BMW 2007 Annual Report Download - page 8

06 Report of the Supervisory Board
As part of a special review of value-added and currency management within the BMW Group, the Board of
Management provided the Supervisory Board with an overview of current and planned currency measures
as well as natural hedging activities and explained the various alternatives available to the BMW Group. On
the basis of this information, joint discussions were held on the future strategy in this area.
The Supervisory Board meeting in September 2007 primarily involved a discussion of the Board of Manage-
ment’s detailed report on the BMW Group’s strategy process. At the same meeting, the Supervisory Board
also deliberated on and made its decisions regarding the composition of the Board of Management.
The Supervisory Board was appreciative of the Board of Management’s in-depth review of the current busi-
ness model and its thorough analysis of the options open to the BMW Group to achieve continued long-term
growth. From the perspective of the Supervisory Board, the results presented and the objectives set by the
Board of Management on the basis of their analysis were convincing and well-founded. The Supervisory
Board supports the strategic objective set by the Board of Management – to be the world’s leading provider
of premium products and premium services for individual mobility. The Supervisory Board agrees with the
Board of Management that profitability and quality of earnings should play a central role in the Group’s strate-
gic realignment. It therefore encouraged the Board of Management to press ahead with the implementation
of the stated strategy and gives its full backing to the measures and targets adopted by the Board of Manage-
ment. This includes plans to generate some euro 6 billion of efficiency benefits by 2012 and to successively
take pension obligations to employees in Germany off the balance sheet by creating external pension
funds. The Supervisory Board believes that these measures will help to strengthen the Group’s competitive-
ness in the long term.
To coincide with the BMW Group’s strategic realignment, the Board of Management has formulated a set of
core principles that are intended to serve as guidelines for managers and employees. In the opinion of the
Supervisory Board, these core principles provide an excellent basis for open and objective-oriented coopera-
tion throughout the Group.
The Supervisory Board carefully considered the annual budget for the financial year 2008 presented by the
Board of Management and approved the planned measures to improve profitability. The Supervisory Board
was also fully informed of solutions and specific measures discussed with staff representatives to reduce
personnel expense.
The Board of Management also kept the Supervisory Board informed of the progress of the acquisition of
the motorcycle company Husqvarna. This move complements the Group’s activities in the single-cylinder
segment and will appeal to younger customer groups in the off-road and supermoto segments.
In response to the increased complexity of tasks facing the Board of Management and with implementation
of the new strategy in mind, the Supervisory Board decided to increase the size of the Board of Management
by two members: Dr. Herbert Diess, who has been responsible for the Motorcycles segment since 2003, was
appointed to the Board of Management with effect from 1 October 2007, taking over responsibility for the
newly created Purchasing and Supplier Network division. Dr. Friedrich Eichiner, who has been responsible
for Group planning since 2002, was also appointed to the Board of Management with effect from 1 October
2007 and now heads the newly created Corporate and Brand Development division. At his own request,
Stefan Krause’s mandate as member of the Board of Management came to an end on 13 March 2008. The
Supervisory Board thanked Mr. Krause for the successful work that he performed on behalf of the BMW Group.
At its meeting on 13 March 2008, the Supervisory Board appointed Ian Robertson with immediate effect as
member of the Board of Management. Mr. Robertson thereupon took over board responsibility for sales and