Boskalis Annual Report 2020

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report of the board of management ANNUAL REPORT 2020 – BOSKALIS QUALITY MANAGEMENT With operational excellence as its main objective, the Boskalis quality management system Way of Working (WoW), introduced in 2017, aims to embed safe and sustainable practices and a consistent client approach across all our activities. WoW is crucial for optimizing our tender and project processes. In 2020, we integrated our Environmental and Social Impact Scan and Stakeholder Toolkit into WoW to ensure early identification of projects’ potential risks and opportunities, and to facilitate optimal engagement with local stakeholders. We also focused on staff awareness through the introduction of a WoW poster available in seven languages, outlining the principles we uphold to reach our common goals; a roadmap was also launched for tender teams. Finally, to introduce the system to employees, suppliers, subcontractors and other external stakeholders, a WoW e-learning went online at the end of the year. HUMAN CAPITAL People are our most important asset. With our global team of professionals and their specialist expertise, knowledge and skills, we are unable to achieve and maintain a sustainable competitive advantage. To meet or exceed the increasingly demanding expectations of our clients, we place great importance on attracting, retaining and developing our human capital. Human Excellence is one of our three strategic pillars, as outlined in our Corporate Business Plan 2020-2022. At the beginning of 2020, when the global spread of the coronavirus became apparent, the wellbeing of our employees was our top priority and we were forced to alter our priorities. Nonetheless, many of our recruitment, retention and development efforts continued, sometimes in altered forms that delivered benefits and which we will strive to maintain. ATTRACTING TALENT The race to attract and retain the right talent was particularly intense in 2020 as the pandemic limited our access to people with the strategic competencies we need to expand our horizons in growth areas such as offshore energy. After a brief halt to our trainee program at the beginning of the year, we resumed our activities to successfully create a pool of new trainees whose profiles match the strategic workforce plan of our employer branding campaign, launched in 2019. We have continued to evolve our recruitment process to attract the next generation of engineers and specialists. This year we welcomed 1,752 new colleagues. Alongside our digital campaign, Boskalis has always maintained a campus recruitment approach to hiring trainees who are graduates of both academic and vocational universities, inviting them to our campus in Papendrecht as part of in-house days. These give prospective employees the opportunity to get to know the company and find out more about what working for Boskalis involves. This year, in light of the pandemic, we moved these activities online, creating ‘e-house’ days instead of in-house days, and promoting them through social media. By digitally interacting

with potential new employees, we were able to conduct conversations with candidates from all over the world, broadening our reach and our access to strategic competencies. We expect to keep this element as part our recruitment efforts, developing a hybrid approach of online and face-to-face hiring opportunities. This year’s digital events, like our events in Papendrecht and in universities, focused on specific themes, such as sustainability and innovation. INTERNATIONAL RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION Following on from last year, we continued to focus on retaining good local employees with a project contract tenure beyond the duration of that specific project. These colleagues are often keen to continue working for Boskalis on subsequent projects in that particular region. Our employees and agency staff can mobilize from their home and deploy to a project anywhere in the world. We also take steps to invest in their sense of belonging to Boskalis, for example by ensuring that project managers and HR staff meet them regularly and create space to build trusting and open relationships. INTERNAL MOBILITY AND DEVELOPMENT Based on the outcomes of our 2019 Employee Engagement Survey, we sharpened our approach to internal mobility and retention, performance management and talent development. We created development tracks for employees involved with primary processes and introduced three new tools: a 360 Feedback form, a Personal Development Plan and a Development Framework for those specifically looking to add to their current skill-set. Our internal career markets allow employees to participate in workshops that help them define their ambition and profile themselves. In 2020, we redesigned and simplified our approach to Performance Management encouraging employees to take the lead in their own development. A pilot with this improved approach started in a few selected projects in early 2021. Online learning platform In early April, we launched a new online learning platform for employee development. Originally planned to be a combination of classroom and digital learning, the face-to-face element was postponed in light of the restrictions imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic and the roll-out was fast-tracked. The platform offers a wide range of online courses related to project-based working, digital skills, leadership and vitality. Since the introduction, more than 2,000 courses have been followed. Remote leadership modules To ensure continuity in leadership development throughout the pandemic we developed four interactive online modules in response to the new skills that remote working demands from our leaders. The modules cover effective guidance from a distance, strengthening relationships with teams, managing on output and peer coaching. These webinars were available in the Netherlands and attracted 250 participants, about 60% of our managers. The program will continue in 2021.