Employees and teams

At HUGO BOSS, we firmly believe that the passion and dedication of our employees is the essence for the successful execution of our “CLAIM 5” growth strategy. A strong commitment to empowering people and teams is therefore firmly anchored in “CLAIM 5”. In this context, our HUGO BOSS values – entrepreneurial spirit, personal ownership, team mentality, simplicity & quality, and youthful spirit – play a key role. They form the guiding principle for day-to-day cooperation and are intended to foster a spirit of mutual trust. The aim is to create an environment that enables all employees to develop their individual talents and thus directly contribute to the success of “CLAIM 5”. On top of that, HUGO BOSS intends to continue positioning itself as one of the most attractive employers in the fashion industry. This, in turn, should enable us to attract the best talents in the sector. Group Strategy

As an international company, diversity is a fundamental element of our corporate culture. At HUGO BOSS, all employees are guaranteed a discrimination-free working environment with equal opportunities and inclusive work culture. The central Global Diversity and Inclusion department focuses on further raising awareness of diversity and inclusion throughout the Company. In addition, an internal task force of employees from various locations and functional areas supports the execution of defined measures and promotes selected topics within the Company. We are convinced that intensifying our activities in the important area of diversity has a positive impact on employee satisfaction and is also considered a relevant factor by potential applicants. Combined Non-Financial Statement, Employee Matters

Attracting talents

HUGO BOSS aims at further strengthening its position as a top employer in the global fashion industry. This is intended to enable us to continue attracting the best talents for HUGO BOSS. In general, the global employer branding campaign “That’s my HUGO BOSS” builds a core element of our recruitment activities, aimed at drawing the attention of talents around the world to the broad range of activities and diverse personalities at HUGO BOSS. The very heart of our global recruitment strategy builds the HUGO BOSS Careers website, which was comprehensively relaunched in 2022, now including a chatbot function as well as customized job recommendations aiming at further improving the digital experience for applicants. Consequently, the continuous development of digital communication channels is a key focus in employee recruitment. In addition, talents are recruited by means of directly approaching qualified candidates via business-focused social networks. On top of that, HUGO BOSS regularly presents itself to potential applicants at career fairs.

To attract young talents, we offer school graduates, students, and young professionals a variety of different programs, including a diverse range of apprenticeships as well as a broad selection of dual study programs. In 2022, there were a total of 94 apprentices and dual students at HUGO BOSS AG (2021: 79 apprentices and dual students), with 33 new apprentices and dual students having started their professional education during the course of the year (2021: 22 new apprentices and dual students). The professional education we offer young talents is tailored to our business specific needs and is continuously aligned with our strategic priorities. In particular, we have expanded our selection of apprenticeships in the important area of digital in recent years, including offerings such as Digital Commerce Management and International Business study programs as well as IT Specialist education. Internships and the “HUGO BOSS CareerLunch” offer further opportunities to get young talents interested in working at HUGO BOSS during their studies. The latter aims at bringing us together with top talents in an informal setting and thus attracting potential applicants to HUGO BOSS through internal Company insights. Various trainee programs complement the wide range of opportunities for young professionals.

At HUGO BOSS, we seek to constantly improve our external reputation and awareness among potential applicants. Consequently, we conduct active reputation management on relevant rating platforms and social networks. Target group-specific, emotional, and product-related campaigns are intended to evoke enthusiasm for our Company. Various awards are proof positive for our successful HR work while, at the same time, serving to increase awareness among potential applicants. In the “Working in Fashion 2022” study conducted by the German industry magazine TextilWirtschaft, we have further improved our strong ranking, taking third place (2021: fifth place). HUGO BOSS ranked particularly well in the categories of salary levels and good opportunities for promotion and training, taking second and third place, respectively. Furthermore, within the global study “World’s Best Employers 2022” by Forbes and Statista, HUGO BOSS was ranked in the upper midfield of the 800 best employers worldwide. In addition, on the basis of an independent study in collaboration with Statista and the Financial Times, HUGO BOSS was ranked among the Top 50 Diversity Leaders in Europe in 2022 (2021: Top 100 Diversity Leaders).

