The global renewable energy industry is growing at a faster rate than ever, creating more and more jobs throughout its supply chain requiring a diverse range of skills and experiences. The wind industry’s talent recruitment and hiring practices should reflect the industry’s role in driving sustainable and inclusive growth around the world. By tapping into the widest pool of talent, we can hone its competitiveness and place wind energy at the forefront of innovation. To lead that innovation and be the employer of choice, Siemens Gamesa has launched a new action plan and set gender equality targets to unlock the power of diversity.
“Our company and the wind industry have lagged on diversity and inclusion issues. We recognize though that they are critical for business recovery and further success as they are true drivers of performance. That is why we are intensifying our efforts with this new action plan to create lasting change within Siemens Gamesa, leading to a more open, diverse and inclusive society,” Andreas Nauen, CEO of Siemens Gamesa, states.
To foster a diverse and inclusive work environment, the company’s action plan is built on three pillars: Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging, and Equal Opportunities. The groundwork for diversity and inclusion was laid in the past three years by introducing several new policies and processes addressing issues such as harassment and discrimination, smart working and digital disconnection. The new action plan will reinforce Siemens Gamesa’s commitment by introducing a number of policies and guidelines that will expand diverse and inclusive recruitment, extend the parental leave possibilities and promote LGBTI diversity, among other things.
Addressing one of the most pressing diversity disparities, the company has set ambitious targets for gender equality pledging to increase the female representation in the workforce (19% in FY20) as well as in executive management (12% in FY20) to 25% by 2025.
While Siemens Gamesa is making efforts to have a fair and equitable gender representation, diversity and inclusion must go beyond that. The company believes that a diverse set of employees, skill-sets and life paths result in better outcomes for the business, as the wide range of planned actions reflect.
The company has created the new role of Global Head of Diversity and Inclusion that will manage and drive all related initiatives and actions. In this role Marta Jimeno will be supported by a newly established Diversity and Inclusion Advisory Board, which will set the tone and direction going forward. Its members represent different levels of management and areas of expertise and are diverse in gender and nationality.
“To be truly successful, we must harness the unique skills, experiences and cultural assets of all our employees. They must feel valued and included for who they are and what they contribute to our business. That is why diversity and inclusion values must be at the heart of our decision-making and team-building and it we will put more processes and systems in place to embrace these values,” says Marta Jimeno, Global Head of Diversity and Inclusion at Siemens Gamesa.
Siemens Gamesa has recently announced that it was one of 380 companies included in the Bloomberg Gender-Equality Index (GEI) 2021 for the second year in a row. The inclusion in the GEI is a testament to the company’s efforts to expanding the disclosure of gender-related metrics in its ESG reporting resulting in more transparency regarding our gender practices and policies.
