GRI Index: Company and Report Profile

General Standard Disclosures

DMA* and Indicators

Comment

Link

External Assurance

*

Disclosures on Management Approach.

KPMG AG Wirtschaftsprüfungsgesellschaft has provided limited assurance on the indicators in the chapter "Facts and figures", including explanatory notes, in the online Corporate Responsibility Report for the business year 2014 of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany. You can find the Independent Assurance Report in the Assurance Report

KPMG AG Wirtschaftsprüfungsgesellschaft has audited the Consolidated Financial Statements together with the Group Management’s Report for the business year from January 1 to December 31, 2014 of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany. You can find the Independent Auditor’s Report in the Auditor’s report 

Strategy and Analysis

G4-1

Statement from the most senior decision-maker of the organization

 

Letter by Karl-Ludwig Kley

 

G4-2

Key impacts, risks, and opportunities

 

CR strategy and organization

 

Organizational Profile

G4-3

Name of the organization

 

Company Profile

 

G4-4

Primary brands, products, and services

 

Company Profile
Products 

 

G4-5

Location of the organization’s headquarters

 

Company Profile

 

G4-6

Number of countries where the organization operates, and names of countries where either the organization has significant operations or that are specifically relevant to the sustainability topics covered in the report

 

Company Profile
Share ownership by country  

G4-7

Nature of ownership and legal form

 

Company Profile

 

G4-8

Markets served (including geographic breakdown, sectors served, and types of customers and beneficiaries)

 

Company Profile

 

G4-9

Scale of the reporting organization

 

Company Profile
Management Employees
Indicators Employees
Indicators Economics
Net sales 
Capitalization 
Consolidated Balance Sheet 

G4-10

Total number of employees by employment contract and gender

Supervised workers such as temps are currently not logged in our employee data system. We are investigating possibilities to record information on supervised workers throughout the company.

Management Employees
Indicators Employees

G4-11

Percentage of total employees covered by collective bargaining agreements

 

Employee Engagement
Indicators Employees

G4-12

Organization's supply chain

 

Management Suppliers
Supply chain

 

G4-13

Significant changes during the reporting period regarding size, structure, ownership, or its supply chain

 

Management Suppliers
Company Profile

 

G4-14

Whether and how the precautionary approach or principle is addressed by the organization

 

Management Environment
Transport and storage safety
Plant and process safety
Occupational health and safety

 

G4-15

Externally developed economic, environmental and social charters, principles, or other initiatives to which the organization subscribes or which it endorses

 

Values and external initiatives
Responsible care

 

G4-16

Memberships of associations

 

Stakeholder dialogue

 

Identified Material Aspects and Boundaries

G4-17

Entities included in the organization's consolidated financial statements

 

Report profile
Company Profile

G4-18

Definition of report content

 

Materiality Analysis

G4-19

Material Aspects identified in the process for defining report content

 

Materiality Analysis

G4-20

Material aspects within the organization

 

Materiality Analysis

G4-21

Material aspects outside the organization

 

Materiality Analysis

G4-22

Effect of any restatements of information provided in previous reports, and the reasons for such restatements

 

Report profile

G4-23

Significant changes from previous reporting periods in the Scope and Aspect Boundaries

 

Report profile

Stakeholder Engagement

G4-24

Stakeholder groups engaged by the organization

 

Stakeholder dialogue

G4-25

Basis for identification and selection of stakeholders with whom to engage

 

Stakeholder dialogue

G4-26

Organization’s approach to stakeholder engagement

 

Stakeholder dialogue

G4-27

Key topics and concerns raised through stakeholder engagement

 

Stakeholder dialogue

Report Profile

G4-28

Reporting period

 

Report profile

 

G4-29

Date of most recent previous report

 

Report profile

 

G4-30

Reporting cycle

 

Report profile

 

G4-31

Contact point for questions

 

Report profile

 

G4-32

GRI Index

 

GRI Index

 

G4-33

External Assurance

 

Report profile

 

Governance

G4-34

Governance structure of the organization

 

CR strategy and organization
Management 
Statement of Corporate Governance 

G4-35

Process for delegating authority for economic, environmental and social topics from the highest governance body to senior executives and other employees

 

CR strategy and organization
Procedures of the Corporate Bodies 

G4-36

Responsibility for economic, environmental and social topics

 

