Intangible resources

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Brand

In the LOTOS Group strategy for 2011-2015, along with the development directions until 2020, the fostering of a strong LOTOS brand and distinctive brand image is named as a key element of corporate management. All individual product brands are subordinated to the corporate brand strategy, which is consistent with the business strategy of Grupa LOTOS.

Our strategic goal is to enhance the LOTOS brand value by building its image as a brand which:

  • Relies on the key values of state-of-the-art solutions, development and partnership,
  • Has an international presence,
  • Represents top quality products,
  • Is socially responsible.

Fostering the image and strength of the LOTOS brand is one of the priorities for Grupa LOTOS. Efforts are always being made to increase the brand awareness and to position Grupa LOTOS as an organization recognised for its professional management style that builds on its quality, innovation, environmental awareness and security.

In the 10th edition of Poland’s Most Valuable Brands ranking, published by the Rzeczpospolita daily in 2013, the LOTOS brand was valued at PLN 1,107.3m. Since the ranking’s inception in 2004, its value has risen by PLN 887m. Last year, LOTOS was ranked 9th among the 330 brands covered by the listing, driven by our consistent efforts, our mindset focused on maximising the brand’s strength, and our innovative approach to image building, which have helped forge lasting relationships with our customers.

Value of the LOTOS brand (PLNm)

Source: Rzeczpospolita daily, December 2013.

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The following rules are applied in the overall management of corporate brand strategy, product brands, promotion strategies, value creation, creation of the desired image of the LOTOS brand, advertising, promotion and sponsorship activities, as well as the marketing research of the LOTOS Group:

  • Compliance with applicable laws,
  • Avoidance of deliberate harm or damage,
  • Accountability,
  • Education, professional background and experience of personnel put to good use.

We conduct our operations without using any discriminatory or controversial content that might offend certain social groups or abuse the trust of recipients of our communications, and without inciting negative emotions. These rules complement the applicable laws and regulations, which include the Constitution of the Republic of Poland and the following Polish Acts: the Civil Code, the Act on Combating Unfair Competition, the Press Law Act, the Radio and Television Act, the Act on Protection of Certain Consumer Rights, the Act on Provision of Electronic Services, the Act on Personal Data Protection, the Act on Copyrights and Neighbouring Rights, and the Act on Industrial Property.

In our sponsorship efforts, we adhere to standards spelled out in voluntary codes of conduct, e.g. those published by business organizations. As a member of the Polish Confederation of Private Employers Lewiatan, we engage in sponsorship activities in a manner compliant with the code of ethics drawn up by that body. All our sponsorship contracts are transparent and clear, and precisely identify all stakeholders and obligations. We do not engage in any events which might cause damage to objects or facilities of historic or artistic value, or events which could have an adverse environmental impact. We observe the guidelines set out in the Culture Sponsorship Code - an initiative of the National Centre for Culture, the PKPP Lewiatan association of employers and the Warsaw Stock Exchange The quality of our communications with the market is also subject to the standards of conduct defined in the LOTOS Group’s Code of Ethics.

The above corporate practices in the area of marketing communications are applicable to Grupa LOTOS and all its marketing companies, i.e. those companies which, given their business profiles, target communications regarding their products and services at wider audiences. LOTOS Oil and LOTOS Paliwa, which are responsible for product brand communications, have adopted their own supplementary regulations.

At LOTOS Paliwa, the development of marketing content and standards of conduct, including standards of communication with customers, are regulated by the following documents:

  • Communication and Positioning Strategy for the LOTOS and LOTOS Optima Service Stations,
  • Communication and Positioning Strategy for the LOTOS Dynamic brand,
  • Strategy of Sponsorship and MotorSports Involvement.

LOTOS Oil and LOTOS Paliwa, in their marketing communication activities, including advertising, promotion and sponsorship, adhere (on a voluntary basis) to the standards of the Code of Ethics in Advertising, developed by the Polish Board of Advertising and the Polish Advertising Standards Committee. Due to the specific nature of the market on which LOTOS Asfalt and LOTOS Kolej are present, the companies have not implemented separate procedures for marketing communications.

