Employee Matters

Our Human Resources (HR) department manages all topics related to employer attractiveness, diversity and equal opportunities, and employee engagement. Our Health and Safety department, integrated into the Technical Operations area, takes care of all aspects of occupational health and safety (OHS).

Our aspiration is to give more hope to people with cancer and our employees are crucial to our success. In an industry such as biotechnology, where success largely depends on the innovation capability and commitment of our employees, aspects such as employee attraction, retention and engagement are critical success factors. The Management Board has made it a key priority to focus on employee engagement. Employee satisfaction is part of our short and long-term goals and this commitment is reflected in the inclusion of employee engagement as key performance indicator for the Long-Term Incentive Plan 2021 of the Management Board and selective employee groups becoming due in 2025. For the first time in 2021, we assessed Environmental, Social and Governance topics as part of our future annual employee survey to identify areas of improvement. MorphoSys is aiming for sustainable management practices across all three areas and moving forward we will measure progress annually.

Employer Attractiveness

With the acquisition of Constellation Pharmaceuticals our workforce has grown to more than 7001 employees at the end of 2021. As a combined company, we are focusing on the needs of patients and are inspired by our company values – Courage, Urgency, Innovation and Collaboration – in everything we do. Our employer proposition is based on our strong commitment to patients and our employees.

1 Released employees, trainees and employees on parental leave are not included.

With the global COVID-19 pandemic, the biotech sector has been in focus. New investments are being made in the pharmaceutical industry, worldwide, and particularly in the U.S. and Germany, the main markets in which MorphoSys operates. To engage qualified professionals across scientific, medical, commercial and enabling functions, MorphoSys is keen to articulate a value proposition and providing a working environment of personal growth, aligned with the Company’s objective to become a leader in hematology/oncology. This is embedded in our new employee program ESPRIT, “The Spirit of MorphoSys,” as well as the New Work concept, providing attractive working models aligned with current demands for flexibility and hybrid approaches, both launched in 2021. As we want to be well positioned for our growth, we have further expanded our social media presence by making more content available on LinkedIn and selective portals, and are working continuously and with focus on workforce planning and securing the talent to enable our strategic goals. Our workforce planning efforts were focused on understanding the synergy potential after the acquisition of Constellation Pharmaceuticals, as well as staffing new areas to drive automatization and digitalization.

In 2021 the Company’s Life and Job pages in LinkedIn were visited by more than 13,000 visitors. 54% of the visitors viewed the Jobs area and 39% of new hires visited the Life or Job pages, showing a high degree of success in our employer branding and external outreach. We are committed to transparency and equal opportunities in our job vacancies, development of employees, and a positive working environment. All our open job opportunities are advertised worldwide.

In 2021, we launched a new initiative “ESPRIT” in MorphoSys AG and MorphoSys US Inc., our new performance philosophy to build a culture of growth and established new people practices that are aligned with our values. This includes priority setting, ongoing feedback, rewards and recognition, and value-based leadership. As part of the integration process, Constellation Pharmaceuticals employees will also be part of the ESPRIT program from 2022 onwards. MorphoSys’ employer attractiveness strategy builds upon creating a modern and appealing working environment for candidates who are looking to make a difference and bring more hope to people with cancer. The ESPRIT program is one of the main pillars and embeds our ways of working at MorphoSys.

MorphoSys is focused on attracting skilled employees in all technical areas as well as leadership competencies, since leadership is directly connected to employee engagement, sustainable management and our overall Company success. Our Global Leadership Group is comprised of more than 10% leaders from all departments across the Company, worked with the Management Board on enabling the implementation of our strategy, balancing a growing organizational structure with reduced complexity and cross-functional collaboration and the launch and implementation of ESPRIT. We view a leadership environment characterized by strong values, empowerment and accountability as essential to achieving our goals.

