Revising the Essentials

A corporate culture in which employees, management and shareholders work together as partners would be inconceivable without shared values and goals – and that is precisely what the Bertelsmann Essentials provide. To ensure that they reflect any changes in our environment, our businesses and our company, the Essentials are critically reviewed and developed on an ongoing basis – most recently in an extensive international process from 2004 to 2006.

The Executive Board announced the revised Bertelsmann Essentials on January 26, 2006. The revised Essentials represent an evolved, condensed version of the original Essentials formulated in 1998. But the roots of the Essentials go far deeper than this: As early as 1960, Reinhard Mohn formulated goals and core values for the company in the “Bertelsmann Grundsatz- und Betriebsordnung” (Bertelsmann Rules and Regulations). Today’s Essentials are based on the principles of Bertelsmann’s corporate culture, which were shaped by Reinhard Mohn and have since evolved over the decades. 

The decision to further condense the Essentials to their core messages was triggered in part by the first international employee survey in 2002. Analyses of the survey results showed a clear correlation between the degree to which the corporate culture is practiced and commercial success. Other reasons included the increasing internationalization of Bertelsmann’s businesses and the Group’s rapid growth in the previous years.

To ensure that the core values and goals defined in the Essentials are indeed a common denominator for all of Bertelsmann’s divisions and businesses, their development entailed a broad international dialog involving executives, employee representatives and shareholders from all divisions, companies and corporate levels. 

Finally, to disseminate the revised Essentials internationally following their presentation in early 2006, the Essentials materials (posters, flyers, wallet card) have now been made available in ten languages (previously only in German and English). The detailed discussions were instrumental in significantly boosting awareness and understanding of the Essentials throughout the Group.