Successful year paves the way to "10 in 10"
Novozymes aims to achieve sales of at least DKK 10 billion in 2010 – "10 in 10" as we call it. We are on course and the aim is within reach.
For many years, Novozymes has enjoyed a positive and stable financial development. But in 2005, when we set ourselves the aim of achieving sales of DKK 10 billion in 2010, we knew it would challenge the entire organization. Back then, Novozymes’ sales totaled about DKK 6.3 billion.
Now, three years later, it is clear that Novozymes is on the right course. With sales of DKK 7.4 billion, "10 in 10" is not unrealistic, though we still have much hard work to do.
Three objectives
"10 in 10" was launched as a new strategic initiative to support Novozymes’ long-term financial targets. "10 in 10" is composed of three elements:
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Organic growth in the current business
Our current business will continue to grow along with our long-term expectations. In 2007, the organic growth exceeded expectations, and in the future we will also focus on maintaining and expanding growth in our existing business. We are seeing renewed growth in sales of detergent enzymes, continued high growth in sales of technical enzymes, and an exciting development in the area of food products – for example, in enzymes for the brewing, dairy and baking industries. -
Business-expanding activities
Includes new potential applications for enzymes and other areas outside of enzymes: microorganisms, biopharmaceutical ingredients and biopolymers. In 2007, we united the areas outside the enzyme business into one organizational unit, BioBusiness, to provide better focus and strength to the business. -
Acquisition of activities and companies
Novozymes is always looking for new acquisition opportunities, both within the enzyme business and in new business areas. In 2007, we made two acquisitions, with Biocon Limited’s enzyme activities being the largest purchase in Novozymes’ history. Novozymes also bought the Canadian company Philom Bios Inc., which develops, manufactures and sells microbial products for the agricultural industry.
Challenges
While the financial key figures point in the right direction, we at Novozymes remain very aware of our vision to contribute to sustainable development and achieve "10 in 10" in a socially and environmentally responsible manner. Therefore, we continuously follow up on our environmental and social targets.
In 2007, further increasing resource efficiency proved a challenge in terms of energy consumption. This was due mainly to the increasing growth in sales, which put pressure on our production capacity. Naturally, these challenges have led to intensified efforts to establish what we can do locally and globally to ensure further optimization.
Skilled, motivated employees enable "10 in 10"
+ OpenNovozymes’ positive business development is created by all our competent employees. Achieving "10 in 10" depends largely on employees being motivated and constantly developing, and on Novozymes continually finding better ways to solve tasks. Therefore, as we increase our work pace, we are focusing on activities that ensure we have skilled, happy and motivated employees.
Attracting new employees
There is increased demand for labor in many of the countries where Novozymes is represented. And in 2007 we streamlined our global recruitment processes to ensure a continuous influx of employees and a good recruitment program.
We also work globally to enhance Novozymes’ image as an attractive workplace. This is especially important for attracting skilled employees in China and the USA, where Novozymes is less well known than in Denmark, for example.
Retaining and developing employees
We work continuously to increase individual employees’
competencies, and to ensure that our workforce is ready to address the challenges ahead. As a global organization, we have a lot to offer, including internal job rotation, career
development, postings abroad, and post-graduate training.
These opportunities make individual employees a major asset within the company. But they also make our employees attractive to other companies, and this has led to increased employee turnover. However, we still retain employees more successfully than benchmark companies in Denmark. We attribute this to our focus on creating an attractive workplace. Building on this, we have set targets for ‘Motivation & Satisfaction’ and ‘Opportunities for professional and personal development’ in 2008.
Global network for global employees
At Novozymes, we want to exploit the benefits of being a global organization to increase our employees’ motivation and development, while ensuring efficient work procedures. For instance, our employees work together and build up networks across national borders, despite different time zones and cultures. That is why we focus on managing diversity. We have also begun a project to improve the frameworks for building internal networks across borders and functions.
Stress prevention and management
The increased pace and dynamics in the company are posing greater demands on both managers and employees. So in 2007, we developed new tools for managers to prevent and manage stress. These involve helping managers to identify early signs of stress in employees so that action can be taken earlier. Employees are also offered stress management courses and counseling.
