National Instruments
Corporate Responsibility Report
Photo is Courtesy of University of Leuven-KU Leuven
Contents
NI Corporate Responsibility�������������������������������������������������������������������� 3
Statement From the CEO ������������������������������������������������������������������������ 4
2011 Performance Summaries�������������������������������������������������������������������� 5
NI’s Approach to Corporate Responsibility �����������������������������������������������10
GRI Index������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 13
Profile Disclosures ���������������������������������������������������������������������������� 13
Performance Indicators��������������������������������������������������������������������� 17
NI Culture and Stakeholder Engagement ������������������������������������������������ 26
Empower Engineers and Scientists������������������������������������������������������ 31
Improve Everyday Life������������������������������������������������������������������������������ 32
Planet NI��������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 35
Enhancing Engineering and Science Education ��������������������������������� 37
Empowering Educators and Engaging Students ������������������������������������� 38
Creating an Innovative Future Workforce������������������������������������������������� 41
Supporting Engineering and Science Education Worldwide��������������������� 44
Encouraging Innovation in Engineering and Science Education��������������� 48
People and Culture��������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 52
Hire and Retain the Best and Brightest ��������������������������������������������������� 53
Create a Great Place to Work ������������������������������������������������������������������ 59
Maintain a Culture of Giving��������������������������������������������������������������������� 63
Minimize Our Environmental Impact ��������������������������������������������������� 67
Product Life Cycle������������������������������������������������������������������������������������ 68
Conserving Resources �����������������������������������������������������������������������������76
Employees Driving Change ��������������������������������������������������������������������� 82
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
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NI Corporate Responsibility
National Instruments equips engineers and scientists with the tools that accelerate productivity, innovation, and discovery.
Since 1976, NI has developed software and hardware that have revolutionized and continue to redefine the way
engineers develop systems that require measurement and control. The NI software-based approach incorporates rapidly
advancing commercial technology, providing an integrated software and hardware platform that abstracts system complexity
and significantly speeds application design, development, and deployment.
Corporate responsibility at NI is centered on the impact that engineers and scientists can make with this technology.
NI corporate responsibility efforts focus on what the company does best—applying engineering expertise toward critical
societal issues and equipping engineers with tools that accelerate innovation and discovery. Through its employees,
customers, business practices, and mission, NI is changing the way engineers address the biggest challenges we face
today. NI works toward the long-term success of its key stakeholders and society through four focus areas of corporate
responsibility: empowering engineers and scientists, inspiring and preparing the innovators of tomorrow, fostering an open
and innovative work environment for all employees, and minimizing the company’s environmental impact.
Empowering Engineers and Scientists
Enhancing Engineering Education
People and Culture
Minimizing Our Environmental Impact
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
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Statement From the CEO
National Instruments is managed for the long term. Our 100-year plan guides the decisions
we make and ensures a balanced focus on the success of our key stakeholders:
employees, customers, suppliers, and shareholders. This long-term thinking also shapes
our view of NI’s role in society.
NI creates shared value between its key stakeholders and society by achieving its mission
of equipping engineers and scientists with tools that accelerate productivity, innovation, and
discovery. This is the most significant long-term impact we can have on the world—
empowering our customers to apply their technical expertise to critical societal issues and
helping them meet the grand challenges for engineering, such as finding renewable energy
alternatives, through NI technology.
We are depending on the next generation of engineers to meet many of these grand
challenges decades into the future. We invest heavily in programs that engage students
with technology and prepare them to become the innovators of tomorrow. Through our
collaboration with LEGO®, for example, millions of students, starting at age 6, are learning
how to build and program robots using NI LabVIEW software. We also partner with FIRST
(For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) to provide technology,
mentorship, and support across each level of the organization’s student robotics
competitions.
We also empower innovation among engineers and scientists in developing countries who
face economic or other extraordinary barriers to technology adoption. Through Planet NI,
we provide small-to-medium enterprises and education institutions in emerging markets
with access to the technology and training they need to achieve economic prosperity and
sustainable development.
It is the dedication of NI employees and the innovative corporate culture at NI that drive
these initiatives and the long-term sustainability of the company. I am honored that NI was
named to the Great Place to Work Institute’s inaugural list of the World’s 25 Best
Multinational Workplaces. This achievement further illustrates the success of our 100-year
plan, and I am proud of our open environment that empowers employees.
Through our employees, customers, business practices, and mission, we are changing
the way that engineers can impact our world. We hope you’ll learn more about our
corporate responsibility efforts at ni.com/corporateresponsibility. I welcome your
feedback.
Best regards,
Dr. James Truchard
President, Chief Executive Officer, and Cofounder, National Instruments
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
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2011 Performance Summaries
This section provides a summary of the results for the 2011 National Instruments corporate responsibility
commitments. To locate a specific Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) indicator in this report, refer to the GRI Index.
Legend: A
Fulfilled commitment
F Partially fulfilled or currently in progress
D No progress
Empower Engineers and Scientists
Area
2011 Commitment
2011 Performance
Improve
Everyday Life
Invest 16% of revenue in R&D to further
empower engineers and scientists to develop
world-improving technologies.
Invested more than 19% of revenue
in R&D.
A
Develop new products that leverage
the latest technologies for structural
measurements and educate the structural
engineering community on their benefits.
Released a new wireless sensor network
node for strain measurements, updated
software for NI optical sensing interrogators,
and developed a
new 3-channel C Series module for vibration
measurements.
A
Give more engineers in developing countries
access to technology by expanding the Planet
NI program.
Expanded from 20 participating countries in
2010 to 34 participating countries in 2011.
A
Develop and release innovative
products to aid customers in creating
smart grid technologies.
Partnered with the National Renewable
Energy Laboratory (NREL) to develop
a general-purpose inverter control board so
customers can easily develop
the inverters and power electronics
that provide the foundation for many
renewable energy technologies.
A
Create resources on engineering
best practices for wind turbine monitoring,
inverter technologies,
and smart grid development.
Hosted the two-day Energy Technology
Summit at NIWeek 2011 with three
keynote speeches, a discussion panel, and
10 technical sessions.
A
Teach green engineering principles to
5,000 engineers through free virtual
and on-site events.
Held green engineering seminars
around the world, hosted the NIWeek Energy
Technology Summit, and created an Earth Day
webcast series.
F
Enable Green
Engineering
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
Status
5
Enhancing Science and Engineering Education
Area
2011 Commitment
2011 Performance
Mentoring
Young Minds
Increase number of robotics mentors in
underserved schools by 10%.
Increased the number of robotics mentors in
underserved locations 65% during the
2010–2011 school year.
A
Retain at least 60% of robotics mentors at
headquarters.
Retained 62.5% percent of robotics mentors
at headquarters.
A
Expand robotics mentorship programs to five
branch offices.
Expanded robotics mentorship programs to
branch offices in Costa Rica and India.
F
Create additional training and resources for
robotics mentors.
Created web-based trainings and seminars
for FIRST Tech Challenge and FIRST Robotics
Competition mentors and participants.
Developed advanced training content for
elementary school mentors to be distributed
in 2012.
A
Empower the
Innovators
of Tomorrow
Offer complete curriculum solutions for
educators to teach key engineering and
science objectives.
Launched NI courseware portal
and complete teaching solutions for
RF/communications.
A
Promote new student programs to give
students the ability to amplify their
engineering expertise.
Expanded LabVIEW Student Ambassador
program from seven to 31 ambassadors and
launched LabVIEW 101.
A
Corporate
Philanthropy
and Advocacy
Dedicate 70% of corporate philanthropy to
STEM-related efforts.
Dedicated over 70% of corporate philanthropy
to STEM-related efforts.
A
Improving the World
Through
Technical Literacy
Supplement and develop lesson
plans for elementary school
LEGO MINDSTORMS® NXT robotics
programs to make it easier for educators to
implement.
Developed new LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT
activities and packaged existing lessons
together to share with educators
implementing new robotics programs.
F
Develop a resource kit for parents that can
help them become advocates for starting
robotics programs in schools.
Developed a resource kit for parents and
educators to help them start LEGO robotics
programs in elementary schools.
F
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
Status
6
People and Culture
Area
2011 Commitment
2011 Performance
Hire and Retain the
Best and Brightest
Meet hiring goals to double the number of
employees by 2015.
Expanded the number of full-time and
part-time employees worldwide by 20% to
more than 6,200.
A
Expand the NI Leaders program to include
12 additional universities.
Expanded the NI Leaders program from two
to 13 universities.
F
Triple the size of the engineering intern
program at NI headquarters.
More than tripled the engineering intern
program from 2010 to 2011 with a 340%
increase in the number of engineering interns
employed at NI headquarters.
A
Collaborate with student organizations
to tailor recruiting events for women
and minorities.
Established a group of female recruiters to
support the NI Leaders program by helping
student organizations bring female presenters
to recruiting events.
A
Ensure surveyed employees describe NI as a
great place to work at a rate of 75% or greater.
Recorded that 85% of surveyed employees
worldwide described NI
as a great place to work.
A
Offer primary care at the NI Health Center to
employees’ spouses.
Began to provide primary health care services
in January 2011 through the NI Health Center
to employees and spouses on the NI benefits
plan.
A
Implement a wellness
incentive program.
Changed the commitment from implementing
a health risk-based wellness program to a
participation-based program. As a result, 99%
of employees at NI headquarters participated
in the 2011 health risk assessment program.
F
Build a Great Place to Work environment at
NI Malaysia and NI Costa Rica, the newest
branch offices, and survey those employees
for results.
Implemented community and corporate
responsibility programs at both NI Costa Rica
and NI Malaysia. In 2012, these two branch
offices will be surveyed after being open for
one year or more.
F
Ensure at least 90% of US employees receive
feedback through annual performance reviews.
With the addition of reporting in Europe,
conducted performance reviews with 80% of
employees in Europe and the United States in
2011, an increase of 11 percent from 2010.
F
Launch the People Development Series (PDS)
training for individual contributors.
Provided 239 employees worldwide with
complete PDS training for individual
contributors in 2011.
A
Expand leadership development through
additional resources and opportunities such as
e-learning.
Did not meet this goal in 2011; however, a
pilot program began in January 2012 to
provide a mix of e-learning modules and
online discussions to refresh topics learned in
traditional classroom leadership training.
D
Create a Great Place
to Work
Provide Superior
Employee
Development
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
Status
7
People and Culture
Area
2011 Commitment
2011 Performance
Employee
Philanthropy and
Volunteerism
Track and report NI branch philanthropic and
volunteer activities.
Formed an international volunteer council in
January 2011 to keep track of branch
philanthropic activities. However, information
sharing was inconsistent.
F
Match gifts for employees at headquarters
who use payroll deduction.
Did not meet this goal in 2011. The matching
gift program does not yet include eligible
payroll-deducted donations.
D
Engage five existing branch office volunteer
programs in using the NIVolunteer.com
system.
Added more than 10 branch offices to
NIVolunteer.com, but language barriers and
site limitations prevented full employee
engagement.
F
Increase headquarters’ employee volunteer
hours by 30%.
Increased employee volunteerism by 16%
year-over-year.
F
Maintain commitment of donating 1% of
pretax profits to nonprofit organizations.
Donated 2% of pretax profits to nonprofit
organizations.
A
Corporate
Philanthropy and
Advocacy
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
Status
8
Minimize Our Environmental Impact
Area
2011 Commitment
2011 Performance
Product Life Cycle
Pilot new criteria for a supplier scorecard to
measure supplier citizenship.
Did not fulfill this commitment. After a
reassessment of critical needs, NI reallocated
the procurement resources scheduled to
work on the scorecard to a supplier packaging
improvement project instead, which delayed
the scorecard.
D
Identify gaps and implement improvements
for an OHSAS 18001-capable process.
Did not fulfill this commitment. An increase
in employee turnover in the safety group at NI
Hungary created a challenge in getting
approvers to release the emergency response
plan documents necessary to fulfill this
commitment.
D
Reduce polyurethane in product packaging by
30% per unit using eco-friendly materials.
Received more customer orders than
expected for a product line that uses more
polyurethane than other products. This caused
more usage than planned at the Austin site,
but globally NI reduced usage by 24%.
F
Implement employee PC power management
program at Hungary and Costa Rica branches.
Implemented on 295 PCs at the Hungary site.
The program was somewhat limited in
manufacturing because PCs cannot be turned
off due to production equipment needs.
F
Audit HVAC control systems of
each corporate headquarters building
for improvements.
Completed the audit and recommended areas
for improvement in 2012.
A
Use Leadership in Energy and Environmental
Design (LEED) criteria
to investigate effective energy- and watersaving strategies in the design and
development of the new NI facility in Penang,
Malaysia.
Building completion for 2012 is on schedule
and NI is implementing the LEED strategy as
planned.
A
Optimize waste management costs at
Hungary branch.
NI Hungary reduced communal waste
collection by 9%.
A
Investigate ways to increase employee
ridership of commuter rail.
Local transportation authority in Austin
canceled a connector bus route for
headquarters employees who use commuter
rail due to low ridership.
D
Evaluate electronic waste to be
reused in conjunction with Goodwill recycling
program.
In 2012, NI plans to redirect electronic waste
to a Goodwill recycling program so materials
can be reused when possible.
A
Conserving
Resources
Employees
Driving Change
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
Status
9
NI’s Approach to Corporate Responsibility
National Instruments works to create shared value for the company’s key stakeholders and society through its corporate
responsibility efforts. NI believes that the company can make the biggest impact by leveraging its engineering expertise
to address critical social issues and equipping engineers with tools that accelerate innovation and discovery.
Corporate responsibility is integrated throughout the business at NI—from grassroots, employee-led efforts to crossorganizational, multifaceted programs that span several countries. In many cases, the company’s corporate responsibility
goals support its top-level business and operational goals, and in every case, its corporate responsibility efforts support
the company mission and long-term success. Through corporate responsibility, NI focuses on the issues that impact the
company and society the most—meeting the world’s most critical engineering challenges, preparing the next generation
of engineers, and improving human life and the health of the planet.
Please submit questions or comments using this feedback form.
About This Report
This report describes NI corporate responsibility performance in fiscal year 2011, which ended December 31, 2011. NI
used the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Sustainability Reporting Guidelines (G3) to prepare this report, and an index to
the disclosures and indicators is available here.
Currently, NI does not seek external assurance for its complete corporate responsibility report. Comprehensive data for
all NI operations was not available. Unless otherwise noted, data presented in this report applies only to NI corporate
headquarters in Austin, Texas.
Corporate Responsibility Challenges and Opportunities
NI prioritizes corporate responsibility issues based on their importance to key stakeholders as well as their impact on
long-term business success. The company relies on multiple engagement tools, including discussion forums, surveys, and
customer and supplier conferences, to gather feedback on issues important to its stakeholders. Using these inputs, the
NI Corporate Responsibility Steering Team and cross-functional representatives from multiple areas of the organization
prioritize the company’s efforts. NI identified the following top corporate responsibility challenges and opportunities for 2011:
■■
■■
■■
■■
Supporting Education Initiatives—As a worldwide technology leader and partner to some of the most recognized
academic organizations, NI is in a unique position to make a significant impact on the world by helping educators
transform science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) education. Specifically, NI contributes in this area
by providing interactive, real-world learning experiences; low-cost and free training opportunities; a strong global
mentorship program; and technology and funding.
Sustaining the NI Culture—The company’s greatest and most sustainable long-term competitive advantage is its
culture and employees who directly influence the continued success of key stakeholders. As NI continues to grow
and opens additional employment centers such as the most recent centers in Malaysia and Costa Rica, the
company will sustain its culture by surveying employees regularly and through the service of established
company leaders who will oversee operations and ensure a commitment to NI culture.
Reporting on Global Efforts—Unless otherwise noted, data presented in this report applies only to NI corporate
headquarters in Austin, Texas. Gathering additional data from all NI operations for future reports is an ongoing
process, and NI will provide that data in future reports as it becomes available.
Grand Challenges for Engineering—The National Academy of Engineering Committee on Grand Challenges for
Engineering identified 14 areas awaiting engineering solutions in the 21st century. These include the most significant
issues the world is facing today, such as the need for new medical treatments, access to clean water, and the creation
of sustainable energy sources. NI customers are often on the front lines of pioneering solutions for these challenges,
and NI is committed to equipping them with innovative tools to accelerate the development of those solutions.
