As we have always stressed, the ECB places the greatest value on the fulfilment of its accountability obligations, and I am looking forward to a fruitful dialogue with you. In my introductory statement, I will first briefly review economic and monetary developments in 2005 and in early 2006, focusing on the monetary policy decisions of the ECB.
Continuous skill enhancement and regular training, apart from good compensation, will lead to better employee retention and motivation in a highly challenging and changing environment. I have said this before and I repeat that traditional HR systems in banks would need to undergo rapid changes in the manner of recruitment, motivation, performance appraisal and compensation package.