Embedding Transparency and Building Resilience: How Swiss Re Is Preparing Its Workforce for the Future

What does it take to build a resilient workforce in a time of constant change? How can organisations balance transparency with trust, or use AI while staying human-centred? And what does career growth look like in a flatter, more agile world?

These questions reflect the real tensions that HR leaders are grappling with globally. In fact, trust in HR has declined by 11 percentage points since 2022, according to the World of Work Trends 2025 report by Top Employers Institute. This signals a growing need for people practices that are transparent, inclusive, and grounded in purpose.

During her recent visit to Singapore, Nicole Pieterse, Global Head of HR and Property & Casualty at Top Employer Swiss Re, shared how the organisation is responding to these shifts—investing in trust, adaptability, and long-term sustainability to better serve both employees and business goals.

Swiss Re’s approach offers valuable, real-world learnings for HR teams seeking to future-proof their people strategies amid continued disruption.

Let’s get inspired by how Swiss Re is approaching some of the most urgent priorities facing HR today:

• Embedding global pay transparency as a trust-building practice supported by manager capability and open dialogue.
• Reframing career development for a flatter world—moving beyond vertical promotions to focus on skills, exposure, and agility.
• Equipping future leaders with adaptability, ambition and emotional intelligence needed in a rapidly changing, tech-enabled environment.
• Evolving workplace culture through distributed ownership and real-time employee listening, rather than relying on top-down cascades.
• Introducing AI gradually and purposefully, helping employees shift from fear to empowerment through productivity gains and clear communication.

Making Pay Transparency a Global Standard

Swiss Re is ahead of the curve in responding to upcoming EU pay transparency regulations. Going beyond taking a regional compliance approach, the company is implementing full pay transparency across all major global locations. The aim is twofold: ensure fairness, and foster trust. Employees are now able to see how their pay compares to market benchmarks. This has opened the door for more honest, informed conversations about remuneration, recognition, and career progression.

To support this shift, Swiss Re developed dedicated dashboards for line managers and delivered tailored training to help them navigate complex discussions. This was essential, particularly when addressing sensitive topics such as employees reaching the top of a pay band or those starting at the lower end.

Transparency in pay, when done thoughtfully, becomes a catalyst for deeper conversations about value, growth and retention. As Nicole shared, “It’s not just about the numbers—it’s about what those numbers mean to people.”

Building Line Manager Confidence

Swiss Re recognised early on that transparency would only be meaningful if line managers were confident and skilled in discussing it. To ensure readiness, the organisation took a pragmatic approach by investing in capability-building.

Managers received not only tools, but training sessions grounded in Swiss Re’s overall pay philosophy. Designed as a holistic learning journey. managers gained deeper understanding about the link between reward and development, and how transparency can strengthen employee trust. By treating transparency as a relational practice, the company ensured it was embedded across the employee experience.

This directly addresses a broader challenge identified in the World of Work Trends 2025 report: rebuilding trust in HR and leadership through open dialogue and systems that employees feel are fair and human-centred.

Redesigning Careers for a Flatter World

With fewer layers in the organisation, traditional hierarchical career paths no longer apply. At Swiss Re, this challenge became an opportunity to reframe how growth and development are understood. Employees are now encouraged to build a “skills portfolio” through lateral moves, project-based work, and cross-functional exposure. This is supported by learning opportunities and performance conversations that focus on future potential—not just role-based performance.

Nicole pointed out that employees are still looking for the same fundamental things: growth, good leadership, and purpose. But delivering those experiences now requires more agility and personalisation.

This approach resonates with the shift described in the Trends report – meaningful development is no longer tied to a job title, but rather the accumulation of experience, learning, and capability.

A Future-Ready Leadership Approach

Swiss Re continues to prioritise leadership development, particularly in preparing talent for bigger roles amid growing complexity. The organisation uses a structured assessment framework that goes beyond performance to evaluate ambition, agility, emotional intelligence, and cultural alignment. Importantly, leadership development is tailored to different career stages and integrated into succession planning — ensuring leaders are identified and nurtured well before key roles become vacant.

In parallel, Swiss Re is exploring how AI can complement leadership. Early efforts focus on using AI to improve productivity and data-driven insights, while preserving the role of human leaders as sense-makers and culture carriers.

This hybrid approach reflects an emerging trend: the rise of AI-powered leadership, where leaders use intelligent systems to support strategy and team development — without replacing emotional intelligence and ethical judgment.

Embracing AI with Clarity and Care

Swiss Re has taken a deliberate, phased approach to introducing AI into the workplace. The first phase focused on workplace productivity—giving employees access to tools that save time and reduce manual tasks.

This lowered anxiety and built confidence, laying the foundation for more transformative AI adoption in the future.

Importantly, Swiss Re has framed AI not as a threat, but as a co-pilot. This narrative shift—supported by education and clear communication—has allowed the organisation to introduce new technologies while maintaining trust.

The World of Work Trends 2025 report reinforces this as a best practice: organisations that embrace AI as a partner rather than a disruptor are seeing improved employee engagement and internal promotion rates.

Evolving Culture through Distributed Ownership

Swiss Re has opted for cultural evolution rooted in lived experience. Since the arrival of its new Group CEO in 2024, the company has focused on enhancing what’s already working, while being clear about new expectations for speed, collaboration, and impact.

Key to this effort is the activation of “culture movers”— employees embedded across the business who act as champions of culture and practice. Combined with regular pulse surveys, this approach ensures Swiss Re can respond to local realities without losing global coherence.

Culture, as Nicole puts it, “isn’t about sameness. It’s about alignment between our stated values and how people actually experience the workplace.”

This model aligns closely with insights from the World of Work Trends 2025 report, which highlights how organisations must design cultures that are inclusive of diverse experiences and that extend beyond the organisational boundary.

Responding to Generational Shifts with Inclusive Design

With Gen Z becoming the dominant demographic in many organisations, there’s pressure to tailor workplace strategies to their expectations. But Swiss Re has taken a more inclusive view by creating policies that resonate across generations.

While Gen Z may value flexibility, purpose and sustainability, these are increasingly universal desires. Swiss Re’s approach is to meet those needs in ways that also support mid- and late-career employees.

