Competence for the future

Sandvik offers its employees a dynamic and inclusive working environment with plenty of opportunities to grow. We recognize that it is crucial to attract and maintain new competence for the future and continued our emphasis on this during the year.

Sandvik has a strong company culture and way of working that are guided by our core values of Customer Focus, Innovation, Fair Play and Passion to Win. We offer fair remuneration, a diverse and inclusive workplace, and working terms that respect the needs of the individual. Our employees are encouraged to be innovative and push industry boundaries.

Competence shift

Today there is a need for new competence from outside the company as well as a need for existing employees to continuously develop to prepare Sandvik for a future where software, robotics and automation is increasingly being leveraged to drive competitive advantages.

Among the newer skillsets that are increasingly in demand are front- and back-end developers, user experience designers, data scientists, integration architects, automation engineers, digital talents, and senior system developers. We recognize the challenge in attracting such talents while competing with strong global players for a limited talent pool. Our recruitment focus is therefore very pro-active, in order to have a constant flow of candidates.

We are putting great effort into creating awareness of Sandvik as an employer and leveraging more niched online channels and forums to reach new audiences. We search for and build relationships with potential candidates in social networks. One example is our partnership with LinkedIn, used as a recruitment platform, and in 2018, 454 of our new hires had contact with us through LinkedIn. At year-end, about 225,000 people followed us on LinkedIn which makes it a strong platform for Sandvik employer branding.

Internal training

In addition to searching for new talent, we provide our existing employees with prerequisites to upskill through on-the-job-training, virtual learning channels and classroom training. We can offer our employees leadership programs, learning academies, digital workshops, mentoring, and other opportunities to acquire new skills and knowledge.

Leadership development

Our 5,300 managers play a crucial role in enabling teams to grow and deliver results. Our leadership model and our global leadership programs set clear expectations on both leadership capabilities and behaviors. The leadership programs deliver proven business value and equip leaders to lead successful teams. In 2018, 622 (500) employees participated in a leadership program. Their feedback in follow-up surveys indicates that these programs support the development of leadership capabilities and managers’ contribution to business.

Young talents

Through our Global Graduate Program, we attract and train young professionals at various parts of the Sandvik organization. Our third graduate program received over 2,500 applications, out of which ten graduates were selected from five countries to mirror our business presence in different regions. All graduates have a Master’s degree in Engineering or Business Administration. One of the main purposes with the program is to develop and prepare graduates for future key positions, and after the program they are deployed into different roles within our business. The program is very successful and we have a strong retention rate; 20 of 24 former graduates still work within Sandvik and they have had various roles within the company, such as internal auditor, service manager, project manager, global change leader and business development specialist.

Internal job market

As a Sandvik employee you are responsible for your own career development. Sandvik offers a wide range of career opportunities. Our internal job market enables our employees to move to other parts of Sandvik or other countries and grow and develop as individuals and professionals. In 2018 about 2.900 (3.600) employees were hired and a majority of the positions were posted on the open internal job market.

Share of women in managerial positions, %

Diversity and inclusion

Diversity and inclusion are prioritized areas within Sandvik and we believe that an inclusive workplace that enables people to contribute in line with their full potential creates business value.

The share of women in managerial positions increased to 17.7 percent (17.1), the share of women in division management teams amounted to 17 percent (19) and the share of women in our talent pool was 28 percent (27). 19 percent (20) of the members in division management teams were non-Europeans.

We offer training in diversity and inclusion through a toolbox that includes e-learning workshops and exercises. Our Bridge program focuses on leading across boundaries and all our internal global leadership programs include training on how managers can work with diversity and inclusion.

Employee engagement

In our efforts to continuously develop our business and our teams, we conduct a global Sandvik employee engagement survey. The survey provides a starting point for team performance dialogues and development activities, and measures both how engaged our employees are and whether we, as a company, have put in place all we need to achieve high organizational results. In 2018, 87 percent of our employees participated in the survey and we made progress in both areas mentioned above.

Every employee at Sandvik is offered at least one individual performance dialogue annually with their manager that focuses on previous performance as well as development plans for the coming years.

For more people-related data, see Sustainability targets: our operations and People key figures.