TRUE TO OUR VALUES

Almost 11,000 people work for our Group. They contribute their efforts on a daily basis and support our success – and not just the success of the Group, but also and in particular the success of their individual companies. After all, this is where their roots are. This is where they earn their money. And this is where they are part of the social fabric – in all kinds of ways. The employees are proud of their company, which has made a name for itself in its sector. They value the stability and rely on being a part of its long-term success.

For more than three decades, investors have been participating in INDUS’ business model. More than a few have been with us from the start. Our investors include institutions with a long-term investment horizon, entrepreneurs who are well-acquainted with the responsibilities of management, and private investors who want to participate in the technology-­oriented industrial SME industry in German-speaking countries. They all support our strategic approach of “buy, hold & develop.” They also appreciate the Group’s diverse portfolio, its growth orientation, and the resulting stable income that sees them earning dividends year after year.

Nothing will change in the future when it comes to the basic principles described above. We are a Group focused on the day-to-day business. We honor our commitments without any ifs or buts. We don’t throw our decisions overboard at the first sign of difficulty.

But INDUS stands for more than just stability, dependability and fairness. Entrepreneurship, courage and creativity – or, to put it another way, the willingness to change what must be changed to guarantee the future of the Group – are just as important to us. Entrepreneurs that put their life’s work into our hands know that a healthy balance is needed for long-term success. And it is the current situation that decides which set of values has to be prioritized.

In line with this, we are currently making some changes when it comes to the management of our Group, without losing sight of our fundamental canon of values. Translated to our strategic everyday communications, this means, for instance, that we will sharpen our focus on sustainable development. Taking this holistic perspective is more important than ever when it comes to being successful in the future.

And when it comes to supporting the portfolio companies, we are sharpening our focus on the holding company’s contribution to the development of the companies. It is particularly important for our portfolio companies now that they take into consideration the future fields that are especially relevant to their business. The right momentum must be achieved to tap into the right forward-looking topics and generate growth. The holding company will not fail to provide the support necessary for this to happen.

We will also remain loyal to our principles when it comes to the M&A philosophy. If a company joins us following an in-depth analysis, we want them to stay. What is most important to us is that the portfolio companies have good development prospects with us. In individual cases, this might involve a review of whether a portfolio company might not perform better with another owner. Our decision to remove individual portfolio companies from the Group is an important one and serves to allow us to implement our refined, more sharply focused approach to investment. Our Group will remain diversified in the future. At the same time, however, we will also focus on being the home of technological and niche specialists in industrial engineering, focused on selected topics of relevance to the future.

These future fields will remain at the forefront of our minds as we make first and second level acquisitions in the future. We intend to keep growing with two to three acquisitions per year. Our previous investment criteria still apply, although we will additionally be looking closely at the potential of the companies in the future fields that are relevant to us.

Until recently, we summarized our performance obligation with the words “SMEs are our passion.” This passion continues to be what motivates us. We aim to actively support our portfolio companies as they become the next generation of SMEs. So our motto has changed somewhat to, “We are shaping the future with SMEs.” And our future fields are pointing the way. We will be getting more actively involved to make sure that we’re heading down the right path. And to make sure that we can overcome all obstacles, our portfolio companies will become more agile and improve their performance. What links us and the portfolio companies on this ­PARKOUR route are our common goals and shared values. And this is something everyone can rely on.