Diverse working community
Kesko has concrete targets for gender equity. We aim to increase the share of women in the top management to 40% and in the middle management to 45% by 2030. Furthermore, our aim is to have zero unfounded pay differences. We have a diversity and inclusion programme and regularly measure the employees' views on the implementation of inclusion and equity. Read more about our DEI targets
We want to promote equality, and for this reason, we have signed the UN Women's and the UN Global Compact's Women's Empowerment Principles, through which we are committed to promoting equality in our operations even more strongly. Promoting equality is important because the experience of equality and diversity increases the well-being of our work community and enhances Kesko's attractiveness as an employer.
According to the K Voices 2025 employee engagement survey, Kesko Group’s D&I index was 88 (2024: 87) on a scale of 0–100.
We work to raise awareness of diversity issues throughout the whole K Group. In 2023, we published a diversity and inclusion online course for the entire personnel.
We increase diversity in the workplace community by employing Ukrainian workers in logistics, for example. In the past few years, English has been more widely used in logistics, for example, which enables more diverse employment in the future.
A leadership incubator supports women’s career development
We want to promote women’s career development. In October 2025, we launched the second round of our leadership incubator in cooperation with Mothers in Business ry (MiB). Thirty women working in Kesko were selected: the participants work in demanding specialist roles or managerial positions, and are seeking to develop their careers. The focus is on developing leadership skills, building the confidence to advance personal career goals, and successfully achieving a work-life balance. The next leadership incubator will be launched in the autumn 2026.
Facilitating the path for trading sector work for immigrants
K Group in cooperation with local educational institutions has developed a short training programme to support the employment of people with immigrant backgrounds in the trading sector, and to provide sufficient language skills, thereby facilitating entry into the workforce. The programme combines a vocational qualification in business at a local educational institution, on-the-job training at K-Citymarkets, and learning Finnish through practical work. In 2025, 27 people completed the programme in Tampere and Turku.
Onninen Poland employs people from underrepresented groups
Onninen Poland has recruited deaf employees since 2018. In 2025, eight deaf employees worked in Onninen’s logistics operations, one in finance and one in the HR function. The objective of employing people from underrepresented groups is to increase diversity and inclusion. The needs of the deaf employees have been addressed through various arrangements, and modern communication tools facilitate workplace interaction. Onninen sees recognising different needs as enriching for the workplace community. The operating model will continue and expand in the future.