CR strategy and organization

 

G4-37

Processes for consultation between stakeholders and the highest governance body

 

Stakeholder dialogue
Employee Engagement

 

G4-38

Composition of the highest governance body and its committees

 

Management 
Statement of Corporate Governance 
The Executive Body 

G4-39

Indicate whether the Chair of the highest governance body is also an executive officer

 

Statement of Corporate Governance 
Management 

G4-40

Nomination and selection processes for the highest governance body and its committees

 

Diversity and inclusion
Corporate Bodies 
Objectives of the Supervisory Board 

G4-41

Processes for the highest governance body to ensure conflicts of interest are avoided and managed

 

Compliance
Corporate Governance Practices 

G4-42

Highest governance body's and senior executive's roles in the development, approval, and updating of the organization's CR strategies, policies, and goals

 

CR strategy and organization
Values and Compliance 
Report of the Supervisory Board 

G4-43

Measures taken to develop and enhance the highest governance body's collective knowledge of economic, environmental and social topics

 

CR strategy and organization
Executive Board 
Statement of Corporate Governance 

G4-44

Evaluation of the highest governance body's performance with respect to governance of economic, environmental and social topics

 

Board of partners 
Supervisory Board 
Articles of Association 

 

G4-45

Highest governance body's role in the identification and management of economic, environmental and social impacts, risks, and opportunities

 

CR strategy and organization
Report on Risks and Opportunities 
Statement of Corporate Governance 
Compliance

G4-46

Highest governance body's role on reviewing the effectiveness of the organization's risk management processes for economic, environmental and social topics

 

CR strategy and organization
Report on Risks and Opportunities 
Report of the Supervisory Board 

G4-47

Frequency of highest governance body's review of economic, environmental and social impacts risks, and opportunities

 

CR strategy and organization
Report on Risks and Opportunities 
Report of the Supervisory Board 

G4-48

Highest committee or position that formally reviews and approves the organization's sustainability report

 

Report profile

G4-49

Process for communicating critical concerns to the highest governance body

 

Compliance
Values and Compliance 

G4-50

Nature and total number of critical concerns that were communicated to the highest governance body

 

Compliance
Values and Compliance 

G4-51

Remuneration policies for the highest governance body and senior executives

 

Compensation Report 

G4-52

Process for determining remuneration

 

Compensation Report 

G4-53

How stakeholders' views are sought and taken into account regarding remuneration

 

Recruiting and retaining talent
Compensation Report 

G4-54

Ratio of annual total compensation for the organization's highest-paid individual to the median annual total compensation for all employees in the same country

Competitive salaries and additional benefits increase not only our attractiveness as an employer; they also motivate employees and build loyalty to the company. At Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, compensation is based on market analyses in the relevant field and the value of the respective position, as well as the employee's skill set and performance. Our Global Rewards Policy defines the framework for compensation and benefits across the entire company. We strive to offer all our employees the most comparable compensation structures possible. In addition to this, we monitor compliance with minimum standards. We do not consider the information required under G4-54 and G4-55 to be relevant to assessing the fairness of our compensation structures.

 

 

G4-55

Ratio of percentage increase in annual total compensation for the organization's highest-paid individual to the median percentage increase in annual total compensation for all employees in the same country

Competitive salaries and additional benefits increase not only our attractiveness as an employer; they also motivate employees and build loyalty to the company. At Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, compensation is based on market analyses in the relevant field and the value of the respective position, as well as the employee's skill set and performance. Our Global Rewards Policy defines the framework for compensation and benefits across the entire company. We strive to offer all our employees the most comparable compensation structures possible. In addition to this, we monitor compliance with minimum standards. We do not consider the information required under G4-54 and G4-55 to be relevant to assessing the fairness of our compensation structures.

 

 

Ethics and Integrity

G4-56

Organization's values, principles, standards and norms of behavior

 

Values and external initiatives
Human rights
Compliance

 

G4-57

Internal and external mechanisms for seeking advice on ethical and lawful behavior, and matters related to organizational integrity

 

Compliance

 

G4-58

Internal and external mechanisms for reporting concerns about unethical or unlawful behavior, and matters related to organizational integrity

 

Management Suppliers
Diversity and inclusion
Compliance