Fair and attractive employer
Through its values and culture, GF encourages all employees to cooperate, grow and take pride in their work.
Engaged and motivated employees represent GF's values and are the driving force for its long-term success. The company therefore strives to promote an inspiring work culture centered on its values related to "Caring", "Learning" and "Performance". Through its values and culture – reinforced through ongoing training and development – the company encourages all employees to cooperate, grow and take pride in their work.
Three values underpin the company's culture
+ Caring is about being part of a team.
+ Learning is about having an open mind.
+ Performance is about speed and excellence.
In 2022, with the support of about 300 "Change Agents", some 2’400 employees took part in experiments focusing on how to embed these three values in their day-to-day work as part of the continuing roll-out of the Culture Movement.
Employee engagement
In December 2022, GF Casting Solutions conducted an employee survey that 2’228 employees participated in, with 79% indicating the division as an "employer of choice". Though this is slightly below 80% overall, this result shows that the division is on the right track. GF Casting Solutions continues to work on raising this score with corresponding action plans for each site. GF Machining Solutions carried out a similar survey in November 2022 that had a participation rate of 65.8% and an employee satisfaction rate of 74.1%. Local management teams have started to work on improvement measures to raise employee satisfaction. GF Piping Systems did not carry out an employee engagement survey in 2022. In 2023, GF will conduct a global survey.
By 2025:
Actions for promoting GF as an attractive employer
Throughout 2022, the company continued to promote its vision and culture through various channels. One example of this was an employer branding campaign on social media that showcased employees and their experience, giving potential recruits deeper insights into the employee experience. The campaign also sought to inspire current employees to further their careers within the company.
In April, more than 3’000 employees took part in a pulse check survey to gauge how well the three values related to "Caring", "Learning" and "Performance" are embedded in daily working life. The results show that the cultural evolution is progressing well and that most employees are familiar with the values. The company will continue to promote these during 2023.
Corporate HR launched a global employer attractiveness challenge where local HR teams shared their experiences with ideas and events they have implemented. When they shared their experience, each team had the chance to receive points from a jury consisting of representatives from all divisions. At the Corporate HR summit in April 2022, the most successful team (from Shawnee, OK, US) won CHF 1’000 to fund their events. These measures strengthened employee retention and positively impacted employee turnover.
Learning and development
As part of its focus on innovation, GF places great importance on the professional and personal growth of its employees. In 2022, to enable employees to learn or refresh their knowledge at their own pace, HR strengthened the global learning management system, "MyLearning@GF", by putting courses online that were previously taught in person. They include "The 4 Disciplines of Execution" (4DX) and "The 7 Habits of Effective People" (7 Habits).
In 2022, approximately 8’200 employees engaged with the online platform. In addition, over 950 employees took part in in-person courses as part of the GF Academy – all of these were made available on "MyLearning@GF".
Employee training
|
Course or platform |
Number of trainings |
Number of participants |
|
The 4 Disciplines of Execution (4DX) |
31 |
368 |
|
7 Habits |
25 |
346 |
|
GF Academy |
14 |
241 |
Training and apprenticeships
The Swiss system of vocational education and training is one of the hallmarks of the country's economic success. As part of its commitment to innovation, the company has been training apprentices in technical and commercial professions for over 100 years.
Due to its effectiveness in developing young people who want to grow their skills in a trade, GF aims to expand the Swiss model of apprenticeships to other locations around the globe. In 2022, 375 apprentices across its Austrian, German, Swiss and US sites participated in this valuable dual approach to professional education and on-the-job training. Part of the success of this approach lies in its ability to nurture young people's abilities.
Number of apprentices
Number of apprentices per country
Embracing the next generation of talent
GF recognizes that upcoming generations bring new ideas, energy and perspectives in their approach to work. The company therefore strives to build trust and cooperation between different generations of employees. It encourages them to learn from one another through a variety of mentoring and coaching processes.
The company promotes itself as an attractive employer in a variety of ways. This includes job and student fairs, open days for schools, apprentice exchanges between divisions, as well as collaborations with universities and advanced technical colleges around the world.
The company has joined UNITECH, a pan-European network that makes it possible for companies to recruit top graduates from some of the leading technical universities in Europe. These engineering students are required to complete a case study focusing on leadership and management scenarios. The students then undergo a yearly program that ends with an internship at GF or other companies.
In Switzerland, as part of National Future Day, the company invited school-aged children to join their parents for a day to gain insights into day-to-day life in the workplace. Over 80 children took part in 2022 at many sites across the country.
Employee fluctuation
In 2022, the global employee fluctuation rate was 13.8% (compared with 14.6% in 2021). Throughout the year, the company took concrete measures to improve talent retention, such as providing employees with a talent management platform where they can learn and develop their skills in line with the corporate values.
Employee representation
GF respects its employees’ right to join employee representation bodies. Many of these agreements exist in various locations and entities around the world, including Austria, China, France, Germany, Japan, Sweden, Switzerland and Taiwan. In countries where the law grants employees the right of codetermination, this right is protected and valued. In 2022, 58% of the company's employees were represented by a collective bargaining agreement.