According to a new survey by Corporate Responsibility network FIBS, 65% of Finnish companies deem inclusiveness (i.e. equal, participatory and discrimination-free practices) essential to their operations. Approximately half of the respondents consider diversity (i.e. the range of employee differences) important. The surveyed companies have limited D&I management or systematic D&I processes in place. Even though half of the respondents include D&I in their strategy and the topic is regularly discussed in top management, few have integrated D&I in their incentive or remuneration schemes or have experience in anonymous recruitment. 71% of the companies expect the importance of diversity to grow moderately in the next five years.
According to a survey Diversity and Inclusion in Finnish Companies published by FIBS today, large Finnish companies deem diversity and in particular inclusion relatively important to their operations.
Inclusiveness which refers to a participatory, equal and discrimination-free work environment is important to 65% of the respondents, whereas diversity, which refers to the range of employee differences is important to approximately half (54%) of the respondents.
However, it is noteworthy that approximately 10% of the respondents see little to no importance of D&I to their operations. Additionally, a third of the survey respondents had no opinion on the significance of these questions.
Many companies employ some measures that support D&I integration, but other measures have been adopted only by few: Most companies (71%) have provided training to their employees on how to address inappropriate behavior, made arrangements for accessibility at their premises (66%), and identified and removed unexplainable pay gaps (60%). However, only 7% of the respondents have tested anonymous recruitment and less than 20% use diversity or accessibility statements in their job postings.
Systematic D&I managements is still missing from most companies. Even though half of the respondents have integrated diversity and/or inclusion in their strategy and these questions are regularly discussed in top management, only approximately 40% of the companies have determined targets for D&I management or have a plan in place to strengthen D&I in their operations. Only few (7%) have included D&I metrics in management’s incentive and remuneration schemes, and less than 20% have set diversity targets for the composition of the management team.
The CEO of FIBS, Kimmo Lipponen, encourages particularly those companies that are currently not investing in D&I to promptly get to work on these issues.
”It is good to know that Finnish companies generally speaking already recognize the importance of D&I to their operations, but many still clearly face a considerable amount of work in this area”.
”One of the largest challenges Finnish companies face in the near future is labor shortage, which will reach chronic levels in all sectors. A good company reputation will assist in the recruitment race. This refers to a reputation of having a work environment where each person can be genuinely themselves and where all employees are treated equally irrespective of their background. It is high time Finnish companies make a start on strategic D&I work. According to research, it positively correlates not only to employer reputation, but also to productivity, reduced operational risks and innovativeness”.
The main challenges to D&I are skill level, commitment and communications – The importance of diversity and inclusion will see moderate growth in the future according to estimates by Finnish companies
Companies consider the biggest challenges to diversity and inclusion personnel skills and education; management and personnel commitment towards these themes; and communications related to D&I. More than 40% of respondents consider finding solutions to the above challenges in the next six months either very or reasonably important.
71% of companies estimate that the importance of diversity will grow moderately or significantly in the next five years. For inclusion the figure is 64%. However, the resources allocated to these themes are not expected to grow at the same rate: the majority of the respondents (63%) estimated that the resources allocated towards D&I will remain at their current level for the next five years.
Survey
FIBS’s Diversity and Inclusion in Finnish Companies – survey explored Finnish companies’ D&I management practices, challenges and outlook. The survey is the most comprehensive enquiry conducted in Finland on these themes to date. Survey respondents included a total of 103 HR managers, CEOs and other professionals responsible for D&I matters at their respective companies. The respondents were selected from the 1000 largest companies in Finland (measured by their turnover) as well as the most important cooperatives and other significant actors. The survey was conducted by telephone and email by Innolink 6.6. – 30.9.2022. FIBS was supported by Includia Leadership in the analysis of the survey data.
Download the summary of the report (pdf)
For additional information, please contact:
Kimmo Lipponen, CEO, FIBS, +358 40 758 7247, kimmo.lipponen@fibsry.fi
Tarja Laakkonen, Communications Manager, FIBS, +358 400 877 396, tarja.laakkonen@fibsry.fi
FIBS (Finnish Business & Society) is the largest corporate responsibility network in the Nordic countries. Its purpose is to accelerate responsibility changemakers towards a more sustainable world. FIBS helps companies to combine responsibility and business on a practical level. Read more: FIBS in brief
See also:
The Diversity and Inclusion Self-Assessment Tool helps you get started and move forward with diversity and inclusion. The free tool is suitable for companies of all sizes, regardless of the sector. The tool is available in Finnish, Swedish and English. Further information
The Diversity Charter Finland has been signed by almost 100 CEOs of companies and organisations. Read more
