2003 in Retrospect In 2003, Heineken tightened up the requirements with which its operating companies' alcohol policies must comply. They are required to pursue a pro-active policy, with regard to both their own employees and the consumers, to engage in active dialogue with public authorities and social organisations and to take initiatives to prevent alcohol abuse. More rigorous reporting requirements relating to alcohol policy were also introduced, which make it easier to decide whether support is justified and facilitate the exchange of information between oper ating companies on successful approach es. The requirements for alcohol policy respect regional differences in society's tolerance of alcohol misuse. The require ments for the European and American markets are more demanding than those for the other markets. In a growing number of countries, Heineken is going further than imposing internal rules to prevent our marketing communications encouraging the misuse of alcohol. In the US, the Netherlands, Ireland, Italy and a number of markets in South America and Asia/Pacific, Heineken's advertising carries warnings against alcohol abuse. Young people It is Heineken's policy to avoid aiming our marketing communications specifically at people under the legal drinking age, because they are not always able to make appropriate choices in their drinking behaviour or foresee its consequences, and are thus vulnerable. Heineken also seeks to disseminate this policy externally, both within the industry and in society at large. We proceed from the principle that all advertisements, events and campaigns should address an adult target group. In practice, this means that Heineken targets consumers who are over the minimum age at which the consumption of alcohol is permitted by the law of the country concerned. In countries which have no such law, Heineken targets consumers aged 18 and over. Information Heineken is a founder member of The Amsterdam Group, an organisation of international producers of beers, wines and spirits which exists to develop information and education programmes at European level to promote responsible alcohol use and prevent alcohol abuse. As an active member of The Amsterdam Group, Heineken is committed to intro ducing information campaigns which have proved to be effective. The 'Sober Bob' campaign, which was developed in Belgium and has been running successfully in the Netherlands for several years, has been introduced in Greece with the financial support of The Amsterdam Group and similar campaigns are operating in France, Spain, Portugal, the UK and Denmark. The campaign encourages the practice of naming one member of the party as the designated driver, who agrees to stay 'on the wagon' for the evening and can drive his or her friends home safely at the end. The 'Sober Bob' campaign is supported in the Netherlands by the Dutch brewers, the Ministry of Transport, Public Works Water Management and Stichting Verantwoord Alcoholgebruik, a foundation which promotes responsible alcohol use. Heineken also plays an active part within the Brewers of Europe trade organisation in the area of alcohol and society, partic ularly with regard to the introduction of self-regulation in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe. Programmes and information material have been developed on the initiative of Brewers of Europe for companies in these countries to help them introduce their own rules to support the promotion of responsible alcohol use and the prevention of alcohol abuse. These rules should relate to the content of the message (which must avoid establishing a link between alcohol and driving, working or dealing with hazardous situations), the use of communication media, the timing of advertising and the age of the target group being addressed. Personnel and Organisation The average number of people employed by Heineken increased by 13,034 to 61,271, mainly due to the acquisition ofBBAG. On a like-for-like basis, excluding acquisi tions, the number of employees increased by 174- Central personnel policy is involved primarily with the recruitment, develop ment and retention of managers for senior international positions. Initiatives to har monise personnel recruitment and devel opment around the world are also taken and supported at central level. To facilitate this harmonisation process, which makes it easier for operating companies to exchange information and measure and compare their own perform ance in personnel policy with that of others, a uniform ICT system will be built in 2004. In all other respects, the operating companies pursue their own personnel policies, which take account of the local labour market, regulations and practices. Management Because the 'Taking Heineken to the Next Level' project aims to implement improve ments on many fronts, it has repercussions for the standards required by Heineken in terms of the qualities of its managers. Decisions are increasingly informed by detailed analyses and comparisons with other methods and processes, both inside and outside Heineken. Managers are being required to adopt a more entrepreneurial approach. As well as professional expert ise in their own field, they are expected to keep pace with innovation around the world, within their particular discipline and beyond. Managers are also expected to HEINEKEN N.V. ANNUAL REPORT 2003 22

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