Empowering senior talent: Nurturing growth and inclusion

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At Schneider Electric, we are committed to living by our Impact company principles: doing well to do good, and vice versa – and bringing everyone along. With five generations working alongside each other at Schneider, we want to offer equitable opportunities and foster learning, upskilling and development for all generations, paving the way for the next generation. We believe a multi-generational workforce is more engaged, productive, and innovative.

Paving the way for an Inclusive and Caring Workplace

Aligned to this belief, we have several programs in place to support employees in the different stages of their career.  In addition to programs for early talent, in 2021 we started piloting our Senior Talent Program – designed to empower our experienced professionals towards owning and designing the next stage of their career in line with their unique aspirations and interests. Our commitment is expressed in our 2021-2025 Schneider Sustainability Essentials: we want to provide access to meaningful career development programs for >90% of employees during later stages of their career.  

I would like to shed light on how this program aligns with our global ambition of becoming the most inclusive and caring company in the world.

About the Senior Talent Program: Powering the talent and aspirations of our experienced #SEGreatPeople

Our Senior Talent Program isn’t just another initiative. It’s a transformative journey for those near or at the later stages of their professional career that recognizes the unique expertise and the value they bring.   

The program is anchored in career conversations. This results in a robust development plan linked to their unique career aspirations and supported by different offers including new contractual schemes, upskilling, knowledge transfer, pivoting, recognition, care, and personal planning among others.

In 2022, we extended the pilot program to 12 countries/entities. This included France, India, Japan, China, Germany, Brazil, Australia, UK & Ireland, and South Africa. In 2023 we started the official global deployment. Scaling and expanding the program progressively until reaching our SSE ambition by 2025. Through this expansion, we have started to see the positive impact through local initiatives. For example, India tapped into the wealth of experience of Senior Talent by engaging some retired employees as consultants. They possess not only a depth of knowledge and breadth of experience. But also a powerful network, allowing us to continue benefiting from long-term customer relationships.

Similarly in Germany, Switzerland, and Australia, Senior Talents are offered the opportunity to make an impact with experience and network in the Talent Acquisition team. They have become great recruiters and brand ambassadors. With a comparable network to headhunters, and they can best describe the job requirements authentically, speaking from their own experience. Other countries such as France and China focused on facilitating workshops with Senior Talents and their managers. This help them reflect and understand their personal and career aspirations, their opportunities. How to take ownership of their development. According to their feedback, participants felt valued, listened to. They felt positive about the company supporting them in this stage of their career.

The Senior Talent Program doesn’t just benefit participants; it enhances our company as a whole:

• Empowered Senior Talent: Participants experience personal growth and development and feel supported towards designing the next stage of their unique career and lives no matter what they are.
• Enhanced Business Contribution: Leveraging the expertise, experience, and wisdom of senior talent strengthens our company’s performance.
• A More Inclusive Workplace: The program encourages diversity of thought and fosters a culture of care throughout our organization.

Discover how our Senior Talent Program has impacted real individuals and contributed to our success!

“I believe the Senior Talent Conversation was a good focus point to plan and become clear about the next years of my career and what it will mean to the company and my personal development. You get so engaged in your day-to-day work that you hardly think about what the remaining work life will look like and what motivates you. The discussion with HR and my Manager was very open and while there are a lot of attention on the next generations, I felt valued in what I can still bring to Schneider Electric in the future.”

Joern Fellenberg, Delivery Director (Central Europe)

At Schneider Electric, we’re on a mission to create a brighter, more inclusive future for all. Our Senior Talent Program is just one step towards achieving this vision. If you’re nearing the latest stages of your career or thinking about your next steps, we have a program to help you grow and learn, no matter what you want to do next. We’ll give you the tools to shape your career the way you want.  

You can start by checking out our job opportunities on our career’s website. Your journey to a better career starts here!