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
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To learn about the company’s 2011 performance and 2012 commitments on all issues that impact its corporate responsibility
performance, visit the sections linked from the following table. The 2011 Performance Summary provides an overview
of all 2011 commitments and results.
Area
Economic
Challenges and Opportunities
■■
■■
■■
Environmental
■■
■■
■■
■■
Social
■■
■■
■■
■■
Achieving growth and profitability
Investing in R&D to develop innovative products and technologies
Cultivating industry diversity
Optimizing the product life cycle
Using modular products that require less power
■■
Packaging
■■
Reduction of hazardous substances
■■
Supplier responsibility
■■
Manufacturing operations
■■
Product take-back and recycling
Conserving resources
■■
Energy
■■
Natural gas
■■
Water
■■
Emissions
■■
Habitats
■■
Recycling
■■
Waste reduction
Empowering employees to drive change
Transforming education, especially STEM education, through programs that promote
■■
Technical literacy
■■
Technology access
■■
Project-based learning
■■
Competition
■■
Mentoring
■■
Early education
■■
Developing tools for teaching
Preserving the competitive advantage of NI culture and employees through
■■
Recruiting and retention
■■
Diversity and inclusion
■■
Health, wellness, and safety
■■
Compensation and benefits
■■
Work environment
■■
Training and development
Empowering customers to improve the world through
■■
Bridge and infrastructure monitoring
■■
Green engineering
■■
Supporting engineers in developing countries
Engaging in communities through
■■
Employee and corporate philanthropy
■■
Employee volunteerism, including board membership
■■
Corporate advocacy
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
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Managing Corporate Responsibility Performance
Corporate responsibility is part of the company’s 100-year plan. To drive performance in these areas, NI relies on its
board of directors, a steering team, a cross-functional committee, and NI employees.
A cross-functional committee oversees corporate responsibility activities and measures performance throughout the
company. In addition, employees play an integral role in achieving corporate responsibility goals that range from
developing innovative products to identifying opportunities to reduce energy use at company facilities. Crossfunctional employee teams, such as the NI Women’s Network and the NI Green Team, are crucial for driving success
on various aspects of corporate responsibility.
NI executive leadership reviews corporate responsibility performance and goals throughout the year. The Audit Committee
of the NI Board of Directors oversees the company's performance in accounting and financial reporting as well as the
company’s compliance with the NI Code of Ethics and financial, environmental, and equal employment opportunity regulations.
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
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GRI Index
National Instruments used the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Sustainability Reporting Guidelines (G3) to prepare its
corporate responsibility report. NI self-declares this report at GRI Application Level B.
Refer to the following tables to locate a specific GRI disclosure or indicator in the report.
Legend: A
Reported
D Partially reported
Profile Disclosures
Indicator
Description
2011
Report
Response or Link
Strategy and Analysis
1.1
Statement from the most senior
decision maker of
the organization
A
Statement from the CEO
1.2
Description of key impacts, risks,
and opportunities
A
Our Approach to Corporate Responsibility; 2011 Performance Summary; PDF
Report - Corporate Responsibility Challenges and Opportunities. For information
about financial risk factors, refer to the Risk Factors section in Form 10-K of the
Annual Report.
Organizational Profile
2.1
Name of the organization
A
National Instruments Corporation
2.2
Primary brands, products, and/or
services
A
Annual Report
2.3
Operational structure of
the organization
A
Annual Report
2.4
Location of
organization’s headquarters
A
Austin, Texas, USA
2.5
Number and names of countries
where the organization operates
A
ni.com/niglobal
2.6
Nature of ownership
and legal form
A
Annual Report
2.7
Markets served
A
Annual Report
2.8
Scale of the reporting organization
A
Annual Report
2.9
Significant changes during the
reporting period
A
Annual Report
2.10
Awards received in the
reporting period
A
Awards
Report Parameters
3.1
Reporting period for
information provided
A
Our Approach to Corporate Responsibility
3.2
Date of most recent
previous report (if any)
A
Our Approach to Corporate Responsibility
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
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Indicator
Description
2011
Report
Response or Link
3.3
Reporting cycle
A
Annual
3.4
Contact point for
questions regarding
the report or its contents
A
Our Approach to Corporate Responsibility
3.5
Process for defining
report content
A
PDF Report - Stakeholder Engagement; PDF Report - Corporate Responsibility
Challenges and Opportunities; Approach to Corporate Responsibility
3.6
Boundary of the report
A
Our Approach to Corporate Responsibility
3.7
State any specific limitations on the
scope or boundary of the report
A
Our Approach to Corporate Responsibility
3.8
Basis for reporting on joint
ventures, subsidiaries, leased
facilities, outsourced operations,
and other entities
A
This report does not include data on joint ventures, subsidiaries, leased facilities,
or outsourced operations, unless otherwise noted.
3.9
Data measurement techniques
and the bases of calculations,
including assumptions and
techniques underlying
estimations applied to the
compilation of the indicators and
other information in the report
A
NI captures data from its relevant organizational units as well as third parties
such as energy providers. Where only estimates of data were available, that fact
is noted along with the data.
3.10
Explanation of the effect of any
restatements of information
provided in earlier reports
A
No restatement since 2009, and those restatements are included
in the 2010 report.
3.11
Significant changes from previous
reporting periods in the scope,
boundary, or measurement
methods applied in the report
A
None
3.12
Table identifying the location
of the Standard Disclosures in
the report
A
GRI Index
3.13
Policy and current practice with
regard to seeking external
assurance for the report
A
Our Approach to Corporate Responsibility
Governance, Commitments, and Engagement
4.1
Governance structure of
the organization
A
Corporate Governance
4.2
Indicate whether the Chair of the
highest governance body is also
an executive officer
A
Corporate Governance
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
14
Indicator
Description
2011
Report
Response or Link
4.3
State the number of members of
the highest governance body that
are independent and/or nonexecutive members
A
Corporate Governance
4.4
Mechanisms for shareholders and
employees to provide
recommendations or direction to
the highest governance body
D
Corporate Governance
4.5
Linkage between compensation
for members of the highest
governance body, senior
managers, and executives, and
the organization’s performance
A
NI believes that a significant portion of its executives’ total compensation should
be directly linked to achieving specified financial objectives that NI thinks
will create stockholder value. Under an annual incentive cash bonus program,
executives receive payments based on the achievement of NI business goals
approved by the NI board. In addition, all regular full-time and part-time employees,
including executives, participate in a company performance bonus program.
For employees to receive the maximum payout under this program, NI must
achieve predetermined goals for revenue growth and profitability. NI also uses
stock-based equity compensation to incentivize a large number of its regular,
full-time, and exempt employees, including executives. Refer to the Executive
Compensation section of the Proxy Statement for more information about the NI
approach toward compensation as well as specific business goals under the
annual incentive program.
4.6
Processes in place for the highest
governance body to ensure
conflicts of interest are avoided
A
Proxy Statement, Certain Relationships and Related Transactions section
4.7
Process for determining
the qualifications and expertise of
the members
of the highest governance body
for guiding the organization’s
strategy on economic,
environmental, and social topics
A
Charter for the Nomination and Governance Committee of the NI Board of
Directors; Proxy Statement, Corporate Governance section
4.8
Internally developed statements
of mission or values, codes of
conduct, and principles relevant
to economic, environmental, and
social performance and the status
of their implementation
A
The following statements and tools serve as a way of ensuring the company’s
performance meets its standards.
4.9
Procedures of the highest
governance body for overseeing
the organization’s identification
and management of economic,
environmental, and social
performance, including relevant
risks and opportunities, and
adherence or compliance with
internationally agreed standards,
codes of conduct, and principles
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
A
Statement
Implementation
Company Mission and
Vision Statements
At NI corporate headquarters, the new
employee training program and
Leadership Development Series cover
these core principles. At branch offices,
local leaders are responsible for
integrating these principles into their
branch organizations.
NI Code of Ethics
Refer to the Create a Great Place to Work
section of this report.
Supplier Code of Conduct
Refer to the Operations and Product
Recycling section of this report.
PDF Report - Corporate Responsibility Challenges and Opportunities; Approach
to Corporate Responsibility
15
Indicator
Description
2011
Report
Response or Link
4.10
Processes for evaluating
the highest governance
body’s own performance,
particularly with respect to
economic, environmental,
and social performance
A
Charter for the Audit Committee of the NI Board of Directors
4.11
Explanation of whether and
how the precautionary approach
or principle is addressed by
the organization
A
NI has not explicitly addressed the precautionary approach. However, both of the
company’s manufacturing facilities are certified to ISO 14001 standards, which NI
uses to proactively identify where its activities have an environmental impact.
4.12
Externally developed economic,
environmental, and social
charters, principles, or
other initiatives to which
the organization subscribes
or endorses
A
External
Initiative
Year of
Operations
Adoption Where Applied
Key
Voluntary
Stakeholders or
Required
Clean Air
Partners
Program
2004
Corporate
headquarters
Employees
Voluntary
Electronic
Industry
Citizenship
Coalition
(EICC)
Code of
Conduct
2008
Worldwide
Suppliers
Voluntary
ISO 14001
standards
2003
Corporate
headquarters
and NI Hungary
Employees
Voluntary
4.13
Memberships in associations
(such as industry associations)
and/or national/international
advocacy organizations
A
PDF Report - NI Memberships and Associations
4.14
List of stakeholder groups
engaged by the organization
A
NI Culture and Stakeholder Engagement
4.15
Basis for identification and
selection of stakeholders with
whom to engage
D
NI Culture and Stakeholder Engagement
4.16
Approaches to stakeholder
engagement, including frequency
of engagement by type and by
stakeholder group
A
PDF Report - Stakeholder Engagement
4.17
Key topics and concerns that have
been raised through stakeholder
engagement, and how the
organization has responded to
those key topics and concerns,
including through its reporting
A
NI Culture and Stakeholder Engagement
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
16
Performance Indicators
Indicator
Description
2011
Report
Response or Link
Economic
Disclosure on
Management
Approach
A concise disclosure with
reference to the following
economic aspects:
■■
Economic performance
■■
Market presence
■■
Indirect economic impacts
A
PDF Report - Management Approach Disclosures
EC1
Economic value generated
and distributed
A
PDF Report - Financial Information
EC3
Coverage of the organization’s
defined benefit plan obligations
A
Create a Great Place to Work
Disclosure on
Management
Approach
A concise disclosure with
reference to the following
environmental aspects:
■■
Materials
■■
Energy
■■
Water
■■
Biodiversity
■■
Emissions, effluents, and waste
■■
Products and services
■■
Compliance
■■
Transport
■■
Overall
A
PDF Report - Management Approach Disclosures
EN1
Materials used by weight or
volume
D
Product Design and Packaging
EN3
Direct energy consumption by
primary energy source
A
Electricity, Natural Gas, and Emissions
EN4
Indirect energy consumption by
primary source
A
Electricity, Natural Gas, and Emissions. For purchased electricity, the
corresponding primary energy consumed in production is not available.
EN5
Energy saved due to conservation
and efficiency improvements
A
Electricity, Natural Gas, and Emissions; Employees Driving Change
EN7
Initiatives to reduce indirect
energy consumption and
reductions achieved
D
Electricity, Natural Gas, and Emissions; Employees Driving Change
EN8
Total water withdrawal by source
A
Water Usage, Recycling, and Waste Reduction
EN10
Percentage and total volume of
water recycled and reused
A
NI does not recycle or reuse water at its corporate headquarters or NI
Hungary.
EN13
Habitats protected or restored
A
Approximately 63%, or 16.6 hectares, of the NI corporate headquarters
campus remains in its original state with a healthy functioning ecosystem
and is protected from any harm during operational activities. For more
information about this campus, refer to the Water Usage, Recycling, and
Waste Reduction section of this report.
EN16
Total direct and indirect greenhouse
gas emissions by weight
A
Electricity, Natural Gas, and Emissions
EN22
Total weight of waste by type and
disposal method
D
Water Usage, Recycling, and Waste Reduction
Environmental
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
17
Indicator
Description
2011
Report
Response or Link
EN23
Total number and volume of
significant spills
A
No hazardous spills occurred at either NI manufacturing facility.
EN26
Initiatives to mitigate environmental
impacts of products and services,
and extent of impact mitigation
A
Product Life Cycle
EN28
Monetary value of significant fines
and total number of nonmonetary
sanctions for noncompliance with
environmental laws and regulations
A
No fines or sanctions were incurred for noncompliance with environmental
laws and regulations at either NI manufacturing facility.
Social
Labor Practices and Decent Work
Disclosure on
Management
Approach
A concise disclosure with reference
to the following labor aspects:
■■
Employment
■■
Labor/management relations
■■
Occupational health and safety
■■
Training and education
■■
Diversity and equal opportunity
A
PDF Report - Management Approach Disclosures
LA1
Total workforce by employment
type, employment contract,
and region
A
Recruiting and Retaining Employees
LA2
Total number and rate of
employee turnover by age group,
gender, and region
D
Recruiting and Retaining Employees
LA7
Rates of injury, occupational
diseases, lost days, and
absenteeism, and number of
work-related fatalities by region
D
Create a Great Place to Work
LA10
Average hours of training
per year per employee by
employee category
A
Superior Employee Development
LA11
Programs for skills management
and lifelong learning that support
the continued employability of
employees and assist them in
managing career endings
A
Superior Employee Development. NI does not offer paid educational
leave or sabbaticals as an employee benefit. NI offers the following
transition assistance programs for employees who are retiring or who
have been terminated.
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
Program
Offered
Details
Retirement planning for
intended retirees
Yes
NI offers resources on
retirement planning to
all employees.
Retraining for those
intending to continue
working
No
Severance pay
Yes
NI offers severance pay in
some situations. Typically,
severance pay takes into
account years of service.
Job placement services
Yes
NI offers job
placement assistance
in some situations.
Assistance on
transitioning to a
nonworking life
No
18
Indicator
Description
2011
Report
Response or Link
LA12
Percentage of employees
receiving regular performance
and career development reviews
A
Superior Employee Development
LA13
Composition of governance
bodies and breakdown of
employees per category
according to gender, age group,
minority group membership, and
other indicators of diversity
D
Recruiting and Retaining Employees
Disclosure on
Management
Approach
A concise disclosure with
reference to the following human
rights aspects:
■■
Investment and
procurement practices
■■
Nondiscrimination
■■
Freedom of association and
collective bargaining
■■
Abolition of child labor
■■
Prevention of forced and
compulsory labor
■■
Complaints and
grievance practices
■■
Security practices
■■
Indigenous rights
A
PDF Report - Management Approach Disclosures
HR2
Percentage of significant
suppliers and contractors that
have undergone screening on
human rights and actions taken
A
Sixty-five percent of suppliers have undergone this screening, and no
actions have resulted from the screening. For more information about
supplier screening, refer to the Operations and Product Recycling section
of this report.
HR6
Operations identified as having
significant risk for incidents of
child labor, and measures taken to
contribute to the elimination of
child labor
A
NI has not identified any operations with significant risk for incidents of
child labor of young workers exposed to hazardous work. NI does not and
will not use child labor. The term “child” refers to any employed person
under the age of 16, under the age for completing compulsory education,
or under the minimum age for employment in the country, whichever is
greatest. NI supports the use of legitimate workplace apprenticeship,
internship, and similar programs that comply with all laws and regulations
applicable to such programs.
HR7
Operations identified as having
significant risk for incidents of
forced or compulsory labor, and
measures to contribute to the
elimination of forced or
compulsory labor
A
NI has not identified any operations with significant risk for incidents of
forced or compulsory labor. NI does not and will not use forced or
involuntary labor of any type, including but not limited to forced, bonded,
indentured, or involuntary prison labor. Employment is voluntary.