This is a core message in the Trends report: that building sustainable workplaces requires designing for all life stages, not just the loudest demographic. By doing so, organisations build cultures of trust, equity and long-term retention.

Advice to the HR Community

Reflecting on her own journey, Nicole shared one piece of advice for HR professionals that stood out: “Stop being apologetic. Claim your space.”

HR, she emphasised, must confidently take its place at the strategic table. That means understanding the business deeply, speaking its language, and demonstrating value through data and action.

It’s a timely reminder that HR’s influence grows when it delivers both care and clarity, and when it acts as both an advocate for people and a steward of business performance.

Closing Thought

Swiss Re’s example offers a practical roadmap for any organisation aiming to align its people strategy with the realities of the modern workforce. From transparency and culture to AI and careers, the emphasis is on intentionality—designing systems that are human, fair, and future-ready.

As the world of work continues to shift, these lessons serve as a benchmark for what forward-thinking, principle-driven HR can look like in practice.

How neuroinclusion drives a thriving team environment

Neurodiversity is gaining increasing attention in workplace discussions. A non-medical umbrella term that includes the conditions autism, dyslexia, dyspraxia, dyscalculia and ADHD, neurodivergence is evident in around 10-20% of the population. 

As the workforce becomes more diverse, many employees will be working alongside a neurodivergent colleague in the coming years. And so, in this age of the collective workforce – the central theme of our newly launched World of Work Trends 2025 report – the ability to design workplaces that are intentionally neuroinclusive has become essential. 

Our latest research paper, Neuroinclusive by Design, builds on this theme and explores how leading HR teams are embracing a systems-thinking approach to inclusion, building team environments that are collaborative, adaptive, and resilient by design. 

The research offers a blueprint for organisations ready to move beyond isolated DEI efforts toward truly integrated talent strategies that ultimately tap into collective strength through individual empowerment. 

What the research tells us 

Neuroinclusion is good news for organisational productivity. It supports diverse thinking styles and can improve collaboration, creativity and productivity. For example, those with autism have been shown to be up to 140% more productive than neurotypical employees in certain roles. And teams with neurodivergent employees can experience up to a 30% increase in overall success. 

Organisations could and should therefore be seeking a positive step change in productivity through their recruitment and retention strategies for neuroinclusion. Even so, many struggle with where to begin. So, to understand what makes neurodiverse teams excel, Top Employers Institute conducted in-depth interviews with neurodivergent employees and organisations, to offer guidance on how HR professionals can take immediate actions for the benefit of both. 

Our resulting neurodiversity research paper, Neuroinclusive by design, explores the steps organisations can take to build truly inclusive workplaces.  

Three things HR can do right now 

Here are three actions that HR can take immediately to create a culture of neuroinclusion by design in their organisation: 

1. Harness individual talents for collective success. Many neurodivergent individuals value opportunities to explore different roles, projects and responsibilities. By building teams where individual strengths are recognised and supported by colleagues with different skill sets, HR can ensure that everyone can contribute meaningfully to the team’s success.  

2. Define and commit to consistent ways of working. This practice involves HR establishing explicit behaviours and rules, creating clarity and allowing all employees – neurodivergent and neurotypical alike – to contribute effectively.  

3. Embrace empathy and nurture interpersonal trust. HR needs to create a culture where empathy is prioritised, and assumptions are avoided. When colleagues approach interactions with neurodivergent employees with patience and willingness to understand their perspective, they foster a more inclusive and supportive environment.  

From accommodation to acceleration 

HR leaders can apply these three practices to better support neurodivergent employees and unlock their full potential as a strength within their organisation. If they can, they will cultivate workplaces that embrace diverse ways of thinking, communicating, and working. This in turn encourages ongoing reflection on how work gets done — and whether there might be better ways.

What we can learn from high-performing neurodiverse teams

Neurodiversity research tells us that teams that leverage individual strengths, co-create clarity in how they work, and prioritise empathy form a strong blueprint for building more inclusive, high-performing teams across the organisation. They lead to more adaptable, resilient, innovative – and yes, more productive – organisations.  

By championing neurodiversity best practices research within teams, companies are not just creating better workplaces, they are shaping the future of work itself and creating a thriving environment for all. 

Download the full research paper to find out how leading organisations are putting neuroinclusion into action.

Neuroinclusion in practice: From awareness to action

Our recent webinar, Neuroinclusion in the workplace: From awareness to action, showed HR leaders how to take a giant leap forward from understanding the importance of neuroinclusivity to embedding it across leadership and teams at every level of an organisation. 

Sarah Andresen, Chief Product and Technology Officer at Top Employers Institute discussed best practice neuroinclusivity with Eline Jammaers, Assistant Professor at Hasselt University and Tristan Lavender, Founder & Chair of Philips Neurodiversity Network.  

The case is made, so let’s move to action. 

HR leaders should already know that neuroinclusion helps organisations widen their talent pool, unlock latent potential and create stronger, more connected teams. There is no shortage of research showing that inclusive organisations have a better chance of meeting the expectations of socially-conscious consumers, while employees working there are more likely to feel engaged – and stick around. 

Top Employers Institute’s new paper Neuroinclusive by design: Creative and thriving team environment for all echoes these findings and goes much further. It identifies three features of thriving, inclusive teams: harnessing individual talents, co-creating clarity and embracing empathy to drive better business performance. 

Below are just some of the practices that the webinar looked at to show best practice inclusivity in action. 

1. Start with leadership: Role models set the tone. 

Senior leaders play a pivotal role in introducing neuroinclusive practices. When leaders are open about their own neurodivergence, it sends a powerful and positive message. It normalises differences and encourages psychological safety, especially among younger employees and others unsure about disclosing their neurodivergence. 

Line managers are also vital role models. Their ability to sit and to listen, respond with flexibility and ask the normal day-to-day questions, such as ‘What support would help you do your best work?’ can be transformative. 

One enduring myth that the webinar also explored is when neurodiversity is billed as bringing ‘superpowers’ to the workplace. While neurodivergent employees do bring unique strengths, these must be wholeheartedly supported. The true value of neurodivergence is only unlocked with the active encouragement of leaders and managers; a passive acceptance that we are all different is simply not enough. 

