Employees

Richemont’s 19 600 people (FTE - full time equivalents) around the world are instrumental to the success of the business (up from 18 800 in 2007/08). Through our suppliers and our business partners we also provide employment opportunities for many more.

Our employees work in three main areas:

Maisons – headquarters, from creation, marketing and communications to product development, Maison-related manufacturing, retail and distribution
Regional Shared Services and Component Manufacturing – business services provided to the Maisons in the Regions, from logistics, customer service, finance, operations and human resources to Group component manufacturing services.
Central Functions – head office functions including marketing services, finance, operations, IT, real estate, legal and human resources.

Our long-standing strategic priorities are:

Performance management – recruiting, rewarding and developing the very best talent. Providing career development opportunities and regular performance monitoring;
Health, safety and well-being – providing a healthy and safe environment across all of our operating sites;
Training and development – developing highly skilled employees in all areas of our business – product design, development and customer service. Fostering new talent for the continued success of the Group;
Consulting and communicating with employees – providing guiding principles on business conduct. Resolving issues which could affect employees' work or personal welfare;
Diversity and equal opportunities - fostering a culture where employees are able to reach their full potential.

Along with many other businesses, Richemont has not been immune from the global economic slowdown. We have confidence in the underlying strength of the Group and are committed to avoiding restructuring where possible. In a small number of cases, Maisons have had to reduce the number of roles within their operations. However, this has been kept to a minimum by taking alternative steps where necessary, such as internal transfers, stopping overtime, shorter working hours and maximising in-sourcing, to adapt to external market conditions.

Key performance data

As a global business, we employ people from around the world and across different areas of work. Detailed below is a split of our total workforce by employee type, by geographical region and by employment contract.

* GRI Indicator reference - LA1
* Richemont’s operating regions are Europe (including Africa and the Middle East), Far East (including Japan and Asia Pacific) and the Americas.

The mix of employees varies by region. We have also provided a breakdown of employee type by geographical region.