Inclusion and diversity are key elements of Siemens Energy's sustainability strategy. The company wants to offer its employees a professional environment that is free from discrimination and where respect and tolerance are a matter of course. Fundamental to ambition of being a welcoming, inclusive and diverse company is Siemens Energy’s commitment to listen respectfully, learn from others and leverage the differences to innovate for better solutions. As CIDO, Maria Ferraro will be instrumental in ensuring that these values are really put into practice and become embedded in the company culture.
Maria Ferraro, CFO and CIDO of Siemens Energy: “Diversity is a topic close to my heart. I would like every colleague to feel a sense of belonging and a culture in Siemens Energy where they are comfortable bringing their whole self to work and trusting that they can fulfil their potential by doing so. All employees need to feel and perceive equality and fairness of opportunity in Siemens Energy. This is not only important to me as CFO, but also as a colleague, as a woman and above all: as a human being. Frankly it is good for our company and business, it is proven that inclusive and diverse teams generate higher returns, are more innovative, productive and make better decisions. Simply put, diverse teams create more and better impact.”
Christian Bruch, CEO of Siemens Energy: “As a company, it is of utmost importance that we are able to leverage the difference of our people, regardless of gender, background, culture, nationality, affiliation or ability. In Siemens Energy, we will use ‘inclusion and diversity’ to describe our commitment to build an open and inclusive company and to recognizing and respecting the differences between people whilst valuing the contribution everyone can make to our business. And yes, we still have room for improvement here. It starts with the fact that we have too few women in executive positions.” This is why the Executive Board has given a clear commitment on gender diversity and decided to increase the number of females in executive leadership positions on first and second level to 25% by 2025 and 30% by 2030. CEO Christian Bruch says: “This is an ambitious goal in our industry, but I am sure that with Maria’s support and leadership, we will succeed and get closer to being an organization that is truly representative of the societies we serve.”
Maria Ferraro has been with the Siemens Group since 2004. Born in Canada, she has held various leadership positions in the financial organization. On December 1st, 2017, she took over the role of CFO of Digital Factory/Digital Industries and served additionally as CDO for Siemens AG from December 2019 to April 2020. Since May 2020 she has been Chief Financial Officer of Siemens Energy AG.