Berlin: On 2 November 2005, the "German Prize for Business Ethics" was awarded for the first time at a ceremony in the hotel Dorint Sofitel. The first winner of this prize is the medium-sized company J. Schmalz GmbH, located in Glatten in the Black Forest. Not a large company, but a medium-sized one with 350 employees (280 in Germany and 70 in a worldwide network of sales offices) was able to convince the jury of specialists that "Ethics in Business" is part of its daily life. As representatives of the entire company staff, the two managing directors Dr. Kurt Schmalz and Wolfgang Schmalz received the coveted award.

 
With this prize, the jury under the chairmanship of Dr. Volker Hauff, Chairman of the Council for Sustained Development, recognised both the exemplary social commitment and the enormous ecological dedication of the company, which is an international leader in the vacuum-technology market. The members of the jury emphasised explicitly that the company has impressively proved that systematic management on the basis of ecologically and socially responsible business practices is not only possible, but also results in business success.

 
The universal and logical concept behind this is displayed in many areas such as, amongst other things, the protection of the environment. Certified ecological management systems have been a matter of course at the company for many years, the products are manufactured with the most efficient use of the available resources, and all suppliers must meet demanding ecological standards. Furthermore, the company generates more power from regenerative sources than it consumes. An ecological guided tour through the company's premises explains the purpose of the ecological protection efforts at Schmalz to the many visitors.
 
The company also sets standards with respect to aspects which are the subject of much discussion today, namely corruption, falsification of balance sheets and self-enrichment by managers. The management is currently drawing up a comprehensive set of internal rules of conduct intended to ensure fair business practices, something which is still unusual.

The philosophy of the specialists for vacuum technology also becomes apparent in the way it treats its employees. The company's own Schmalz Academy, for example, provides a wide range of further training courses. The employees also participate to a great degree in business decisions and are fully informed of the business figures and the future plans of the company.

So-called time accounts permit a high degree of flexibility in working hours - there is no core working time. Special bonuses such as profit participation, interest-free loans for building or buying houses and health premiums are all in the interest of the staff members. And all of this is accompanied by a continual increase in the number of employees and a steady growth of the company turnover and profits.

 
Initially, about 500 companies were greatly interested in the "German Prize for Business Ethics" and documented their philosophies and all of their structures in an application questionnaire for inspection by the jury. After detailed self-inspection, 67 companies remained in the running. Of these, 42 successfully passed analysis by an independent institute and are now authorised to carry the quality logo "Ethics in Business" for the next 12 months.
 

The vacuum-technology specialists J. Schmalz GmbH convinced the jury in all respects and was thus the winner of the inspections and discussions. For this, the company received the "German Prize for Business Ethics" from the hands of the patron, Ulrich Wickert.