DEVELOPING DIVERSE TALENTS
WE CONTINUE TO INVEST IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF SMITHS' EMPLOYEES. WE SEEK TO ATTRACT, RETAIN AND SECURE THE ENGAGEMENT OF OUR PEOPLE BY OFFERING, AMONGST OTHER THINGS, MEANINGFUL WORK, THE OPPORTUNITY TO DEVELOP AND TO TAKE ON RESPONSIBILITIES THAT REFLECT THEIR CAPABILITIES AND POTENTIAL.

We base our selection processes on an individual's competencies and track record. Our appraisal process, leadership development, and succession management processes all support our drive to develop our current and future leadership talent.

Smiths continues to invest in the acquisition, by employees, of new and relevant skills. To this end, training opportunities are provided and employees are encouraged to participate in their own development. They are assisted in this by feedback on their performance to help them maximise their potential.

We advertise most job vacancies internally on our website, thereby giving our people the opportunity to help manage their own career development.

We continue to recruit graduates and provide them with a structured training programme. Our recruitment website, www.whatsnext4u.com, provides details of the challenging and rewarding career opportunities that await graduates who join us.

With over 100 manufacturing facilities, Smiths has 27,200 employees worldwide (at the year-end), of whom 80% are located in the United Kingdom and North America, and the others predominantly in continental Europe, Japan and China. Smiths continues to be a diverse group. This diversity is a strength that our employment policies and practices are designed to support.

BUSINESS ETHICS
The Board has approved a 'Code of Corporate Responsibility and Business Ethics'. The Code applies to all businesses and employees of Smiths Group worldwide. The Code is designed to underpin the principles of honesty, integrity and transparency in our approach to business and to sustain the good reputation of Smiths. It will contribute to each business within the Group reaching its full potential through the recruitment and retention of talented and honest people. The Code has the following sections:

•	compliance with laws and regulations;
•	competition, addressing fair competition practices;
•	proper business behaviour, including integrity, and dealing with conflicts of interest;
•	dealings with suppliers and customers, incorporating payments to suppliers and meeting customer requirements;
•	employees, including commitment to non-discrimination, no bullying or harassment, and the right to belong or not to belong to a trade union;
•	health and safety;
•	environment;
•	communities;
•	public activities;
•	human rights, Smiths' commitment to the principles as defined in the United Nations Charter on Human Rights, including the issue of Child Labour;
•	reporting and internal controls; and
•	application and compliance.

The Code is supplemented by guidance on its application to each division's activities and is being rolled out to employees with the aid of face-to-face briefings, other communications materials and relevant training. There is a feedback loop for employees and arrangements are being made to monitor compliance with the provisions of the Code.

The full text of the Code is published on the Smiths website www.smiths-group.com