2. Continue with teams: Embed psychological safety as an everyday instinct. 

To move inclusion beyond good intentions means teams must also play their full part. Psychological safety needs to be a daily given, built through small, consistent behaviours. Both leaders and their teams should, for example, ask new hires about communication preferences, environmental needs or work styles as an instinct, without the need for a formal diagnosis. Simple common-sense actions like these have a wider purpose – they reduce barriers and improve collaboration among not only neurodivergent employees but everyone. 

Inclusion happens in these ‘micro-moments’ of work: how to run meetings, give feedback, and handle discussions. Leaders and teams need to model empathy and openness, not just in policy but in day-to-day behaviour, until it becomes deeply embedded. 

This needs to be visible externally, to attract future talent. Personal stories of neuroinclusion attract the job candidates of the future, as well strengthening internal alignment. 

3. Reinforce through ERGs and metrics: A key role for HR. 

Our Neuroinclusive by Design research describes a necessary mindset shift from ‘accommodation’ to ‘intentional inclusion’, building flexibility, clarity and empathy proactively into team culture from the outset. And HR has a key role to play in driving this forward in several ways. 

For example, Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) are a powerful tool for accelerating inclusion. They provide safe spaces for connection, education and advocacy. For them to flourish, HR leaders must support them in a similarly active way, with funding, time and clear links to organisational strategy. 

The webinar showed how companies like Philips have introduced formal neuroinclusion policies at a national level to make sure that ERG insights translate into organisation-wide support. And this is the kind of structural reinforcement that Top Employers’ new platform, HREdge | NeuroInclusion, has been designed to support. It provides the necessary tools, insights and expert guidance for embedding inclusion across the employee lifecycle. 

Measuring neuroinclusivity also remains a challenge for many employers. One practical way for HR to play a role is to embed questions within existing wellbeing or engagement surveys, to align with key desired outcomes like job satisfaction or a sense of belonging. This requires trust, with participants needing to believe that their responses will not only be anonymous but used constructively. ERGs can play a unique role here too, for example through running pulse surveys or providing qualitative insights from neurodivergent communities. 

Final word… 

Neuroinclusion by design in 2025 is no longer only for the neurodivergent. It is a journey from awareness to action for all, a framework for designing better work for everyone, at every level of an organisation.  

To explore how to start or scale your neuroinclusive practices, download our research paper or for tailored business recommendations and benchmarking solutions, find out more about our new platform, HREdge | NeuroInclusion. 

Neuroinclusion by design: Progressive HR strategies to drive team success

Organisations today face growing pressure to create environments that embrace all forms of human diversity – including the need to accommodate diverse ways of thinking. In a recent LinkedIn Live webinar, Dr Emily Cook, Senior Researcher and Paola Bottaro, People Director, both from Top Employers Institute, explored the insights behind our new paper, Neuroinclusive by Design: Creating a Thriving Team Environment for All.

The session offered a compelling blueprint for HR leaders seeking to embed neuroinclusion into the way work gets done – not just as a reactive set of accommodations, but as a proactive principle of workplace design.

Drawing on in-depth interviews with neurodivergent professionals and the experiences of certified Top Employers such as Tata Consultancy Services and Bentley, the research identifies three essential traits of high-performing neurodiverse teams: harnessing individual talents, co-creating clarity, and embracing empathy.

From accommodation to intentional inclusion

The concept of intentional neuroinclusion is gaining traction, shifting focus from making adjustments for individuals to proactively structuring work environments to both expect and support a wide range of cognitive and behavioural styles. This not only benefits neurodivergent employees, but also enhances the working experience for all.

Rather than responding to challenges as they arise, this proactive approach integrates flexibility, clarity and empathy from the outset. This in turn enables a more inclusive and productive culture that supports differing ways of thinking, communicating and working.

Unlock collective success by harnessing individual talents

Many neurodivergent employees bring distinctive strengths, such as pattern recognition, that employers are in danger of overlooking when using traditional role definitions and job descriptions.

Our research encourages HR teams to look out for new skills. Techniques like skills profiling, using internal marketplaces for talent and more intentional performance conversations can help uncover and leverage these often-hidden strengths.

Neurodivergent professionals also frequently contribute beyond their formal roles, engaging in innovation projects and employee resource groups (ERGs). Supporting and celebrating this kind of engagement is one way that organisations can help fully unlock individual potential and elevate team performance.

Define and commit to consistent ways of working

The research found that inconsistent or mismatched expectations around how work gets done – whether in meetings, communication styles or collaborative processes – can become significant barriers for neurodivergent individuals.

Flexible and inclusive ways of working can be achieved by co-creating team norms, rather than imposing top-down rules. For example, teams might need to agree on meeting cadences, notification boundaries, or which tasks are best tackled together versus independently.

This shared clarity creates an environment where all team members, regardless of their cognitive profile, understand what’s expected and feel able to contribute effectively.

Embrace empathy to build trust

Our research showed that trust and psychological safety emerged as foundational to neuroinclusive teams. Neurodivergent employees often feel pressure to conform to behavioural expectations, such as direct eye contact or small talk, that may not align with how they naturally interact. This “masking” can take a toll on mental health over time.

Empathy, in this context, involves understanding and accepting diverse forms of communication and engagement. Employers can reinforce this through formal systems like manager training and inclusive policies, and through everyday signals – such as how to deliver feedback or how to understand alternative working styles.

Regular check-ins that focus on employee experience, not just outputs, can play a vital role in normalising support-seeking and creating space for authenticity.

Adapt neuroinclusion for differing cultures and contexts

In response to a question from the webinar audience, it was acknowledged that while in this instance our research interviews did not cover all geographic regions, the broader research we do at Top Employers Institute draws on data and insights from organisations across multiple continents. The principles highlighted in the paper – flexibility, clarity, and empathy – are designed to be adaptable to local context and nuance.

Neuroinclusion strategies should never follow a “one-size-fits-all” model. Different regions, industries, and cultures bring varying approaches, vocabularies and challenges to the topic. The key lies in building environments that are fundamentally inclusive by design, yet flexible enough to reflect local norms and realities.

