Enable our employees to realize their full potential, as part of one winning team

Our success depends upon having motivated, competent and result-oriented employees who show great dedication to developing themselves and the company. Every year, the organization’s need for capabilities and resources is identified based on Essity’s business strategy, internal demographics, and external challenges and opportunities in the form of demographics and trends among future workers. Of utmost importance for our success, is to address the increasing competition for talent in several areas and new demands from younger generations.

The foundation for our capability supply is that Essity is perceived as an attractive employer by both current and potential employees. During the year, Employer Branding activities were concentrated on making Essity known as a company, with a focus on both hygiene and health and on the new name. We are working proactively to build relationships with potential candidates, recruiting and spreading knowledge about Essity through close collaboration with universities and in social media. We maintain a close dialogue with students to identify what drives them and how they view potential employers.

In order to recruit talents in key areas, we run the “GO! Program”. This offers recent graduates an opportunity for their first job, and aims to build know-how for more qualified roles when the program ends. Interest in the program, and the number of applicants, has increased every year and in 2017 more than 7,000 people applied for the approximately 70 jobs.

Every career is unique

We start with the idea that every career is unique. Development is achieved through a combination of training, coaching and new challenges in work. Our ambition is that all employees will reach their full potential, and assume personal ownership for driving their own development. Our ambition is that everyone shall have an individual development plan based on the needs of the company and the aspirations of the individual.

In 2017, the “Career Compass” was launched, which is a tool that explains the positions present in the company and the experience and capabilities needed for each position. During the year, we also launched a global learning management system that makes the range of learning activities available and transparent for all employees.

Successful leadership

Leadership is key to success and our leaders play a vital role in inspiring and challenging employees to develop and contribute towards achieving the business targets. We continuously pursue leadership development and in 2017, we continued to train and coach managers within the framework of our Group wide development program. During the year, we launched a new tool for change management, which was mainly rolled out to support managers in the integration of BSN medical.

Further development of a successful culture

Culture is critical for Essity’s success. As part of establishing Essity, during the year we developed and begun introducing Essity’s “Beliefs & Behaviors”. This is a progression of our previous core values and, based on our long-term strategy and vision, what the company wants to strengthen. Four “Beliefs” are described; we are committed, we care, we collaborate and we have courage. A number of key behaviors are linked to each of these. This framework helps, for example, to clarify the importance of an inclusive attitude and gives direction for work with diversity, where the proportion of women/men in management positions is one important aspect.

Safe and healthy workplace

Everyone should feel safe when they work for Essity. This concerns both the physical work environment and a culture that prioritizes safety, respect and consideration for our colleagues. Sadly, a contractor was fatally injured during 2017 in a fire at our factory in Svetogorsk in Russia. The fatal accident emphasizes how important it is that health and safety efforts must always be prioritized and developed. Policies and management systems are in place. We also work with follow-up and control as tools to achieve better health and improved safety at our workplaces. Managers, employees and partners receive training on a regular basis and all Essity plants have special plans to improve safety at their facilities. It is important to create a culture that sees health and safety as the highest priority. Our annual global safety week is one example of how we work with this.

Employee relations

Transparent communication is fundamental to the trust between Essity and its employees, as well as their representatives. Employees are encouraged to raise issues concerning employment and health and safety with their immediate manager. Essity recognizes the right of all employees to join unions and to partake in union activities. When there is no union representation, Essity establishes other channels where possible, such as workers’ councils.

All companies wholly owned by Essity are bound equally by the Code. We expect any business in which we have partial ownership to either adopt the Code or standards which are equivalent to those reflected in our Code.