Retaining and developing employees

Our employees make a significant contribution to the success of HUGO BOSS. In addition to attracting new talents, we therefore place a strong emphasis on retaining talents and supporting them in their individual development. Besides a fair and market-oriented compensation as well as attractive benefits offered to our employees, HUGO BOSS attaches particular importance to a common and supportive leadership mindset within the Company as well as various opportunities for individual development.

HUGO BOSS regards fair pay as an essential aspect of our personnel work and aims to strengthen the loyalty of our employees to the Company by means of a fair, transparent, and competitive compensation structure. Based on a regular assessment of all jobs in Germany as well as international key positions, the vast majority of our employees are remunerated on the basis of job-specific salary bands. These are based on external salary benchmarks and are intended to further increase transparency. Over the past few years, HUGO BOSS carried out an assessment of almost all positions worldwide in order to establish a uniform compensation system based on Group-wide salary bands. This is intended to ensure that our global compensation system is fair, competitive, and independent of gender or other diversity characteristics. We regard this as a key factor to further increase both employee satisfaction and our attractiveness as an employer.

Powerful People

Meet the powerhouse people behind “CLAIM 5," with their exceptional commitment and great dedication to our Company and our two strong brands, BOSS and HUGO.

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Our compensation system includes fixed and variable salary components, bonuses above the collective bargaining scale, non-cash compensation, and other benefits. It complies with industry and collective bargaining agreements and incorporates national and regional benchmarks. At HUGO BOSS AG, there are also works agreements that govern compensation components such as the employee performance bonus. In addition to their basic salary, non-tariff employees receive a 13th monthly salary installment and a short-term incentive (STI) linked to annual Company targets. The compensation scheme at the two levels below the Managing Board also includes a long-term incentive program (LTI) that extends over several years and matches the targets of the Managing Board. Compensation Report

In order to offer our employees an additional incentive, HUGO BOSS has introduced an employee share purchase plan in the first quarter of 2023. This gives full-time employees across a large number of locations the opportunity to purchase a certain number of HUGO BOSS shares in regular intervals at a discount, and thus participate directly in the Company’s success.

Furthermore, we are convinced that a balanced personal and professional life fosters a productive and motivated workforce. Consequently, we offer our employees a wide range of options to strengthen work-life balance. Numerous initiatives for flexible working enable the majority of our employees at the Metzingen campus to work in an agile and cross-functional manner, also with the support of flexible and modern office concepts. The hybrid working concept called “Threedom of Work” applies to administrative staff in Germany and provides for three days of attendance at the Metzingen site, whereas employees are free to choose their work location on the other two days. While similar models have already been established in other Group companies, the conventional home office concept is available to almost all our administrative employees worldwide. In addition, trust-based working hours, individual part-time arrangements, as well as newly established job sharing and co-leadership models complement our offerings and are intended to contribute to both increased employee retention and satisfaction. In addition, HUGO BOSS promotes the work-life balance in the form of numerous family-friendly offers, which are described in more detail in the section “Combined Non-Financial Statement.” Combined Non-Financial Statement, Employee Matters

We also attach great importance to promoting the health and performance of our employees, including numerous activities to improve the physical and mental health. Employees in Germany, Switzerland, and Turkey, for example, can use Company-owned fitness centers free of charge and participate in a wide range of different on-site and digital sport and coaching courses. A balanced nutritional concept in our canteens is intended to improve the personal well-being of our employees. At the central distribution centers in Germany and for production employees in Metzingen, health measures also include movement breaks, massages, and back training courses. Our strong commitment with regards to occupational health management was recognized with the German Corporate Health Award in 2022.

