Introduction by the Chief Executive Officer

Growing profitably and creating value sustainably – this is our overarching goal. To achieve this goal, we have developed the strategy “Mobility for tomorrow” and the program for the future “Agenda 4 plus One”. Our strategy and the program for the future are based on our four company values: “Sustainable”, “Innovative”, “Excellent”, and “Passionate”. Despite the difficult market and competitive environment in 2018, we have made good progress in implementing our strategy. At the same time, we were able to make progress in key fields of action of sustainable development.

Successful product innovations in the areas of mobility and industrial processes prove the effectiveness of our corporate strategy “Mobility for tomorrow”. In order to remain the innovation leader in the future, we invested more than ever before in research and development with EUR 847 m in 2018. We have purposefully created more scope for embracing technologies with future potential. For example, in 2018 another competence center for E-Mobility was created at the site in Bühl. Groupwide revenues in this area increased from EUR 416 m in 2017 to EUR 486 m in 2018.

We are once again making progress in the sustainable design of our locations and processes. The introduction of certified environmental management systems at our production sites is almost complete and the accident rate has dropped by over ten percentage points once again – just to name these two aspects.

Our goals remain ambitious: We are committed to making climate-friendly mobility possible all over the world with innovative and technologically excellent products and contributing to greater energy efficiency wherever people, goods and energy are transported or machines are operated. The focus is on the four target areas of environmentally friendly drives, urban and interurban mobility, and the energy chain.

At the same time, we intend to manage the internal company activities to protect the environment and the climate even more effectively in the future. We are consistently working to further reduce energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions and are also implementing the program for the future “Agenda 4 plus One”. It includes 20 initiatives to advance the Schaeffler Group’s transformation. One of the highlights is the “Factory for Tomorrow” initiative. Numerous technological innovations are being tested and optimized so that the sustainable factory of tomorrow will soon become a reality. Another focus is on sustainability in the supply chain. We require our suppliers to comply with the requirements of the Schaeffler Group Corporate Supplier Code of Conduct and continually develop the tools we use to ensure this.

Many of our decisions in Group management have a global impact. Therefore, we are committed to the principles of the UN Global Compact, the National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights, and the goals of the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. With the Schaeffler Group’s opportunities and skills, we can make a significant contribution to making the world a bit cleaner, safer, and smarter.

In order to anchor our commitment to sustainability even more strongly and to send a clear signal both internally and externally, sustainability management will be strengthened and realigned organizationally in 2019 with a direct reporting line to the Chief Human Resources Officer.

Beyond the legal requirements, we are publishing this comprehensive, voluntary sustainability report in order to clearly explain where we stand with regard to our sustainability performance and how we intend to continue to move forward. Under the slogan “Making progress visible”, we provide information about our past and planned business activities and their effects on the environment, people, and markets.

Our progress is primarily thanks to the knowledge and dedication of our employees. On behalf of myself and my Executive Board colleagues, I would like to thank you for your personal commitment.

We hope you find reading our current sustainability report both informative and interesting.

Yours sincerely,

Klaus Rosenfeld
Chief Executive Officer of Schaeffler AG

Corinna Schittenhelm
Chief Human Resources Officer

Matthias Zink
CEO Automotive OEM

Michael Söding
CEO Automotive Aftermarket

Dr. Stefan Spindler
CEO Industrial

Prof. Dr.-Ing. Peter Gutzmer
Deputy Chief Executive Officer and Chief Technology Officer

Dietmar Heinrich
Chief Financial Officer

Andreas Schick
Chief Operating Officer

Helmut Bode
Regional CEO Asia/Pacific

Bruce Warmbold
Regional CEO Americas

Dr. Yilin Zhang
Regional CEO Greater China

Jürgen Ziegler
Regional CEO Europe