share and exchange with their managers during these interviews and together they build their career plan. Our people also have access to all the Group s vacancies via a dedicated website. In 2018, it featured almost 9,000 job offers at Maisons around the world. Employees apply for the positions directly and are proactively involved in their own career development. In 2018, for example, 3,600 Group managers found new positions and 56% of managerial vacancies were filled internally. Our key talent detection tool, the annual Organizational Management Review, is further proof of how vital we believe our people are. In 2018, 67% of executive positions were filled by in-house talent, half of whom were identified in succession plans. This system also allows us to monitor our progress in meeting the Group s objective to increase gender diversity in senior executive teams women now hold 42% of the positions (compared with 23% in 2007).
Promoting a culture of learning
In a sector as dynamic as the luxury industry, if we want to learn every day, we have to call things into question and be open to the world around us. Change and trans- formation are critical issues for the Group s Maisons. They must therefore embrace this mindset and function as learning organizations. We constantly encourage our staff to learn from each other by sharing their experi- ences both their successes and their failures. Our employee skills development initiatives focus on four main topics: understanding the culture and values that make our Group what it is and are the very essence of our organization; developing management and leadership among LVMH managers; promoting business excellence by exploring issues like brand desirability; and pursuing open innovation initiatives (like DARE see page 27), which are designed to interest everyone in new, more agile methods of working. The Group founded the Institut des Métiers d Excellence LVMH in 2014 to ensure that its craftsmanship, design and sales expertise is passed on to the next generation. IME offers free, practical vocational training programs for
the most talented young applicants, whatever their back- ground. By doing this, IME promotes equal opportunities without compromising on its strict selection criteria. Since its inception, it has trained a total of 500 appren- tices in France, Switzerland and Italy, enhancing their employability. IME is yet another example of LVMH s efforts as a responsible employer to foster diversity of origin and culture in its Maisons.
Being people-focused
LVMH s approach to corporate social responsibility is based on a long-term vision for our employees and the communities around us. Both in-house and outside the Group, our managers and staff are committed to meeting four corporate social responsibility (CSR) goals: developing employee expertise and talent; promoting their physical and psychological well-being; preventing discrimination; and supporting local communities and regional development. Our employees receive regular information about our CSR initiatives in integration seminars, training courses (e.g. anti-discrimination training), specific communications (for example about opportunities for engagement sponsorship of nonprofits, ambassador positions for the causes supported by a Maison), and at events like the Engaged Maisons Dinner (see page 25). The Group is involved in a range of programs and partnerships with organizations working at the grass- roots level. For example, it helps young people find a pro- fession; vulnerable, isolated women reclaim their rights; the inhabitants of stigmatized neighborhoods, etc. LVMH also pays special attention to the employment of people with disabilities. The Group and its Maisons are responsible for several initiatives in this field in France and internationally. For example, in 2018, LVMH actively supported two nonprofits in Italy that help people with Down syndrome integrate society and the workplace. Sephora s Olive Branch distri- bution center in the United States also hired 100 people with disabilities.
