Annual report 2010 - Imperial Tobacco Group

Our Key Assets continuedOur PeopleLink to StrategyStrategy Performance Governance FinancialsOur PeopleOur success is as much about our people as it is aboutour brands, products and markets. We have a culture thatis conducive to success, that encourages inventiveness,shares achievements and rewards performance.We treat our employees with fairness, dignity and respect.We seek to provide a safe working environment which attracts,retains, develops and motivates the best people so thatthey can meet the challenges of the business and achievepersonal success as well as share in the Group’s success.Our priority is to ensure that our people continue to developand have the right skills to support our sustainable salesgrowth strategy. As part of this focus we have conductedresearch into our current skills and capabilities and arebenchmarking them against other FMCG companies.The results are helping to shape a number of initiatives.We have a loyal and highly motivated workforce and placea strong emphasis on maintaining high ethical standardsin all of our business activities. Supporting our sustainablesales growth strategy is a common framework that guidesour employees in their behaviour.More details are included in our corporate responsibilityperformance on pages 41 to 52 of this report.Our Code of ConductImperial Tobacco Code of Conduct | 09.08.10 ENTERCritical to delivering our sustainable sales growth strategyis our collective commitment to further embedding highstandards of conduct and behaviour throughout the Group.A key component of this is our Code of Conduct which hasbeen revised in 2010. The Code sets out the standards ofresponsible behaviour that all of our employees are expectedto follow at all times. The Code brings together a numberof our long standing practices and policies that have helpedus build and maintain the Group’s reputation as a trustedbusiness partner and employer.The countries in which we operate have different languages,cultures, practices and ethical values. However, in a multinationalcompany, common standards of behaviour mustbe adhered to by all employees. The Code is available toemployees in a number of languages. Employee workshopson the Code are underway, supported by an e-learningprogramme that will continue to be rolled out in 2011.Our Code of Conduct can be viewed on our websitewww.imperial-tobacco.com.14