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In 2013, no cases of inconsistencies in the promotional and advertising activities with the provisions of law, regulations and voluntary codes on marketing communications were found to have occurred at Grupa LOTOS or at its marketing companies: LOTOS Asfalt, LOTOS Kolej, LOTOS Oil and LOTOS Paliwa.

Sponsorship

Key objectives of our sponsorship activities include the promotion and raising of brand awareness of LOTOS Group products, improving their recognition, building their positive image and supporting advertising activities focused on boosting product and service sales. Our sponsorship activities are carried out in accordance with the Sponsorship Plan approved each year by the Company’s Supervisory Board.

We are the main sponsor of sports clubs, sporting events, cultural institutions and cultural events in the regions where LOTOS Group companies operate.

Areas sponsored by Grupa LOTOS in 2013

One of the criteria we use when choosing which activities to sponsor is their social dimension, their significance to local communities and their impact on the region’s national and international reputation. If we were to cease our sponsorship activities, the cultural sphere might suffer and the young people’s potential to become involved in sports might deteriorate.

In 2013, we sponsored a number of professional sports, including such key disciplines as motor rallying and racing, football, skiing, basketball, volleyball and cycling. The highest returns on funds earmarked for sponsorship activities, as measured by media presence, were recorded for winter sports (ski jumping and cross-country skiing), as well as cycling, football and motor rallying. The value of media returns exceeded the value of our sponsorship spending almost seven times over.

For ten years now, we have also been Poland’s General Nordic Skiing Sponsor. As part of our work with the Polish Nordic Skiing Association, we support ski jumpers from the national and youth teams, cross-country skiers from the national and youth teams, as well as the Nordic combined team. Kamil Stoch, this year’s winner of two gold medals at the Sochi Winter Olympics, thirteen-time winner of the World Cup and multiple Polish champion, was the first person awarded a grant under our ‘In Search for the Champion’s Successors’ CSR project. Since 2004, we have supported the National Ski Jumping Development Programme, run together with the Polish Nordic Skiing Association.

Since 2013, Grupa LOTOS has been an official partner of Robert Kubica, who is among the top drivers chasing the crown in the World Rally Championship and who succeeded in winning the title of the WRC2 World Champion in his very first season. In 2013, the Company was involved in the LOTOS Rally Team project, represented by four-time Polish Champion Kajetan Kajetanowicz and his navigator Jarek Baran in the Polish Rally Championship and by Michał Kościuszko and his navigator Maciej Szczepaniak in the WRC. The promotion of the LOTOS Dynamic fuel brand in motorsports by this Team lends credibility to its communicated benefits, including improved performance and dynamics and better harnessing of a car’s power. Related actions support the image of the entire chain of LOTOS service stations and improve the reliability of the stations’ marketing message. In 2013, Grupa LOTOS was the sponsor and main technological partner of the KIA LOTOS Race (an event with the status of Polish Motor Racing Championship), where the car make lends credibility to the formula and quality of the company’s oil products.

2013 saw the conclusion of another three-year sponsorship agreement between Grupa LOTOS and Lechia Gdańsk (the Company is the main sponsor of Lechia Gdańsk, an Ekstraklasa League football club, since 2010). In the Gdańsk-Gdynia-Sopot conglomeration, we also support the LOTOS TREFL Gdańsk volleyball team and the Trefl Sopot basketball team.

Apart from sports sponsorship, we are also involved in sponsorship of cultural events, focusing our efforts in the latter area on increasing corporate value through the promotion of intellectual and cultural potential of regions close to the organization. Some of our key cultural sponsorships in 2013 included the Strategic Partnership of the Baltic Opera House, sponsorship of the Solidarity of Arts Festival, the Shakespearian Festival, the Siesta Festival, the open-air event „CudaWianki – Lato zaczyna się w Gdyni” (“The Summer Begins in Gdynia – CudaWianki”), the ‘SOPOT Theatrical Summer’, the concert of the band Bon Jovi and the LOTOS Jazz Festival – Bielsko Jazz Blizzard.

