3.1 Own workforce

The impact we have on our workforce and the financial risks we face if we do not nurture, support, and inspire our people in the right way are at the core of our sustainability matters. To provide the very best services to our clients and to attract and retain our valued people, we see this as a top priority. How we care for our people drives our culture, which is, in turn, key to fostering a safe environment that encourages everyone to be innovative in delivering positive outcomes for our clients and society.

For this reason, integrating our values into our day-to-day work is a priority. In particular, we aim to create a psychologically safe working environment in which our people feel included, can speak their minds, and are encouraged to ask questions and experiment without fear of failure or reproval. This approach makes a significant contribution to the important transformations taking place within KPMG N.V. and in our clients’ organizations.

We recognize that our employees work hard to deliver quality services. It is therefore imperative that we stay attentive to the challenges they face and provide appropriate support to help them achieve their own career goals, as well as delivering for our clients. We understand that tensions can arise between our expectations of our people and the need to minimize any negative impacts they may experience. Here, we disclose our approach to managing such tensions, including key policies, actions, and targets in place to minimize any negative impacts on our own workforce. The resources we have dedicated to managing material IROs related to our own workforce are KPMG N.V.’s people-related teams: HR; Leadership, Culture, & Inclusion; and Learning & Development.

As summarized below, our sustainability matters related to our own workforce are grouped under three social themes: working conditions, well-being and engagement, and inclusion, diversity, and equity (IDE).

One of our key strategic priorities is to ensure we prevent and mitigate the negative impacts faced by our own workforce and provide numerous opportunities for the experience of positive impacts. Our policies and actions aim to support the members of our workforce to grow and fulfil their talent.

To ensure we effectively manage our own workforce-related material sustainability matters, we have key metrics and targets in place to measure our performance in these areas. By setting targets we are proactively monitoring our progress, ensuring we can respond effectively to any areas of concern and steer actions toward performance improvement.

S1 Own workforce	Impact materiality		Financial materiality		Value chain
Social theme	Positive	Negative	Opportunity	Risk
Working conditions
Adequate wages
Employee attraction and retention
Training and education for our own workforce
Well-being and engagement
Social dialogue
Work-life balance
(Mental) Health and safety, incl. training
Privacy
Non-discrimination and measures against violence and harassment
Inclusion, diversity, and equity
Diversity (inclusion)
Gender equality and equal pay for work of equal value

Descriptions of the eightmaterial sustainability matters can be found in ESRS 2 section 1.8 Material IROs and their interaction with strategy and business model (new window). Here, we report on these sustainability matters, how we address each theme in our organization, and how our ambition is supported by our performance.

Our workforce consists of employees and non-employees. We define our employees as the people working for us under a fixed or temporary employment contract, including our non-equity partners, and inbound expats. We consider our non-employees to be our equity partners, contractors, offshore resources, and interns.

3.1.1 General policies related to our own workforce

Recognizing our workforce as the key driver of our organizational success and one of our key stakeholders, we have implemented policies to manage potential negative impacts and risks. These policies not only establish structures to minimize such effects, but also provide a framework to amplify positive impacts and opportunities for our workforce. We describe each of our policies for managing our key workforce-related IROs within the relevant thematic section below. All policies are available via our intranet, where significant changes to a policy are also announced.

We have a workplace accident management system in place to prevent physical risks to our workforce’s health.[1] Based on the nature of our operations, however, we focus primarily on our employees’ mental health and well-being. While we do not currently have a workplace accident prevention policy targeting mental health, our comprehensive Health & Happiness Guide is one of several ways in which we support employee well-being (see section 3.1.5.3 Mental health and safety).

Our Code of Conduct applies to our workforce and provides the basis for our commitment to equality and to a culture that is free from discrimination, whether based on race, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, age, marital status, or religious belief.

3.1.2 KPMG International approach to human rights

KPMG N.V. has adopted the KPMG International human rights statement, which aligns with the UN’s Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (the “Guiding Principles”). This is a sign of our commitment to respecting human rights, building on our longstanding support for the UN Global Compact. We monitor human rights impacts across our global organization as part of our Global Quality & Risk Management processes. The KPMG International human rights statement is applicable to KPMG N.V. and ensures that we follow the UN Guiding Principles in avoiding causing or contributing to adverse human rights impacts through our own activities and addressing such impacts when they occur. The KPMG International Hotline is a reporting mechanism that allows our own workforce to raise any concerns that have caused or contributed to any adverse human rights incidents.

KPMG International’s Global Code of Conduct, which covers KPMG N.V., includes a commitment to the 10 principles of the UN Global Compact, including human rights. The 10 principles are integrated in our Impact Plan as well as in our Supplier Code of Conduct. The Global Code of Conduct includes our commitment to not tolerating behavior – whether by our clients or suppliers or by public officials with whom we deal – that is illegal, unethical, or in breach of human rights. Furthermore, policies implemented at KPMG N.V. are consistent with the UN Declaration of Human Rights, the Guiding Principles, the International Labor Organization Core Conventions, and the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development’s Guidelines for International Enterprises.

