As an international company, Merck endeavors to achieve a good balance between different cultures and nationalities, between different age groups, and between male and female employees. We are convinced that workforce diversity promotes team performance, contributing to the company’s entrepreneurial success. In order to sustainably anchor this diversity, we want to further develop existing measures.
Ratio of men and women
Women currently make up 43% of the workforce. The ratio of female to male employees varies among individual business areas, functions and regions. In the Pharmaceuticals business sector, 47% of all employees are female, in Group functions 41%. and Chemicals 38%. In North America, 47% of all employees are female, in Europe 45%, in Latin America 44%, and in Asia 33%. At 52%, the proportion of women in research and development is highest, followed by administration with 50%. The lowest percentages of women are in production (34%) and infrastructure (29%). Merck has set itself the goal of increasing the percentage of female employees wherever they are underrepresented.
Internationality
74% of all employees come from countries other than Germany. One of our basic principles is to hire and develop employees from the countries in which we operate. The internationality of our workforce, which we want to further intensify, is also bolstered by the fact that the divisional headquarters of Merck Serono are located in Geneva (Switzerland), and the headquarters of the Merck Millipore division are located in Billerica, Massachusetts (USA).
Demographics
Demographic change, and the associated aging of the population, is not equally noticeable in all countries in which we operate. However, we must adapt to it, particularly in Germany, some other EU countries, and the United States. In these countries, the average age of our employees exceeds 40 – and we assume that this figure will increase further. In Europe, we are addressing these demographic challenges through various programs. These include adapting workplaces to the needs of older employees and establishing a health management program to maintain their ability to do their job.
Management positions
Balanced diversity among the executive staff enhances career advancement opportunities for talented employees. However, it also enables the company to leverage a broad base of experience and allows for more differentiated entrepreneurial decision-making.
The percentage of women in management positions, meaning Global Grade 14 and higher, is currently 23% calculated across the entire company (excluding Merck Millipore employees since the global grading system has not yet been fully implemented for them). The percentage is higher at the legal entities in the countries than at corporate headquarters in Darmstadt; it is also higher in the Pharmaceuticals business sector than in Chemicals. The ratio of women in management positions is lower in certain Group functions, such as IT for example. We set ourselves a global objective of increasing the percentage of women in management positions to 25% to 30% by 2016. In order to attain this goal, we have local measures already in place, such as the Cross-Company Mentoring and the Women in Mentoring programs, as well as greater work-life balance opportunities. However, we also intend to develop further programs; in April 2011, we therefore created the function of Chief Diversity Officer to support the implementation of such measures.
56% of all management positions (Global Grade 14 and higher) are held by persons of non-German nationality – altogether 54 different nationalities are represented in such positions. The internationality of our management levels reflects the global nature of our business activities.
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