Disclosure on
Management
Approach
A concise disclosure with
reference to the following society
aspects:
■■
Community
■■
Corruption
■■
Public policy
■■
Anticompetitive behavior
■■
Compliance
A
PDF Report - Management Approach Disclosures
SO3
Percentage of employees trained
in organization’s anticorruption
policies and procedures
D
Create a Great Place to Work
Human Rights
Society
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
19
Indicator
Description
2011
Report
Response or Link
Product Responsibility
Disclosure on
Management
Approach
A concise disclosure with
reference to the following product
responsibility aspects:
■■
Customer health and safety
■■
Product and service labeling
■■
Marketing communications
■■
Customer privacy
■■
Compliance
A
PDF Report - Management Approach Disclosures
PR1
Life cycle stages in which health
and safety impacts of products
and services are assessed for
improvement, and percentage
of significant products and
services categories subject to
such procedures
A
NI assesses the health and safety impacts of products and services for
improvement during the following life cycle stages.
Life Cycle Stage
Impacts
Assessed
Development of product concept
No
R&D
Yes
Certification
Yes
Manufacturing and production
Yes
Marketing and promotion
No
Storage distribution and supply
Yes
Use and service
Yes
Disposal, reuse, or recycling
Yes
Of the significant NI product or service categories, 100% are covered by
and assessed for compliance with such procedures.
PR5
Practices related to customer
satisfaction, including results of
surveys measuring customer
satisfaction
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
A
PDF Report - Measuring NI Customer Satisfaction
20
Management Approach Disclosures
The following disclosures provide a brief overview of how National Instruments manages its performance under each
Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) indicator category.
To manage the performance of the supply chain, NI requires suppliers to comply with the NI Supplier Code of Conduct
for the fair treatment of workers, a healthy and safe work environment, the protection of the environment, and
outstanding business ethics. In addition, all new suppliers must complete an NI supplier assessment survey. If the
survey process identifies issues, NI conducts regular follow-up with the supplier. For existing key suppliers, NI monitors
issues and reviews performance scorecards quarterly to ensure continuous improvement.
■■
Economic
■■
Environmental
■■
Labor Practices and Decent Work
■■
Human Rights
■■
Society
■■
Product Responsibility
Economic
The management approach taken by NI regarding its economic performance, market presence, and indirect economic
impacts stems heavily from the company’s commitment to upholding solid principles of corporate governance and
accountability to all its stakeholders. The company has set long-term goals of investing 16 percent of its total revenue
back into R&D while maintaining an 18 percent operating income and 14 percent net income. To view the company’s 2011
results, refer to the Annual Report.
NI uses quarterly business discussions and other employee communication tools to raise internal awareness of
economic goals and performance. Should issues arise related to the company's economic performance, the NI Board
of Directors would address them.
For more information regarding the company’s approach to managing economic performance, download the Form 10-K
section of the Annual Report.
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
21
Environmental
Refer to the Minimize Our Environmental Impact section of this report for an overview of NI environmental
performance including 2011 successes and challenges as well as 2012 commitments. For information about the NI
approach to managing issues related to its products and services, including environmental compliance, refer to the
Product Responsibility section.
Aspect
Materials
Goals and
Performance
Policy
Organizational
Responsibility
Training and
Awareness
Monitoring and
Follow-Up
Product Design
and Packaging
NI Supplier Code
of Conduct
Vice president,
Manufacturing
All NI hardware
engineers follow
the NI hardware
engineering
process, which
raises awareness of
materials issues.
On a quarterly basis,
R&D leaders receive a
report of conversions to
address the European
Union Restriction of the
Use of Certain
Hazardous Substances
(RoHS) directive.
Resource
Conservation
Vice president,
Manufacturing
NI Green Team
NI reviews performance
on a quarterly basis and
then examines any
abnormal fluctuations.
Managing
Critical Substances
Vice president,
Manufacturing
Employees
responsible for
maintaining the
NI environmental
management
system have access
to process training.
Operations and
Product Recycling
Managing
Critical Substances
Energy, water,
emissions,
effluents,
and waste
Electricity,
Natural Gas,
and Emissions
Compliance, as it
relates to overall
environmental
performance
Operations and
Product Recycling
Water Usage,
Recycling, and
Waste Reduction
Product Take-Bake
Program and
Recycling
For biodiversity and transportation issues, NI does not have a formal policy, nor does it set goals or offer training.
Should these issues arise, the vice president of Manufacturing would address them.
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
22
Labor Practices and Decent Work
Refer to the People and Culture section of this report for an overview of NI performance regarding labor practices
including 2011 successes and challenges as well as 2012 commitments.
Goals and
Performance
Policy
Organizational
Responsibility
Training and
Awareness
Monitoring and
Follow-Up
Employment
Recruiting and
Retention
Hire and Retain the
Best and Brightest
Vice president,
Worldwide Human
Resources
At NI corporate
headquarters, the
new employee training
program covers this
aspect. At branch
offices, the branch
leadership is
responsible for training
and raising awareness.
The NI Human
Resources department
monitors
these issues.
Occupational
health
and safety
Health, Wellness,
and Safety
Health, Wellness,
and Safety
Vice president,
Manufacturing
Operations and
Product Recycling
Operations and
Product Recycling
At NI manufacturing
facilities, employees
receive ongoing
training related to
occupational health
and safety.
NI is working toward
full compliance with
the OHSAS 18001
standard, which helps
companies control
occupational health
and safety risks.
Training
and education
Superior Employee
Development
Superior Employee
Development
Vice president,
Worldwide
Human Resources
Superior Employee
Development
The NI Human
Resources department
monitors these issues.
Diversity
and equal
opportunity
Recruiting and
Retention
Recruiting and
Retention
Vice president,
Worldwide
Human
Resources
At NI corporate
headquarters, the new
employee training
program covers this
aspect. At branch
offices, the branch
leadership is
responsible for training
and raising awareness.
The NI Human
Resources department
monitors these issues.
Aspect
For labor/management relations issues, NI does not have a formal policy, nor does it set goals or offer training. Should
these issues arise, the vice president of Worldwide Human Resources would address them.
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
23
Human Rights
In the countries where NI has offices, the company follows applicable legislative standards and is a responsible
employer. For information about the NI approach to managing nondiscrimination issues, refer to the Labor Practices
and Decent Work section of this page.
NI does not have a formal policy, nor does it set goals or offer training, for the following aspects related to human rights:
investment and procurement practices; freedom of association and collective bargaining; complaints and grievance
practices; security practices; and indigenous rights. NI does have a policy but does not set goals or offer training for the
following aspects:
■■
Abolition of child labor: Indicator HR6 in the GRI Index
■■
Prevention of forced and compulsory labor: Indicator HR7 in the GRI Index
Should human rights issues arise in the area of employment, the vice president of Worldwide Human Resources would
address them in accordance with applicable legislative standards. The NI Board of Directors would address all other
human rights issues.
Society
Refer to the People and Culture section of this report for an overview of how NI and its employees serve the
communities in which they work and live, including 2011 successes and challenges as well as 2012 commitments.
Aspect
Corruption
Goals and
Performance
Create a Great
Place to Work
Policy
NI Code of Ethics
Organizational
Responsibility
Training and
Awareness
Monitoring and
Follow-Up
Audit Committee of the
NI Board of Directors
Create a Great
Place to Work
Refer to the charter for
the Audit Committee of
the NI Board of Directors.
NI does not have a formal policy, nor does it set goals or offer training, for the following aspects related to the impact
NI has on the communities in which it operates: community, public policy, and compliance. NI does have the following
policy related to anticompetitive behavior but does not set goals or offer training: National Instruments Corporation
Compliance with Antitrust Laws. Should issues arise in the areas of community, compliance, or anticompetitive
behavior, the NI Board of Directors would address them.
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
24
Product Responsibility
Refer to the Minimize Our Environmental Impact section of this report for an overview of NI performance regarding
product responsibility including 2011 successes and challenges as well as 2012 commitments.
Aspect
Goals and
Performance
Policy
Organizational
Responsibility
Training and
Awareness
Monitoring and
Follow-Up
Customer
health and
safety
NI does not set
goals related to
this aspect.
Indicator PR1 in
the GRI Index
Vice president,
Manufacturing
No training or
awareness efforts
exist.
Should these issues arise,
NI would rely on its customer
quality escalation process.
Product and
service labeling
Product Design
and Packaging
Product Take-Back
Program and
Recycling
Vice president,
Manufacturing
All NI hardware
engineers follow the NI
hardware engineering
process, which raises
awareness of labeling
issues.
Regular quality checks during
the NI manufacturing process
ensure proper labeling.
Managing Critical
Substances
Customer
privacy
NI does not set
goals related to
this aspect.
NI Privacy
Statement
Senior vice
president, Sales
and Marketing
At NI corporate
headquarters, sales and
marketing staff receive
training on the
company’s email
privacy policy. At branch
offices, marketing staff
receive this training.
NI continually gathers
feedback through customer
surveys and comment
forms and follows up on
issues that arise.
Compliance
Operations and
Product
Recycling
Managing Critical
Substances
Vice president,
Manufacturing
Employees involved in
the manufacturing
process have access to
process training.
The NI Compliance
Engineering department
monitors these issues. NI has
processes in place to make
sure all components that go
into its products are
compliant. In addition, on a
quarterly basis, R&D
leadership receives a report of
conversions to address the
European Union Restriction of
the Use of Certain Hazardous
Substances (RoHS) directive.
For marketing communications issues, NI does not have a formal policy, nor does it set goals or offer training. Should
these issues arise, the senior vice president of Sales and Marketing would address them.
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
25
NI Culture and Stakeholder Engagement
National Instruments’ industry leadership is built on proven technology, visionary executive management, and sustained
growth. Managed for the long term, the company balances the needs of each of its key stakeholders and is committed
to innovation, continuous improvement, and customer success. The company’s long-term view, known as the 100-year
plan, balances the NI vision and culture with short-term business needs.
NI aggressively invests not only in product design and development but also in maintaining its unique corporate culture
that serves as a key differentiator and competitive advantage. This collaborative, entrepreneurial culture spurs innovation
in every area of the business and empowers employees to create technology that helps customers and partners address
the world’s greatest engineering challenges.
The following underlying NI core values are central to the company’s corporate culture and are present in day-to-day
interactions and the way NI does business:
■■
Constant respect for people
■■
Uncompromising honesty and integrity
■■
Dedication to serving customers
■■
Commitment to innovation and continuous improvement
Through the various means in which NI engages with its stakeholders, the company’s management gains visibility and
creates alignment with key corporate responsibility priorities and concerns, as shown in the following examples.
■■
■■
■■
■■
Employees—One of the top concerns for employees in 2011 continued to be the rising cost of health care. As part of
their open-communication policy, NI leaders held multiple town-hall-style meetings to discuss how new healthcare
legislation in the US will impact NI and its employees. At these meetings, they also took questions about how the
company plans to manage these expenses. Additionally, NI wants to make it easier for its employees to “get
healthier.” Therefore, in 2011 NI conducted its second round of health risk assessments (HRAs) for employees. The
company uses the aggregate data from the HRAs to develop health and wellness programs tailored for its employees.
NI also announced that starting in 2012 all US locations will be tobacco free. To help employees prepare for this
change, the company is offering free smoking cessation programs for all employees who desire to quit smoking.
Customers—As NI continues to grow and the number of large systems sold continues to account for a greater
percentage of the company’s business, a complete services and support offering becomes a greater priority for
customers. Services and support is a current investment area for NI. Through a customer satisfaction survey
regarding the NI services offerings, NI discovered it has the opportunity to enhance awareness of its system
assurance programs and hardware services among customers.
Suppliers—In 2010 the US Congress passed the Conflict Minerals Trade Act as part of the Dodd-Frank Financial
Reform legislation. The law’s aim is to curb violence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and surrounding
regions by restricting the use of certain minerals originating in rebel-controlled mines. These substances include
the base minerals for gold, tantalum, tin, and tungsten. All US companies that use these minerals in their products
are required to report the origins of these materials in their 2012 filings with the SEC; therefore, determining this
information has become a key concern for both NI and its suppliers. In 2011, NI included discussions on this act as
part of its annual supplier conference and started working with its supply chain to understand the origin of these
minerals used in NI products.
Shareholders—This year NI investors focused on the company’s strategic investments in R&D and the field sales force,
key growth drivers, and uses of cash. In 2011, NI management addressed these topics by participating in multiple events
including 11 investor conferences and two nondeal road shows. The company also hosted its shareholder meeting at its
headquarters, quarterly earnings calls, and its annual analyst day as part of the NIWeek global user conference. NI paid
cash dividends equaling $0.40 USD per share in 2011, which was $0.05 USD more per share over 2010.
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
26
Building on NI’s 100-year plan and core values, the following statements and tools ensure that the company's
performance meets its standards:
Statement
Implementation
Company Mission and Vision Statements
At NI corporate headquarters, the new employee training program and Leadership Development
Series cover these core principles. At branch offices, the local leaders are responsible for
integrating these principles into their branch organizations.
Corporate Responsibility Mission Statement
In 2010, NI corporate headquarters added a new component to the training program for new
employees to cover this principle. In 2011, corporate responsibility was included in all company
overview material and implemented into company training at both headquarters and branches.
NI Code of Ethics
Refer to the Health, Wellness, and Safety section of this report.
Supplier Code of Conduct
Refer to the Operations and Product Recycling section of this report.
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
27
Stakeholder Engagement
The following table lists examples of how NI engages with its key stakeholders.
Stakeholder Group
Tools and Processes
Frequency
Employees
Company meetings
Semiannual
Employee Appreciation Week
Annual
Business alignment discussions
Quarterly
Town hall gatherings
Ongoing
Performance reviews
Annual
An open-door management policy known as sneaker management
Ongoing
Philanthropic funding advisory council
Annual
NI Talk internal collaboration tool
Ongoing
Internal e-newsletter
Weekly
NIWeb intranet and wiki
Ongoing
NIWeek, the company’s annual customer and technology
conference, and regional NIDays held at NI offices around the world
Annual
Online discussion forums and user community
Ongoing
User group meetings around the world
Ongoing
Direct sales force
Ongoing
Contact forms, including technical support, customer service, and
product feedback
Ongoing
Customer loyalty surveys
Semiannual
Customer advisory boards and regional advisory councils at which
NI facilitates discussions with key customers about its products,
technologies, and industry trends
Ongoing
Lead user program to identify opportunities and receive product
feedback
Ongoing
Procurement and purchasing resources
Ongoing
Supplier appreciation event
Annual
Business reviews with key suppliers
Ongoing
Business review presentations by suppliers
Quarterly
Supplier corporate responsibility survey
Annual
Earnings conference call and webcast
Quarterly
Reports
Quarterly/annual
NIWeek investor conference
Annual
Shareholder meeting
Annual
Financial community event participation
Ongoing
SEC filings
Annual
Customers
Suppliers
Shareholders
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
28
Measuring NI Customer Satisfaction
In 2011, NI conducted multiple research projects to better understand overall customer satisfaction with the company,
its annual global user conference, and some of its product lines, services, and support options. This research included
the following:
Survey Type
Purpose
Results
One global
customer satisfaction and
loyalty survey
To monitor the level of satisfaction customers
have with all aspects of their interaction with the
company, including the product information
provided, sales representatives, the ordering
process, product usage, and technical support,
as well as the level of customer loyalty.
NI customers indicated a high level of satisfaction and
loyalty for the company and its products in 2011.
NI continues to make improvements to ni.com so that
customers have an enhanced online experience
with the NI forums, community, documentation, and
overall searchability.
One survey conducted during
NIWeek, the company’s annual
global user conference
To gauge attendee satisfaction with the event.
NI continues to see that NIWeek attendees are attracted
to the advanced technical content, access to NI engineers,
industry-specific forums, and networking opportunities.
Two focus groups
at NIWeek
To better understand the key concerns and
existing perceptions among LabVIEW customers.
Customers see LabVIEW as a powerful tool and believe
hardware integration and the availability of drivers and
customer support are key benefits of the platform.
The LabVIEW team heard differences in needs and
preferences among varying customer types and is
following up on these findings.
One US satisfaction survey on
NI service offerings
To determine whether customers are aware of
NI services at the point of sale and to rate
customer confidence in the ability of NI services
to meet their needs.
Customers are confident that NI has the services they
need to ensure success. Support and software updates
are viewed as the most important services among
customers. NI discovered it has an opportunity to enhance
awareness of its System Assurance Program and
hardware services among customers.