Socially engaged marketing

In 2013, LOTOS Paliwa continued its work, begun three years earlier, with the SOS Children’s Villages Association in Poland. Each member of the LOTOS Navigator loyalty programme, available from LOTOS service stations, could donate their credits to orphaned or abandoned children under the care of SOS Children’s Villages. This initiative is in line with the objectives of our CSR strategy.

The funds raised from credits donated by our customers are applied towards the costs of living, health care and education of children. In 2013, the usual range of awards available under the LOTOS Navigator programme was extended to include the SOS Children’s Villages Association cup. One cup collected by a customer (250 credits) represents PLN 2 for the Association.

The SOS Children’s Villages Association in Poland provides care for abandoned children, orphans and children at risk of losing parental care. The Association, which has been active for 29 years and currently helps 1,250 children, is part of SOS-Kinderdorf International, an international organization present in 132 countries.

Staff’s expertise and competence

In order to fully leverage our intellectual capital to enhance the corporate value, we consider it necessary to create systemic solutions designed to stimulate innovation. We also attach great importance to knowledge sharing between employees in the course of project works conducted across the organization, including team projects, in which they have a chance to apply knowledge from various fields in which the LOTOS Group is active, while bringing in new perspectives and ideas on existing tasks.

We strive to improve the staff’s qualifications by offering them training opportunities, courses, studies, symposia, conferences, as well as newly established and regularly run programmes within our in-house Akademia LOTOS (LOTOS Academy) Training Schedule.

Akademia LOTOS logo

LOTOS Academy was established to improve the staff’s competences in various fields, to identify and develop talent, to disseminate expert knowledge and to foster a culture conducive to increasing the staff’s satisfaction and involvement.

As part of the LOTOS Academy project, we have developed a culture of knowledge sharing, an induction training programme, a certification process for production-related training and ‘On the Road to Perfection’ training schedule. We have engaged senior employees, aged 50+, in the development of younger staff. The Academy initiates and runs talent development programmes targeted at various employee groups, including the Leader Programme, the Master Programme, the Managers Academy, the Management Skills Development Programme for Technical Staff and the LOTOS Group Succession Programme. The organization invests in professional development of its staff, by making them acquire and strengthen their expert knowledge, as well as their interpersonal, communication, negotiation, management, IT and linguistic skills.

Its comprehensive staff development programme brings Grupa LOTOS closer to meriting the label of a Learning Organization.

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Average annual number of training hours per person, by Grupa LOTOS employment category
Employment category 2011 2012 2013
Senior management 40 41.9 43
Lower management 38 42.8 43.7
Back-office staff 30.7 25.8 25.4
Production staff 13.2 17.7 12.1
Average annual number of training hours in Grupa LOTOS, by gender
Gender Year Number of
employees
Number of
training hours
Average number
of training hours
Women 2012 417 11,096 26.6
Men 2012 932 21,936 23.5
Women 2013 416 12,039 28.9
Men 2013 929 17,811 19.2

Our staff education methods, techniques and tools include a broad range of open and closed training courses, both in hard and soft skills, which are run based on annual schedules in the form of conferences, seminars, workshops, symposia and forums.

We rely on advanced education techniques and technologies, such as simulation games, e-learning and blended learning. Equally important are our in-house training programmes dedicated to specific employee groups, carried out under the LOTOS Academy banner. Since accessibility is one of the main features of our training policy, the target groups of our training opportunities include senior and middle management, as well as supervisors, coordinators and specialists.

Among the solutions applied are those based on coaching and mentoring, the latter chiefly in the production area, where skills learning is the longest process, requiring many years of experience. Our coaches and mentors are experienced instructors from the operating training team, who − by direct interaction − pass on their knowledge to younger colleagues working as equipment operators.

Our employees are also familiar with knowledge sharing workshops, at which they can share knowledge relating to the organization’s various operational areas. In addition, at least twice a year, we hold seminars dedicated to management staff, to acquaint them with the most recent solutions in the management area by attractively integrating theory with practice.

Innovative development, involving continuous improvement and use of the staff’s intellectual capital and experience, is an inherent element of Grupa LOTOS’ mission, stemming from our conviction that innovation plays a key strategic role for a business geared towards sustainable development.

