HERMÈS - 2018 Registration document

Corporate social responsibility

People: savoir-faire

PEOPLE: SAVOIR-FAIRE

2.2

CHALLENGE: PRESERVING AND DEVELOPING SAVOIR-FAIRE

Hermès corporate culture, which helps Group employees to bond together, is widely shared through onboarding sessions for new employees in Paris and worldwide. The corporate culture is also passed on through various ad hoc programmes that enable employees to put it into practice through their actions and attitudes. It ensures the consis- tency of all training initiatives. Throughout the year, team-building initiatives take place to bring the teams together so they can soak in Hermès’ craftsmanship spirit and develop a spirit of curiosity through shared discovery. The programmes rolled out — Tandem, Tilbury, Parcours d’Adresse and Prix de l’Adresse — areall opportunities for employees to come together, todiscover oneano- ther’s métier and universe, and to bring them together around a strong human culture in which exchanges are beneficial for everyone. Training programmes are tailor-made for our production and distribution activities. They are either deployed locally (regional centres or subsidia- ries) or provided in Paris (Ex-Libris University). This employee training commitment isreflected intheacquisitionof savoir-faire inanemployee’s first job as a leather worker, in an engineering incubator within the School of Tanners and the School of Silk, or the recognition of the qualifications gained through on-the-job training, experience validation and diplomas (CAP, etc.). Retail Academies help sales associates, storemanagers and product selection teams to develop their product expertise as well as their customer relations skills. The in-house training of thosewhopass on our culture, savoir-faire and expertise has taken on an important place, turning this endeavour into a long human chain. In Leather Goods, a network of specialised métier trainers has been created. It holds regu- lar meetings in which trainers exchange new techniques on the trans- mission of knowledge. In all French regions where Hermès has leather workshops, partnerships are immediately forged with local schools so that training in the savoir-faire linked to our métier can be combined with hands-on practice. Training programmes are also available to sti- mulate the advancement of managers identified as future management committees members. The Service Academy offers programmes mainly dedicated to acquiring the right behaviours in public speaking, leading meetings and managing projects, with the priority objective of creating collective harmony and good relations among individuals. Through this steady investment in training, aimed at the acquisition and development skills, the Group intends to perpetuate its economic and cultural model and facilitate the implementation of its ambitions. The Group organises awareness-raising and training sessions on sustai- nable development within the central departments (sales, construction, manufacturing, and human resources), as well as within themétiers and distribution subsidiaries.

2.2.1

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Preserving and developing savoir-faire , its acquisition and ensuring it is passed on to all our employees whatever their occupation (craftsmen and women, sales people, etc.) is essential for our long-term develop- ment on sustainable foundations. Policy Our ambition is to ensure that this often exclusive savoir-faire is pre- served, enriched and passed on in a context of strong growth for our activities and our workforce. The priority is to consolidate and develop individual expertise, increase versatility, establish knowledge-sharing within teams and ensure that this is passed on from generation to generation, and preserve our talents. The excellence of all this savoir-faire is expressed not only through the quality of the objects but also through our ability to craft them in a way that respects both the craftsmen and women (see sec- tion 2.3.1.2.1 “Improving the conditions for well-being in the workplace”) and the environment. The human resources department conducts a systematic training policy for new hires, with a dedicated training programme. This policy is mainly carried out via internal training but also has recourse to external training when appropriate. Hermès is developing training schools internally for its major crafts- manship métiers - leather goods, textiles, tannery - enabling this savoir- faire to be perpetuated and handed on. The House works upstream in promoting the art and craftsmanship métiers to young generations , through local actions (open days, links with schools) or with the sup- port of the Fondation d’entreprise Hermès (for example, the Manufacto programme). Allowing young people to discover and become involved in a manual métier is essential; these métiers are often misunderstood and yet offer excellent prospects. Hermès contributes to maintaining, or even developing craftsmanship and manufacturing savoir-faire , in a context where this savoir-faire is being lost (and not only that of craftsmen in the arts area). For example, Holding TextileHermès has one of the largest textile divisions in France in the Rhône-Alpes region (nearly 750 people); the division is the home of many unique forms of weaving and silk printing savoir-faire , which we are working hard to maintain. Bringing new employees on board Mosaïque – the onboarding programme for new employees in France – has enabled 335 people to feel warmly welcomed in 2018 and become immersed in the corporate culture through visits, testimonials and pre- sentations giving a broad picture of Hermès. In the distribution subsidia- ries, the H Immersion onboarding programme, lasting one to four days, was delivered in a local version to over 1,100 participants through 91 sessions. 2.2.1.1 2.2.1.2 Measures implemented

2018 REGISTRATION DOCUMENT HERMÈS INTERNATIONAL

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