NI Financial Information
The company's 2011 revenue of $1.02 billion USD represented a 17 percent increase over 2010 with operating expenses
of $670.5 million USD. NI economic value distributed included employee wages and benefits1 of $434.9 million USD;
payments to the government2 of $2.4 million USD; payments to the providers of capital3 of $48.0 million USD; and
community investments4 of $1.9 million USD. NI retained an economic value5 of $852.0 million USD. For more corporate
and financial news, visit ni.com/nati.
1. Wages and benefits does not include the 2010 company performance bonus, vacation,
and other incentives awarded to employees.
2. Payments to the government represents income tax expense as reported in the company's
annual 10K report.
3. Payments to the providers of capital represents dividends to shareholders as reported in the company's
annual 10K report.
4. Community investments represent voluntary donations and investments of funds in the broader
community where the target beneficiaries are external to the company.
5. Retained economic value represents the total stockholders' equity as reported in the
company's annual 10K report.
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
29
NI Memberships and Associations
NI is a member of the following organizations and standards bodies. For 2011, NI focused on gathering a list of
memberships at its corporate headquarters. NI will provide additional global data in future reports as it becomes available.
■■
■■
■■
■■
The Academy of Medicine, Engineering and Science
of Texas (TAMEST)
■■
■■
Numerical Mathematics Consortium (NMC)
PCI Industrial Computer Manufacturers Group
(PICMG)
Advanced Telecommunications
Computing Architecture
■■
PCI-SIG
Austin Area Trade Compliance Roundtable
■■
PXI Systems Alliance (PXISA)
■■
TechAmerica United States and Europe
■■
Technology and Education Executive Council (TEEC)
■■
Test and Measurement Coalition
■■
USB Implementers Forum
■■
Wi-Fi Alliance
■■
WirelessHD Consortium
The International Compliance
Professionals Association
■■
The Institute of Packaging Professionals (IoPP)
■■
The IPSO Alliance
■■
IVI Foundation
■■
National Association of Purchasing Management
■■
NCSL International
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
30
Empower Engineers and Scientists
It is up to engineers and scientists to meet the grand challenges that impact quality of life and the future of
the planet. National Instruments equips engineers around the world with the tools that accelerate the
development of these solutions. By using the NI graphical system design platform that greatly simplifies
development and increases efficiency, engineers can design, prototype, and test smarter, more advanced
products and technologies to address the world’s most pressing challenges including building and maintaining
urban infrastructure, producing renewable energy, and developing medical devices. NI empowers its
customers with a better approach to engineering and ensures that engineers in developing countries who
face extraordinary barriers to adoption also have access to this technology.
In This Section
- Improve Everyday Life
- Planet NI
BY THE NUMBERS
35,000+
>16%
34
companies used NI tools to
accelerate innovation and
discovery in 2011
of total revenue was reinvested
in R&D to further empower
engineers and scientists to develop
world-improving technologies
developing countries’ engineers
now have access to NI technology
through the Planet NI program,
up from 20 in 2010
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
31
Improve Everyday Life
Engineers and scientists worldwide are using
National Instruments software and hardware to improve
the lives of those around them. In addition to addressing
the key social issues highlighted in the Grand Challenges for
Engineering, NI products are used in all areas of innovation,
from developing test systems for cutting-edge space exploration
vehicles to building complex 3D video display systems.
To continue to ensure the success of its customers, NI is
committed to investing aggressively in R&D. NI leads the
industry in R&D investment, including percentage of revenue
invested back into R&D and percentage of overall employee
headcount that works in R&D. NI invests at least 16 percent
of total revenue in R&D each year regardless of the economic
climate. This reflects both the company’s long-term focus and
its commitment to support the work its customers are doing.
2011 HIGHLIGHTS
■■
■■
2011 CHALLENGES
35,000+ companies used NI tools
to accelerate innovation and
discovery in 2011
>16% of total revenue was
reinvested in R&D to further
empower engineers and
scientists to develop worldimproving technologies
“
■■
2012 COMMITMENTS
NI has traditionally produced
broad-based tools that can be
used for many different
applications, but as the company
becomes more involved with
customers in specific industries,
more customization is expected
■■
■■
Continue to invest at least
16 percent of revenue in R&D
Facilitate industry collaboration
by bringing together engineers,
business leaders, and government
officials through events such as
the NIWeek summits and the Big
Physics Symposium
The LabVIEW graphical programming environment helps
with rapid development and deployment. If we had tried
to build our PowerCube energy system using a text-based
language, we wouldn’t be anywhere near where we are
now in the development cycle, and as a result, several
regions in Africa would still rely on expensive, nonrenewable
sources of energy for mobile phone coverage.
”
—Dr. Mike Rendall, Diverse Energy Ltd
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
32
Customer Innovation Impact
National Instruments customers are creating innovative solutions that improve quality of life. Whether they are building
structural test and monitoring devices that ensure railroads are safe, or medical instruments that can detect cancer
without the stress of a biopsy, or a solar energy system that keeps milk in rural areas from spoiling, NI customers around
the world continue to have a positive impact on the lives of millions of people.
C AS E ST U DY
Developing the World’s First Real-Time 3D OCT Medical Imaging System
Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is a noninvasive imaging
technique that provides subsurface, cross-sectional images of
materials. Interest in OCT technology continues to grow because
it provides much greater resolution than other imaging techniques
such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or positron emission
tomography (PET). Additionally, the method requires very little
preparation and is extremely safe for the patient because it
involves low-laser outputs without the use of ionizing radiation.
Kitasato University took advantage of the flexibility and scalability of the PXI platform and NI FlexRIO to
develop the world’s first real-time 3D OCT imaging system. They used LabVIEW to program, integrate, and
control the different parts of the system, combining high-channel-count acquisition with field-programmable
gate array (FPGA) and GPU processing for real-time computation, rendering, and display.
C AS E ST U DY
Solar Energy Helps Keep Milk Safe in Rural India
Every day, dairy processors in India are challenged with
transporting milk from millions of individual farms in villages to
central processing facilities in distant cities. With the NI
graphical system design platform, Promethean Power
Systems built a hybrid solar- and grid-powered refrigeration
system to cool and store raw milk at the villages where the
milk is produced.
The hybrid milk chiller cuts both transportation costs for dairy
farmers and chilling costs in half because it uses solar energy.
The system works well in rural areas where grid power is
unreliable. Most importantly, cooling the milk at the source results in premium-quality, healthier milk that can
be used for higher-value products such as cheese and baby formula.
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
33
C AS E ST U DY
Remotely Assessing the Structural Health of the Long Island Railroad Viaduct
Viewpoint Systems, Inc., needed to remotely monitor the Long
Island Railroad (LIRR) viaduct for a long period of time without
physically accessing the equipment because the LIRR is the
only commuter passenger railroad in the United States that
operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Structural test and
monitoring are essential to ensure the stability and integrity of
civil and commercial structures.
The company collaborated with STRAAM Corporation, a leader
in structural integrity assessment, to develop a rugged system
that functions outdoors and in other less-accessible sites yet
maintains the capabilities of commercially available PC-based
solutions. Viewpoint Systems used NI CompactRIO, the LabVIEW FPGA Module, and the LabVIEW Digital Filter
Design Toolkit to measure the modal analysis of vibration data generated from ambient excitation, capture this
data remotely, and analyze significant events.
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
34
Planet NI
Planet NI is an initiative designed to empower engineers
and students in developing countries to achieve economic
prosperity and sustainable development through access
to National Instruments technology. NI is committed to
nurturing local innovation and entrepreneurship and, through
Planet NI, the company is making engineering tools
affordable, accessible, and relevant to groups focused
on improving the socioeconomic development of their
communities. These groups include academic institutions,
small and medium enterprises (SMEs), and organizations
working on environmental and health solutions.
NI offices around the world locally define and support their
Planet NI programs by collaborating with groups and
individuals that share the Planet NI mission to improve the
world through technology.
2011 HIGHLIGHTS
■■
■■
2011 CHALLENGES
Expanded the Planet NI program
from 20 to 34 countries
Partnered with organizations
including UNESCO in southeast
Asia, the UN Development
Programme in Arabia, Engineering
World Health in Honduras, LEGO
Education in South America, and
Texas Instruments in Ghana
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
■■
■■
Emerging countries with low
buying power require new
products optimized for low cost
Needs vary significantly between
communities, making it difficult
to standardize initiatives while
maximizing local impact
2012 COMMITMENTS
■■
■■
■■
Double the number of LabVIEW
users in developing countries
who would otherwise not have
had access to NI technology
Invest in the creation of
affordable product offerings that
are relevant for engineers in
developing countries
Double the number of SMEs
enrolled in the Planet NI program
35
Providing Access to Technology
Planet NI extends the NI company mission of equipping engineers and scientists with the tools to accelerate innovation
and discovery to the large population of engineers in developing countries who face extraordinary barriers to adoption.
NI does this to help engineers build technology-based solutions that can contribute to the economic prosperity and
sustainable development of the people living in developing and emerging countries.
One of Planet NI’s key strategies is working with nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), governmental institutions,
and multilateral groups working locally to alleviate poverty through job creation and capacity building. In other words,
Planet NI creates local and sustainable programs driven by NI offices in addition to partnering with national and global
organizations for maximum community impact.
C AS E ST U DY
Building a Sustainable Indoor Farm
LEDSS S.A. de C.V.’s mission is to grow sustainably using natural,
renewable resources from the region around the Bermejo Sea in
Mexico. It works to meet local social challenges such as the
scarcity of potable water and the lack of land suitable for
agriculture. One project the company has invested in is the Agro
Hi Tec park, which is an indoor park that reuses materials and
creates almost no waste. By providing LabVIEW licenses and
extensive training on LabVIEW and the LabVIEW Real-Time
Module, NI helped the company control and monitor the park.
C AS E ST U DY
Creating a Pocket Projector for Rural India
Udupi Tech, one of the earliest SMEs supported by Planet NI in India, has grown
from a one-person start-up to a 32-person company working simultaneously on
six engineering projects. The company, which is located in Bangalore, provides a
variety of efficient design and manufacturing services. It was founded in 2002
by Ramachandra Rao, a former professor who wanted to create his own system
integration business. He faced a few initial challenges with his first LabVIEW
project, but after receiving technical support from NI, he became extremely
successful. The company has since created products such as the “pocket projector,”
a low-cost projection
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
36
Enhancing Engineering and Science Education
Many of the world’s most significant engineering challenges will be met decades into the future by the next
generation of engineers and scientists. To inspire today’s students to become tomorrow’s innovators, NI
invests heavily in improving science and engineering education, engaging students with technology, and
equipping educators with resources to help them teach fundamental engineering concepts in a fun, handson way. Specifically, the company provides interactive, real-world learning experiences; low-cost and free
training opportunities; a strong global mentorship program; and technology and funding.
In This Section
- Empowering Educators and
Engaging Students
- Creating an Innovative
Future Workforce
http://www.ni.com/images/citizenship/features/en/110418_fg_
improving.jpg (we want to use this image without the words over it)
- Supporting Engineering and
Science Education Worldwide
- Encouraging Innovation
in Engineering and
Science Education
BY THE NUMBERS
454
2,016
free courseware resources made available to educators
FIRST student robotics teams were given LabVIEW
for LEGO MINDSTORMS software
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
37
Empowering Educators
and Engaging Students
Transitioning from learning engineering and science theory to
actually implementing that knowledge in the real world can
be challenging for students. NI works to remove that barrier
by providing complete education solutions that include
hardware, software, courseware, and support. Through these
solutions, NI empowers educators to focus more on teaching
engineering concepts and less on teaching the tools, which
gives students engaging, interactive learning experiences
that stay with them long after they transition to real-world
projects. NI also provides many free resources for educators
to enhance their classroom offerings. Initiatives such as
K12Lab.com for primary and secondary school teachers and
the NI courseware portal for university professors feature
effective content that educators can use directly or adapt to
their learning environments.
2011 HIGHLIGHTS
■■
■■
■■
2011 CHALLENGES
Released two new LabVIEW
software packages designed for
the high school classroom
Created the NI courseware portal
and made 368 courseware
elements available to professors
■■
2012 COMMITMENTS
Obstacles to implementing a
hands-on, project-based approach
to teaching and learning include
cost, access to equipment, and
student-to-technology ratios
■■
■■
■■
Introduced the first
complete education solution
on the market for teaching RF
and communications
Provide cost-effective technology
solutions to educational institutions
Deliver a complete curriculum
solution for the electrical
engineering course continuum
Develop and pilot an
energy and power course
for secondary schools
“
I often ask my students, ‘how many times in your life do
you have the opportunity to change the world?’ With NI
tools, we continue to work with our students to inspire
them to develop new and exciting applications that may
one day change the world.
”
–Dr. Dennis Hong, Roboticist and Associate Professor, Virginia Polytechnic
Institute and State University, College of Engineering
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
38
Delivering Complete Teaching Solutions
A complete education solution from NI comprises hardware, software, and courseware, and is supplemented by NI
technical support and online communities. In 2011, NI released products, portals, courseware, and resources to
empower educators and engage students.
LabVIEW for LEGO MINDSTORMS
NI LabVIEW for LEGO MINDSTORMS software is a new education-focused version of LabVIEW. NI developed it
specifically for secondary school students to use with the LEGO Education robotics platform in classrooms and
competitions. This software turns the LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT hardware already in use in many classrooms into a
full-featured science and engineering learning station.
K12Lab
To help primary and secondary school educators offer engaging learning experiences, NI launched K12Lab, a website
where teachers can browse and share lesson plans, find inspiration from what others are accomplishing with
technology, and get tools and support to help their students connect theory to reality faster. K12Lab users gained
access to and contributed to a growing library of 86 lesson plans for subject areas such as physics, robotics, and
computer science.
NI Courseware Portal
Recognizing that engaging curriculum is a need that spans all levels of the education system, NI also introduced the
NI Courseware Portal to deliver teaching and learning materials for universities. Initially populated with 368 resources
for homework problems, lab exercises, example programs, and tutorials, the portal continues to grow as educators
submit their own content to share with others. Educators can quickly search for content based on a specific concept,
product, or format, such as lab exercises or homework problems, so they spend less time writing lesson plans and
more time helping students.
Software Defined Radio Platform for Education
NI offers complete education solutions for a range of application areas, from controls and mechatronics to circuits and
electronics. In 2011, the company introduced the first complete education solution for RF and communications. Courses
focused on signal processing as well as RF and communications often do not offer a hands-on component in the lab due
to expensive equipment, steep learning curves for software programs, and the time demands required to develop the
curriculum and lab exercises. To address the challenge of dwindling budgets combined with overpopulated classrooms
and the pressure for educators to do more with less, National Instruments introduced NI USRP™ (Universal Software
Radio Peripheral ) hardware and paired it with LabVIEW to give educators an affordable way to deliver a true hands-on
learning experience to their students through experimentation with real-world signals and systems.
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
39
C AS E ST U DY
The Infinity Project
The Infinity Project includes the NI engineering and science
teaching platform as part of its award-winning engineering
education program.
Together, NI myDAQ hardware and LabVIEW for Education
software create a platform that shows students real-world lab
experiences. The Infinity Project has wholly embraced this
unique and authentic approach to teaching.
Started in 1999, The Infinity Project provides a complete solution
for teaching engineering with curriculum that reinforces the
math and science concepts behind engineering practices. Students apply these concepts through hands-on
design projects such as building speakers, robots, rockets, and prosthetic legs.
More than 450 middle schools, high schools, and colleges across the United States use The Infinity Project.
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
40
Creating an Innovative
Future Workforce
NI has invested in a wealth of training programs to help students
of all ages, backgrounds, and geographies build resume-ready
skills using professional tools, so they can graduate well
prepared for technical careers and have access to fulfilling job
opportunities. From the peer-to-peer NI LabVIEW Student
Ambassador program, in which NI student ambassadors teach
other students at their university, to the hundreds of LabVIEW
Academy sites around the globe where educators deliver a
formal LabVIEW curriculum, NI offers students a multitude of
on-site opportunities to learn LabVIEW.
Students can also tap into free online resources including the
self-paced video training modules in the LabVIEW 101 program.
