In total, Severstal has 26% of women, which is a relatively high figure considering the sectoral affiliation of the company’s enterprises. There are two women on the Board of Directors of the company, and there are 34 in the top 100 leaders. Women make up 56% of Severstal’s engineering and technical staff, 33% of IT professionals and 21% of blue-collar workers.

Severstal pays great attention to the professional development of women and overcoming gender inequality in the steel industry. Since 2017, Severstal has been operating the first in the Russian metallurgy and the largest Women’s Club among domestic companies, which assists in building a career through the exchange of experience, consultations, and training. It is chaired by CTO and member of the Board of Directors Agnes Ritter. At the moment, more than a thousand employees of Severstal take part in the work of the club. The women’s club was created to support the self-realization of the company’s women and help members in their career development by highlighting role models in the company, creating training programs and developing a community for support and exchange of experience between members. The club cooperates with the women’s business community Women Leadership Forum and exchanges best practices with Women’s Clubs of other companies (Sibur, Amway, Google).

There is a Pro-woman program in the production of flat-rolled products at the Cherepovets Metallurgical Plant (CherMK, part of the Severstal Russian Steel division). Its participants, selected based on the results of individual interviews and distinguished themselves in the preparation of self-presentations and solving practical cases, attend competency development classes, training sessions and team building events, and undergo internships in various divisions of flat products. Based on the results of the program, the best participants are included in the personnel reserve with further development prospects.

The partnership with the Women in Mining Russia association will take Severstal’s initiatives in the field of women’s leadership to a new level and will ensure the exchange of best practices with leading Russian industrial companies.

“We are happy to become part of the Women in Mining Russia movement and support its initiatives. Metallurgy and mining are traditionally classified as “non-female” industries. Indeed, there are many industrial specialties whose working conditions, despite large-scale automation, are still difficult for us. But at the same time, there are areas in our company where the expertise of women is in demand and highly valued, where they act on an equal footing with men and achieve high results. We expect that, together with the partners of the Association, we will attract more women to our industry, because diversity is at the heart of business sustainability and enhances its efficiency,” commented Maria Shalina, Director of Marketing and Customer Experience Improvement at Severstal.

Other partners of Women in Mining Russia include Polymetal, Norilsk Nickel, NLMK and other companies.

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