Diversity and Equal Opportunities

Valuing diversity and ensuring equal opportunities are firmly anchored in our corporate culture. We believe that every single colleague needs to be heard and plays an important role in contributing to our success. We therefore are committed to policies that do not discriminate in recruitment, hiring, training, promotion or other employment practices for reasons of race, color, religion, gender, gender identity, national origin, age, sexual orientation, marital or protected veteran status, medical condition, pregnancy, disability or any other legally protected status. We aim for an open working environment where creativity and innovation can flourish.

In 2020 our CEO Jean-Paul Kress, M.D., signed the “CEO Pledge for a More Equitable and Inclusive Life Sciences Industry” initiated by the Massachusetts Biotechnology Council to demonstrate the commitment of MorphoSys and the whole biotechnology industry to diversity and inclusion.

Our diversity concept pursuant to the German Commercial Code (HGB) can be found in our ›› Corporate Governance Report.

It is paramount to MorphoSys to create a culture of collaboration and inclusion of different perspectives, where everyone can contribute and bet at their best.

At the end of 2021, 59% of employees were women, and 58% of executives3 were women. The proportion of women in the Company’s workforce thus remains at a consistently high level. In addition, we proudly employed individuals of 43 different nationalities, which adds to our identity as a truly global organization. For a comparison with the 2020 figures, it should be taken into account that Constellation Pharmaceuticals is now included in the 2021 figures.

Employees2 by Gender (December 31, 2021)

Employees2 by Nations (December 31, 2021)

“At MorphoSys, we are committed to ensuring the best talent is chosen, regardless of an individual's gender, race, religion, national origin, or age.”

Jean-Paul Kress, M.D., CEO, MorphoSys

In 2021 MorphoSys was ranked the number one company in Germany and number two among European healthcare companies for female representation at the leadership level and in decision-making positions in the European Women on Boards Gender Equality Index Report, which was released on January 20, 2022. The European Women on Boards Gender Equality Index Report assessed 668 European companies across 19 countries. Based on their Gender Diversity Index, an aggregated indicator that reflects and weighs the share of women in leadership positions, in executive functions, on boards and in board committees.

MorphoSys received a score of 0.89, representing nearly a perfect gender-balanced leadership team (score of 1 is a perfect score). MorphoSys’ Supervisory Board is gender balanced with three female and three male members, and the Company’s Executive Committee, the highest Management Body within the organization, includes three female members out of seven leaders.

In 2022 our goal is to focus on further enhancing our diversity and inclusion efforts by driving focused initiatives with employee resource groups (ERGs), diversified supplier networks, and social responsibility initiatives in our communities.

Employee Engagement

As we are striving to create a working environment that embraces sustainability and social responsibility, the Management Board has made our employee survey a top priority and included the results in our KPIs to make sure it is measured and reviewed regularly. In addition, employee engagement is an important success factor, giving insights into the degree to which employees identify with the values of MorphoSys and the Company practices, and how strong their bond with the Company is.

In 2021 we conducted an employee survey for the first time for all MorphoSys employees in the U.S. and Germany to evaluate environmental, social and governance aspects. We achieved a participation rate of 81%, which is a very strong response rate for a first-time survey, and all three dimensions of Environment, Social and Governance overall scored positive4 above 60%. The high participation rate and the favorable responses in many questions are evidence of an open feedback culture and a high degree of identification and interest of employees with ESG topics.

4 Overall scores: Average favorable score of all 31 questions asked in the 2021 survey.

Overall ESG scores (in %)

A total of 31 questions were asked. Environmental questions were related to safety in the workplace and environmentally friendly practices at MorphoSys. The overall environment score was 78%. Social questions were related to the commitment to patients, delivering excellence and quality standards, and career development and training. The overall social score was 75%. Questions on governance related to diversity and inclusion, ethics and compliance, and learning culture. The overall governance score was 61%. Our strongest results highlighted the connection between our employees’ work and our purpose to help people living with cancer, our strong commitment to delivering excellence for patients, our supportive and collaborative working environment and our commitment to emloyee’s health and safety, especially in COVID times.