3.1.3 Processes to remediate negative impacts and channels for our own workforce to raise concerns

As part of our comprehensive approach to psychological safety, which is important to mitigate any negative impacts on our workforce’s mental health, well-being, and engagement, we aim to address and tackle any undesirable behavior. We have established various processes and structures to provide our workforce with multiple channels for raising concerns and ensuring they are addressed. These channels include grievance mechanisms such as a whistle-blowing hotline, confidential counselors, mediators, and the Complaints & Disputes Committee. Collectively, these processes form our KPMG N.V. safety net, supporting colleagues in managing undesirable behavior and work-related disputes.

These channels, including the whistle-blowing hotline, are detailed extensively on our intranet (InsideOut) and on the websites of KPMG N.V. and KPMG International. Employees can also contact an external confidential counselor through our intranet.

To ensure we provide effective remedies and appropriate mechanisms for raising concerns, a task force has made concrete recommendations for improvement. These are based on psychological safety research carried out in 2022/2023 and an analysis of actual instances of undesirable behavior. The research included all forms of undesirable behavior, which is understood as what an individual perceives as undesirable; this could include, but is not limited to, situations such as bullying, inappropriate jokes, (micro)aggressions, intimidation, all forms of discrimination, and sexual harassment. The recommendations led to process improvements such as the yearly measurement of psychological safety through our GPS and support for teams where these results indicate room for improvement.

KPMG N.V. ensures that our people can access channels for raising concerns by publishing communications via the intranet, integrated reports, and email updates. Available to clients, suppliers, and other business partners as well as to our own workforce, the whistle-blowing hotline enables people to report possible illegal, unethical, or otherwise unprofessional conduct, if the normal channels of communication are ineffective or difficult to access. Reports are received and handled by the Internal Audit & Compliance Office, which, if necessary, coordinates with the Country Risk Management Partner and General Counsel of KPMG N.V. We handle all reports confidentially, adhering to applicable legislation and regulations. We also provide protection for the reporting party.

The Complaints & Disputes Committee consists of six people. Established by the Board of Management and the Works Council, it deals with undesirable behavior and labor disputes. Our people, including both our employees and our non-employees working in the Netherlands, can raise concerns to this committee related to, for example, their work, terms of employment, development, or any instances or experiences of undesirable behavior, where they feel that these cannot be resolved in an open conversation. When a complaint is made, there is a process for assessing its admissibility followed by a thorough investigation into the complaint (including hearing from all relevant stakeholders). In the case of undesirable behavior, advice is then provided to the Board of Management, which determines any outcomes. For other types of complaint, the committee can act at its own discretion. This ensures the appropriate consultation and diligence, allowing the most appropriate outcomes to be reached and the necessary support to be provided to everyone involved.

KPMG N.V. has seven confidential counselors (six internal, one external) available to our people, including our employees and our non-employees working in the Netherlands. These counselors provide support and advice to any colleague who feels they need confidential support, including relating to situations where they are confronted with undesirable behavior. Where necessary, they accompany the colleague in conversations and/or involve an independent third party (mediator) to help reach a solution.

Furthermore, we have two internal mediators available, whom people can contact directly or be referred to by a confidential counselor. The mediator facilitates a conversation between two people, following a formal process to ensure that both sides are heard and that a fair and equitable outcome is reached.

We evaluate the effectiveness of these grievance mechanisms several times per year. The Complaints & Disputes Committee, together with the confidential counselors and mediators, presents an annual report to the Board of Management. The report provides an overview of the cases presented throughout the year and gives recommendations for further improving the process. We see it as a positive sign that our people feel comfortable raising matters through our safety net. The Board of Management ensures that employees can report on alleged irregularities without fear of reprisal. The Supervisory Board is immediately informed by the Board of Management about any signs of critical concerns within KPMG N.V.

3.1.4 Working conditions

Ensuring positive working conditions for our workforce is essential to achieving our business goals. Among these conditions, our DMA process identified, in particular, adequate wages and employee attraction and retention as sustainability matters that enable us to effectively attract and retain current and prospective employees alike. This section outlines our performance in these areas and demonstrates how our strategies, policies, actions, and targets enable us to consistently address and improve upon these key topics.

3.1.4.1 Adequate wages for our employees

IRO management: Key policies and actions to address adequate wages

Table 13

To maintain competitive wages and benefits for our employees, we benchmark our comprehensive remuneration package annually across all service offerings against selected markets. Our benchmarking analysis covers all our employees across Assurance, Advisory, and Business Services. This approach ensures we offer current and prospective KPMG N.V. employees desirable wages and sought-after social benefits and activities, with a key focus on the well-being of our people.

Metrics, targets, and performance on adequate wages

Although we have not set specific targets for competitive wages, the goal is to reward our employees competitively in relation to the markets relevant to us. Our annual benchmarking analysis ensures that our employees receive attractive remuneration in line with industry standards. This measure contributes to employee retention and helps ensure we remain an attractive employer. Furthermore, the annual GPS includes questions to measure employees’ satisfaction with their total reward.

