Organisation and IT
Organisational and IT projects remained of central importance even after the successful transition to 2000.
In the investment fund business, we made significant IT investments in eServices and custody/investment services.
The analysis of our in-house securities transaction processes has enabled us to achieve a strong positioning in the growing market for professional securities service providers.
In the trading sector, volume growth and the increasing sophistication of business require the closer integration of trading processes and systems in order to enhance efficiency and risk management. In loans, we carried out the success- ful organisational and technical switch to standardised transaction procedures.
We have also continued to standardise and professionalise core processes in Organisation and IT such as multi-project management and version management.
In the light of increasingly complex Group structures, Group organisation plays a key role. The expansion and consolidation of Group-wide standards, the co-ordination of over-arching projects, and a support and advisory service for departments during organisational change have been made necessary by Group growth.
Despite the difficult labour market situation, staff numbers showed a positive increase. With more than 100 new staff, our team almost doubled in 2000, a factor which will strengthen crucial areas of expertise such as internet technology and systems architecture and guarantee the retention of key skills for the Group. The successful expansion of our management team will assure greater security and flexibility in project management, above all in co-operation with external partners.
In the 2001 business year, we intend to continue our high level of investment in the infrastructure of DekaBank’s custody system and in trading. The develop- ment and expansion of Organisation and IT will have levelled out by the end of the year.
substantial IT investment
DGZ·DekaBank 68
Staff
Staff development and SAP Human Resources projects were the key concerns of the HR guidance and development unit in 2000 as were our considerable staff requirements resulting in the large number of new employees.
Further strong growth
The Group employed 2,899 persons at the end of 2000, pushing up the total workforce, including temporary staff, by 24.5 per cent over the previous year. Staff numbers in Germany rose from 2,010 to 2,491, an increase of 23.9 per cent. The male/female ratio increased in favour of women employees, from 47.5 to 48.3 per cent, in all German-based Group companies. As in the previous year, the rise in staff numbers was due to continued strong growth in our invest- ment fund business – above all in custody and investment – alongside the steady increase in IT needs. The huge rise in hirings has pushed the average length of service down from 5.3 to 4.6 years and the average age from 36.2 to 36.
Personnel expenses were up 35.6 per cent to €212.1 million compared with 1999, mainly due to the large number of new staff – 570 – and the wage and salary rises negotiated in 2000.
New offices
The increased need for staff in custody and investment services and the tight labour market in and around Frankfurt led to the decision to relocate certain services to Leipzig. Thanks to the area’s high skills levels and the ready avail- ability of staff, 126 staff were hired between August and the end of the year to process orders and deal with telephone enquiries.
Modern evaluation system and innovative recruitment
A key factor has been the introduction of our new evaluation and career talks as well as the implementation of a staff development concept for IT. We expanded the search for talent through assessment centres with the aim of showing our many young staff the career prospects available in management or technology.
In vocational training, we launched a programme together with the German Investment Fund Association (BVI) aimed at creating a new career path. In close co-operation with other investment fund companies, a dedicated invest- ment-fund-specific training concept will be developed which will not only train young people for jobs in our company but also create new traineeship openings on the employment market.
Staff 69
In-house further training continues to be a major priority. Costs in this area amounted to 2.1 per cent of wages and salaries.
We also expanded our graduate recruitment. Recruitment fairs, sponsorship of university chairs, recruitment open days and internships all contributed to the hiring of graduates either straight from university or as part of a training programme.
Services and benefits for staff
We have continued to improve staff service and efficiency through the use of existing and new SAP HR systems. Work processes and evaluations in the time economy, salary payments and staff cost planning modules were adjusted to Group requirements and expanded where necessary. In the fourth quarter of 2000, we introduced the SAP evaluation module Data Business Warehouse with the aim of providing senior management with all the necessary HR manage- ment data.
As in previous years, we continued to support those staff wishing to better co-ordinate work and family commitments, by setting up more teleworking jobs at our German locations. 59 employees are currently taking advantage of this scheme. We have also raised the number of part-time jobs by 15 per cent: by reporting day, 170 employees were on part time work. Staff on early childhood leave of absence have also been given the opportunity – in line with statutory regulations – to take up employment.
Chronically ill staff have been provided with support during their gradual re-integration into their respective jobs.
To ensure optimal job succession and as part of the Group’s social obligations to long-serving staff, we have continued in Germany to offer a generous early retirement programme well in excess of the negotiated statutory scheme. 14 staff took advantage of the programme in 2000.
Our thanks
We would like to express our heartfelt thanks to all our current and retiring staff for their performance, commitment and personal dedication. We would also like to thank the staff council and the equal opportunities representative for their fair and constructive co-operation.
DGZ·DekaBank 70