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Gender equality: at the heart of Leonardo’s sustainable development

14 February 2022

 

Gender equality is the fifth of the 17 sustainable development goals identified in the United Nations’ Agenda 2030. Gender equality and female empowerment are at the centre of public debate worldwide. They also represent priority targets for Leonardo and are an integral part of the company’s vision of sustainability.

In this context, Leonardo’s commitment has been recognised by the company’s recent inclusion, for the second successive year, in the 2022 Bloomberg Gender-Equality Index. This is an index of listed companies measuring specific parameters ranging from female leadership to talent pipeline, from equal pay and gender pay parity to an inclusive culture, from sexual harassment policies to being recognised as a pro-women brand.

Antonio Liotti - Chief People & Organization Officer - Leonardo

 

Leonardo views diversity and inclusion as distinguishing factors in promoting competitiveness and innovation. The goal is to help all people to reach their full potential, making the most of each person’s distinctive qualities.

The company is pursuing this goal through a range of tangible measures. These include managerial training programmes aimed at promoting an increasingly inclusive leadership model, initiatives aimed at recognising and analysing gender bias, as well as highly personalised pathways for empowerment and professional development. Additionally, there are projects to promote women with STEM profiles as role models to inspire the next generation and new ways of organising work to improve work-life balance.

Leonardo has also adopted a remuneration policy aimed at achieving Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) targets such as hiring women with Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics (STEM) profiles.

Renata Mele - Senior Vice President Sustainability - Leonardo.



Female manager, leadership and women in STEM: the statistics speak

THE NUMBERS SUSTAINABILITY GOALS IN THE AREA OF GENDER EQUALITY 3,400 WOMEN HIRED IN RECENT YEARS OF TOTAL NEW HIRES IN STEM DISCIPLINES REPRESENTED BY WOMEN BY 2025 OF WOMEN IN MANAGEMENT POSITIONS BY 2025 PERCENTAGE OF WOMEN IN MANAGEMENT ROLES IN RECENT YEARS FROM TO 15% 30% 20% 17%

Leonardo’s Sustainability Plan includes measurable actions specifically dedicated to improving gender equality, with activities that will bring benefits in the short to medium term as well as ‘transformative’ initiatives that will produce an impact in the medium to long term.

This approach is reinforced by training and orientation programmes, beginning in the educational system – at both schools and universities – to encourage not only women but young people in general to enter STEM professions, and by initiatives promoting increasingly inclusive cultural and organisational models to make the most of people’s potential and to avoid all forms of prejudice.
 

 

Analysis of women in STEM roles within Leonardo promoted with Valore D
 

To enhance its work to promote gender equality, Leonardo relies on analysis of data on its ‘human capital’ which is reported with the highest transparency to stakeholders.

Leonardo’s specific initiatives include participation, in partnership with Valore D (an association of enterprises promoting gender equality), in the first study of women in STEM roles conducted in Italy’s leading companies. The survey has created a clear overview of Leonardo’s female STEM employees. The results have been shared with the workforce to promote awareness of this issue. 

Particularly significant findings include:

  • 980 women employees of Leonardo participated, representing 18.7% of the total sample of respondents (5,254) from 61 different companies.
  • 72.8% of the interviewees said they held a position in Leonardo strongly characterised by STEM disciplines. The principal reasons for their decision to work in this area include education and specific training, and their aptitude and passion for technical and scientific disciplines.
  • 70% of Leonardo’s women in STEM roles reported that they were already interested in scientific disciplines from secondary school age onwards.