Responsible Employer
Oerlikon is committed to creating an attractive, engaging and safe work place for employees. To this end, Oerlikon launched in 2021 a number of talent, diversity, culture and charity programs and initiatives.
The pandemic remained a key topic and Oerlikon continued to implement measures, such as the use of Kinexon Safe Tags, to ensure the safety and wellbeing of employees. Recognizing its role as a global citizen, Oerlikon ran and supported volunteer and charity campaigns such as the Tower of Hope to raise money for Doctors Without Borders and provided employees affected by the flood in Germany three days of paid leave so they could take care of their properties and support colleagues, families and friends.
Leveraging the capabilities of digitalization, Oerlikon introduced in 2021 additional automation tools using videos for some recruitment and rolled out an automated onboarding process, which not only increased efficiency but also promoted safety with reduced in-person human contact.
Among other HR actions taken during the year, Oerlikon continued running Horizons, the ongoing high-potential talent program, formed a new global talent acquisition team to drive recruitment and started to integrate its Success Model – defined by six statements to embed desired behaviors that contribute toward the company’s success – into core processes such as talent acquisition. Further, a number of initiatives on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) were launched in 2021.
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
Instead of focusing on one aspect of diversity, Oerlikon took a broader approach to ensure equal attention and focus is given to the different interest groups at Oerlikon.
In 2021, the first global Diversity Conference took place from December 1 to 3 with the theme “I See You”. A series of external and internal speakers and panel discussions were held to raise awareness of DEI, its importance and why Oerlikon embraces it as a principle and a business value. The message was that DEI is not just “the right thing” ethically, but is also critical to meeting the expectations of employees and customers in diverse markets and recognizing the direct link between DEI and Oerlikon’s competitive success. In December 2021, a pilot training called “Inclusion in Action” for employees was launched to increase employees’ understanding and awareness of inclusive thinking and unconscious bias. This program aims to help employees become more self-aware of personal bias and learn how to be more open, tolerant and inclusive in their thinking and actions. The training will be rolled out globally in 2022. A second training on wellbeing, mindfulness and trust building is also scheduled to be rolled out globally in 2022.
Another initiative in 2021 was Oerlikon hosting its first “topwomentech” jobinar to attract female talents. Additionally, an Oerlikon Women in Leadership business council was formed as a first employee support group with the mission to create a culture of inclusion, visibility and work/life balance for women and to identify actions and implement plans to continuously increase the share of women in leadership roles. This council will serve as a blueprint for other potential support groups.
For further details of HR programs, progress and actions taken by Oerlikon in 2021, see the Social Commitment chapter of Oerlikon’s 2021 Sustainability Report.