We conducted our annual benchmarking of our remuneration packages in April 2024. This resulted in an intermediate salary increase as per April 2024, an increase of the entire salary structure for all three business units as per October 2024, and enhanced secondary benefits related to expense claims to ensure we remain an attractive employer.

3.1.4.2 Employee attraction and retention

IRO management: Key policies and actions to address employee attraction and retention

Our ability to attract and retain employees, including by developing top talent, is crucial to our present and future success. To remain an attractive employer in the market, we have developed and implemented multiple key workforce-related policies, which are disclosed throughout this chapter. Our holistic approach to being an employer of choice is built on the collective strength of our comprehensive set of workforce-related policies. Our policies are designed to enhance the opportunities for and experiences of our employees, while also minimizing the negative impacts they may face and mitigating risks to our business from employee-related challenges. We do not, however, have a key isolated policy for managing the material sustainability matter of employee attraction and retention.

Our actions to retain our employees and remain an attractive employer address many of our key sustainability matters. This includes actions aimed at increasing diversity within our workforce, benchmarking exercises to ensure we provide attractive compensation and benefits for our employees, learning and development opportunities and programs to support the professional and personal growth of our people, and many activities focused on the health and well-being of our employees and non-employees working in the Netherlands. We do not have any key actions focused solely on this sustainability matter, since this topic requires an integrated approach encompassing talent attraction, learning and development, performance development, rewards and recognition, and IDE. This integrated approach is supported by the broad actions we implement to address various IROs for our workforce that contribute to employee attraction and retention.

The effectiveness of these actions is tracked and assessed in several ways, including GPS scores and our performance on attraction and retention targets.

Metrics, targets, and performance on employee attraction and retention

We recognize that investing in our people and sustaining our high-performing workforce strengthens our position as an attractive employer. Actively engaging with our employees and listening consistently to their needs contributes to maintaining high retention rates. We have set entity-specific retention targets for our client-facing employees in Advisory and Assurance, as well as for Business Services, which we monitor quarterly. While these targets include equity partners, they exclude inbound expats, whose departure is considered to be planned, giving us less information about their longevity at KPMG N.V..

Target-setting occurs as part of the annual business plan process. Based on prior-year results and future ambitions and developments, the leadership team HR – led by the CHRO and working closely with the leadership teams of Advisory, Assurance, and Business Services – proposes targets that are then discussed with and approved by the Board of Management.

Retention performace (entity-specific metric)

Table 14

The challenging labor market continues to drive our focus on retaining employees. Despite our efforts, retention rates in 2023/2024 declined compared to the previous year, coming in just below target. Increasing these retention rates is an important point of attention for the coming year.

Table 15 shows our employee turnover for 2023/2024 for all employees, with table 16 showing the distribution of leavers. This differs from the retention performance as shown in table 14 since, among other changes, it excludes equity partners and includes inbound expats.

Employee turnover

Table 15

Compared with 2022/2023, employee turnover increased in 2023/2024 in Assurance and Business Services and remained more or less stable in Advisory. The increase of employee turnover in Assurance is mainly driven by the tight labor market, which possibly makes people more likely to accept opportunities offered outside the Assurance profession. Furthermore, the population of inbound-expats is increasing. As the members of this group normally work for KPMG N.V. for a predetermined time only, this is another factor in the higher employee turnover.

Distribution of leavers

Number of employees (headcount)

Table 16

The distribution of leavers by business unit in 2023/2024 was more or less in line with the previous year. Of the total leavers, 45% were female (compared to 41% in 2022/2023). This is an increase compared to the previous year, although the departing group remains predominantly male. Looking at the total female population the percentage of women leaving the organization increased (20%) compared to 2022/2023 (16%). This underlines the importance of our ongoing focus on female retention. Proportionally, there was an increase in Assurance and Business Services employees leaving the firm.

This data on employee turnover and leaver distribution is based on a different definition from the one we use to report and steer on internally. As such, we have not defined any targets that are tracked against the performance of these metrics. The effectiveness of our policies and actions is measured via the entity-specific retention metric in table 14.

Every year, we set dynamic recruitment targets for Assurance, Advisory, and – to a lesser extent – Business Services. Owing to the influence of market and/or economic circumstances, these targets are not fixed and can be adjusted throughout the year if necessary. In general, recruiting experienced professionals remains challenging in the current market. As well as Assurance, certain sectors such as Technology and Risk & Regulatory are particularly affected by a scarcity of qualified profiles. Every quarter, progress toward our total target is reported in the management report that is discussed within the Board of Management and sent to the Supervisory Board.

3.1.4.3 Training and education of our workforce

In line with our employee value proposition of life-long learning, we focus on investing in the learning and development of our people year on year. We aim to create an inspiring, continuous learning environment that motivates our people and supports their professional and personal growth by offering a variety of development opportunities and client assignments. Through regular training for our people on topics that are foundational for the services we provide, we aim to ensure that we maintain quality across our business and meet our regulatory requirements. This section provides an overview of our policies, actions, targets, and metrics related to training and the continuous development of our workforce.

