RBS 2003 Annual Report Download - page 118

116
Report of the directors continued
Report of the directors
Directors
The names and brief biographical details of the directors are
shown on page 113. All directors, except Mr Bill Wilson who
died on 25 December 2003, served throughout the year and to
the date of signing of the financial statements. Sir George
Mathewson, Sir Angus Grossart, Sir Iain Vallance, Mr Emilio
Botin, Mr Lawrence Fish, Mr Gordon Pell and Mr Iain
Robertson will retire and offer themselves for re-election at the
forthcoming annual general meeting. Sir Angus Grossart and
Sir Iain Vallance have indicated that they would not wish to
submit themselves for re-election in 2005. Details of the
service agreements for Mr Fish, Mr Pell and Mr Robertson are
set out on page 126. No other director seeking re-election has a
service agreement.
Directors’ interests
The interests of the directors in the shares of the company at
31 December 2003 are shown on page 132. None of the
directors held an interest in the loan capital of the company or
in the shares and loan capital of any of the subsidiary
undertakings of the company, during the period from 1 January
2003 to 18 February 2004.
Employee proposition
The company encourages employees to contribute to the
Group’s performance through Total Reward, one of the most
comprehensive remuneration and benefits packages in financial
services. The elements of Total Reward include; salary;
selectable benefits; bonus and share schemes; and pensions.
RBSelect, the Group’s benefits choice programme, attracted
some 43,000 employees in 2003, allowing them to increase the
overall value of their Total Reward package as well as tailoring
it to suit their lifestyle. Employees can choose from a range of
options including subsidised childcare, discounted shopping
vouchers, private medical insurance, additional pension
contributions and telephone legal advice.
Employees can also participate in a bonus scheme or incentive
plan specific to their business. Employees are also able to
share in the Group’s success through profit sharing, Buy As
You Earn and Sharesave schemes, aligning their interests with
those of shareholders.
In each of the last five years the success of the Group has
given eligible employees a further ten percent of their basic
salary through Group profit sharing.
In 2003, the Group introduced the Buy As You Earn Plan allowing
employees to buy shares in the Group on a monthly basis.
The Group provides pension scheme membership for the
majority of staff in the UK and overseas. The largest scheme is
The Royal Bank of Scotland Group Pension Fund, which has
some 74,000 employee members. This is a non-contributory,
defined benefit fund and is open to full-time and part-time
employees, including fixed-term contractors.
Development and training are given a high priority in the Group
and significant importance is placed on having strong leadership
capability across the organisation, proactively developing
future leaders and succession plans for senior and executive
management roles. A core component of this is the Executive
Leadership Programme provided by Harvard Business School.
There has also been strong demand for the Group’s graduate
programme, with 185 participants in 2003.
The Group encourages professional development and lifelong
learning. Through Learning Awards it offers a financial
incentive to employees who take the banking qualifications
offered by The Chartered Institute of Bankers in Scotland and
The Institute of Financial Services.
As part of the Group’s relationship with the Prince’s Trust, UK-
based employees are encouraged to become involved in the
Trust’s work with young people which offers personal
development opportunities. This also contributes to the Group’s
aims in respect of Community Investment and Corporate
Responsibility.
Employee communication
The Group encourages employee involvement through a
process of communication and consultation. This involves
internal communication through a corporate intranet, an in-
house magazine, team meetings led by line managers,
briefings held by senior managers and regular dialogue with
employees and employee representatives.
The Group Chief Executive and other senior Group executives
regularly communicate directly with employees through
‘Question Time’ style programmes, broadcast on the Group’s
internal television network. The Group Chief Executive also
meets employees during frequent visits to Group offices.
Short films explaining the Group’s annual and interim financial
results are broadcast through the internal television network
which is also used for staff training and development.
Employee consultation
The importance the Group places on consultation with employees
is evidenced by its annual, Group-wide employee opinion
survey, which seeks views and feedback on a variety of key
topics. The latest survey took place in January 2003 and with
an overall response rate of 83%, the Group is confident that
staff value the survey as a method of expressing their views
and of initiating change in the organisation.
The Group has established an European Employee Communication
Council to facilitate dialogue amongst employee representatives
in the European Economic Area on employment matters.