/ -- Firmenich India, an affiliate of the world's largest privately-owned perfume and taste company, today announced it is the third company in India, and the first in its industry, to be certified as a gender equality employer with EDGE MOVE status. With this endorsement, Economic Dividends for Gender Equality (EDGE), the leading business certification standard for gender equality, is officially recognizing Firmenich India for its established gender equality framework and diverse and inclusive workforce. Globally, Firmenich is one of only seven companies worldwide to be globally certified as a gender equality employer, with India ranking the highest within the Firmenich Group, standing out for its inclusive culture and career advancement opportunities for all.
"I am very proud that Firmenich India is one of only three companies in India to receive the second highest level of EDGE Certification for our commitment and progress in gender parity. With women representing 22% of our senior management we are well beyond the national median of 5%," said Satish Rao, Chairman & Managing Director of Firmenich India. "This outstanding recognition not only positions us as an employer of choice for the men and women who work at Firmenich India, it also makes us a trusted and reliable partner for our customers, as diverse teams deliver superior results."
"We congratulate Firmenich India on being the first in its industry to earn Global EDGE MOVE Certification," commented Aniela Unguresan, Co-founder of EDGE Certified Foundation. "Firmenich scored exceptionally well in the areas of inclusive culture and career advancement. Particularly notable was the high share of women in the workforce and in management positions, as compared to their industry peers."
"I want Firmenich to be the best place to work in our industry globally. That's why we pursued global EDGE certification, supported by flexible work arrangements to ensure all our colleagues have an optimal work-life balance," said Mieke Van de Capelle, Chief Human Resources Officer at Firmenich. "Globally, our female colleagues represent 40% of our senior management and workforce. This recognition confirms we are making gender balance a priority, going far beyond equal pay. We will not stop here, as we remain determined to achieving the highest level of excellence in this area."
Advancing its commitment to diversity and inclusion, Firmenich India collaborates with the College of Fragrance for the Visually Impaired (COFVI), in India to enable professional opportunities for its visually impaired graduates, recruiting them as "sensory panelists" to assess flavors and fragrances. Accelerating access to sanitation, the affiliate also recently helped Pune on its journey to become the first "Smart Sanitation" city, by developing a new 'Mobile Toilet for Her' providing a safe, hygienic and pleasurable toilet experience for women in Pune, positively impacting 150 women per day.
About Firmenich
Firmenich is the world's largest privately-owned company in the perfume and taste business, founded in Geneva, Switzerland, in 1895. Driven by its purpose to create positive emotions to enhance wellbeing naturally, Firmenich has designed many of the world's best-known perfumes and tastes, bringing delight to over four billion consumers every day. Renowned for its world-class research and creativity, as well as its leadership in sustainability, each year, Firmenich invests 10% of its turnover in R&D to understand and share the best that nature has to offer responsibly. Firmenich had an annual turnover of 3.7 billion Swiss Francs at end June 2018. More information about Firmenich is available at www.firmenich.com
About EDGE Certification
EDGE is the leading global assessment methodology and business certification standard for gender equality. It measures where organizations stand in terms of gender balance across their pipeline, pay equity, effectiveness of policies and practices to ensure equitable career flows as well as inclusiveness of their culture. Launched at the World Economic Forum in 2011, EDGE Certification has been designed to help companies not only create an optimal workplace for women and men, but also benefit from it. EDGE stands for Economic Dividends for Gender Equality and is distinguished by its rigor and focus on business impact.
EDGE assessment methodology was developed by the EDGE Certified Foundation, which continues to act as the guardian of the EDGE methodology and certification standards. Its commercial arm, EDGE Strategy, works with companies to prepare them for the EDGE Certification. EDGE Certification is currently working with more than 200 organizations, in 50 countries and 23 industries.
For more information, visit edge-cert.
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