Development offerings at HUGO BOSS include a strong focus on leadership mentality, as we are convinced that it has a significant impact on our Company’s performance, innovative strength, and commitment of employees and teams, and thus strongly contributes to achieving the targets set out in “CLAIM 5”. Regular workshops aim to firmly anchor the leadership mindset within our Company, supporting a common understanding of leadership at HUGO BOSS. In addition, we consider a good leadership culture to be a key enabler in sustainably increasing employee satisfaction. Our concept of leadership mindset envisions that leaders should act as enablers, providing their employees with a framework for their daily work, offering them support, and, at the same time, encouraging them to regularly surpass themselves. In addition, leaders at HUGO BOSS are expected to connect people and teams and to strengthen the team spirit and sense of togetherness.

In addition to vertical promotions, HUGO BOSS generally considers internal job changes across departments and divisions as an important instrument for promoting talents and retaining employees over the long term. The digital employee recommendation program “HUGO BOSS Spotted” provides a transparent recommendation process to support the appropriate filling of vacancies by internal talents. In order to further boost the motivation, commitment, and qualification of employees, we also offer a wide range of training and development opportunities. This includes the Employee Development Program (EDP), the Leadership Development Program (LDP), and the High Potential Program HIPOSS. All relevant opportunities for individual development are described in detail in the “Combined Non-Financial Statement” within this annual report. Combined Non-Financial Statement, Employee Matters

In order to improve employee retention in the long term, we strive to strengthen the identification of our employees with HUGO BOSS and its goals. A variety of internal communication measures is intended to contribute to this, aimed at strengthening the exchange both among employees as well as between employees and senior management. In addition to regular Managing Board updates and video messages, this also includes the opportunity to enter into direct exchange with the Managing Board as part of internal events. Beyond that, Company-specific news are also being communicated in real time to employees in 36 countries via our global employee app “My HUGO BOSS.” The app also offers our employees various digital conveniences, such as quick access to emails, digital business cards, or the internal job network. To further increase community engagement within our organization, we introduced a social video wall within our app in 2022. In addition, we have launched our new global intranet “ONE” in early 2023, serving as an additional communication platform for all employees worldwide. Important and centralized news about HUGO BOSS and our brands, enriched with livestreams and videos, but also external content, such as industry news, are made available to employees via this channel.

HUGO BOSS determines the satisfaction and the needs of its employees as part of an employee survey conducted annually in cooperation with Great Place to Work Germany. The findings provide our Company with important impetus for the further development of its personnel work and corporate culture. The results of the annual employee survey also represent an important component of the compensation within the long-term incentive program (LTI). With a Group-wide participation rate of 70%, overall employee satisfaction rose to 78% in 2022 (2021: participation rate of 62% and overall satisfaction of 76%). We have set ourselves the goal to maintain a strong level of at least 75% of overall satisfaction also in the years to come. Combined Non-Financial Statement, Employee Matters

Employee figures

At the end of fiscal year 2022, on a full-time equivalent basis, 16,930 employees worked for HUGO BOSS (2021: 14,041). The increase compared to the prior year is in line with our strategic pillar “Organize for Growth,” aimed at ensuring the successful execution of “CLAIM 5”. Above all, it reflects the strategic expansion of our capacities at our production site in Izmir (Turkey) as well as the further strengthening of our global retail business and key headquarters functions. The average age of our global workforce was 36 years, representing a slight decrease compared to the prior year (2022: 37 years).

Our global positioning is also reflected in our workforce. In 2022, 80% of our employees were based outside of Germany (2021: 78%). Within Germany, employees from 93 different nations worked for HUGO BOSS (2021: 79 nations). While 11,384 employees (2021: 9,862) worked in the commercial sector at the end of 2022, 5,545 employees (2021: 4,179) were assigned to industrial activities.

With a share of 60%, women continued to make up the majority of the workforce at HUGO BOSS (2021: 60%) at year-end. Across all management levels, 50% of positions were held by women at the end of December 2022, thus unchanged from the prior year. The Managing Board has set the target of achieving a proportion of women of at least 40% in the first management level below the Managing Board and at least 50% in the second management level by 2025. As of December 31, 2022, the proportion of women at the first management level below the Managing Board was 28%, while it was 46% at the second management level below the Managing Board. Both proportions were hence broadly in line with the prior-year level (December 31, 2021: 29% and 45%, respectively). Corporate Governance and the Corporate Governance Statement