The success of the Horizon 2020 strategy is, to a high degree, determined by the commitment and performance of employees. This is why ForFarmers invests in personal and professional development of its employees. In 2015, steps were taken in the further development of the desired culture, talent development and the enhancement of the commitment of employees to the strategy. 

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The core values - ambition, sustainability and partnership - are as a compass for ForFarmers and its employees and determine the culture of the organisation. For each core value supporting values and expectations have been formulated and are included in annual interviews with employees, and form the basis of which managers can manage activities and behaviours. Working in conformity with these values is important to the success of the Horizon 2020 strategy and thereby to the success of ForFarmers. To support the implementation of Horizon 2020, all employees received a booklet in their own language with a concise explanation of the vision, strategy and core values together with an outline of the HR Annual Cycle.

In 2015 significant attention was devoted to the introduction of the tightened Code of Conduct. This contains the values,  business principles and rules of conduct that apply to everyone who works within ForFarmers. This discusses, amongst other topics, integrity and responsibilities of both the organisation and the employee. Whistle-blowers’ regulations are also part of the Code of Conduct.

It is important to ForFarmers that all employees are familiar with the Code of Conduct and are aware of the implications thereof. Managers have discussed this with their teams. In addition, employees received information about the Code of Conduct at their home address. Through the associated online training module, which could be accessed both at home and via the intranet at work, employees received an explanation on the Code of Conduct and dilemmas were presented for informative purposes. At the end of the module the employee was asked to endorse the Code of Conduct. New employees are informed about the Code of Conduct and are requested to read and endorse the online training module. 

Talent development

The new strategy requires flexibility and a willingness to change from employees and it challenges them to develop themselves further. To support employees in this, ForFarmers works with an internationally applicable and unambiguous HR Annual Cycle. This is a meeting cycle aimed at personal development in which employee and manager record performance targets, formulate personal growth objectives and annually evaluate the progress thereof. Due to their importance, the core values form an integral part of this cycle. 2015 was the first full year that this HR Annual Cycle was used; it has been implemented for more than 90% of employees.

Through this approach, ForFarmers gives substance to professional employment practices and talent development. In addition, it results in valuable information for strategic personnel development, such as succession planning.

In 2015, several – often international – development programmes and training routes were started. These training routes aim to stimulate the personal and 

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professional development of employees and to support the implementation of the ForFarmers strategy in the personal work environment.

• The Master Class for Senior Management is aimed at senior managers and focuses on the development of personal leadership qualities and the implementation of Horizon 2020 in their daily practice. Two international groups have started this Master Class.
• The ForFarmers Potential Programme has participants from all layers and disciplines of the organisation who have the ambition and potential to take a next step in their career. This training supports employees in implementing the ForFarmers strategy in their work and prepares them for a potential position in senior management. Two groups with participants from four countries have started this programme.
• The Management Foundation Programme is a leadership programme for managers that focuses on personal skills, implementation of the strategy and the coaching of employees. The first pilot group in Germany commenced during 2015.

In 2016, training programmes and courses will start for employees in Logistics, Sales and Production. These training programmes are offered in each country, first in the Netherlands and later in other countries.

• The Logistics Academy is for drivers and planners and deals with legislation and regulations, working safely and efficiently, lower fuel consumption and interactions with customers.
• The Ruminant, Swine & Poultry Academy are training programmes for ruminant, swine and poultry specialists. These academies have a modular layout at various levels and aim at enhancing professional knowledge and commercial skills.
• The Operators Academy is the internal training programme for operators active in production. In the Netherlands, this training programme replaces the current “learning on the job” route.
  ForFarmers, together with a large number of other companies and some educational institutions, has signed a cooperation agreement for the realisation of a Practical Centre for Process Technique (PCPT) for the Eastern part of the Netherlands. This initiative should result in a sustainable inflow of well trained operators into the process, food and feed sectors, a flourishing business sector and a driver of the regional economy in the Eastern part of the Netherlands.

Commitment

ForFarmers regularly organises meetings where groups of employees are informed on strategic progress. This is an effective way of increasing commitment, helping to realise the One ForFarmers approach and rolling out Horizon 2020. 
At the end of January 2015 the first management conference XL took place, a two-day meeting for well over two hundred managers and employees who are involved closely in the implementation of Horizon 2020. In May and December 2015 two-day management conferences were held for the senior management team.