Educators have access to a worldwide network of NI users,
dedicated support teams, and supplemental training options,
so they can teach with confidence, knowing that their course
is engaging and relevant and that it makes the best use of
classroom time with NI training options.
2011 HIGHLIGHTS
■■
■■
■■
2011 CHALLENGES
700 professors trained in using
LabVIEW
■■
Provided 183 internship positions
to engineering students
1,700 students learned LabVIEW
as a direct result of the Student
Ambassador program
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
■■
Shortage of primary and
secondary teachers adequately
trained to teach science,
engineering, and math
Time constraints faced by
students and educators
2012 COMMITMENTS
■■
■■
■■
Equip educators with training
in LabVIEW
Connect students certified in
LabVIEW with companies
seeking their skills
Help students reach minimum
proficiency in LabVIEW
41
Training Students and Educators
NI recognizes the importance of training tomorrow’s innovators and the educators who can guide students into an
engineering-related career path. To meet the engineering grand challenges that society faces, there must be a
continuous pool of talented engineers and scientists that are well-versed in cutting-edge industry tools such as LabVIEW
software. For this reason, NI invests significant time and resources to train students and educators at a reduced cost or
free of charge. In 2011, NI offered training in a variety of locations and formats to ensure all students had an equal
opportunity to learn LabVIEW.
Free Webcasts
To overcome the challenges of long distances and multiple languages across the region, the NI Eastern Europe branch
hosted a series of free academic training webcasts for students and educators. NI offered the three-hour online
LabVIEW basics training webcasts 21 times in five languages.
Robotics Symposia
In collaboration with LEGO Education, NI cohosted 10 free robotics symposia in 2011. Through these events, NI trained
primary and secondary school teachers on how to use robotics in the classroom in a way that engages students and
helps them develop the skills they need to engineer real-world projects.
LabVIEW Student Ambassadors
In its second year, the LabVIEW Student Ambassador program grew from seven to 31 ambassadors. Through this
program, students who are passionate about LabVIEW and eager to train their peers on graphical system design host
workshops on their college campuses to help fellow students achieve LabVIEW proficiency and certification. The program
expanded to five countries in 2011. As a direct result of the Student Ambassador program, more than 1,700 students
learned LabVIEW and nearly 400 became Certified LabVIEW Associate Developers (CLADs).
LabVIEW Academies
The LabVIEW Academy program provides classroom curriculum and hands-on exercises to colleges and universities so
they can offer LabVIEW training that prepares students for the CLAD exam. NI continues to encourage new educational
institutions worldwide to become certified LabVIEW Academies to improve students’ career opportunities by providing
experience and certification in LabVIEW. At the end of 2011, there were 175 LabVIEW Academy programs operating in
29 countries. The CLAD exam is free for students through the LabVIEW Academy program.
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
42
C AS E ST U DY
Sharing Science Education Expertise in Asia
The NI offices in the Pacific Islands hosted a three-day
workshop for teachers in September as part of the Science,
Technology, and Engineering Exchange Laboratory (STEEL)
program, a joint initiative of the United Nations Educational,
Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), National
Instruments, and the Science Centre Singapore.
STEEL aims to build the capacity of ministry of education
officials, technical and vocational teachers, and students in
several Southeast Asian countries through curriculum
development training; annual work plans that promote
science, technology, and engineering education; and support to district and regional competitions. The
program promotes hands-on learning through the exchange of information, ideas, and experience among
countries in the region.
Nearly 40 science teachers from Indonesia, Timor-Leste, and Thailand joined educators in Singapore for the
inaugural event, at which NI provided critical training on circuit experiments. NI donated 40 NI myDAQ and
LabVIEW for Education sets to the participating schools to help teachers deliver innovative lessons to their classes.
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
43
Supporting Engineering and
Science Education Worldwide
NI anchors its community outreach program on enhancing
engineering and science education through classroom
mentorship, robotics competitions, and collaborations with
nonprofits to inspire students to achieve greater technological
proficiency. The company’s mentorship and outreach efforts give
students access to hands-on projects that cultivate an interest
in turning their studies into engineering and science careers.
Because so many NI employees are engineers themselves
and have a deep knowledge and love for technology, they are
passionate about introducing students to engineering and
science concepts and helping to grow their skills in this area.
NI employees serve as robotics and engineering mentors to
hundreds of students around the world. NI specifically seeks
to address the knowledge gap that widens when students
in underserved communities don’t have access to the same
technology as their peers.
2011 HIGHLIGHTS
■■
■■
2011 CHALLENGES
Deployed LEGO robotics training
for educators and students in
underserved communities in
India, Costa Rica, and Mexico
Retained 62.5% of robotics
mentors at corporate headquarters
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
■■
■■
Due to cultural differences and
perceptions of volunteering,
standardizing a global robotics
mentorship program continues to
be difficult
Logistical barriers and time
constraints prevent NI employees
from serving in economically
challenged communities at the
level the company strives for
2012 COMMITMENTS
■■
■■
Expand NI corporate robotics
mentorship program to five
schools or organizations that
serve economically challenged
students
Increase the number of NI offices
with robotics mentorship programs
from 11 to 15
44
Providing Mentors and Community Outreach
In 2011, 11 National Instruments offices facilitated volunteer programs that encouraged employees to mentor students
in engineering and robotics. Due to cultural differences, each program varied slightly and ranged from mentoring local
FIRST robotics teams to teaching students about robotics at local schools and events.
NI made progress toward its goal of expanding the robotics mentoring program to more branch offices by starting
LEGO Education WeDo™ and LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT mentorship programs in locations served by NI Costa Rica and
NI India. Managing and facilitating a global robotics mentorship program continues to be difficult due to the different
perceptions of volunteering. For example, some branches do not categorize an activity as a volunteer activity unless it is
performed outside work hours, while the NI corporate headquarters program often accommodates volunteer activities
during traditional work hours. Despite these different perceptions, NI strives to meet the commitment to expand this
program globally.
At corporate headquarters, NI surpassed its goal of retaining 60 percent of robotics mentors and was able to return
62.5 percent of its experienced mentors back to Central Texas classrooms. By retaining current mentors, NI saved valuable
time and costs associated with training mentors for both educators and the company. Other individual office successes
included growth in the number of mentors at NI Hungary and NI Malaysia.
Mentoring Participation at Corporate Headquarters
2007
2008
2009
2010/2011
2011/2012
Number of Mentors
153
141
141
156
151
Hours Volunteered1
8,721
8,037
8,037
8,835
8,607
Mentors Retained (YOY)
62%
44%
52%
54%
62.5%
Mentorship Growth (YOY)
53%
–7%
0%
11%
–3%
1This
total is an estimate based on the number of mentors, the number of weeks volunteered during a typical academic year, and the number of hours that mentors typically volunteer per week.
Robotics Mentoring and Activities Around the World
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
45
Outreach to Underserved Communities Around the Globe
NI provides educators and students in underserved communities access to technologies that can inspire them to
fundamentally change the way their communities function.
To avoid duplicating the strong efforts of various nonprofit organizations in Austin deploying engineering and science
programs, NI partnered with Breakthrough Austin, the Austin Children’s Museum, and The University of Texas at Austin
Design, Technology, and Engineering for All Children (DTEACh) program in 2011 to increase robotics mentorship opportunities
located in underserved communities surrounding NI corporate headquarters. NI increased the number of corporate
robotics mentors serving economically challenged communities from 17 to 28, but still felt that location-based barriers
and time constraints prevented employees from serving in these areas at the level the company strives for.
Serving children that do not typically have access to technology is a global commitment. In 2011, NI expanded its
mentoring efforts by deploying robotics workshops in underdeveloped areas within India, Costa Rica, and Mexico.
In Bangalore, India, NI employees launched a program by conducting a workshop to mentor more than 30 students at
Anatha Shishu Nivasa children’s home. They used the WeDo robotics platform to teach students the basics of
designing, building, and programming robots.
In Mexico, NI supports a Tecnologico de Monterrey initiative called “Learning Math with Robots at Elementary
Schools.” The long-term goal of the project is to incorporate robotics into every math program within every elementary
school in Mexico. This program helps all students, regardless of income, to experience the same level of technology
access. NI provided in-kind product donations, and employees donated their time to training and mentoring elementary
school teachers participating in the program.
NI Costa Rica opened a lab at Centro de Educación Salesiana Don Bosco, which is supported by Colegio Técnico Don
Bosco, a local technical high school. The project educates and trains individuals from low-income areas on the outskirts
of San José. The lab is part of NI Costa Rica’s larger initiative to enhance the school’s electrical engineering curriculum.
The lab is equipped with National Instruments Educational Laboratory Virtual Instrumentation Suite (NI ELVIS) hardware
and LabVIEW software to give students access to the latest technology for hands-on, project-based learning. NI provides
software, hardware, and training as part of a long-term collaboration with Don Bosco. The lab trains approximately 240
high school students in basic electrical engineering principles using NI technology each year.
Advocating for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math Education
Even when NI mentors can’t be in the classroom, the company is passionate about spreading the message of projectbased learning. In December 2011, along with the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars and The University
of Texas LBJ School of Public Affairs, NI cosponsored a discussion on the future of science, technology, engineering,
and math education in the United States that focused on assessing developments in education and explored the impact
of the recent emphasis on project-based learning.
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
46
C AS E ST U DY
Robotics Mentoring for Low-Income Students
In 2011, Breakthrough Austin, a nonprofit organization devoted
to creating first-generation college graduates, worked with
engineering mentors from the NI corporate office to enhance their
summer program’s science curriculum by incorporating robotics.
To expose students to a hands-on engineering activity, McKay
Bradford, an NI senior software engineer, created a LEGO
MINDSTORMS soccer tournament. He spent one day training
the instructors on how to use LEGO MINDSTORMS and teach
engineering concepts. Then, Bradford and other NI engineers
spent an additional day introducing LEGO MINDSTORMS to the
students. After building and programming their robots, the students used them to compete in a soccer tournament.
“The team of NI volunteers was patient, prepared, and clearly connected with our students,” said Paulina
Murton of Breakthrough Austin. “Students learned how to problem solve, work as a team, and consider careers
in the field of engineering. It was an experience that they will be talking about for weeks, months, and years.”
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
47
Encouraging Innovation in
Engineering and Science Education
National Instruments supports education initiatives that make it
possible for students to engage in hands-on learning activities
around the globe. NI focuses its support on multiyear, multifaceted
initiatives, for which corporate donations, R&D investment, and
in-kind product gifts can have the biggest impact. NI offices
throughout the world also donate generously to support education
in their local communities.
2011 HIGHLIGHTS
■■
■■
2011 CHALLENGES
Donated LabVIEW for LEGO
MINDSTORMS software to
2,016 FIRST Tech Challenge teams
Designated more than 70% of
corporate donations to engineering
and science education efforts
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
■■
■■
Reduced education budgets due
to global economic downturn
Rapid technology obsolescence
makes it challenging for
classrooms to invest in new tools
2012 COMMITMENTS
■■
■■
Continue to dedicate 70% of
corporate philanthropy to
engineering and science
education efforts
Continue to invest in and increase
support of worldwide competitions
that encourage students to
become engineers and scientists
48
Providing Technology and Funding
As an engineering company, NI is uniquely positioned to advance engineering and science education through its own
employees and resources. The company strengthens its impact by working with globally recognized and highly effective
educational and nonprofit organizations.
FIRST
NI is a strategic partner to and heavily invested in FIRST, a nonprofit organization devoted to helping young people discover
and develop a passion for science, technology, engineering, and math through afterschool robotics competitions.
Because NI believes the program has a tremendous impact on the lives of students who participate, the company has
made a multimillion-dollar, multiyear commitment to provide technology and support across all levels of the program,
from FIRST LEGO League (FLL) to the FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC).
NI involvement in FLL includes the following:
■■
Global financial sponsorship of $100,000 USD annually
■■
Employees serving as team mentors and event volunteers
NI involvement in the FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) includes the following:
■■
NI LabVIEW for LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT software donated to all teams
■■
Regional financial team and event sponsorship
■■
Employees serving as team mentors and event volunteers
NI involvement in FRC includes the following:
■■
LabVIEW software and CompactRIO controllers provided to all teams at a discount
■■
Regional financial team and event sponsorship
■■
Employees serving as team mentors and event volunteers and providing technical support for teams during the season
In 2011, NI continued its commitment to FIRST by investing in the creation of a new industry-grade controller for the FRC
to make technology more accessible and affordable to students. NI also reinvented the LabVIEW experience for the
FTC with the release of the new LabVIEW for LEGO MINDSTORMS software, which NI provided free to the 2,016 FTC
teams participating in the 2012 season.
World Robot Olympiad
NI supports other competitions aimed at inspiring innovation, creativity, and problem solving skills in students through
robotics. In 2011, NI sponsored three prizes for the World Robot Olympiad (WRO), a yearly competition that impacts
more than 32,000 primary and secondary students through national competitions that lead up to a world championship.
This year’s final competition, held in Abu Dhabi, UAE, hosted more than 1,500 teams, along with parents, mentors, and
education officials from countries including China, Costa Rica, India, Japan, Malaysia, and Russia.
Educate Texas
As part of a multiyear commitment to improve education in Texas, NI pledged financial and in-kind support in 2006 to
jump-start the Texas Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (T-STEM) initiative of the Educate Texas
project, a public-private alliance dedicated to improving postsecondary performance at low-income, low-performing
schools across the state. Since its inception, Educate Texas has launched 44 early college high schools, 51 T-STEM
academies, and seven T-STEM centers supporting more than 2,700 teachers across Texas. In 2011, Educate Texas
served more than 84,000 students. There was a radical improvement in the standardized test scores for these students
over peer schools. NI continues to support Educate Texas with funding and product donations as the organization works
to scale the success of the T-STEM program into a statewide STEM education initiative.
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
49
Austin Pre-Freshman Engineering Program and Saturday STEM Academy
The Austin Pre-freshman Engineering Program (AusPrEP) and Saturday STEM Academy at Huston-Tillotson University
helps prepare high-achieving middle and high school students for college engineering and science studies. The AusPrEP
program has provided more than 900 minority and underserved students with an eight-week summer camp focused
on enhancing math, computer science, logic, and problem-solving skills. The Saturday STEM Academy is a year-round
program that enrolls students in forensic science and math instruction as well as provides opportunities to engage in
engineering activities through robotics and rocketry. Through financial contributions and in-kind robotics donations, NI
helps these programs meet their goal of preparing more minority students to pursue engineering, science, and
technology studies in higher-education institutions.
Breakthrough Austin
Breakthrough Austin provides a path to college for low-income students who will be first-generation college graduates.
The organization’s leaders believe that by offering innovative educational programs to children and their families, they can
permanently break the poverty cycle in their lives. NI helps Breakthrough Austin through financial donations used to
support math and science curriculum development for the organization’s annual summer camps. In addition to financial
support, NI employees lead a one-day robotics competition that introduces the students to programming basics.
Girlstart
Girlstart’s mission is to increase girls’ interest in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) through
nationally recognized informal education programs. While research consistently shows that low-income and minority
girls are least likely to pursue engineering and science careers, engaging them with unique programs like the
organization’s Girls in STEM Conference, summer camps, and afterschool workshops increases their interest and
reduces the gender stereotypes and biases associated with STEM pursuits. For the past several years, NI has
supported Girlstart through financial donations towards its annual Girls in STEM conference. Arleene Porterfield, vice
president of Global Information Technology at NI, shares her expertise by serving on the Girlstart Board of Directors.
Austin Children’s Museum
The Austin Children’s Museum (ACM) creates innovative learning experiences for children that equip and inspire them to
be the next generation of creative problem solvers. The ACM program, TechReach, provides students from low-income
families with opportunities to gain hands-on science, technology, engineering, and math skills. Working with LEGO
MINDSTORMS NXT kits, participants learn the basics of designing, building, and programming robots. The TechReach
program addresses a three-fold problem for economically disadvantaged children in Austin: shortage of access to
technology, the need to build 21st century skills, and the lack of interest and awareness in a science-related future.
By providing financial contributions and engineering mentors to the TechReach program, NI supports the museum’s
efforts to fill this critical gap.
