“Our whistleblower system – confidentiality and the protection of whistleblowers are our top priority Confidential reporting channel

Any form of complaint relating to a proven or suspected violation of legal requirements in connection with the employment relationship with us or the professional environment can be made at any time via the confidential reporting channel we have set up.

Independent ombudsman

In accordance with the requirements of the German Whistleblower Protection Act (HinSchG), we have set up an independent and trustworthy reporting office (the ombudsman’s office HEC Harald Eul Consulting GmbH, hereinafter referred to as the ombudsman’s office). The whistleblower does not incur any costs.

Protected communication via the reporting portal

As part of the reporting process, the whistleblower creates a password and is assigned a case identifier. After entering the tip/report, the whistleblower can log in to the reporting portal with the ID and password and retrieve the confirmation of receipt of the report or other information confidentially.

Procedure

Confirmation of receipt of the report is sent to this reporting portal within 7 days. After three months at the latest, the whistleblower will receive feedback on how the information has been dealt with and what follow-up measures have been or will be taken.

The ombudsman’s office investigates every violation of the legal regulations covered by the HinSchG. The ombudsman’s office checks the information for plausibility and forwards it to us for investigation if there is sufficient suspicion. The identity of the whistleblower is not disclosed unless the whistleblower has given their express consent to the disclosure of their identity or if this is provided for by law. We have no claim against the ombudsman’s office for the disclosure of documents provided by the whistleblower.

Confidentiality and the protection of the whistleblower are paramount. The details are regulated in the HinSchG. In order for the ombudsman’s office to be able to contact you for further enquiries, it is necessary for you to provide your name and e-mail address.

It is also possible to submit reports to external federal and state reporting centres or to external reporting centres specifically set up for certain sectors. For example, to the Federal Office of Justice. However, if you have reason to report, we would like to encourage you to send your information to our own reporting centre, namely the aforementioned ombudsman’s office.

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You can find the portal for your reports to the ombudsman’s office here