A strategic blueprint for a better world of work

The overarching takeaway from our webinar was that neuroinclusion should not be seen as an adjustment to existing systems, but rather as a framework for the design of modern work. Through intentional design, organisations can build environments that both expect and celebrate diversity.

Along with this research paper, we’ve introduced a new platform, HREdge | NeuroInclusion, as a practical support tool for organisations at any stage of their neuroinclusion journey, providing access to tailored insights, expert guidance and a global network of HR leaders. And as the research makes clear, organisations that commit to neuroinclusion are not just improving workplace culture – they are positioning themselves for greater adaptability, innovation and long-term success.

Download the full research paper to explore the detailed findings.

Neuroinclusive by design: A future blueprint for a thriving team environment

With an estimated 10-20% of the population identifying as neurodivergent, many organisations are seeking ways to harness their untapped potential. However, there is a paradox at the heart of the current debate around neurodiversity in the workplace. Research shows that teams with neurodivergent members experience up to a 30% increase in overall success, and individuals with ADHD score 41% higher in creativity tests. Yet many neurodivergent employees still face barriers, with over 50% fearing workplace stigma or discrimination.

Why is this – and what can be done about it for the benefit of businesses and employees alike?

Building inclusive workplaces

At Top Employers Institute we’ve been delving deep into what makes neurodiverse teams thrive. Our latest research paper, Neuroinclusive by design: Creating a thriving team environment for all, explores the steps organisations can take to build truly inclusive workplaces. It provides key statistics, and practical recommendations that HR can implement to create a more neuroinclusive workplace.

Download the full research paper

Traditional workplace structures are changing, and neuroinclusive practices are forming the blueprint for the future of work. For a true neuroinclusive workplace, however, HR leaders must shift from providing piecemeal adjustments to embedding systemic inclusivity into their hiring, team collaboration, and leadership development practices. Organisations that embrace neurodiversity in this way will not only enhance employee wellbeing but also gain a vital competitive edge.

Through extensive research and interviews with neurodivergent employees, we have identified three critical traits shared by successful neurodiverse teams:

1. Harnessing individual talents for collective success. Neurodivergent employees excel when given flexibility and autonomy, allowing them to leverage their unique strengths in a way that benefits the entire organisation.
2. Defining and committing to consistent ways of working. High-performing teams find the right balance between structure and flexibility, co-creating communication methods that work for everyone.
3. Embracing empathy and nurturing interpersonal trust. A culture of psychological safety, where employees feel understood and valued, fosters collaboration and engagement.

Being ‘neuroinclusive by design’ is about reshaping the workplace so that diverse ways of thinking, processing information and collaborating are naturally supported. This approach benefits everyone, leading to more innovative, adaptable, and high-performing teams.

Can your business afford to ignore the benefits of creating a thriving team environment for all? By championing neurodiversity within teams, companies are not just creating better workplaces—they are shaping the future of work itself.

Fill in the form below to access the full research paper and explore how leading organisations are putting neuroinclusion into action.

Access the full research paper

World of Work Trends 2025: The Collective Workforce

In a world shaped by economic uncertainty, generational shifts, and rapid technological change, organisations must evolve to remain resilient. The World of Work Trends 2025 report from Top Employers Institute shows how HR leaders play a vital role in this transformation. By adopting a more collective approach—defined by interconnected, adaptive, and inclusive strategies—organisations can thrive in this new era.

The trends outlined in The rise of the Collective Workforce: Act now for a resilient future highlight how leaders can move beyond isolated initiatives and embrace a systems-thinking mindset. Those who act now will be better equipped to build long-term relevance, resilience, and competitive advantage. So, what are these key trends driving the rise of the collective workforce? You can download and explore the full report by filling out the form below.

Q&A with ABB UK

In our latest Q&A with the team from ABB UK, we explore what makes ABB a Top Employer, its biggest people challenges, key HR initiatives, and what’s next.

Tell us about your organisation

ABB is a global technology leader in electrification and automation, enabling a more sustainable and resource-efficient future. By connecting its engineering and digitalization expertise, ABB helps industries run at high performance, while becoming more efficient, productive and sustainable so they outperform. At ABB, we call this ‘Engineered to Outrun’. The company has over 140 years of history and more than 105,000 employees worldwide.

Part of the ABB Group, ABB in the UK is headquartered in Warrington, Cheshire and employs 1750 people operating from 22 locations nationwide. We supply around £0.5bn of innovative solutions, products and services annually in the UK to clients in a wide range of market sectors.

What makes ABB UK a Top Employer?

ABB is dedicated to investing in its people with a global people strategy that focuses on three key components of ‘Empower’: our “high performance – high integrity” culture is grounded in empowerment and engagement, ‘Grow’: we innovate in a changing world to solve the challenges of today and tomorrow, taking responsibility to learn, connect and grow, and ‘Impact’: we impact a more sustainable, equitable and inclusive workplace and society.

ABB is a company that continually strives to improve for its people and its customers, challenging the status quo and exploring new ways to innovate. We are proud of the various people innovations and best practices launched at ABB such as our global DEI strategy, open job market, and our upcoming global transformation project, which will bring numerous efficiencies to our HR team, our managers, and our employees around the world.

What is the biggest people challenge your business currently faces? And what are you doing to meet this challenge?

ABB is no different to many other engineering organisations when it comes to increasing the number of females in engineering as well as skill gaps. As part of our overall People Strategy we are striving to become a more equitable and inclusive workplace.

In ABB UK we are proud to be partnering with educational establishments, including, primary schools, secondary schools and universities to inspire the talent of the future. These partnerships enable our employees to speak passionately about the opportunities available in the world of engineering, something which is available to all, either joining the organisation straight from school or as an apprentice or a graduate.

Tell us about a recent HR initiative you have instigated within your organisation that you are most proud of?

The UK HR team is set to launch a volunteering policy as part of our overall corporate social responsibility strategy. ABB already partner closely with Macmillan Cancer Support, which provides different opportunities to volunteer and raise both awareness. Our new volunteering policy will enable the business to expand on this and apply formal recognition and structure to our employees for their volunteering passions. The HR Team recently partnered with a local disability charity close to our UK Head Office. A team of six volunteers supported a local initiative ran by the charity aimed to positively impact young people with disabilities and their families over the festive period. We look forward to continuing this partnership and future partnerships and beyond.