IRO management: Key policies and actions to address training and education for our workforce

Our learning programs offer a diverse range of training opportunities, crucial for enhancing the skills and competencies of our workforce and ensuring compliance with legal, regulatory, and KPMG N.V. policy requirements. Responsibility for managing our learning offerings is shared between our Learning & Development department, Risk Management team, and Audit Quality Professional Practice team.

We invested EUR 13.4 million in learning and development in 2023/2024, up from EUR 12.7 million the previous year. The average number of training hours per employee slightly increased from 124 to 127 year on year.

To attract and retain diverse talent with varying career goals, we are developing new career paths and encouraging specialization for those who prefer to deepen their expertise in a particular area. This strategy aligns with our shift to a value-driven business model, where new technologies handle routine tasks, allowing our employees to concentrate on more complex issues. We recognize that this type of career progression is particularly appealing to younger generations entering the workforce; accordingly, we emphasize these opportunities clearly during onboarding.

Where necessary, we conduct formal annual assessments on the training requirements of our workforce to meet regulatory requirements, but we also embrace blended learning approaches. As well as combining e-learning, workshops, and intervision sessions to help our employees and equity partners enhance their critical-thinking skills through group exercises and dilemmas, we apply blended learning to strategic areas such as ESG, including the CSRD, leadership, digital skills, sales, ethics, and independence. Blended learning is offered to all our Assurance, Advisory, and Business Services employees and equity partners, with targeted training – either mandatory or encouraged – also provided to relevant employees.

During the past two financial years, we have faced actual material negative impacts related to (mandatory) training and education. In 2023/2024, the AFM, the main regulator of the financial sector in the Netherlands, placed the project to remediate and prevent answer sharing under enhanced supervision. During the year, we started implementing the remediation steps of this supervision program. This included additional measures to prevent answer sharing in the future, as well as multiple root cause analyses (RCAs) of cultural dimensions where we need to improve. To facilitate this process and move in the right direction, we launched a company-wide culture program, Values First, which will be further rolled out in 2024/2025.

We broaden our client services by developing professionals who blend subject-matter expertise with knowledge of new digital tools. Training on digitalization and innovation is therefore a key focus for us, so we can equip our employees and equity partners with the latest technologies and ensure they use them effectively. As part of this program, in 2023/2024, we welcomed seven young professionals to Assurance for our digital and innovation traineeship.

We are also continuing to develop our ESG learning curriculum – focusing on the CSRD legislation and our ESG service offerings at KPMG N.V., based on our Impact Plan – to broaden our employees’ and equity partners’ knowledge and skills in this area. In addition, we welcomed seven young professionals to Assurance for our ESG traineeship in 2023/2024. In line with our firm’s commitment to ESG, we have also developed training modules to ensure relevant colleagues receive appropriate ESG education.

Metrics, targets, and performance on training and education for our workforce

We have not established training-related targets aligned with the ESRS-specific training metrics, which include performance reviews and average training hours per employee. Rather, we have focused on targets that ensure all our client-facing professionals meet the annual qualification and training requirement of 20 continuous professional education hours per year. Our certified auditors need to comply with the permanent education requirements as set out by the NBA. In addition, our AQIs include a target of more than 160 hours of training annually per audit professional (see section 4.1.2.2 Audit quality performance and AQIs (new window) for more information). We believe our tailored model offers all employees and equity partners training opportunities that align with their professional and personal goals, while also ensuring compliance with mandatory requirements.

Average training hours per employee

Table 17

The total average training hours per employee increased slightly in 2023/2024 compared to the previous year. The average was higher in Assurance than in our other business units. This also explains the higher average training hours for men compared to women: in Assurance and Advisory, the business lines with the highest average training hours per employee, the majority of employees are male (58% and 61% respectively). In Business Services, where the majority of employees are female (59%), the average training hours per employee are relatively low.

In Audit quality performance and AQIs (new window) we report on the average training hours per client-facing professional in audit. This amounted to 212 hours in 2023/2024 and 210 hours in 2022/2023. These numbers are higher than the average training hours per employee in Assurance as shown in table 17; the table includes non-client staff, which lowers the average.  

Percentage participation in regular performance and career development reviews

Table 18

Regular performance and career development reviews are part of our annual performance and development cycle.

The vast majority of our colleagues received a performance and career development review in 2023/2024. The exception to this are recent joiners and colleagues who started as non-employees and became employees during the reporting period. The largest number of new joiners start on September 1 and are not yet subject to a performance and career development review by September 30.

3.1.5 Well-being and engagement

Enhancing the health and well-being of our employees is a top priority. To make a meaningful impact, we continuously engage with our employees on various topics to ensure they experience a psychologically safe environment in which to work and grow. Our employees operate in a high-performance and dynamic setting, which, if not properly managed, can lead to negative impacts on employee mental health linked to stress and anxiety. This section describes how we address sustainability matters related to our employees’ health, well-being, and engagement through our policies, actions, targets, and performance.