Grupa LOTOS’ innovative approach works on several levels:

  • Development of intellectual capital
  • Deployment of cutting-edge technologies
  • Inter-sectoral cooperation and stakeholder involvement

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As a player in the high-tech industry, we have for years worked with academic and research institutions of key relevance to the industry, thus contributing to the development of solutions which are beneficial not only to us and other industry players, but also to the academic community.

LOTOS Scholarship

We work with higher education institutions as part of the LOTOS Scholarship programme. Given the nature of our business and the key role we play in ensuring Poland’s energy security, we share the knowledge and experience of our employees with students, because we feel committed to securing the future of our industry by training the next generation of experts.

In the academic year 2004/2005, we began working with the Gdańsk University of Technology, as part of which we sponsor scholarships, provide work placement opportunities under the supervision of industry experts, and help students write their MSc dissertations on topics connected with the Company’s operations, which are later reviewed by the Company’s experts. In the academic year 2012/2013, we granted 13 scholarships to the best students from the Chemical Faculty, the Faculty of Electronics, Telecommunications and Informatics, the Faculty of Electrical and Control Engineering and the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, as well as 2 awards for the best MSc theses at the Chemical Faculty.

In the academic year 2007/2008, a similar relationship was forged with the AGH University of Science and Technology in Kraków, leading to five scholarships being granted in the academic year 2012/2013 to outstanding students from the Faculty of Geology, Geophysics and Environment Protection, the Faculty of Mining Surveying and Environmental Engineering, the Faculty of Drilling, Oil and Gas and the Faculty of Energy and Fuels. We also granted two awards for the best MSc theses written at the Faculty of Drilling, Oil and Gas.

Since the programme’s inception, we have granted some PLN 1.2m to fund scholarships and awards for 234 undergraduate and doctoral students.

As part of our cooperation with higher education providers, we also offer unpaid internships and summer work placements, during which students have a chance to expand their knowledge under the supervision of a tutor – an industry expert.

In 2013, internships and work placements at Grupa LOTOS were provided to 162 undergraduates, including 73 students of the Gdańsk University of Technology and 16 students of the AGH University of Science and Technology in Kraków. Additionally, work placements at LOTOS Petrobaltic were offered to 20 students from various universities, who had an opportunity to gain valuable experience by working both on drilling rigs and at the operation maintenance unit.

For the eleventh time, we participated in the local programme Summer Holiday Internship initiated by the Mayor of Gdańsk and adressed to students and graduates. We funded two-month internships for participants of the Energy Academy Programme - an educational project started by Lesław A. Paga Foundation 2065, which is addressed to persons interested in the power industry who consider starting their future professional career in this sector. Additionally, we entered the prestigious nationwide programme organized by PwC and Gazeta Wyborcza daily - Win an Internship.

In 2013, LOTOS Petrobaltic was a partner to the DRILLING - OIL – GAS AGH International Scientific and Technical Conference, organised by Fundacja Wiertnictwo-Nafta-Gaz, Nauka i Tradycje (Drilling-Oil-Gas, Science and Traditions Foundation). As part of the Baltic Science Festival, to which we were also a partner, LOTOS Petrobaltic ran an information and education campaign on the specific features of the petroleum upstream industry.

In addition, as part of a joint scheme with the Food and Chemical Industry Vocational School in Gdańsk, in 2013 we funded seven scholarships for future chemical engineering technicians and analytical chemists who distinguished themselves for the best school performance, provided prizes in the ‘Chemistry is all around us’ competition and organised work placements for students.

In 2013, in association with the Jasło Municipality, we launched a project entitled ‘The Jasło Scientific League with LOTOS’, a unique educational initiative aiming to find Jasło’s most able schoolchildren and give them an opportunity to foster their talents.

Entrants to the ‘The Jasło Scientific League with LOTOS’ in 2013 included 299 children from 9 elementary schools and 4 junior high schools from Jasło, who submitted a total of 91 research projects.

The project encourages schoolchildren to seek for their own answers to a given set of questions, through a number of research activities carried out under the eye of their teachers, with their work evaluated by a panel of experts and prominent academics.