Calling all women in tech!

Cognizant is committed to supporting gender diversity across the workplace, leveling the playing field for women in tech careers. The Women Empowered initiative aims to engage smart tech women here in the Nordics. Want to join us?

Why do diversity and inclusion matter? While it certainly feels good, it is also good for the business. In 2015, McKinsey published an influential study entitled “Why diversity matters”, which, among other things, showed that companies with greater gender diversity performed 15% better than companies with less gender diversity. 

Since then, study after study has shown that diversity leads to more creative teams and increases a company’s bottom line. A variety of demographics and backgrounds is a vital factor in innovation. And as innovation is part of Cognizant’s DNA, so is our will to empower and accelerate our teams’ innovation capabilities through greater diversity.

Praised for diversity

All this matters to me on a personal level too. Early on in my career, I agreed to participate in a female development program. I learned a lot and started forming an important and useful network. Beyond growing my confidence, I also understood the importance of collaborating with other women to share and learn from each other. 

Cognizant globally is a diverse company already: not once but twice have we been named to the Forbes list of Best Employers for Diversity in the U.S., based on survey responses from employees. Diversity and inclusion are critical components of our success everywhere. However, there is always more to do.

The WE initiative

This is where the Women Empowerment (WE) initiative comes in. It is part of Cognizant’s overall strategy to work on diversity and inclusion. The aim is to facilitate more gender diversity at Cognizant in the Nordics by supporting the current female workforce and, at the same time, supporting the generation of a pipeline of new candidates.

On the agenda are different activities to promote local female colleagues and to empower women in the company to apply for manager positions, as well as social gatherings and networking – all through creating an engaged community. Uttermost, we want to create conditions for everyone to thrive and to build world-class diverse and inclusive teams, where top talents chose to remain and build a career.

CEO commitment ensures dedication

Besides the WE initiative, I recently signed the CEO Commitment in Norway. The Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Pledge aims to bring together key leaders, decision-makers and personalities from businesses and organizations who believe in the value of diversity in the workplace.

This ensures that I will keep diversity and inclusion a top priority here at Cognizant. From my career, I know that this requires behavioral change; from how organizations operate to individual ways of working. But there is no alternative route for businesses that want to thrive: the future of work is inclusive.

Check out our available positions in the Nordics here.