3.1.5.1 Social dialogue

IRO management: Key policies and actions to address social dialogue

We place strong emphasis on employee engagement, recognizing social dialogue as a significant opportunity for our firm. To facilitate effective communication, we have implemented multiple channels that enable our employees to engage with us constructively. While we are not subject to a collective labor agreement and do not have a trade union, we are committed to offering a variety of means through which employees can reach out, depending on their preferences. KPMG N.V. makes several channels available to facilitate and govern social dialogue, so that our employees can regularly and meaningfully engage with us on a wide range of issues. Whilst we do not capture social dialogue under a specific policy, by actively engaging our employees on topics like well-being, we can strengthen engagement levels, boost productivity, improve working conditions, and reduce employee turnover.

Table 19 outlines the key channels we use to engage with our employees, ensuring we effectively manage any potential or actual impacts or risks within our workforce.

Table 19

The CHRO holds operational responsibility for ensuring engagement with the GPS and pulse survey program, including sharing results with leadership and the wider organization and taking appropriate action. Our CEO is ultimately responsible for overseeing engagement with the Works Council and the Young Board Now.

Metrics, targets, and performance on social dialogue

Social dialogue target

Table 20

The target set for the employee engagement score in our GPS directly links to the desired level of engagement felt by our employees and equity partners. This is considered an important indicator of how well our employees and equity partners feel heard within the organization, as part of our approach to social dialogue.

Target-setting occurs as part of the annual business plan process. Based on prior-year results and future ambitions, the leadership team HR – led by the CHRO – proposes targets that are then discussed with and approved by the Board of Management.

In recent years, we have been close to our 80% target for employee engagement, with scores of 79% in 2021/2022, 80% in 2022/2023, and 77% in 2023/2024. There has been a slight change in the composition of the questionnaire over the same period; if the 2023/2024 result is corrected to make a like-for-like comparison, it is equivalent to a 1% year-on-year decrease. We recognize that engagement is the effect of a set of factors – including personal and professional development opportunities, the right workload, and an inclusive and psychologically safe work culture – and we are therefore fully committed to improving our performance on these different factors and on engagement as a whole. Having performed a deep-dive analysis into the causes of the slight decline in our score in 2023/2024, we have included remediation measures in our GPS action plan. Among other initiatives, we will actively involve employees from different function levels in developing actions for improvement, start our Values First program with a listening phase, and pilot our predictability, teaming and open communication (PTO) initiative in Advisory and Business Services.

3.1.5.2 Work-life balance

IRO management: Key policies and actions to address work-life balance for our employees

We provide our workforce with a flexible working environment designed to promote a healthy work-life balance. In our high-performance and dynamic setting, employees may face challenges that impact their work-life balance, potentially leading to burnout, stress, and negative effects on personal relationships and health. It is therefore crucial that we offer the flexibility our employees need to thrive, both professionally and personally. In accordance with Dutch law, we provide maternity and parental leave schemes for all our employees, including nine working weeks of partially paid leave for children under one year old. When personal circumstances change with the arrival of a child, we actively support our employees in dedicating more time and attention to their home life. We also provide flexible family-related leave options, ensuring our employees can take the appropriate time away from work when needed.

Our hybrid-working support scheme, including a working-from-home allowance and fully-equipped home office facilities, promotes and enables our employees to balance their time between home and the office. Furthermore, our remote work-from-abroad option allows employees to work from another country for a specified period. These schemes enhance our flexible work offerings and support our employees' diverse needs, contributing to our approach to managing our employees’ work-life balance in the absence of a specific work-life balance policy.

In Assurance, meanwhile, workloads are actively monitored and managed through our work volume management program. The objective of this project is to maximize employees’ energy and motivation by managing work volume and work pressure perception while maintaining audit quality and resource capacity. Central to the program is our PTO initiative, a way of working that supports our teams in creating more predictability in their workdays, setting ground rules as a team, and actively discussing how they are feeling, both professionally and personally. This supports a better work-life balance while still ensuring we meet the high standards of quality we and our clients expect. Moreover, to ensure our employees in Assurance are well rewarded and supported throughout busy periods, we have an overtime compensation scheme for functions below manager level.

We measure the effectiveness of our key actions related to work-life balance by closely monitoring planned and actual overtime and through the annual GPS, which includes questions related to employees’ well-being.

Metrics, targets, and performance on work-life balance

We take a dynamic and flexible approach to mitigating any negative impacts on our employees' work-life balance. We have not set any formal targets for KPIs related to work-life balance, but by engaging with our employees through diverse communication channels (see Social dialogue), we aim to understand their concerns and foster an environment that supports both their professional and their personal lives.

Family-related leave 

Table 21

3.1.5.3 Mental health and safety

IRO management: Key policies and actions to address the mental health and safety of our workforce

The mental health of our people is a top priority. Supporting well-being is fundamental for our high-performance culture at KPMG N.V., and we therefore constantly strive to create a working environment that fosters health, well-being, and a good work-life balance. It is particularly imperative that we minimize any negative mental health impacts faced by our workforce due to people’s workload. We analyze our employees’ well-being through data from our yearly GPS and our pulse surveys.

