BASF has set itself global goals for the promotion of diversity in its management team. By 2021, the company aims to raise the overall proportion of women in positions with disciplinary leadership responsibilities from today’s 19% to 22%–24% globally, a share that reflects the percentage of women in BASF’s global workforce.

In light of the relatively low turnover rate in the BASF Group’s leadership team, this is an ambitious goal. Around the world, BASF also wants to further increase the number of senior executives from countries other than Germany. This proportion was at 34% at the end of 2014. Furthermore, BASF wants to maintain its number of senior executives with international experience at over 80%, a goal the company has already surpassed, achieving a proportion of 83% by the end of 2014.

With these goals, BASF is advancing its globally integrated approach to promoting diversity and developing its leaders. BASF has already been fostering different dimensions of diversity through a range of measures worldwide for over ten years.

“Our markets are becoming increasingly global in character. In order to better understand the diverse requirements of our customers around the world and develop solutions for them, we need to be an attractive employer for the best people in all markets. Our goals are an incentive for us to become even better in promoting diversity,” says Dr. Kurt Bock, Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of BASF SE.

The goals to promote greater balance in terms of gender and nationality in BASF’s leadership team extend across BASF Group worldwide and levels of management as a whole. In other words, the goal for the percentage of women in leadership is not meant to be reflected in each individual country, company or management level; BASF will ensure compliance with national and local laws.

In Germany, BASF SE will implement the Act on Equal Participation of Women and Men in Executive Positions in the Private and the Public Sector as follows:

•     If new appointments to the Supervisory Board of BASF SE are necessary, the proportion of women will be raised to at least 30% in accordance with the legal requirements. This figure is currently 25%.
•     In addition, the Supervisory Board has determined that at least one member of the Board of Executive Directors of BASF SE shall be female. Based on currently eight members of the Board of Executive Directors, this corresponds to 12.5%. This share has already been achieved today.
•     The Board of Executive Directors has furthermore determined target figures for the percentage of women on the two management levels directly below the Board of Executive Directors of BASF SE, in accordance with legal requirements in Germany. These are 9.4% for the proportion of women on the level of BASF SE’s management directly below the Board of Executive Directors, and 11.8% for the level below that. This corresponds to the current percentages.
•     The period to achieve the targets for the Board of Executive Directors of BASF SE and the two management levels directly below the Board was set for December 31, 2016. The company will review these figures at the end of 2016 and again decide on goals for BASF SE.