PERFORMANCE-BASED COMPENSATION

SAP provides employees with a flexible salary model that enables us to reward top performance with top-level compensation. Depending on line of business, region, and function, employees can earn bonuses and rewards on top of their fixed salaries based on performance with respect to local market conditions. In addition, they may receive additional compensation opportunities based on individual performance targets and/or SAP’s overall fiscal success.

COMPETITIVE OWNERSHIP PLANS

Through its stockbased compensation programs, SAP involves employees in the company’s immediate and long-term growth. In 1998, we established a Stock Appreciation Rights (STAR) program. Since then, STARs have been allocated, based on individual achievement, to permanent employees who have been at SAP at least one year. When the value of SAP stock rises, so does the value of STARs. Stock option plans also play a critical role when it comes to recruiting and retaining the best employees. SAP has offered supplementary compensation plans to managers and high-performers through the Stock Option Plan (SOP), which encourages long-term commitment to the company.

CUSTOMIZED BENEFIT PROGRAMS

In addition to competitive compensation programs, we believe that it is just as important to reward employees with benefits that are adaptable to their individual situations. Therefore, we offer a wide range of supplementary benefits programs that are tailored to the cultural and legal customs of each country, ranging from work/life balance programs, to child daycare services, to health and fitness programs.

STRONG ETHICAL STANDARDS

In recent years, governments around the world have established regulations governing corporate conduct, and SAP seeks to comply with their provisions. But we believe that true corporate conduct extends far beyond the executive suite – and far beyond minimum standards. Therefore, SAP developed its own corporate ethics policy, the SAP Code of Business Conduct, which defines standards for behavior in all daily business, legal, and ethical matters. The code was adopted by the Executive Board and implemented throughout our entire company in 2003.