Our commitment to supporting well-being includes providing preventive and curative mental health support, such as our PTO program. Since 2022, we have also made the OpenUp platform available to our employees and our non-employees working in the Netherlands. Providing a range of (mental) well-being and vitality programs on a single user-friendly platform, OpenUp was used in 2023/2024 by more than 600 colleagues, who accessed masterclasses, online check-ins, and conversations with a psychologist.

Our Health & Happiness Guide and psychological safety booklet are both available on our intranet for our employees and our non-employees working in the Netherlands. The guide offers numerous benefits, initiatives, and tips related to (mental) well-being, while the booklet provides guidance on dealing with difficult workplace situations and includes relevant links and information to ensure we maintain a psychologically safe environment for all our people.

In the absence of an overarching mental health policy for our workforce, these actions demonstrate our strong commitment to supporting our employees in this area. By actively monitoring the well-being and psychological safety of our employees and equity partners, we stay attuned to their needs and can proactively address any negative impacts related to their mental health.

Metrics, targets, and performance on the mental health and safety of our employees and equity partners

To gauge our effectiveness in minimizing negative impacts on our employees’ and equity partners’ mental health, we use two GPS-related KPIs:

GPS KPI

Table 22

The targets set for these GPS scores directly link to how our employees and equity partners perceive well-being and psychological safety within KPMG N.V., both of which are key to measuring our impact on mental health and safety. Target-setting occurs as part of the annual business plan process. Based on prior-year results and future ambitions, the leadership team HR – led by the CHRO – proposes targets that are then discussed with and approved by the Board of Management.

We analyze our GPS results annually and prepare an action plan to address people’s feedback. In 2023/2024, the GPS well-being score was 72%, just below our target of 74%. The coming year, we are focusing on workload and employee resilience.

Since 2022/2023, we have specifically measured psychological safety – the extent to which employees and equity partners feel they are treated with respect, part of a team, and valued for their contribution. With a score of 71% in 2023/2024, we came in slightly under our target of 73%. Acknowledging that psychological safety is one of the key enablers of our culture, we have made this a foundational pillar of the Values First culture program launched in 2023/2024.

3.1.5.4 Privacy

IRO management: Key policies and actions to address the privacy of our workforce’s data and personal information

All our employees and our non-employees working in the Netherlands complete annual mandatory privacy training in line with our Privacy Policy. This ensures continuous awareness of data privacy risks, increases knowledge about these risks, and encourages safe and responsible behavior. The effectiveness of these actions is measured through close monitoring of and follow-up on any (potential) data breaches.

Metrics, targets, and performance on the privacy of our workforce’s data and personal information

While we have not set any targets related to this material topic, we do all we can to avoid any data breaches. To this end, we have set up a Privacy Control Framework. The Data Privacy Office – a specialized group within Legal – is responsible for maintaining the Privacy Control Framework, tracking its effectiveness, and following up on any circumstances giving rise to risks or actual incidents regarding the data privacy of our own workforce. This team also issues an annual report on data privacy, discussing with the Board of Management any data breaches and their nature, progress on previously identified focus areas, and focus areas for the coming year.

3.1.5.5 Non-discrimination within our own workforce

IRO management: Key policies and actions to address discrimination within our own workforce

We are committed to eliminating all forms of discrimination within our workforce. Recognizing that discrimination can lead to negative impacts, we strive to ensure fair treatment and equal opportunities for all our people, regardless of gender, race, age, or other characteristics. By implementing non-discrimination practices, we minimize negative impacts on our workforce. Our IDE programs address discrimination and are a core component of our workforce strategy. During 2023/2024, we continued focusing on IDE and, in particular, on removing bias from our HR processes.

To promote a supportive and compassionate management environment, we continued providing empathetic leadership training for 60 development managers in 2023/2024, as well as organizing intervision workshops. Meanwhile, our well-established confidential counselors, dedicated Complaints & Disputes Committee, and whistle-blowing hotline continued to operate as key pillars of support for our employees.

Metrics, targets, and performance on discrimination within our own workforce

Table 23

The total number of discrimination-related (including harassment related to discrimination) and other complaints in 2023/2024 decreased compared to the previous year. The proportion of complaints reported related to discrimination declined from 6.8% of total complaints in 2022/2023 to 4.9% of total complaints in 2023/2024. No fines, penalties, and/or compensation for damages were imposed in relation to the discrimination incidents and complaints.

We have not set any formal targets for the implementation of our comprehensive non-discrimination practices, but we always aim to keep the number of incidents of discrimination, including harassment, as low as possible. While we see it as a positive sign that our people feel comfortable raising such matters through our safety net, we also believe every incident is one too many. We will therefore continue to work toward reducing the number of incidents to zero. Our current approach gives us clear oversight of when an incident does occur, enabling us to effectively support our people and ensure it does not happen again.

