Image: Skanska
When thinking of the construction industry, diversity and inclusion is probably not the first thing that comes to mind. For years, the construction industry has been an industry with strong local presence and known for an ethnically homogeneous workforce dominated by men. With rising international competition, migration within EU and across the globe, increasingly ethnically diverse populations in the EU and US, growing number of women engineers as well as growing number of women and ethnic minorities in public decision-making positions, the industry needs to change. If not there is an overwhelming risk that it becomes out of touch with the society in which it operates, the talent it wants to attract and the clients it serves.
One company that has faced this brutal fact, and has embarked on a change journey, is Skanska. Founded in 1887 in Sweden, Skanska has been an international business since 1897. It has 60,000 employees and 10,000 ongoing projects, and its revenues for 2013 were 136 billion Swedish krona. It is also a member of the UN Global Compact.