John Graff, vice president of Americas Sales and Marketing at NI, shares his leadership skills with ACM by serving on
its board of directors.
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
50
C AS E ST U DY
Advancing Teaching and Research at MIT
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
Department of Mechanical Engineering is committed to
multidisciplinary research on a variety of topics ranging
from mechanics, control, and robotics to nano-, ocean-,
and bio-engineering. These diverse areas allow for rich
collaboration within the department and with other
engineering and science disciplines at MIT and beyond.
In 2011, NI pledged to support this innovative research by
donating NI software and hardware to 10 mechatronics,
robotics, manufacturing, control, and design courses
over the next five years.
“We are very appreciative of the support from
National Instruments. Use of state-of-the-art NI tools
enhances the classroom experience and reinforces student learning at multiple points in the curriculum,” said
Professor Mary Cunningham Boyce, head of the MIT Department of Mechanical Engineering. “The NI tools
also help accelerate the department’s research into new areas, such as agile biomimetic robotics, high-speed
imaging at the nanoscale, and precision motion control.”
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51
People and Culture
The greatest and most sustainable long-term competitive advantage for National Instruments is its culture
and employees who directly influence the continued success of the company’s other key stakeholders:
customers, shareholders, suppliers, and the communities in which they live and work. As NI continues its
steady growth and global expansion, the company ensures that its “people advantage” strategy is
preserved. With this strategy, NI meticulously hires the best and brightest employees, nurtures a great work
environment with superior career development opportunities, and maintains a culture of giving through
outstanding employee and company philanthropy programs.
In this Section
- Hire and Retain the Best and
Brightest
- Create a Great Place to Work
- Maintain a Culture of Giving
BY THE NUMBERS
$1M
6
20%
dollars donated by NI employees to
their communities
NI offices recognized by the Great
Place to Work Institute
increase in worldwide headcount
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
52
Hire and Retain the Best
and Brightest
Staying true to its people advantage, National Instruments hires top
talent from leading universities and retains employees through
meaningful work, a fun environment, and a variety of developmental
programs. NI hires not only for aptitude and potential but also for the
ability to take initiative and work collaboratively—fundamental
components of the NI culture. NI encourages employees to challenge
each other by providing an open work environment that supports idea
generation and innovation. New engineering employees, for example,
can immediately contribute to developing products and technologies
that empower NI customers to improve the world.
2011 HIGHLIGHTS
■■
■■
2011 CHALLENGES
Employed more than 200 interns
at headquarters from over 50
universities in the United States,
Canada, and Mexico
Expanded the number of full-time
and part-time employees
worldwide by 20 percent to more
than 6,200
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
■■
■■
Ensuring a diverse workplace
with fewer women and minorities
in the technology field
Accelerating worldwide recruiting
to meet hiring needs while
maintaining hiring standards
2012 COMMITMENTS
■■
■■
■■
Maintain worldwide voluntary
turnover rate at 75% of the market
Implement worldwide HR Oracle
system for consistent reporting in
all major offices
mplement career development
programs for employees in
leadership positions
53
Recruiting and Retaining Employees
NI recruiting efforts are so efficient that they are often referred to as the “recruiting machine.” By using best practices across
teams, recruiters can focus on obtaining the information they need to make a successful hiring decision for full-time,
part-time, or intern/co-op positions. A comprehensive intern and co-op program is at the core of the company’s hiring
strategy. In 2011, 61 percent of eligible senior interns accepted full-time job offers for permanent positions at headquarters,
exceeding the hiring goal of 50 percent.
Starting in 2011, NI set an aggressive hiring goal to double the company’s number of employees in five years. In 2011,
the total number of employees increased by 20 percent.
Employees by Region
Totals are for the number of employees as of December 31 in the given year.
Type of Employee
Designation
Category
Americas
Europe1
Asia/Rest
of World1,4
Total
Regular
Full-Time
All
3,193
1,567
1,430
6,190
Exempt
2,687
1,008
1,407
5,102
Nonexempt
506
559
23
1,088
All
34
56
1
91
Exempt
31
21
0
52
Nonexempt
3
35
1
39
3,227
1,623
1,431
6,281
All
205
41
2
248
Exempt
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
Nonexempt
205
41
2
248
All
78
35
5
118
Exempt
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
Nonexempt
78
35
5
118
Part-Time
Total Regular Employees
Intern/Co-Op2
Full-Time
Part-Time
Total Intern/Co-Op Employees
Other Contracts5
Full-Time
Part-Time
Total Other Contract Employees
283
76
7
366
All
45
307
12
364
Exempt
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
Nonexempt
45
307
12
364
Exempt
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
Nonexempt
9
12
37
58
54
319
49
422
20113
3,582
2,018
1,487
7,087
Total by Region 20103
2,665
1,892
1,315
5,920
Total by Region
20093,6
2,619
1,699
1,184
5,502
Total by Region
20083,6
2,551
1,451
1,155
5,157
Total by Region 20073,6
2,420
1,268
959
4,647
Total by Region
1In
the Europe and Asia/Rest of World (RoW) columns, totals in the Exempt row are for professional employees and totals in the Nonexempt row are for administrative employees.
total for US intern/co-op employees includes all employees of that type hired in 2011.
this total, two part-time employees are counted as one full-time employee.
4Asia/RoW includes branch offices in Asia as well as Canada, Brazil, and Mexico.
5NI does not track the number of all supervised workers. This total includes workers from temporary employment agencies but does not include employees of subcontractors, such as cleaning personnel,
working for NI on a long-term basis.
6Other contract employees are not included in this total. NI began tracking other contract employees for this report in 2009.
2The
3In
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
54
Retaining Employees
Given all that NI invests in finding and hiring the best and brightest employees who fit well into the company culture,
retaining employees is essential to the company’s success. People stay at NI because of the culture and core values of
respect, honesty, dedication to customers, and commitment to innovation.
Employee Turnover Rate
NI has a consistently low employee turnover rate. In 2011, the turnover rate for all employees worldwide was 8.3 percent,
which is 39.4 percent lower than the US industry average.
NI Corporate Headquarters
NI Hungary2
Texas State Industry Average3
20%
Rate of employee turnover
18%
17.2%
US Industry Average3
16.8%
16.4%
14%
12.9%
12.9%
12.2%
12%
10.7%
10.8%
10.8%
8.6%
8.9%
16%
10%
8%
6%
8.4%
9.2%
7.8%
5.9%
7.6%
2009
2010
13.7%
10.4%
8.3%
6.0%
4%
2%
0
2007
1Industry
2008
2011
data is from Radford Surveys and Consulting, which provides biannual turnover data. The 2011 industry data is from October 1, 2011.
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
55
Diversity and Inclusion
NI is committed to maintaining a workforce that reflects the faces of worldwide community members, customers, and
colleagues. NI promotes equal employment opportunity for all applicants and employees by recruiting, hiring, training,
and promoting persons in all job titles on the basis of job-related ability and performance, without regard to race,
gender, age, religion, sexual orientation, disability, veteran status, or national origin. NI also encourages employees to
participate in community organizations that foster social and economic opportunity for all members of the community.
A growing number of extracurricular groups at NI headquarters helps employees meet each other and find something
in common with their colleagues outside work.
Board Member and Officer Diversity
If the percentage of board members or officers changes from one year to another without a change in the number of
female or minority groups shown in these tables, a board member or officer was added or removed in that year.
NI Board Member Diversity
2008
2009
2010
2011
Number
Percent
Number
Percent
Number
Percent
Number
Percent
Female
1
4.0%
1
4.0%
1
4.0%
1
3.6%
Minority Groups
2
8.0%
2
7.0%
2
7.0%
3
10.7%
NI Officer Diversity
2008
2009
2010
2011
Number
Percent
Number
Percent
Number
Percent
Number
Percent
Female
1
12.5%
1
17.0%
1
14.3%
1
14.3%
Minority Groups
1
12.5%
1
17.0%
1
14.3%
1
14.3%
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
56
Superior Employee Development
The NI Superior Employee Development (SED) program offers employees tools, resources, and opportunities to
prepare them for successful careers at NI. Helping to align employee talents with business opportunities and to
continually grow their skills, the SED program is a key component in developing people to reach beyond their roles and
influence the company’s success.
Continuing Education
NI supports many forms of continuing education for employees. The following list includes examples of the skills
management and lifelong learning programs NI provides:
■■
Leadership development for individual contributors, supervisors, managers, and leaders
■■
NI product training and certification
■■
Skills training in the areas of interpersonal skills, the NI vision and mission, technical skills, and team effectiveness
■■
Recommended reading, employee-led book groups, and a lending library
■■
Community board membership for employees who support community organizations through this role
Tuition assistance for US employees while they pursue a job-related degree or course external to NI
Tuition Assistance From NI
2007
Number of Participating Employees
Percentage of Total US Employees (%)
Assistance Paid by NI (USD)
Average Amount per Employee (USD)
2008
2009
2010
2011
85
59
52
43
31
3.51
2.31
2.04
1.67
0.87
$401,820.55
$281,617.78
$250,141.68
$201,704.77
$222,319.69
$4,727.30
$4,773.18
$4,810.42
$4,690.81
$7,171.60
Hours of All Instructor-Led Training Completed
Region
Worldwide1
US
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
Total
Category
All
170,843.55
172,435.50
110,488.00
72,791.57
127,176.63
Average
per
Employee2
All
35
30
20
10
20
Exempt3
+
+
20
15
25
Nonexempt3
+
+
10
5
110
Total
All
145,819.04
152,719.20
79,497.80
62,568.07
124,118.21
Average
per
Employee2
All
60
65
30
25
35
Exempt
+
+
30
25
45
Nonexempt
+
+
20
15
240
1NI
tracks training hours using an internal database. Some NI branch offices do not use that database, so worldwide totals are not comprehensive.
averages in this table are rounded to the nearest five.
the Worldwide section, totals in the Exempt row include professional employees outside the United States and totals in the Nonexempt row include administrative employees outside the United States.
+Averages by employee type are not available for 2007 or 2008.
2All
3In
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
57
Employee Performance Reviews
Employees meet with their managers individually for a performance review to receive meaningful, constructive
feedback at least on an annual basis. NI estimates that 80 percent of employees in Europe and the United States
received performance reviews in 2011, an increase of 11 percent from 2010. NI is working to refine the tracking process
to collect data from employees worldwide.
Percent of Employee Performance Reviews Completed1
20093
20103
20112
60%
72%
80%
1Estimates
are calculated based on the number of performance review forms
completed by supervisors and submitted to the human resources department.
2Data is from NI headquarters and Europe only.
3Data is from NI headquarters only.
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
58
Create a Great Place to Work
NI CORPORATE — 2000-2012
NI FRANCE — 2009-2012
National Instruments strives to create a great place to work
for its employees. NI leaders and employees model the
culture and core values and work hard while having fun.
NI is a place where employees can brainstorm with top
professional minds, reinvent their jobs as they develop their
skills, and join coworkers in health and wellness activities
at the end of the day.
2011 HIGHLIGHTS
■■
■■
■■
NI GERMANY — 2004-2005, 2008-2012
NI ITALY — 2007-2012
NI JAPAN — 2011
NI MEXICO — 2008-2009, 2012
NI UK — 2006-20011
2011 CHALLENGES
Named Outstanding Philanthropic
Large Corporation by the Austin
Fundraising Professionals Institute
■■
■■
Donated 2% of pretax profits to
nonprofit organizations
Increased employee volunteerism
16% YOY with 663 employees
volunteering 13,605 hours
■■
2012 COMMITMENTS
Growing corporate
donations globally
■■
NI Matching Gifts program is
not available to
headquarters employees who
use payroll deduction
■■
■■
Worldwide gift matching for
employees is pending
Maintain commitment of donating
at least 1% of pretax profits
Track and report NI philanthropic
and volunteer activities worldwide
Increase NI headquarters
employee volunteer hours by 30%
“
NI Germany has proven that in an innovative and respectful
culture, business success and fun do not have to be
mutually exclusive. They have the creativity and integrity
that it takes to make a Great Place to Work, and are an
inspiration for other companies. I wish NI worldwide ongoing
success with its unique culture.
”
– Frank Hauser, Great Place to Work Institute
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
59
Health, Wellness, and Safety
Wellness is a priority at NI, and the company is proud to offer comprehensive medical benefits and programs that
support employees’ health and well-being. NI provides a variety of programs to help employees evaluate, maintain, and
improve their personal health as well as the health of their families. On-site health and fitness centers at corporate
headquarters offer a gateway for employees to access and participate in these programs.
NI Health Center
Health care costs continue to increase rapidly in the United States, making it more challenging for employers to offer
competitive benefits packages. With the NI Health Center at headquarters, NI takes a proactive approach in partnership
with employees to help them achieve a healthier lifestyle through wellness and prevention. The center provides employees
and their spouses on the NI benefits plan access to convenient, high-quality health care services.
Wellness Programs
NI builds a spirited culture of wellness by offering learning programs based on the aggregate data results of employee
health risk assessments conducted at headquarters in 2009 and 2011. These health and wellness programs include
the following:
■■
Healthy Eating Every Day (HEED) classes designed to change eating habits and behaviors
■■
Smoking cessation programs to assist employees who want to quit smoking
■■
■■
Programs to encourage more walking as exercise, including NI walking clubs, 10k-a-Day step challenges, and
on-campus walk/run events
NI sports leagues such as basketball, volleyball, and golf
Compensation and Benefits
NI offers a comprehensive compensation and benefits package that helps the company hire and retain the best and
brightest employees. This package offers the following benefits to employees.
Benefit
Worldwide
Competitive salary
X
Health insurance plans with quality health care coverage
X
U.S.
Tuition assistance
X
Group life insurance
X
401(k) retirement plan
X
Company performance bonus, which is a percentage of eligible earnings based on revenue growth and
operating profit, distributed to all eligible employees twice per year
X
Ownership in the company through equity programs
X
On-site health and fitness centers
X1
Monetary matching for employee donations to charitable organizations
X
Employee assistance program (EAP) for health care, legal, and financial help
X1
Flexible spending account for medical expenses
X
1NI
headquarters only.
401(k) Retirement Plan
NI offers a voluntary 401(k) plan to help US employees prepare for their retirement. The plan allows employees to
contribute up to 80 percent of their pretax income and/or Roth (after tax) contribution within legal limits. Employees may
select the appropriate combination for their situation of pretax and Roth contributions. NI will match 50 percent of an
employee’s pretax contribution up to 6 percent, which makes a total company contribution of 3 percent. For additional
information about this program, refer to the Annual Report.
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
60
In 2011, 80 percent of NI employees in the United States participated in the 401(k) retirement plan, a decrease of
8.5 percent from 2010.
Safety
NI protects workers by providing a comprehensive health and safety program. The company’s safety performance in
2011 continued to be world-class with few recorded injuries. In 2011, the manufacturing group at headquarters set a
new injury-free record by marking 664 consecutive days without an injury. The group received its third perfect record
award in four years from the National Safety Council.
Number of recordable
injuries and illnesses
Recordable Injury/Illness Rate1
3.00
NI Corporate Headquarters
2.50
NI Hungary2
Texas State Industry Average3
2.00
US Industry Average3
1.50
1.00
0.50
0.00
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
1Incidents
per 100 employees calculated based on the average headcount for the year, using actual hours worked by nonexempt employees and an assumption of 2,080 hours worked for each exempt employee.
Data is from NI corporate headquarters and NI Hungary only.
2NI Hungary data is not available for 2007, 2008, and 2011.
3US and Texas state industry data for 2011 was not available at the time of report development.
Number of lost workdays
Lost Workday Rate1
20
NI Corporate Headquarters
18
NI Hungary2
Texas State Industry Average3
16
US Industry Average3
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
1Incidents
per 100 employees calculated based on the average headcount for the year, using actual hours worked by nonexempt employees and an assumption of 2,080 hours worked for each exempt employee.
Data is from NI headquarters and NI Hungary only. US and Texas state industry data for 2011 was not available at the time of report development.
Hungary data is not available for 2007, 2008, and 2011.
3US and Texas state industry data for 2011 was not available at the time of report development.
