Prysmian Group Commits to Hiring 500+ Women in STEM

Prysmian Group, the world leader in the energy and telecom cable industry, has committed to hiring at least 500 women in STEM roles by 2030. Through the engagement of STEM-focused women’s organizations and investment in training and development, Prysmian hopes to attract new talent to help bridge the gender gap in its STEM career opportunities.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, nationally, STEM occupations make up nearly seven percent of jobs and play an essential role in innovation and global competitiveness. Of that seven percent, women account for only 27 percent of STEM workers, despite comprising nearly half of the U.S. workforce.

“As Prysmian continues to build its global network of Women in STEM, we’re working to bridge the gender gap that we typically see in these career paths,” said Andrea Pirondini, CEO of Prysmian Group North America. “We’re introducing mentors, implementing new targeted programming and training, and ultimately, building momentum for this initiative. We hope not just to meet our goal but to far exceed the number of women we hire over the next few years.”

To zero in on what it takes to attract quality candidates to Prysmian’s STEM opportunities, the company has partnered with organizations focused on advancing women in STEM, including Women in Technology, Women in Manufacturing, Society of Women Engineering, Betterteam and DirectEmployers.

Alongside its strategic recruitment strategies, Prysmian invests in programs designed with women in STEM front of mind.

“The company has been very supportive of me and my STEM role here,” said Carli Whitfield, High Voltage Type Test and Laboratory Database Specialist at Prysmian Group North America. “I’m very grateful to have been a part of different training opportunities, such as manufacturing fundamentals training and Six Sigma Greenbelt. I’m glad that Prysmian takes time to invest in its people.”

Prysmian’s STEM-focused training program, STEM IT, helps employees develop relevant career skills and unlock their full potential at the company over five years. With a branch specifically tailored to supporting women in STEM, the program offers training that tackles relevant topics, such as being a woman in a male-dominated manufacturing environment.

“Many young women can feel intimidated to enter the STEM world because it’s been so dominated by men in the past,” said Isell Fuentes Santos, Sustainability and Environmental Manager at Prysmian Group North America. “To see Prysmians efforts supporting women who want to be in STEM roles is very exciting and I hope that young women and girls can feel more comfortable in pursuing these career paths.”

In 2022, Prysmian awarded its first Women in STEM Scholarships, six awards of $2,500 each for the educational pursuit of a STEM-related field.

“Prysmian is building a pipeline for present and future STEM candidates that starts with our Women in STEM Scholarships and threads all the way through to our women in senior leadership roles,” said Nikki Slyman, Business Units and Head Office Human Resource Director at Prysmian Group North America. “It is exciting to see how these women and their passions can really come to life here at Prysmian Group.”

Alongside Prysmian’s commitment to hiring 500 women into STEM roles, the company has also attached significant social ambition goals to its hiring process, including a 50/50 split between women and men in new hiring, commitment to at least 30 percent of senior leadership roles to be held by women and a zero pay gap. The company’s global maternal leave policy offers new mothers a minimum standard of twelve weeks of paid leave.

“As a woman working in manufacturing at Prysmian, you know your voice and opinion will be heard. Gender is not a hindrance here,” said Priscila Kimberlim, Continuous Improvement Specialist at Prysmian Group North America. “I am sure the company’s goal to hire 500 more women in STEM by 2030 will bring a lot of value to our company and create a new atmosphere in our plants.”

Learn more about Women in STEM at Prysmian Group.