How is AI affecting your business? Is it helping or challenging you in terms of your people practices?

ABB has already started using Generative AI, to the advantage of customers as well as internal applications. For example: Intuitive user interaction with ABB Ability™ Genix Industrial Analytics and AI Suite. AI@ABB’s aim is to accelerate the development, deployment and use of AI – both analytical and generative – across ABB divisions and functions to drive innovation for our customers, enhance internal efficiency and further strengthen our technology market leadership.

Which wellbeing offerings in your business are proving the most popular with employees?

ABB are proud to have an established wellbeing offering globally and locally. Influenced by our Wellbeing Board within the UK we offer a range of support mechanisms from our qualified wellbeing first aiders, local awareness campaigns and initiatives, and our Employee Assistance Programme providers are also on hand 24/7. Offering our employees a multidisciplinary approach enables individuals to select the best approach for them. Sine the impact of COVID, we have focused our initiatives on bringing people together to build connections and create networking opportunities without our various locations.

What’s next? Tell us about a new initiative for 2025 that you’re most excited about?

ABB is embarking on the implementation of a new people management platform, which will provide employees and line managers with access to data and processes at the touch of their fingertips. The new platform will create a more engaging workforce, which in turn will amplify many organisational efficiencies.

Puma’s secret to their people-first culture and sustainable HR practices

Puma has achieved a remarkable milestone in 2025. They are Certified as a Top Employer on a Global and Enterprise level while also reaching the phenomenal achievement of being Certified in all 50 countries where they operate. This accomplishment underscores Puma’s unwavering commitment to fostering a people-first culture and sustainable HR practices. David Plink, CEO at Top Employers Institute, sat down with Dietmar Knoess, CHRO at Puma, to uncover Puma’s secret to their people-first culture and sustainable people practices.

How does Puma respond to the challenges of the future

The future is not something that HR teams can predict anymore. As Dietmar explained to David in their conversation, “We need to live with the new fact that we can’t predict the future anymore. We can hardly affect the next twelve months. That means that you need to be on your toes.” This sentiment shows how critical it is for Puma, an organisation that prioritises its people-first culture, to be proactive in facing the challenges of a changing business landscape. He continued, “You need to make quick decisions and communicate it to your organisation quickly.” That is the role that HR plays at Puma.

While Puma always felt that they had an exceptional HR team able to react to the challenges of the market, they wanted an unbiased assessment of their practices. That is where the Top Employers Certification helped Puma. It offers Puma validation of their people practices. It gives them access to benchmarking and analytics to improve their practices yearly, enabling them to stay competitive in the talent market.

This global recognition as a Top Employer celebrates Puma’s achievements and reinforces its commitment to continuous improvement and employee satisfaction. By fostering a culture that values and supports its employees, Puma sets a benchmark for excellence in the industry, allowing them to execute their goal of being Forever.Faster.

For more insights into Puma’s journey as a Top Employer, you can watch the entire conversation between Dietmar and David. You will be able to get a look into:

• How Puma attracts, retains and engages top talent in a competitive talent market.
• The biggest challenges shaping the future of work and how HR teams can respond to these challenges.
• And what it means to lead the market with sustainable HR practices and policies.

What Is The Role of HR in Sustainability?



(Inside the Mind of an HRD – Sustainability)

Sustainability is one of the primary issues on everyone’s minds, as we look to the future and try to avoid the consequences of what the world may look like if we do not make significant changes. While the topic of sustainability has been discussed in various circles, we are now at a time where we need to make actionable changes. And the importance of moving these conversations into reality has not escaped the world of work. Instead, they have fuelled HR leaders to become a significant partner in creating and implementing sustainability strategies within their organisations.

The Three Pillars of Sustainability

Sustainability is a multi-layered concept. It is focused on meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. There are three pillars of sustainability that are most interesting to us these are: economic, environmental, and social. More informally these pillars are profit, planet, and people.

The weight of sustainability issues has been focused on the environment, for good reason, as we try to maintain nature around us but that is not the full picture of sustainability. We are realising the need to focus on the other pillars of profit and people. While focus on the sustainability of people is more obvious, as people are one of our greatest resources, we also need to consider how we create sustainable profit. Without a sustainable profit there is no future for a company.

The Impact of Sustainability on Businesses

In 2012 the United Nations published their 17 sustainability goals for the world to reach by 2030. These sustainability goals have impacted all levels – from large governments, to corporations, and the everyday citizen. In many companies they have translated those 17 goals into session level goals for their business activities. This comes at a time when it is also now mandatory for listed corporations to publish information about their environmental, social and governance (ESG) behaviours. Meaning that they are now being held accountable for the impact of their actions in terms of sustainability. Bringing the importance of enacting these practices higher than before.

The emphasis on sustainability in the world has impacted many aspects of business that were previously taken for granted as we see the emergence of a new kind of business. These businesses are public benefit corporations (PBC) where their primary focus is geared towards having a positive impact on society, their workers, the community and/or the environment. These aspects of their business are legally defined in addition to their other, more traditional, goal of maximising profit for their shareholders. These companies are embedding sustainability into all their businesses practices and while they have been set up to work in this way, we can still make changes in our existing businesses structures to achieve similar goals. HR teams will become a big part of more traditional businesses making this shift.

Corporate Social Responsibility versus Sustainability

As companies begin to embrace sustainability practices it is important to note what they have done previously and why their move to sustainable procedures will help them to secure their futures. Many businesses have been engaged in corporate responsibility practices, which has been focused on reporting what a business has done to contribute to the wider society. While this has created some good initiatives it has caused people to look backwards – rather than looking at future possibilities open to the company. It is also driven by the need to protect the reputations of the business in developed markets as the projects of the CSR are managed by communications teams.

This contrasts sustainability practices that are focused on looking towards what will happen next as they make plans that secure the future of their company. Some of the practices they may adopt as they lean into sustainability are centred around reducing waste, assuring supply chains, developing new markets, and building their brand. The driving force of sustainability is the need to create opportunities in emerging markets, and this work is managed by various players in the operations and marketing departments.