2NI
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61
Employee Communication and Recognition
A key to the strong culture and high level of trust at NI is ensuring timely, honest, and accurate communication with
employees worldwide. Dr. James Truchard, NI president, CEO, and cofounder, and other NI leaders drop in on meetings
throughout all departments to communicate key business strategies and to stay updated on how things are running.
These informal, often spontaneous meetings are part of NI “sneaker management,” a term coined by Dr. Truchard that
places emphasis on walking around and talking to employees face-to-face. He believes that talking to people firsthand
remains the best way to understand employee concerns and questions.
Other NI employee communication tools include the following:
■■
Business discussions with NI leadership after every quarterly earnings release covering financial updates,
company successes, and employee calls to action
■■
Company meetings for all employees twice a year
■■
Periodic town-hall-style forums for employees to ask NI officers questions directly
■■
A crisis response team dedicated to preparing communication in the event of a crisis
Employee Events
NI offices worldwide celebrate the traits that make NI unique—innovation, generosity, playful spirit, teamwork, and
pride—during internal events throughout the year that help employees share successes, mark significant milestones,
and just have fun. For example, NI headquarters hosts an annual company picnic for NI employees, friends, and family.
In 2011, the picnic was held at Six Flags Fiesta Texas amusement park in San Antonio, and NI reserved the entire park
exclusively for the enjoyment of the NI community. Also in 2011, NI Hungary held its annual Family Days event at which
nearly 1,000 employees and family members enjoyed a variety of games and entertainment.
NI Code of Ethics
The NI Code of Ethics is intended to comply with the applicable requirements of the SEC and NASDAQ. The company
expects all employees and leadership members to read and understand the NI Code of Ethics, uphold the standards in
day-to-day activities, and comply with the applicable policies. Employees read and sign the code upon entering into
employment at NI, and NI leadership reviews and signs the code every year.
Number of Employees Who Signed the NI Code of Ethics
Type of Employee
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
Management
N/A1
204
N/A1
207
381
Nonmanagement2
614
580
165
290
555
1Prior
to 2010, NI management reviewed and signed the NI Code of Ethics policy every two years.
2The nonmanagement number includes full-time employees and interns from the US only.
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62
Maintain a Culture of Giving
National Instruments and its employees are passionate about
ensuring the success of the communities in which they work and
live. At headquarters, and the more than 40 NI branch offices
around the world, the company works to improve the education,
health, and well-being of its communities through employee
philanthropy and volunteerism. Because NI is a technology leader,
the cornerstone of its community engagement program is to
enhance science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM)
education through classroom mentorship, robotics competitions,
and collaborations with nonprofits to inspire students toward
greater achievement in technological proficiency.
2011 HIGHLIGHTS
■■
■■
■■
2011 CHALLENGES
Named Outstanding Philanthropic
Large Corporation by the Austin
Fundraising Professionals Institute
■■
■■
Donated 2% of pretax profits to
nonprofit organizations
Increased employee volunteerism
16% YOY with 663 employees
volunteering 13,605 hours
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
■■
Growing corporate
donations globally
•NI Matching Gifts program
is not available to
headquarters employees who
use payroll deduction
Worldwide gift matching for
employees is pending
2012 COMMITMENTS
■■
■■
■■
Maintain commitment of donating
at least 1% of pretax profits
Track and report NI philanthropic
and volunteer activities worldwide
Increase NI headquarters
employee volunteer hours by 30%
63
Employee Philanthropy and Volunteerism
Last year marked another record year for employee philanthropy and volunteerism. NI encourages employees to
engage in community activities they care about and donate their time, talent, and resources to organizations dedicated
to their passions. Globally, these efforts are supported and implemented by various members of NI branch office staff,
who are aware of the local community needs and how they should respond. Around the world, NI employees use their
innovative spirit to drive progress on community issues.
C AS E ST U DY
Employee Philanthropy
National Instruments is proud of the individual impact employees make with their personal philanthropy.
In 2011, NI employees donated a record of $1 million USD to their communities through various giving outlets
and tools, which is a 28 percent increase over 2010.
NI held its 16th annual NI GIVES campaign, an internal giving campaign for US employees to make donations
through a variety of channels, including payroll deduction, check, or credit and debit card payments, so they
can easily donate to the charities of their choice. Employee donations through NI GIVES totaled more than
$773,000 USD with an average of $608 USD given per donor. In addition to the NI GIVES campaign, employee
donations throughout the year exceeded $157,000 USD.
US employees also can request that NI match a donation given to a qualified nonprofit organization of up to
$1,000 USD per year, increasing the impact of the employee’s contribution to the community.1 In 2011, total
employee donations through the matching gifts program exceeded $220,000 USD, bringing the total donations
for all employee donations to more than $1.1 million USD.
1After
acquiring the operating assets of Measurement Computing Corporation, NI preserved the existing matching gift policy for that site and continues to match employee donations of up to
$2,000 USD per year.
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
64
NI Headquarters Employee Philanthropy
Indirect
Direct
$1mil
$900
Thousands of USD
$800
$700
$600
$500
$400
$300
$200
$100
$0
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
Employee Philanthropy (USD)
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
Fall Giving Campaign
$495,500
$510,000
$549,407
$699,612
$958,954
Matching Gifts
$120,923
$180,142
$166,189
$221,619
$220,768
Total Donations
$616,423
$690,142
$715,596
$921,231
$1,179,722
Several NI offices around the world also have fundraising campaigns to help facilitate employee giving. One example is
the NI United Kingdom and Ireland offices, where NI matches an employee’s donation of up to £500 per year.
Global Giving for Disaster Relief in Japan
NI provides an avenue for employees to donate to the causes they are passionate about, but often the employees drive
philanthropic efforts. NI employees not only get involved with initiatives that benefit the communities in which they live,
but they often extend their compassion to individuals outside their region.
When a catastrophic earthquake and its resulting tsunami hit Japan in March 2011, NI employees around the world
responded with a collective donation totaling $30,000 USD to the American Red Cross Japanese Relief & International
Relief Fund. To support its employees and help those in need, NI matched the $30,000 USD employee donation and made
an additional $100,000 USD corporate donation to the Red Cross.
Employee Volunteerism
Last year marked another record year for employee volunteerism at National Instruments headquarters. More than
663 volunteers reported 13,605 hours of service to various nonprofit organizations, representing a 16 percent increase
in volunteer hours.
NI branch offices around the world also implemented their own employee volunteerism programs. For its 10th
anniversary celebration, NI Hungary launched the Be a Volunteer campaign. More than 40 opportunities were organized
for employees, and they cumulatively volunteered more than 250 hours during the two-month campaign. NI India
hosted its Impact Day in May, where a group of NI India Cares volunteers spent a workday visiting the five orphanages
the company supports and delivering presents and surprises for the children. In December, the NI Costa Rica office
volunteered with Aprender Haciendo and donated early education gifts to children in rural areas of San Jose, Costa
Rica, where the office is located.
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
65
Spring Volunteer Campaign
In 2011, the fourth annual Spring Volunteer Campaign at NI headquarters helped educate employees about ways to
connect with local nonprofit organizations. During the three-week campaign, more than 25 volunteer opportunities
were available to NI employees. The campaign attracted 342 NI volunteers who gave more than 2,403 hours of service
back to the community through multiple projects hosted by several area nonprofits including the following:
■■
Creating meals for families staying at the Ronald McDonald House
■■
Participating in a Habitat for Humanity deconstruction
■■
Sorting and distributing food for the Capital Area Food Bank
Cleaning up creeks and other public spaces for Keep Austin Beautiful
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
66
Minimize Our Environmental Impact
Throughout company facilities and the entire product life cycle, National Instruments consistently works
toward its long-term goal to minimize its environmental footprint. This commitment includes setting
expectations with suppliers, recycling old NI products, and finding ways to conserve resources such as
water, electricity, and natural gas. To achieve these and other goals, the company encourages and supports
employees who drive grassroots projects to reduce environmental impact.
In this Section
- Product Life Cycle
- Resource Conservation
- Employees Driving Change
BY THE NUMBERS
47%
10%
55%
reduction in box size for
products on which NI uses
suspension packaging
of total electricity usage at NI
headquarters is provided by Austin
Energy GreenChoice, a renewable
energy program
more employees joined the annual
contest to lower carbon footprint
than the previous year
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
67
Product Life Cycle
Reducing the impact National Instruments has on the environment
begins with its supply chain and product design. NI looks for
opportunities to improve product development and manufacturing
processes, including packaging design. NI also strives to remove
harmful substances from existing products and prohibits the
introduction of known harmful substances into new products.
In addition, through a product recycling program, customers can
send their old NI products back to be recycled.
2011 HIGHLIGHTS
■■
■■
■■
2011 CHALLENGES
Created a packaging lab at NI
headquarters to help design, test,
and research packaging solutions
■■
■■
Reduced polyurethane foam used
in packaging by 24%
Set a new manufacturing safety
record of 664 consecutive days
without an injury
Increasing employee turnover in
the safety group at NI Hungary
Receiving more orders than
expected for a product that uses
more polyurethane than others,
causing more usage than planned
2012 COMMITMENTS
■■
■■
■■
Identify potential hazards for
manufacturing tasks, assess the
risks of those hazards, and
develop hazard controls based on
the level of risk
Develop corporate responsibility
metrics for suppliers to start
tracking in 2013
Reduce polyurethane foam used
in packaging by 15% per unit
“
The National Instruments supplier program is an excellent
example of corporate responsibility. Following NI’s lead,
we have implemented similar programs such as EICC
compliance, a supplier code of conduct, and employee
philanthropy and volunteerism programs. We have seen
success with these programs at headquarters as well as
in our Hungary and Malaysia offices.
”
—Philip C. Samaro, Global Operations Manager, Sunbelt Supply LLC
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
68
Product Design and Packaging
National Instruments develops products that minimize the amount of raw materials and energy used, thus decreasing the
cost of customer applications. This commitment is evident in NI’s graphical system design approach, which offers
software-defined, modular hardware platforms. Graphical system design reduces the cost and energy consumption of
customer applications because all the components share the same chassis and high-performance CPU, eliminating the
need for redundant chassis, processors, displays, and other components. This model ensures that NI platforms can adapt
to changing needs and new applications, providing a single platform to last through multiple generations of applications.
Challenges to the product design process include maintaining compliance with evolving environmental legislation and
gathering material content information for components. Difficulty in gathering material information may occur for
several reasons, including suppliers not having the requested data, data confidentiality, and the length of time it takes
to move through the supply chain.
Polyurethane Foam Used
m3 per 1,000 units shipped
1.80
1.57
1.60
1.40
1.20
1.05
1.00
0.95
0.80
0.58
0.60
0.39
0.40
0.20
0.00
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
Total Polyurethane Foam Used (m3)
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
747
1249.00
511.00
463.00
353.00
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
69
kg per 1,000 units shipped
Corrugated Board Used
0.30
0.25
0.20
0.25
0.26
0.22
0.19
0.19
0.15
0.10
0.05
0.00
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
Corrugated Board Used (kg)
2007
157,199
2008
2009
2010
200,901 141,907 154,661
2011
168,672
Managing Critical Substances
NI manages the substances used in its products to comply with regulations including the following:
■■
RoHS—European Union Restriction of the Use of Certain Hazardous Substances
■■
REACH—Registration, Evaluation, Authorization, and Restriction of Chemicals
■■
Conflict Minerals Trade Act
Optimizing Product Packaging
NI ensures that its packaging designs have a minimal environmental footprint. For example, NI looks for opportunities
to increase the use of recyclable materials, such as corrugated board, and to increase the use of paper as a
replacement for polyurethane foam. In this area alone, NI has reduced polyurethane foam use by approximately 150 m3
annually, or 24 percent. Another example is switching to using molded protective thermoform end caps made of 100 percent
recycled materials. The material is reusable for return shipments, which minimizes waste at both ends of the distribution
cycle. This change on one product eliminated the use of polyurethane foam and reduced the amount of corrugated
material by 26 percent per package compared to the previous packaging solution. The packaging team will continue to
strive to research and evaluate new environmentally friendly materials to use on other NI product lines.
NI welcomes feedback on the packaging of NI products.
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70
Operations and Product Recycling
National Instruments works with suppliers who are equally invested in being responsible corporate citizens. NI also
complies with international standards that regulate environmental management and manufacturing operations.
Supplier Requirements
To set expectations with suppliers, NI requires the following from suppliers:
■■
■■
■■
Compliance with the Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition (EICC) Code of Conduct for the fair treatment of
workers, a healthy and safe work environment, the protection of the environment, and outstanding business
ethics. Suppliers sign the NI Supplier Code of Conduct, established in 2008, as an acknowledgement of this
commitment. Since 2008, all key suppliers, and 65 percent of the total supplier base, signed the Code of Conduct,
and no suppliers declined to sign it.
Participation in the NI supplier assessment, which is sent to all new suppliers in the global NI supply base,
ensuring suppliers comply with key initiatives such as RoHS, REACH, and the NI Supplier Code of Conduct.
Completion of a survey that serves as a baseline for suppliers’ current corporate responsibility programs. These
surveys help evaluate a supplier’s sustainability in the areas of energy and climate, material efficiency, natural
resources, employee programs, and community involvement. Supplier progress in these areas is monitored
through quarterly business reviews conducted by NI.
Manufacturing Operations
The following environmental policy covering manufacturing operations was approved by the NI Board of Directors and
adopted on June 19, 1994: National Instruments manufacturing operations is committed to maintaining an environmental
management system that complies with all applicable legal environmental regulations and requirements, prevents
pollution, and continually improves environmental performance through regular reviews of environmental goals,
objectives, and targets.
Both NI manufacturing facilities—one in Austin, Texas, and one in Debrecen, Hungary—are certified to ISO 14001,
which is a series of international standards covering environmental aspects that the organization controls and can
influence. NI also is working toward full conformance with the OHSAS 18001 standard, which helps companies control
occupational health and safety risks.
Manufacturing site environmental permits and registrations are available at [link to manufacturing operations Web page.]
Product Take-Back Program and Recycling
NI meets worldwide take-back requirements for the products it sells, including requirements such as European Union
directives on waste electrical and electronic equipment as well as battery recycling. NI keeps up with this rapidly evolving
area of legislation with its take-back program and carefully monitors regional legislation.
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71
Managing Critical Substances
National Instruments is committed to producing environmentally friendly products as part of the NI Hazardous
Substance Reduction initiative, a voluntary program modeled after the European Union Restriction of the Use of
Certain Hazardous Substances (RoHS) directive. As part of this commitment, in 2010 NI invested in a system for
collecting information on environmentally sensitive materials in NI products.
RoHS Compliance
This directive restricts the use of harmful substances such as lead, mercury, and cadmium in products. It applies to
11 categories of electrical and electronic equipment but as of today excludes products in Category 9, Monitoring and
Control Instruments, under which NI products fall. NI voluntarily complies with the directive.
Timeline
NI began offering RoHS-compliant products in September 2005. NI manufacturing and engineering teams continually
work to adapt products to use RoHS-compliant components and manufacturing processes.
The move to RoHS-compliant products is a significant effort because it impacts nearly every step in the supply chain.
Therefore, NI will complete this transition over a progressive timeline as new products release and some existing
products transition to hazardous substance-free components. At this pace, NI will transition all products before the
RoHS directive includes the category under which NI products fall. Through continued efforts to better the environment
and exceed regulatory requirements, more than 70 percent of NI products met RoHS requirements in 2011.
All products released in 2011 were RoHS-compliant, with the exception of a few select products. Starting in 2007, each
exception case required officer-level approval. In some instances, high-demand products require components that are
not available in a RoHS-compliant version. After these products release, NI adds them to the list of products pending a
transition to RoHS compliance.
Challenges
In addition to the far-reaching impact on the supply chain, NI faces the following challenges in the process of eliminating
hazardous substances from its products:
■■
■■
Organizations such as the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have found that the replacement options for
certain hazardous substances may have an environmental impact equal to or worse than the original hazardous
substance. To mitigate this issue, NI is actively involved with numerous trade organizations around the world.
Through involvement with these organizations and close relationships with suppliers, NI stays at the forefront of
both advanced technological developments in materials and compliance with worldwide regulations of hazardous
substances. For more information, see the full EPA report.
