Building a Better World depends on people who find purpose in their work. That search for purpose is a long-standing mindset and essential component of our entrepreneurial spirit - an attribute that many of our RPM associates embody. Together, we maintain a commitment to doing the right thing for each other, our customers and the future of our planet and communities. 

We recognize that today’s workforce is continually changing and becoming more diverse. To ensure we attract a wide pool of candidates, our ongoing initiatives include: 

• Gathering insights about what current and new associates value 
• Creating leadership development opportunities to nurture top talent 
• Developing policies and programs to attract and retain the best workforce 
• Posting openings to a wide range of job boards ensuring a broad applicant pool is aware of opportunities 

Attracting talent across generations and of diverse backgrounds and skills is a key aspect of our strategy. We host and attend career fairs to attract potential candidates and offer internships, apprenticeships and other programs to connect with new and diverse talent. 

Providing learning opportunities to help associates develop and advance their talents is critical to our long-term success. Our RPM Learning Central platform is a centralized resource that offers associates access to various self-paced online, on-demand courses featuring topics such as career skills, computer skills and wellness.

In addition, our Global Organizational Leadership Development (GOLD) Team, which is led by our Chief Talent Officer, is responsible for creating a leadership-led learning culture across RPM. The GOLD Team develops programming that reflects emerging trends and best practices, including:

Leaders of the Future: This program kicks off with a two-day educational workshop that helps emerging leaders develop valuable skills to prepare them for future opportunities within RPM. After the workshop, activities continue over the course of a year, such as additional courses and check-ins with mentors to review leadership development plans crafted during the program. Over 100 associates have either completed or are currently involved in the program.

RPM University (RPMU): In collaboration with our partners at the Center for Creative Leadership, RPMU is a year-long program focused on cultivating high-performing global leaders. The program provides leadership development tools related to emotional intelligence and direction, alignment and commitment as well as fundamental tenets such as The Value of 168; Transparency, Trust and Respect; and Connections Creating Value. Beginning in FY25, we expanded our RPMU program to offer programming for a specific cohort of leaders in Europe each year.

Leadership Accelerator: A complement to our existing leadership development programs, Leadership Accelerator is a year-long program that helps participants advance their skills to be more effective in their current roles. The program also prepares participants for future leadership roles or assignments within RPM. Almost 200 associates have completed or are in the process of completing the program as of the end of FY26.

Better Conversations Every Day™ (BCE): The BCE Program, also in partnership with the Center for Creative Leadership, trains associates in behaviors that build trust and collaboration for better business communication.

Over 1,600 associates completed the Better Conversations Every Day™ program through FY26

Our center-led approach to corporate communications enables us to maintain a more direct line of information-sharing and engagement with our associates. We encourage them to share concerns and opinions and provide multiple avenues for doing so, including conversations with managers, human resources team members and compliance departments and formal submissions through forums, surveys and the Ethics and Compliance Hotline (read more in Ethics & Compliance). 

In addition, we view engagement as finding purpose in our work and feeling connected to others and the company. As such, we seek opportunities to highlight our projects and people through our Around the World newsletter, organize contests and drawings and sponsor community engagement projects that encourage involvement and team building.

To foster inclusion, our teams will often host gatherings and socials to engage our associates.

Employee Engagement Survey 

We conducted our 5th companywide employee engagement survey in 2026. With more than 12,000 associates participating, the overall engagement score continued to be strong at 68%.

Results from the survey allow us to focus our efforts, monitor the impact of our actions and track associate morale, satisfaction and engagement. Our companies develop action plans to address specific areas of feedback and are required to report progress to RPM senior leadership on a quarterly basis. As a result, we have enhanced our training and development programs, and increased communication and touchpoints among business units.

We developed the Building a Better World program to fully integrate sustainability into all levels of our company culture. It is critical that our associates know what sustainability means to our business, as well as how it may impact our risks, opportunities and strategies. The program’s success involves commitment from everyone, and we encourage our associates to contribute to our sustainability efforts through opportunities to lead and share ideas.

Initiatives like our bimonthly RPM Around the World Newsletter highlight sustainability efforts across the globe in every issue and include inspiring stories about our companies and associates. Our Building a Better World Internal Awareness Campaign also increases associates’ sustainability knowledge, inspires our employees and keeps them engaged with our ongoing commitment to creating a sustainable future.

Central to our core value of Respect for our associates is offering a benefits package that supports all dimensions of health and wellbeing. Our comprehensive U.S. benefits package and resources improve associates’ lives in and outside the workplace.

In 2023, we expanded our U.S. benefits package by partnering with third-party providers to offer a substance use support program. In addition, we enhanced our support of mental health by establishing connections with providers who work with children and teens. We also increased the allotment of covered provider visits through our associate assistance program to five. To support our associates’ physical health, we now work with third-party providers to offer virtual physical therapy sessions.

Benefits outside the U.S. are determined by social offerings and local laws. Additional benefits offered in select geographies include:

Employee Assistance Program (EAP): We deeply value the mental health and wellbeing of our associates. Our assistance program provides short-term, no-cost or low-cost mental health and counseling services. In 2023, the number of covered provider visits increased from three to five for all locations offering the benefit. The EAP offers additional services including legal guidance and financial wellness education and assistance.

Financial Planning: To alleviate the stress financial planning may cause, we offer our associates a program that provides access to low-cost, individual financial planning.

Healthy Living: We offer programs designed to assess and improve digestive health, encourage weight loss, as well as provide virtual physical therapy.

Flexible Work: Numerous remote or flexible work opportunities are available to associates around the world. This offering expands our talent attraction pool to include people with diverse backgrounds and viewpoints.