In simpler terms we can understand CSR as giving a man a fish, whereas sustainability is teaching a man to fish. One makes someone, or for businesses purposes something, reliant on you to be maintain the system while the other builds a system that can maintain itself.

HR’s Role in Sustainability

In our recent study around the practices of our Top Employers we saw that 92% of companies are making social responsibility an important building block of their business. For this many rely on engagement from their employees to make these goals actionable. This is one of the important places that HR will contribute to the overall goal of facilitating sustainable business practices. HR teams have always been focused on people and without their involvement in engaging the employees in the sustainability project, it would be nearly impossible to achieve the businesses’ sustainability goals.

When we talk about integrating sustainability practices into a business, we need to realise that it is a multi-layered process that is inclusive of other social responsibility components including CSR and ESG. The process also involves asking questions about whether the company is committed to enacting these changes, how will they involve employees in this process and how will it be communicated to them. Approaching it from this angle we can clearly see where HR plays a fundamental part in the sustainability goals of their organisations.

HR will be involved several pieces of the puzzle needed to help the sustainability goal. It will differ for each individual organisation, but some aspects that HR will be involved in are around facilitating conversations with employees and the board; defining a code of conduct; launching equity initiatives; and engaging with employees through training, competency models and leadership development. HR is crucial in aiding in the technological and cultural changes needed to help in the sustainability goals of their organisation.

While we have discussed some ways that HR will facilitate current employees to be involved in the greater sustainability project. It is key to acknowledge the role they will play in redefining their employer brand. They will also have a hand in identifying and attracting new talent to the company.

Final Thoughts

The need to make and meet sustainability goals is an issue that we are all juggling with as we look to building the future. It is a complex matter that concerns everyone. While we have taken a big picture approach to introducing the topic, it is one that we, and the Top Employers we work with, are making a concerted effort to expanding as we get closer to 2022 and beyond. Sustainability is not something that we can push to the next year, it is necessary to engage with it now.

Digital Employee Experience: why you need in your talent strategy today

The digital employee experience (DEX) is the experience employees have with the digital tools and platforms provided by their organisation. Although it extends beyond IT, it strongly involves HR clusters and reflects on your company culture.

As such, we are taking this opportunity to explore the topic in more depth, exploring what it is, why it’s important to employees as well as for employers, and how these can design and measure a digital employee experience.

What is the digital employee experience? 

The digital employee experience is a subset of the overall employee experience that encompasses all the digital touchpoints an employee interacts with at work, be these apps and software or the devices they are equipped with (like a phone, laptop, etc.). However, DEX goes far beyond IT, involving crucial aspects of HR and workplace culture to play a crucial role in the overall business success.

And it’s a key component of the new employee experience.

Individuals are used to relying on smooth technology in their personal lives and anticipate the same degree of digital simplicity in their work environment. If workers find it challenging to retrieve information or accomplish daily duties with the given tools, it can adversely affect their relationship with your organisation.

Why organisations struggle to manage their digital employee experience

Managing and creating the best digital employee experience is fundamental to every organisation. This is where your talent strategy plays a pivotal part in the overall business success. The importance of DEX keeps increasing into the 21st century, with most companies struggling to keep up with the latest trends.

In 2024, 82.9% of Top Employers globally have a vision for the role of digital HR in the overall employee experience. This digital experience is not just a tool but a flexible solution that caters to all employees, whether they are in the office full-time or hybrid.

IT departments aim to enhance the overall employee experience. However, they’re perpetually trying to keep pace with swift digital evolution and intricate office technology. The advent of hybrid work and employees using various devices and settings further complicates IT’s task of managing the digital workspace.

This is where the Top Employers Institute can help: our extensive research into the world of work can provide organisations with best practices on DEX and the latest trends. If you want to learn more, check out the link at the bottom of the page and get in touch for free today!

6 benefits of implementing a strong DEX into your talent strategy

Creating, managing and measuring your digital employee experience is necessary to drive business success. Before diving into the steps and best practices, let’s find out how your organisation can benefit by implementing a strong digital employee experience into a talent strategy:

• Boost your employer brand: making your company more attractive to potential candidates because of your strong digital experience. Showcasing your commitment to cutting-edge technology and a seamless digital environment can differentiate your organisation and your competitors. 
• Increase employee retention rates: Gartner’s Digital Worker Experience Survey found that “Workers [are] satisfied with applications indicate that they are twice as inclined to stay in their current organisation.” This stresses the importance of creating a seamless digital experience as it affects the rate at which employees feel they can stay in their current organisation.
• Increase organisational agility: The ability to reach and engage their people in real-time allows organisations to act and mobilise them quickly and pivot rapidly. This quick reaction time makes organisations more agile and reactive to the world.
• Improve employee engagement by creating shared values: A unified digital employee experience connects every person to their organisation, making it easier to survey employees and collaboratively develop a shared sense of purpose. That shared purpose can ultimately help organisations achieve their business goals.
• Improved employee productivity: Digitalisation efforts in employee experience can automate tedious and monotonous business processes, which often leave employees feeling demotivated. Reducing these tasks can make employees more productive by proactively giving them the tools and applications they need to succeed when needed.
• Enhanced security: Digital security is a major priority for organisations, and it can be enhanced when a company prioritises its digital employee experience. Many possible security breaches happen through digital means, and when the right tools and applications are in place, it is easier for organisations to manage security vulnerabilities.

How to create a digital employee experience in 5 steps

The digital employee experience encompasses all the tools, platforms, and technologies employees use to perform their jobs, communicate, and collaborate. Therefore, HR teams and organisations must carefully decide how to create this experience.

The steps that organisations need to take are:

Step 1: Assess current technology

• Conduct a technology audit to understand the current tools and platforms.
• Gather feedback from employees about their digital experience.

Step 2: Define objectives

• Establish clear goals for what you want to achieve with your DEX.
• Align these goals with your overall HR and business strategy.

Step 3: Select the right tools

• Choose platforms and tools that integrate well with each other.
• Ensure the tools are user-friendly and meet your organisation’s specific needs.