Regulations in this area evolve rapidly. NI is a member of the Test and Measurement Coalition and is providing
feedback on the revision of RoHS currently under review and planned for publication in 2012.
View the full text of the RoHS directive. For more information about NI compliance with RoHS, contact rohs@ni.com.
Resources
Refer to the following NI resources to learn more about the RoHS directive.
■■
Frequently Asked Questions
■■
NI RoHS-Compliant Product Listing
■■
Management Methods for Controlling Pollution Caused by Electronic Information Products (China RoHS)
■■
Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Directive
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
72
Registration, Evaluation, Authorization, and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH)
In 2006, the European Parliament and the Council adopted Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 on the Registration,
Evaluation, Authorization, and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH). One of the regulation’s primary objectives is to
protect the environment from harmful substances.
The scope of the REACH regulation differs from RoHS in that REACH is not limited to electrical and electronic
equipment. REACH requires manufacturers and importers of substances and preparations to register the substance or
preparation before placing it on the market if it meets certain criteria:
■■
■■
Products imported or manufactured in quantities of 1 tonne annually
Products intended to be released under normal or reasonably foreseeable conditions of use
(for example, printer cartridges)
The Substances of Very High Concern Candidate List and Annex XIV of REACH (the list of substances subject to
authorization) drive notification, authorization, and restriction requirements. Once a substance has been added to the
Candidate List, requirements for customer notification apply immediately. Once a substance on the Candidate List is
selected to be added to Annex XIV, authorization requirements are imposed on that substance. At some point after the
list of substances for authorization is published, the included substances may also be restricted.
As a producer of articles—not substances or preparations—NI is not required to register any substances or
preparations. NI does not produce or import chemical substances in excess of 1 tonne per year, and NI products do not
release any substances into the environment during normal and foreseeable conditions of use.
NI is required to comply with downstream users’ obligations. To accommodate this, NI is working closely with its
supply chain as new substances are added to the candidate list. A list of NI products that contain substances of very
high concern (SVHCs) in concentrations greater than 0.1 percent wt/wt can be found here. For additional information on
NI REACH initiatives or specific product information related to REACH, contact reach@ni.com.
Conflict Minerals Trade Act
In 2010 the US Congress passed the Conflict Minerals Trade Act as part of the Dodd-Frank Financial Reform legislation.
The law’s aim is to curb violence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and surrounding regions by restricting the
use of certain minerals originating in rebel-controlled mines. These substances include the base minerals for gold,
tantalum, tin, and tungsten.
Most NI products contain at least one of these substances and fall into the scope of the law’s requirements, which
state that any US company that uses these minerals for the functionality or production of its product(s) will be required
to disclose details on the origin of these substances in its annual report to the SEC. NI is obligated to begin disclosing
this information for fiscal year 2012. To meet the law’s obligations, NI started working with its supply chain in 2011 to
understand the origin of these minerals used in NI products.
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73
Product Take-Back Program and Recycling
National Instruments meets worldwide take-back requirements for
the products it sells, including requirements such as European Union
directives on battery recycling and on waste electrical and electronic
equipment. NI keeps up with this rapidly evolving area of legislation
with its take-back program and through careful monitoring of
regional legislation.
Take-Back Program
Through the NI global take-back program, NI covers all costs of
returning its hardware products and ensures that the products are
properly recycled. This service helps reduce the impact on landfills and other disposal sites and provides an environmentally
safe end-of-life solution. Hardware products can be sent in to recycle by emailing recycling@ni.com. NI staff assists in
the delivery of the product and provides a Certificate of Destruction form, which can be downloaded, completed, and
printed with the name of the product to be recycled.
WEEE Directive
In 2003, the European Parliament and the Council adopted Directive 2002/96/EC on waste electrical and electronic equipment
(WEEE) to encourage reuse, recycling, and recovery of this waste. It also aims to improve the environmental performance of
all operators involved in the life cycle of electrical and electronic equipment, especially those dealing with waste equipment.
Member states were required to adopt legislation by August 13, 2005. The regulations apply to all electrical and electronic
equipment put on the European Union market after 2005. WEEE products can fall into one of 10 categories according to
the WEEE directive. NI products fall under Category 9, Monitoring and Control Instruments. NI actively works with its
branch offices and subsidiaries in Europe to fully comply with these regulations as local legislation passes.
View the full text of the WEEE directive. For more information about NI compliance with WEEE, contact weee@ni.com.
EU Battery Directive
The European Parliament and the Council adopted Directive 2006/66/EC on batteries and accumulators and waste
batteries and accumulators with the intent of reducing the impact on the environment and increasing recycling.
Member states were required to adopt national legislation by September 26, 2008. NI actively
works with NI branch offices and subsidiaries in Europe to fully comply with these regulations
as local legislation passes. The directive entails obligations such as labeling, registration,
recycling, and restriction of batteries containing cadmium, lead, and mercury.
The labeling of batteries consists of the following symbol, including the battery capacity, and the
chemical symbol for cadmium, mercury, or lead if contained above the legal threshold limits.
The symbol indicates that the batteries used in the product should be disposed of separately
from municipal waste. For NI products, the predominant battery type is coin cell, which
provides continuous power for constant memory. These batteries are incorporated or embedded into appliances, are
intended to last for the life of the product, and are separated from the appliance during the treatment phase of the
appliance as required under the WEEE directive.
Certain NI products are accompanied by removable lead-acid/alkaline batteries that are also for continuous power
supply. Please check the product user manual regarding removability.
NI continually attempts to ensure proper collection and recycling by joining collection and recycling schemes. The
company expects customers in the European Union to use the collection and recycling systems in place and properly
dispose of all batteries.
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74
Proper disposal of batteries reduces the environmental impact and risk to human health. For additional information
about the potentially harmful effects of substances used in batteries on human health and the environment, visit the
US Environmental Protection Agency or the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.
For information about the available collection and recycling scheme in a particular country, refer to the table below.
View the full text of the battery directive. For more information about NI compliance with the battery directive, contact
weee@ni.com.
Implementation by EU Member State
Select a member state for the latest information about WEEE and battery directive implementation.
Austria
Estonia
Hungary
Luxembourg
Slovakia
Belgium
Finland
Ireland
Malta
Slovenia
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
Cyprus
France
Italy
Netherlands
Spain
Czech Republic
Germany
Latvia
Poland
Sweden
Denmark
Greece
Lithuania
Portugal
UK
75
Conserving Resources
National Instruments conserves resources through its facilities and
IT infrastructure by reducing energy consumption, greenhouse gas
emissions, water use, and waste, as well as increasing recycling.
In 2011, NI initiated an HVAC system audit at headquarters to look
for areas of improvement. The company also completed a plan for
its new Penang, Malaysia, branch to meet green building criteria
from the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED)
program. Additionally, the NI UK branch moved into a new office
building in November 2011 that doubles the operational space and
includes BREEAM-rated environmental efficiency for best practices
in sustainable building design, construction, and operation.
2011 HIGHLIGHTS
■■
■■
■■
2011 CHALLENGES
Created a packaging lab at NI
headquarters to help design, test,
and research packaging solutions
Reduced polyurethane foam used
in packaging by 24%
Set a new manufacturing safety
record of 664 consecutive days
without an injury
■■
■■
Increasing employee turnover in
the safety group at NI Hungary
Receiving more orders than
expected for a product that uses
more polyurethane than others,
causing more usage than planned
2012 COMMITMENTS
■■
■■
■■
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
Identify potential hazards for
manufacturing tasks, assess the
risks of those hazards, and
develop hazard controls based
on the level of risk
Develop corporate responsibility
metrics for suppliers to start
tracking in 2013
Reduce polyurethane foam used
in packaging by 15% per unit
76
Electricity, Natural Gas, and Emissions
National Instruments conserves resources through its facilities and IT infrastructure by reducing energy consumption,
greenhouse gas emissions, water use, and waste, as well as increasing recycling. As part of these efforts, NI
subscribes to Austin Energy GreenChoice, a renewable energy program, to provide 10 percent of the total electricity
usage at its headquarters.
Purchased Electricity Used per Employee1
Total purchased electricity increased in 2011 due to a 16 percent increase in the number of employees worldwide.
10,000
9,000
8,000
7,000
kWh
6,000
5,000
4,000
3,000
2,000
1,000
0
2007
1Per
2008
2009
2010
2011
employee numbers are calculated using the total number of full-time and part-time employees at NI headquarters and NI Hungary as of December 31 each year.
Total Purchased Electricity (kWh)
Campus
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
Headquarters
19,699,124
20,838,000
20,640,000
21,258,000
22,278,000
Hungary
6,802,142
7,486,970
6,512,364
7,492,679
7,685,384
Total
26,501,266
28,324,970
27,152,364
28,750,679
29,963,384
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77
Natural Gas Used per Employee1
160
140
m3
120
100
80
60
40
20
0
2007
1Per
2008
2009
2010
2011
employee numbers are calculated using the total number of full-time and part-time employees at NI headquarters and NI Hungary as of December 31 each year.
Total Natural Gas Used (m3)
Campus
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
Headquarters
48,835
56,169
48,467
52,568
52,478
Hungary
328,403
395,697
313,054
364,517
394,745
Total
377,238
451,866
361,521
417,085
447,223
Reducing Emissions
NI is a member of the Clean Air Partners Program (CAPP) of Central Texas, a coalition of industry and civic organizations
that encourages businesses to reduce air emissions by 10 percent over three years. The program promotes clean air
business practices, such as employee carpooling, renewable energy, and water conservation techniques. As a member
of this program since 2004, NI reports annually to the organization on emissions and reductions achieved. In 2010, NI
reduced emissions 2.94 percent per employee compared to a baseline measurement in 2009. The 2011 data is not yet
available from the program.
The following tables present data for only Scope 1 and limited Scope 2 emissions, which include those from natural
gas, purchased electricity, and operation of company-owned vehicles.
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
78
Carbon Emissions per Employee1, 2
Indirect
Direct
6.00
tonnes
5.00
4.00
3.00
2.00
1.00
0.00
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
Indirect Carbon Emissions (Tonnes)
Campus
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
Headquarters
12,296
13,007
12,884
13,269
15,137
Hungary
2,339
2,575
2,237
2,577
2,618
Total
14,635
15,582
15,121
15,846
17,755
Direct Carbon Emissions (Tonnes)
Campus
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
Headquarters
108
133
121
123
139
Hungary
620
747
591
688
808
Total
728
880
712
811
947
1To
calculate these emissions, NI used the World Resources Institute (2009) GHG Protocol Tool for Stationary Combustion, version 4.0.
2Per employee numbers are calculated using the total number of full-time and part-time employees at NI headquarters and NI Hungary
as of December 31 each year.
ni.com/company/corporate-responsibility
79
Water Usage, Recycling, and Waste Reduction
Water usage increased in 2011 due to record high temperatures at NI headquarters and an increase in the number
of employees.
Water Used per Employee1
Water at both headquarters and NI Hungary comes from municipal water supplies.
25
20
m3
15
10
5
0
2007
1Per
2008
2009
2010
2011
employee numbers are calculated using the total number of full-time and part-time employees at NI headquarters and NI Hungary as of December 31 each year.
Total Water Used (m3)
Campus
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
Headquarters
45,043
50,037
46,362
50,306
48,900
Hungary
13,728
12,646
15,379
11,155
17,021
Total
58,771
62,683
61,741
61,461
65,921
Protecting Habitats
Most of the NI headquarters campus is still in its natural, unirrigated state
except for building footprints, walks, drives, and parking. Multilevel garages
provide most parking, which minimizes the amount of ground covered by
impervious material. Developed landscape areas feature native plant
materials that require minimal water to thrive, and the campus incorporates
critical environmental features, including limestone sinkholes. The campus
is a wildlife habitat, as certified by the National Wildlife Federation.
NI protects and monitors these features to ensure that storm water runoff
from roads and parking lots does not enter them. In addition, the campus is
a Texas Historical Commission Recorded Site for evidence of flint knapping
activity, or activity for making tools, by Native Americans.
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80
Recycling and Waste
Waste Generated and Recycled per Employee1
Waste Generated per Employee
% Waste Recycled
400
60%
50%
300
40%
kg
200
30%
20%
100
10%
0
0%
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
Total Waste Generated (kg)3
Campus
Headquarters
Hungary
Total
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
715,330
473,852
311,470
293,534
309,927
N/A2
298,951
218,021
266,122
299,210
715,330
772,803
529,491
559,656
609,137
1Per
employee numbers are calculated using the total number of full-time and part-time employees at NI headquarters and NI Hungary
as of December 31 each year.
for NI Hungary is not available for 2007.
3Estimates for trash sent to landfills and for some recycled materials from headquarters are calculated based on the size of the containers and how often they
are emptied. In addition, the primary compactor at headquarters is monitored in this way, but other recycling containers at headquarters are not monitored.
2Data
Waste by Type in 20111
10%
1% 1%
Trash sent to landfills
Paper, corrugated board,
aluminium, and plastic
44%
Electronic waste
Hazardous waste
44%
1The
total paper recycled at headquarters does not include confidential documents that are shredded before they are recycled.
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81
Employees Driving Change
National Instruments makes many efforts to minimize
environmental impact, and countless projects are driven by
individual employees or small groups of employees within
the company who are passionate about making a difference.
Employee-driven efforts in 2011 included a contest among
employees to lower carbon footprint and a week-long series
of events to celebrate Earth Day. Behind each of these
accomplishments is an individual who took the initiative to
ask questions and make changes.
2011 HIGHLIGHTS
■■
■■
■■
2011 CHALLENGES
Engaged 55% more employees
in an annual contest to lower
carbon footprint
Participated in Hungary’s Bike to
Work campaign for the seventh
year, with 171 employees
commuting by bicycle
■■
Local transportation authority
canceled a connector bus route
for headquarters employees
who use the commuter rail due
to low ridership
2012 COMMITMENTS
■■
Redirect electronic waste
to Goodwill recycling program
so materials can be reused
when possible
Won the first Austin Corporate
Commute Challenge during Bike
to Work Month
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82
NI Green Team
The National Instruments Green Team is an all-volunteer internal organization at NI headquarters that works to reduce the
ecological footprint of NI and its employees. The team, established in 2008, worked on many projects in 2011 that helped
NI in its commitment to be a responsible citizen to the global community. Two of these projects are highlighted here.
Community-Supported Agriculture Pickup Station
The Green Team worked with Johnson’s Backyard Garden, a local, organic farm, to establish a community-supported
agriculture (CSA) pickup station at NI headquarters. When employees subscribe to the farm’s CSA, they pay a fee to
receive regular boxes of goods, usually produced by the farm. The challenge is that subscribers usually must drive to
the farm to pick up their boxes, and the farms aren’t always conveniently located. Because there is a pickup station at
headquarters, employees who subscribe can retrieve their produce each Thursday before leaving work.
Earth Week
The third annual Earth Week celebration at headquarters was the most highly attended yet, with hundreds of
employees participating. Events included a cooking contest, a trash-to-treasure event at which employees could take
items that their coworkers no longer wanted, a presentation by the farmer who founded the Digital Farm Collective,
and a go-local fair featuring a variety of Austin-area vendors. Employees could also participate in activities on their own,
such as pledging to eat at least one vegetarian meal and taking public transportation to work one day that week.
C AS E ST U DY
Organic Gardening at Work
Brittany Wilson, Corporate Content Specialist
Brittany initially joined the NI community garden effort in purely a support role
after hearing a few apartment-dwelling coworkers talk about the long waitlists at
community gardens around Austin. “I had no intention of doing any actual gardening
based on a failed backyard experiment with a Topsy Turvy tomato planter,” she said.
However, after two months of helping to prepare the garden site, including manual
labor such as transplanting native grasses and obliterating non-native invasive
grasses from the garden site, she found herself extremely invested in the NI
community garden and planted her first plot of summer vegetables and herbs.
She says that while she hasn’t seen any bumper crops or drastically lowered her
grocery bill, she’s more active and feels healthier because of the labor she puts into
maintaining the garden.
“I’m excited to keep working in the garden because I know that as the collective knowledge of the NI gardeners
increases, the community aspect and the output of the garden will really start to thrive,” Brittany said.
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