Based on these first-time baseline results we had the opportunity to gather valuable feedback and identify improvement potential from which the following measures are derived for 2022: We will be focusing on providing clarity around MorphoSys’ environmental actions, strengthening our communication around our Company strategy and goals, enhancing personal/professional development opportunities, and fostering a learning culture. Going forward, there will be an ESG metric in the Long-Term Compensation Plans for executives and selective employee groups. The ESG metric is derived from the ESG Survey and reflects Employee Engagement. The 2021 Employee Engagement score was 63%.

Our employees showed in 2021 a high degree of involvement in their communities, sponsoring specific charity events and getting involved on World Cancer Day and Blood Cancer Awareness Month. Many MorphoSys employees also joined efforts with the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society for awareness events such as “Light the Night.”

In December 2021 our German Teams organized a Christmas charity campaign where wish lists from girls who are cared for by a local organization in shelters and homes, mostly girls and families in crisis situations, were fulfilled by our employees. In the US, MorphoSys partnered with the East End House in Cambridge to fulfill Christmas wish lists for families in need of some support. The East End House’s Adopt-A-Family program helped families in 2021 by matching them with individuals, families, and businesses who could gather the items on their wish lists.

In 2022 our goal is to continue to engage employees with a combination of communication, discussion forums, social events in virtual, hybrid and in-person settings to encourage connections and sense of belonging across all our workforce. In addition, we will continue our community outreach efforts and promote awareness initiatives around cancer and its impact on society.

Christmas Charity Campaign in Planegg (December 2021)

Occupational Health and Safety (OHS)

MorphoSys considers it a key responsibility to provide a safe, healthy and clean working environment as stated in our Code of Conduct, and to comply with all applicable health, safety and environmental laws and regulations, company standards and best practices.

Focus in 2021

The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the rethinking of our workplace. At MorphoSys, the compatibility of working remotely and in the office has played an important role. A focus in 2021 was to introduce the New Work concept at MorphoSys AG, which leads to a completely new way of working in our Company in response to the new demands of digital working. To improve the ergonomic situation of our employees we equipped the offices with electronically height-adjustable desks and provided instructional videos for the correct adjustment of the chair in the home office.

Our employees at MorphoSys AG have the possibility to book their workstation via an internal booking tool. All workstations are equipped in the same way, but if special equipment is needed, the workstation can also be booked permanently. MorphoSys wants to offer its employees the most flexible working conditions, both in the home office and in the local office.

During peaks of the pandemic, employees were encouraged to work from home where feasible. In-office work was optional and at the discretion of the employee and the respective line manager within the existing pandemic guidelines for office work. Measures taken included capacity limitations, wearing masks, use of sanitizers, social distancing and contact tracing.

Principles for Occupational Safety at MorphoSys

For the Planegg site, our task force led by the Health and Safety department guaranteed the implementation of all regulatory requirements as well as informed all employees about upcoming measures and their potential impact. For the Boston offices, the site manager was responsible for the strict adherence to federal and state guidelines as communicated and updated on state and federal websites.

As part of our Business Continuity Plan, a Company-wide health emergency plan has been established for MorphoSys AG and MorphoSys US Inc. which includes a local plan for each site as there are different requirements and regulations by law in Germany and the United States.

The health emergency plan and the above-listed measures, with a continuous adaption to all applicable COVID-19 regulations, enabled us to ensure normal business operations despite the restrictions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

During the reporting year there was one reportable occupational accident for MorphoSys AG, and therefore the number of work-related accidents remained at a very low level and was significantly below the average level for the chemical industry in Germany, which is used as a comparative value (13.8 notifiable accidents at work per 1,000 full-time employees in the latest survey by the German Employer’s Liability Insurance Association for Raw Materials and the Chemical Industry (BG RCI) in 2020; a reportable accident as defined by the BG is an accident at work or a commuting accident that causes more than three calendar days of incapacity to work).

Through the help of guidelines, training and regular medical checkups, our goal is to be vigilant and ahead of the curve in order to keep the number of accidents at this low level while maintaining the safety and well-being of all our employees.