Step 4: Implement and train

• Roll out new tools and platforms in phases to manage the transition smoothly.
• Provide comprehensive training to ensure employees can use the new technology effectively.

Step 5: Monitor and optimise

• Continuously gather feedback and monitor the usage of digital tools.
• Use data analytics to identify areas for improvement and optimise the digital experience.

It should be known that creating a digital employee experience is not a one-time project but an ongoing process.

How to measure the digital employee experience

Measuring the digital employee experience can provide HR teams with valuable employee insights into productivity, engagement and employee satisfaction.

Organisations can measure their DEX by:

• Implementing real-time feedback tools: Real-time feedback tools, such as pulse surveys and chatbots, allow HR and IT teams to capture employees’ sentiments and issues as they arise. These tools can be integrated into digital platforms to provide immediate opportunities for employees to voice their experiences and frustrations.
•  Utilising analytics and usage data: Digital tools and platforms often have built-in analytics that track usage patterns and behaviours. HR can use these analytics, and IT teams can leverage this data to gain insights into how employees interact with these tools.
• Using employee surveys and feedback: One of the most direct ways to gauge the digital employee experience is through regular surveys and feedback mechanisms. Tailored questionnaires, like stay interviews, can help HR and IT teams capture employees’ perceptions with their digital tools.

Become a recognised employer of choice and enhance your digital employee experience

A comprehensive digital employee experience is no longer a luxury but necessary in modern business and talent strategies. Organisations will attract and retain top talent by investing in their digital environment and aligning HR and IT needs. By investing in the right digital tools and platforms, HR and IT can work together to create an environment that attracts top talent, enhances engagement and retention, boosts productivity, supports remote work, and drives innovation. Embracing a digital-first approach aligns with the expectations of today’s workforce and positions your organisation for sustained success in the future.

The Top Employers Certification Programme recognises excellent people practices across several HR topics, including engagement, that help organisations grow as employers of choice. These practices are often improved by identifying important insights for an organisation to determine where to make impactful changes in their business.

Get in touch today for free and find out how to become an employer of choice!

HR analytics and the employee experience: what it is, how to implement it and best practices to help your organisation excel

One of an organisation’s primary responsibilities to its employees is to ensure that they have a positive experience while working. This is often referred to as employee experience, and it is becoming an increasingly important factor in the success of businesses today. 

Beyond the trends, prioritising employee experience is also important to improve productivity, reduce turnover, and enhance satisfaction. However, with so many factors contributing to employee experience, knowing where to focus your efforts can be challenging. This is where HR analytics can be helpful. In this article, we will explore how HR analytics can be used to prioritise employee experience and improve overall organisational performance. 

What are HR analytics? 

HR analytics is the practice of using data to inform HR decision-making. It involves gathering, analysing, and interpreting data related to HR metrics, such as employee engagement, turnover rates, and compensation, to help organisations make more informed decisions. Organisations can use HR analytics to identify trends and patterns and make data-driven decisions that can significantly impact employee experience. 

What is the employee experience? 

Employee experience is the sum of an employee’s interactions and perceptions of their workplace. It includes everything from the work environment to company culture, management style, benefits and compensation, and overall job satisfaction. Employees with a positive experience are likelier to be engaged, productive, and committed to their jobs. 

It is effectively the sum of all the touchpoints a potential employee has with their employer, from when they are candidates to when they become part of an organisational alumni upon departure. 

What is the link between HR analytics and the employee experience? 

HR analytics is pivotal in enhancing the employee experience by offering data-driven employee insights into every lifecycle stage. The employee experience encompasses all employee interactions with an organisation, from recruitment and onboarding to development, performance management, and retention. 

The benefits of implementing HR analytics 

HR analytics empowers businesses to make informed decisions, optimise operations, and enhance employee experiences. Below are some key benefits of implementing HR analytics in your organisation: 

• Provides objective data: HR analytics can provide objective data that can help HR leaders identify areas of the organisation where employee experience may be lacking. For example, if data shows high employee turnover rates in a particular department, HR leaders can investigate the cause and take action to improve the situation. 

• Improved data-driven decision-making: HR analytics allows you to move from intuition-based decisions to evidence-based strategies. By analysing patterns in employee performance, engagement, and turnover, you can make more accurate decisions regarding hiring, promotions, and team management. 

• Improved talent acquisition: analytics can identify the most effective recruitment channels and strategies, helping you target suitable candidates faster. To optimise your recruitment process, you can assess candidate quality, time-to-hire, and cost-per-hire factors. 

• Employee retention and engagement: by analysing trends in employee satisfaction surveys, turnover rates, and performance data, you can identify at-risk employees and take proactive steps to boost engagement and reduce turnover, saving costs associated with rehiring and retraining. 

• Enhanced workforce planning: HR analytics helps you predict future talent needs based on business goals and trends. You can anticipate skill shortages and succession plans and align workforce capabilities with long-term business strategies. 

• Optimised learning and development programmes: with analytics, you can evaluate the effectiveness of training programs and identify skills gaps across your workforce. This enables the design of tailored learning programs that align with individual and organisational goals. 

• Cost reduction: HR analytics helps track and optimise labour costs, identify inefficiencies, and allocate resources effectively. This includes better management of overtime, absenteeism, and benefits costs. 

• Better performance management: implementing HR analytics can give you deeper insights into employee performance metrics and feedback. This can lead to more transparent performance appraisals, helping to motivate employees and improve productivity. 

• Informed compensation and benefits decisions: analytics provides insights into compensation trends within your industry and workforce, allowing for more equitable and competitive pay structures. It also helps optimise benefits offerings based on employee preferences and organisational goals. 

Key HR analytics metrics you can use (with examples) 

Your organisation can measure several HR analytics to understand your company better, but the right ones will depend on the needs and goals you want to accomplish. Here is a short overview of some of the most critical metrics to use for starting your HR analytics journey: 

• Voluntary and involuntary turnover rates: this metric gives insight into the percentage of employees who leave the organisation. The voluntary rate calculates the percentage of employees who decide to leave the company, while the involuntary rate calculates the percentage of employees who get let go.  

