPORT 2008/09 - Sonova

Professional development: the key to success
Continuing professional development, increased individual
responsibility and the development of employee
skills make a defi ning contribution to the development of
Sonova’s strong corporate culture. Knowledge management
is a key element in Sonova’s management philosophy.
There are no closed doors at Sonova – every employee
can approach his colleagues for help at any time. One of
the most important factors in Sonova’s success is a dedicated
system of professional development and training. The
core areas of learning are technical training and the development
of personal, social and leadership skills coupled
with entrepreneurial thinking beyond one’s own immediate
fi eld of operation. The Group also supports employees
in taking up diff erent employment positions in diff erent
countries, thus consolidating the Group’s international
culture.
For several years now, eff orts to develop uniform and
Group-wide professional development programs have been
intensifi ed. Global human resources standards have been
implemented, ensuring comprehensive professional development
opportunities for the Group’s employees. There
are currently a range of professional development programs
in place across the corporation for the various levels of
management, for example the “Leadership Excellence Pro -
gram” and the “High Performance Program”. Additional
programs are off ered on a local basis. All programs are
off ered on an annual basis and refresher courses are also
envisaged. The composition of participant groups is international,
ensuring that the professional development
courses off er good opportunities for sharing experiences
on an international and intercultural basis, in addition
to their technical content.
Four programs are off ered worldwide in the fi eld of technical
specialization. The “Passion for Selling” program,
focusing on sales as a growth driver, is of critical importance.
This initiative lays the foundations for further
24 SUSTAINABILITY
strengthening the sales culture within the Sonova Group
and increasing sales effi ciency across the Group, within
all Group Companies.
The promotion of social and personal skills is also of prime
importance within Sonova’s training and professional
development strategy. Across the Group, four programs are
off ered where time management, communication and
team building skills can be acquired or improved. In future,
the newly developed “Fit for Life” program will promote
the health and productivity of our employees.
In the fi nancial year 2008/09, around 2,600 employees
Group-wide attended training and professional development
courses.
Employees by activity 2008/09
2,883
312
2,144
Research and development
Operations
Sales and marketing,
general and administration
The Sonova Group has signifi cantly grown and employed
5,339 people as of March 31, 2009 (prior year 4,746).
This increase is mainly the result of the acquisition of companies
involved in the distribution of hearing systems.
The sales and marketing organization was also expanded
in order to increase market coverage through direct sales
representatives and to support the many strategically
important product launches more eff ectively. New posts
were also created in operations to keep up with the
ex pansion of the Group’s sales volume. The headcount in
research and development was increased by 13%.