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The Financial Times will be publishing its seventh annual list of Europe’s Diversity Leaders in November. So, as in previous years, we are now calling on FT readers to provide their insights for this ranking of inclusive businesses.
Companies committed to diversity have not had an easy few months, facing pressure coming from the US to scale back or even eliminate their diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policies. Hundreds of US companies have removed references to diversity, equity and inclusion from their annual reports.
But many companies around the world remain committed to hiring and maintaining a diverse group of staff.
Our research will help assess the extent to which listed and privately held companies in 16 European countries have a diverse and inclusive workforce. Results will be based on the perceptions of their employees and peers who take part in this online survey, plus independent data sources.
The 2025 ranking was led by Cisco, the US-based telecoms group. Second in the ranking was Erste Bank, the Austrian financial services group, while Swiss healthcare group BD came third.
As with last year’s Diversity Leaders ranking, in order to be eligible for consideration, companies must employ at least 250 people and be based in one of the following countries: Austria; Belgium; Denmark; Finland; France; Germany; Ireland; Italy; Luxembourg; the Netherlands; Norway; Poland; Spain; Sweden; Switzerland; or the UK.
The survey will assess companies’ achievement in promoting five aspects of diversity: gender balance, sexual orientation, age, ethnicity and disability. Survey findings will account for 70 per cent of a company’s final score, and three other data points will account for 30 per cent: the share of women in management positions; communication made in favour of diversity; and a diversity score calculated by data provider Denominator, on a scale from zero to 100.
The ranking will be published on FT.com in October and will be included in a special report with the Financial Times newspaper on November 6.
If you have any questions about the Diversity Leaders ranking, please get in touch by email at [email protected].
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