• Absence rate: the absence rate measures the total number of days an employee is absent from work; it does not include holiday periods. The absence is calculated by dividing the number of days worked by the total number of days the employee could have worked over a specific time. 

• Retention rate: the retention rate offers insight into how well your organisation keeps its employees working. It is calculated by dividing the total number of employees who decided to stay employed over a given period by the total number of employees over that same period. 

• Revenue per employee: this metric measures how much money the business brings in for every employee it has on staff and pays expenses, such as salary and benefits. It is calculated by dividing an organisation’s revenue by the total number of employees in the company 

HR analytics best practices 

When implementing a strategy that includes HR analytics, not one strategy suits every organisation. It will take time to find the right tools and metrics to support your overall goals and the needs of your people, but here are some best practices that can help guide you in the right direction:  

Promote a Data-Driven Culture 

For HR analytics to be effective, everyone in the organisation must embrace data-driven decision-making. Resistance to change can be a significant barrier. You can do this by educating and training your people and leadership on the value of analytics. Ensure they understand how data can enhance their decision-making processes. Encourage the use of data in meetings and performance discussions to reinforce its importance. 

Start Small and Scale Gradually 

HR analytics can seem overwhelming if you attempt to measure everything from the start. Starting with a focused pilot project allows testing, refinement, and quick wins. You can start with a small, manageable area (e.g., recruitment data, employee turnover) and focus on generating insights there first. As your people gain confidence and expertise, expand the scope of your analytics efforts. 

Invest in the Right Tools and Technology 

The success of an HR analytics strategy depends on the tools used to collect, analyse, and visualise data. Without the right technology, extracting insights can be labour-intensive and inaccurate. Evaluate analytics platforms that fit your organisation’s needs. Integrate with existing HR systems and provide robust reporting and visualisation features.  

Build a Cross-Functional Team 

HR analytics requires collaboration between HR professionals, data scientists, and IT specialists. A diverse team ensures that technical, analytical, and business perspectives are considered. You can succeed in your organisation by forming a cross-functional team where HR experts define the business questions, data scientists manage the analytics models, and IT ensures smooth data infrastructure and system integration. 

Monitor and Adjust Regularly 

HR analytics is not a “set it and forget it” strategy. As the business evolves, so too should your business’s analytics approach. To continuously monitor the effectiveness of your analytics projects you must collect feedback from stakeholders, measure the impact of initiatives, and adjust your analytics models, data sources, and strategies accordingly.  

The bottom line of using HR analytics to improve the employee experience 

Prioritising employee experience is critical for any business’s success. By focusing on employees’ needs and using HR analytics to address their concerns, organisations can help create a positive workplace culture, improve productivity, reduce turnover, and enhance customer satisfaction. 

While HR analytics can be a powerful tool for businesses to prioritise employee experience and improve overall organisational performance, it is also not the be-all and end-all of how organisations should approach the needs of their employees. Data can be used to identify areas where employee experience may be lacking and to make informed decisions about where to focus their efforts. There is still a human aspect to understanding employees through traditional methods like listening and reaching out to them to understand strategies to improve their organisation. 

As an HR leader, incorporating HR analytics into your decision-making process can help you stay ahead and ensure your organisation remains competitive in the marketplace.  

Another way to gain insights that help you stay ahead of the competition can be found in employees who are leaving the business. This can be done by conducting stay interviews. Learn more about this from one of our Top Employers now.  

Gen Z: Redefining the Future of Work

This year, the oldest member of Gen Z will turn 27. They already outnumber Boomers in most organisations. By 2025, Gen Z will comprise 27% of the workforce in OECD countries. America already has more than 6,000 Gen Z Chief Executives. McKinsey data shows that 38% of this generation want to be a CEO—more than any other generation—so we expect to see many more Gen Z bosses shortly.

There is no doubt that these new workers will make big waves in the world of work. But, beyond the headlines, what kind of future are they defining for themselves and the organisations they are joining?

At Top Employers Institute, we set out to answer this question. Through a large-scale survey of 1,700 people aged 18–27 across nine countries and four continents, we learned about Gen Z in their own words. We combined these insights with our learnings from 2,366 global Top Employers to understand whether businesses are ready for an influx of new Gen Z talent in the future.

Want to explore the research? Download it now for free! Just fill in the form for instant access to this exciting research!

If you aren’t convinced yet, get a sneak peek at some of the trends we explore in the white paper by reading the rest of this article. Here is your sneak peek:

Steady Steps, Stronger Success. Building a secure foundation for sustainable growth, one thoughtful step at a time.

Gen Z favours stability, sustainability, and safety. They want employers that support them in building their careers while enabling a healthy life outside of work. When we asked them what kind of organisation they would like to work for, the top three priorities were:

• Provides me with development opportunities
• Making the workplace safer and healthier for employees
• Is a financially stable organisation

Your Wellness, Your Way. Personalising the wellness journey, prioritising what matters most to each employee.

When Gen Z talks about wellbeing, they discuss much more than avoiding physical and psychological illness. Of course, they expect organisations to have these offerings in place, but this is only the first step to them. When asked if they would accept a lower salary if it meant a better work-life balance, 62% said yes.

Connect & Thrive. Cultivating deeper bonds within your community to foster shared growth and belonging.

Gen Z is sometimes thought of as a lonely generation. Previous research shows that 19% of this generation feel lonely sometimes, a higher percentage than any other age bracket. The workplace is an opportunity to enjoy human contact. For 78% of our respondents, it was a place to build community, social connections, and belonging. 75% said it is important to them to have fun at work.

Leading with Empathy. Championing leadership that listens, understands, and inspires from a place of empathy.

Until Gen Z is ready to take on leadership roles, they are actively looking for the right leaders to follow in this changing work environment. When asked what kind of leader they want to work for, they chose emotional intelligence as the most important quality. For Gen Z, the critical part of being a leader is motivating and inspiring others. 81% said they expect senior leaders to listen to them.

Ethical AI. Ensuring technology developments that remain focused on enhancing human interactions and experiences.

This generation recognises that AI is here to stay and has some short-term benefits. However, we also saw anxiety about how it would impact the lives of the respondents and other employees in the long term. Only 60% agreed that it would positively impact their career.

Discover all the insights by downloading the report via our form.