Foreword by the Executive Board

All four ZEISS segments have grown with double-digit percentage growth in the past fiscal year.

In the last few years, the Semiconductor Manufacturing Technology segment has enabled an innovation leap in the entire semiconductor industry through its EUV technology and is working close to full capacity, with full order books. The ZEISS segments Industrial Quality & Research, Medical Technology and Consumer Markets are also reaping the benefits of increased demand, buoyed by the positive mood created by key accounts and were able to increase their revenue over that of the previous year once again.

With innovations it is working on in all four segments, ZEISS is continuing to drive global digitalization forward.

Our many technological milestones from the past 176 years show that ZEISS repeatedly challenges the limits of what is physically and technically feasible. This unique innovative spirit has imbued the company with real staying power, allowing us to help our customers be successful.

The most recent example of this is the Deutscher Zukunftspreis (German Future Prize) for the development of the ZEISS Lattice Lightsheet 7 microscope, which for the first time enables scientists to observe living cells through gentle 3D imaging over a longer period of time – a technology that opens up new possibilities in subcellular research such as cancer research.

As a global technology leader, one success factor has been our focused investment strategy. Our consistently high expenditure on research and development, which once again stands at 13 percent of revenue, represents our investment in the future – at 1,151 million euros, it has reached a new high! At research and development departments across the ZEISS Group, more than 5,200 employees are working hard every day to further expand our investment power. This is reflected in our many patents which totaled just under 10,500 worldwide as of the reporting date.

The ZEISS Group continues on its dynamic growth trajectory. All four segments und all regions contribute to profitable growth. We are on the right track with the #agenda25.

However, we are also looking ahead we want to set the course now so that we can continue to grow steadily in the coming years – and beyond the 10 billion euro threshold. Importantly, within the ZEISS Group, we are making key end-to-end processes more robust by designing and, most importantly, standardizing them from start to finish. This will help us reduce the current complexity and thus also support our further growth. This transformation requires an appropriate organizational setup and the incorporation of necessary cultural changes, especially in the ongoing, comprehensive digital transformation processes.

This will help us reduce the current complexity and thus also support our further growth. This transformation requires an appropriate organizational setup and the incorporation of necessary cultural changes, especially in the ongoing, comprehensive digital transformation processes.
In order to further successfully align the company's development and, in particular, to accelerate the transformation of the digital infrastructure of the ZEISS Group, the Supervisory Board of Carl Zeiss AG resolved to expand the Executive Board to include the function of Chief Transformation Officer (CTO) and to appoint Susan-Stefanie Breitkopf to the Executive Board for this purpose effective 1 July 2022. ZEISS Digital Partners (ZDP), Corporate Information Technology (CIT), Corporate Human Resources (CHR), Management System, Operational Excellence, Shared Procurement & Logistic Services as well as US Shared Services fall under the remit of the Chief Transformation Officer.

As a foundation-owned company, social responsibility is part of our DNA. That is why we have firmly anchored the topic of sustainability in our strategic agenda, the #agenda25. We are striving to establish sustainability throughout the company in a pragmatic way, rendering it measurable and developing it further so that we can make our contribution to a sustainable and livable future. In light of this, ZEISS has placed value for society, climate action, and circular economy at the center of its sustainability efforts. Within this framework, various teams around the world are working across organizational boundaries to develop solutions for topics such as green infrastructure, green business models and social engagement in order to implement specific measures by 2025.

In fiscal year 2021/22, we came a significant step closer to attaining our goal of becoming CO2 neutral in our own activities (Scope 1 and 2 emissions) worldwide by 2025: for example, ZEISS sites worldwide were almost entirely powered by green energy over the last twelve months. At the same time, we generated more sustainable energy ourselves. ZEISS is therefore making a contribution to the global targets set in the Paris Agreement of limiting global warming to well below 2°C. ZEISS launched its future-oriented initiative "A Heart for Science" in this fiscal year on the occasion of the company's 175th anniversary. This is an internal volunteering program with the aim of kindling interest in STEM among young people aged between 12 and 18 and therefore contributes to the development of innovative solutions in the future, too.

Past growth is no guarantee of future success, especially in times of increasing geopolitical uncertainty. On the one hand, as a modern and innovative foundation-owned company, we have overcome many challenges in the past, achieved innovative milestones and always looked ahead. On the other hand, we are optimistic that we will not only continue to develop but also grow on the basis of our strategic agenda and our networked transformation activities. We can be optimistic about the future.