Planning for the future It's not just about the immediate rewards we offer those working at Sage, sometimes it takes a little longer to see the benefit. This year our Pension Scheme has been high on the Reward team's agenda, which has been updated to simplify it and make it more equitable. We match ( and more) our peoples' contributions, actively promote the scheme and are working on more ways to help our people plan for their future whilst they're part of Sage. Since we joined the FTSE 100, our people have had the option to join our Share Save Scheme so that everyone can truly benefit from our success. The scheme has options to cover a range of commitment and has proved very popular over the years. When it comes to Life Assurance our people are supported by us from the day they start at Sage, and our Permanent Health Insurance assists those who are unable to work through illness or injury. 67% of our people are part of our Pension Scheme 122 of our people received Long Service Awards in 2008 530 of our people signed up to our Share Save Scheme in 2008 Our Long Service Awards for 10, 15, 20 and 25 years recognise the loyalty of our people to Sage. Once they reach a milestone they get a small stack of gift vouchers and a little bit of cash so they can celebrate on us. This year we went one better and provided the added bonus of an extra day's holiday once people have been with us for 5, 7 and 10 years. Sage CSR Report 08 - Workplace11 181 pints Through onsite blood donor events, our people donated 181 pints in 2008

12Sage CSR Report 08 £ 60k We invested almost £ 60,000 in Educational Sponsorship for our people in 2008. 104 people were able to benefit and improve their qualifications Learning curves and roads of development Joining Sage is like forming a relationship and we appreciate our people from day one. Showing them how they contribute to Sage now, and how they can develop in the future if they want to, builds our relationship with our people and stresses how important their role is to us and our business. We continue to work with and listen to our people to nurture their talent, skills and knowledge and empower them to put them to good use. This allows everyone to feel fulfilled, reach their potential, and achieve their ambitions. If our people are happy, they pass this on to our customers, which is great for us all. Here you'll find out more about our approach and philosophy to learning and development and some of our highlights from 2008. Setting the Sage scene Part of being an admired employer is about making it simple for people to work for us, so this year we started at the beginning and refreshed our recruitment processes. By going online we've made it straightforward to apply for roles and improvements have made it easier for us to compare applications, and ensure a consistent and fair approach. We're now more considerate to applicants too, as they can track the progress of their application to know we're thinking about them, as they wait to hear from us. A whole host of behind- the- scenes work is still going on to help people find out about Sage and what it's like working here before they apply. As we hope to attract the right people to work here being as open as we can to potential Sage people, is one way we can make sure we do this. We aim to nurture our people and help grow their talents We'll do this by: • Getting as many of our managers as possible to attend Enable our Sage management development course • Building new courses to develop our leaders of tomorrow • Actively looking at ways to progress and find opportunities for talented people right across Sage I work in finance and it's pretty standard in my sector for employers to support and help you develop – so the level and kind of help offered makes sure a business can attract and retain good young accountants. I'm studying for a CIMA Professional Qualification. It's a long journey, the 10 exams mean my weekends are pretty full, but it's directly related to my role now and where I'd like to go in Sage. I get support for my college courses and books, and study leave for exams, which has all helped me prepare for my future. The course material has given me the knowledge to introduce new ideas to my work and we all have a responsibility to ourselves and our customers to provide the most competent and up to date service. The experiences I've gained by doing the course, have also given me a greater confidence to try other things within Sage and I've been elected to join the People Insight Forum. I'd like to use my development even more to benefit Sage. I realise that providing ' investment in people' through Educational Sponsorship or any other form of training, means Sage's people can to provide a great service and it's good to see them support their people. Perry tells us his educational sponsorship story