Airbus aims to win at least 50 per cent of the US$1.3 trillion commercial aircraft market over the next 20 years. In order to achieve this, we need to retain our position as an innovator and leader in the field of aeronautical technology, by recruiting people of the highest calibre and then keeping them motivated.

We therefore take care to ensure that all our employees have access to a range of career development opportunities, with regular reviews plus personal development planning. We have also created specialist Career Paths that help our employees define and develop their future careers with us. This is no one-way process however: our philosophy is that both company and employee should take joint responsibility for career development.

Airbus places great emphasis on giving its employees the best possible training, last year dedicating €37.5 million to this purpose. We have developed an internal network of experts – many of them internationally renowned in their fields – to ensure that training is tailored to the needs of both Airbus and our employees. The increasingly global nature of Airbus operations has also led to more transnational training, to ensure that common processes and methods are used across the company.

Each year, Airbus employees around the world spend some 190,000 days on a variety of training activities aimed at maximising their skills, efficiency and know-how – from information technology and financial administration, to leadership and change management. As a multinational organisation, we also invest significantly in language training and in the promotion of intercultural awareness.