3.1.6 Inclusion, diversity, and equity

We promise our people the best human experience, meaning our workplace needs to be one people want to be a part of: an inclusive, diverse, and equitable environment where they feel safe and supported. We provide elements of our IDE programs to our whole workforce, to help develop an inclusive environment that our people are proud to call their workplace. We value different perspectives and encourage all our people to be themselves completely. This section offers a concise overview of our performance in this area, highlighting our policies, actions, targets, and overall results.

3.1.6.1 Diversity within our own workforce

IRO management: Key policies and actions to address diversity within our own workforce

At KPMG N.V., diversity in our own workforce refers to the presence of individuals with different backgrounds and characteristics, including, but not limited to, race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, age, and physical abilities.

To support our Legal Framework Diversity Policy and deliver on our IDE ambitions, we commit to numerous and varied actions every year. From a cultural perspective, for instance, we actively and innovatively foster an inclusive environment through initiatives including our International Day, Culture Week, and Ramadan Challenge, as well as the possibility to exchange one public holiday for another cultural holiday.

We also aim to create a more diverse and inclusive working environment by encouraging applications from candidates with an array of experiences and backgrounds. As well as continuously investing in IDE programs and unbiasing our HR processes, we review our people processes every year to identify any unconscious bias risks. This includes, for example, assessing promotion decisions for director, non-equity partner, and equity partner positions to eliminate bias.

In addition, to ensure our employees and equity partners feel seen and heard as part of our GPS, we ask them to indicate whether they perceive themselves to be part of a vulnerable or marginalized group. This helps us to specifically analyze these groups’ GPS results and formulate measures accordingly.

In the area of gender diversity, we focus on inclusive sponsorship for women in leadership and senior management roles. This goes beyond mentoring; instead, we actively sponsor women to ensure they receive the opportunities needed for advancement within KPMG N.V., addressing the talent gap among women at these levels. Sponsorship involves interviewing women in senior manager positions to understand the challenges they face and what support they need from our organization. In 2023/2024, we launched a pilot for an inclusive sponsoring program focused on women and non-native Dutch speakers who are currently managers or senior managers. Participants are linked to a sponsor in the form of one of our KPMG N.V. partners. We intend to extend the roll-out of this program in 2024/2025.

Metrics, targets, and performance on diversity within our own workforce

The methodology adopted by KPMG N.V. to disclose the metrics related to our employees is to report the information based on headcount as on the first reporting day of each financial year (October 1).

Gender

Number of employees (headcount)

Table 24

The 2023/2024 headcount increased by 3.4% compared to 2022/2023, with higher relative increase in the number of men (3.9%) compared to women (2.6%).

Number of employees (headcount)

Table 25

Temporary contracts are offered to new colleagues in certain departments. The proportion of our employees with a temporary contract in 2023/2024 (16.3%) was in line with the previous year (16.2%).

Gender diversity per employee category

Table 26

Gender diversity per employee category in 2023/2024 remained more or less in line with 2022/2023. For our targets and performance on gender diversity, see table 30.

Full-time and part-time employees

Number of employees (headcount)

Table 27

The percentage of employees that work full-time (84%) in 2023/2024 was equal to 2022/2023. A higher proportion of women worked part-time (26%) than men (9%).

Table 28 compares this headcount-based information to the representative number in the financial statements, based on full-time equivalent (FTE), as an annual average and on October 1.

Table 28

We define our employees as the people working for us under a fixed or temporary employment contract, including our non-equity partners, and inbound expats. We consider our non-employees to be our equity partners, contractors, offshore resources, and interns.

The methodology adopted by KPMG N.V. to disclose the metrics related to our employees and non-employees is to report the information based on headcount as on the first reporting day of the next financial year (October 1)[3].

Total number of non-employees (headcount)

Table 29

The total number of non-employees increased by 7.5% year on year, higher than the increase of our employees at 3.4%. This is in line with our objective to increase our use of our offshore resources for standard procedures.

Our target-setting for increasing workforce diversity has primarily focused on enhancing gender diversity at various levels of our organization. We have multiple targets for the Supervisory Board, Board of Management, and partner/director level (including equity partners). Furthermore, we have a target for female representation in our leadership teams, consisting of the Group leadership team, including the Board of Management, and our Assurance, Advisory, and Business Services leadership teams.

Gender diversity at leadership levels

Table 30

The targets set for gender diversity directly link to KPMG N.V.’s objective to provide equal opportunities to all our people. These targets apply at various leadership levels: the Supervisory Board, the Board of Management, the total group of partners and directors, and the leadership teams. Target-setting occurs as part of the annual business plan process. Based on prior-year results and future ambitions, the leadership team HR – led by the CHRO – proposes targets that are then discussed with and approved by the Board of Management. Target-setting for gender diversity within the Supervisory Board and the Board of Management is established in the corresponding regulations and is determined by the Supervisory Board.

With 22% female representation at partner/director level, we came in under target in 2023/2024. While we are succeeding in our aim to hire and promote more women than men at partner/director level every year (with the percentage of women at partner/director level having risen steadily for years), growth is slow, owing to the proportionally larger number of men in senior positions.