A two-day meeting was also organised for the launch of the VIDA piglet feed range for all relevant employees in Sales and Nutrition – the first international product launch of ForFarmers.

In 2015 ForFarmers introduced an employee participation scheme for employees with fixed employment. Employees could purchase depositary receipts for ForFarmers (at a discount of 13.5%) up to an amount of, at most, € 5,000 per person. A lock-up period of three years applies to these depositary receipts. Employees received an explanation about the scheme during meetings, as well as in writing and at least 20% of employees have participated in this first scheme. The objective of the participation scheme is to stimulatethe employee’s bond with the business, enhance motivation, and cement commitment. The aim is to offer this scheme on an annual basis.

One ForFarmers organisational developments

One ForFarmers is an important pillar of Horizon 2020. It aims at the exchange and use of internal knowledge, a further professionalisation of the organisation, an unambiguous way of working and the optimal utilisation of economies of scale. In this respect systems and processes are standardised where possible. In 2015 various steps were taken and projects were started in order to help realise the objectives of Horizon 2020. 

The recent acquisitions of HST Feeds Ltd. (2014), Wheyfeed Holdings Ltd. (2014), and the agricultural activities of Countrywide Farmers (2015) were fully integrated in ForFarmers UK during the course of 2015. This resulted in an increase of, in total, approximately 180 fte in 2014-2015.

In Germany, within the framework of One ForFarmers, the activities of Order Entry and Customer Service were combined and reduced to two teams: one for Business Unit North and West and one for Business Unit East. In this way, ForFarmers aims to further enhance the sales support organisation, create a uniform way of working and better accessibility and backup. These are important conditions for guaranteeing and further improving customer satisfaction.

All positions in the Netherlands that exceed the scope of collective labour agreements were described, classified and linked to the new remuneration policy. Job titles were harmonised and the relevant job profiles were established. In 2016 this was implemented within the German and Belgian organisations and the United Kingdom is expected to follow in 2017.

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Integration of terms and conditions of employment

As a result of acquisitions in previous years, ForFarmers has inherited varying packages of terms and conditions of employment for different groups of employees. As a good employer, ForFarmers intends to use attractive and, where possible, nationally uniform terms and conditions of employment. In the Netherlands, the terms and conditions of employment were harmonised after careful preparation. In this respect the original 140 terms and conditions and schemes were reduced to a package of approximately 70 terms and conditions and schemes.These are, after a gradual implementation in 2015, in full force and in effect as from 1 January 2016. The new package of terms and conditions of employment includes a new variable remuneration structure for Sales Netherlands. The structure of this remuneration scheme supports the Horizon 2020 strategy that emphasises the creation of value for customers and therefore at ForFarmers, instead of focussing on purely volume. To inform employees of these changes multiple meetings were organised, geared at the various target groups. All affected employees received a personal letter with a calculation and explanation of the consequences relevant to them.
In 2015, work was carried out on a new pension scheme for employees in the Netherlands. In December, the Works Council gave its consent to the draft. The implementation has been started for the first quarter of 2016. Employees have been informed about this during information meetings.

Health and safety

ForFarmers expects to offer employees a safe work environment. That is why significant attention is paid to safety, monitoring and the proactive identification of (potentially) hazardous situations at ForFarmers premises and at customers’ farms. The approach of ForFarmers with regard to health and safety is outlined in the section on Sustainability and Innovation.

Personnel representation

In various countries, ForFarmers has properly-working employee representation or formal works councils. These bodies are involved in organisational development and also have a critical, constructive role to review situations from the perspective of the employee.
Since October 2015, ForFarmers has had an employee representative at the European level. This ForFarmers European Employees Council (FFEEC) consists of employee representatives from the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany and the United Kingdom. At FFEEC, subject matters are discussed that relate to multiple countries. During the first meeting in October the members were brought up to date by the Board of Directors about the long-term strategy of ForFarmers. The FFEEC meets at least twice a year. As the ForFarmers organisation has a Dutch parent company, the FFEEC will operate according to the Dutch European Works Councils Act.

Priorities for the coming years

The priorities in the area of HR for the coming years are the rollout of the ‘Learning & Development’ strategy and implementation of the various academies (Ruminant, Swine, Poultry, Logistics, Operations), the further rollout of the Management Development Programmes and the implementation of the Management Foundation Programme in all countries. In addition, an employee engagement survey has been scheduled for 2016.

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