Our aim is to have 50% women on the Supervisory Board. With the departure of Claartje Bulten, one position became vacant in 2023/2024. As a result, the Supervisory Board consisted of five members on October 1, 2024, of which 40% are female. With no changes in the Board of Management, its 50% gender balance remained at the end of 2023/2024.

We are proud of the increase in female representation in our leadership teams (comprising of KPMG N.V.’s Group leadership team and the separate leadership teams of Assurance, Advisory, and Business Services). This increased to 46% in 2023/2024, a step up compared to the previous year and outperforming our target of 30%.

Cultural diversity of employees and equity partners

Table 31

This year, we obtained detailed insights in the cultural diversity of our employees and equity partners for the first time, using the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) Cultural Diversity Barometer to analyze data from 2022/2023[2]. For our 2024/2025 integrated report, we also aim to include this information as October 1, 2024 and October 1, 2025.

In total, 40% of our employees and equity partners are of non-Dutch origin, with Assurance having the highest cultural diversity of our three business lines.

Table 32

Cultural diversity is highest in our junior and senior employee group and decreases toward the level of (equity) partner and director. Our efforts to foster an inclusive environment are aimed at increasing cultural diversity in these senior groups. We will use the 2022/2023 data as baseline for determining future targets and will continue our efforts to achieve the desired results.

Distribution by age group

Number and percentage of employees (headcount)

Table 33

The vast majority of our employees are younger than 50 years old and the distribution by age group in 2023/2024 is in line with 2022/2023.

3.1.6.2 Gender equality and equal pay for work of equal value

IRO management: Key policies and actions to address gender equality and equal pay for work of equal value

Following our Legal Framework Diversity Policy (see section 3.1.6.1 Diversity within our own workforce), gender equality and pay parity are central to KPMG’s IDE programs. The policy also enforces equal treatment for men and women in terms of pay, benefits and advancement opportunities. We strive to ensure equal pay by annually monitoring our gender pay gap performance. The gender pay gap is defined as the difference between the average hourly pay for men and the average hourly pay for women, divided by the average hourly pay for men.

Furthermore, our salary structure provides minimum and maximum salaries per function, which helps prevent unequal pay for work of equal value. To maintain gender-equal career progression and opportunities, we perform an annual horizontal comparison of all promotions and performance outcomes, helping us identify any biases or deviations and ensure gender-equitable performance outcomes. This year-end review includes all our employees across Assurance, Advisory, and Business Services.

Metrics, targets, and performance on gender equality and equal pay for work of equal value

We conduct process checks on the outcome of promotions and performance reviews and variable pay to ensure that we realize our target of equal pay for men and women within the same functions. This is actively monitored, with results from the gender pay gap assessment reported to the Board of Management as part of our year-end review. This review investigates the promotion ratio and equal pay ratio, as well as assessing progress on annual variable remuneration based on gender. 

We have no material deviations on equal pay.

Gender pay gap per employee category

Table 34

The gender pay gap is reported in accordance with the reporting requirements of the ESRS. Please note that the gender pay gap is not to be confused with pay equality. The gender pay gap is determined as the difference between the average hourly pay for men and the average hourly pay for women, divided by the average hourly pay for men. This is calculated for all male and female employees within our organization, regardless of the nature of their work. This method implies that a pay gap arises when there are more men than women at higher positions in the organization or within an employee category. And therefore, the gender pay gap of 13.4% for all employees underpins specifically the importance of increasing female representation at senior positions.

In 2023/2024 we achieved a decrease of the gender pay gap to 13.4%, coming from 15.1% in 2022/2023. This is largely driven by improvements in the partner/director levels (decrease to 3.8% in 2023/2024 compared to 7.5% in 2022/203) and, to a smaller extent, by a 0.7% point improvement in the senior manager category to 5.5% in 2023/2024.

The employee category ‘other’ consists mainly of our secretaries and, to a smaller extent, a diverse group of support staff within Assurance, Advisory and Business Services. The number of men in this category is relatively low and at the same time they have a diversity of functions within the ‘other’ category. As a result, the average hourly pay of men is quite volatile over the years. If there are changes in the number of men this is directly reflected in the average pay. In 2023/2024 the number of men with a relatively lower salary decreased, because they switched jobs or left KPMG, resulting in a slightly higher average pay for men compared to women in 2023/2024.

Our own annual internal analysis shows that there is no significant gender pay gap for employees performing comparable jobs and performing this job for the same time. This is consistent with our target. 

Annual total remuneration ratio

Table 35

The annual total remuneration ratio shows the relationship of the highest remuneration within KPMG N.V. to the median of the total for our employees (excluding the highest-paid individual). The annual total remuneration ratio is more or less in line with 2022/2023.

• 1Excluding offshore resources.
• 2For 4.5% of the population (employees and equity partners) the CBS was not able to determine the country of origin. This uncertainty should be be taken into account when interpreting these figures.
• 3We use October 1 as reference date to present workforce figures that reflect the situation at the end of the financial year (e.g. assigned promotions become effective as of October 1).