Accelerating Action: A New Chapter in Bata’s DEI Journey

Accelerating Action: A New Chapter in Bata’s DEI Journey

At Bata, diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) are more than just principles—they are the foundation of our success as a global organization. This International Women’s Day, under the theme #AccelerateAction, we are proud to unveil two transformative initiatives that mark a significant step forward in our commitment to DEI: the launch of our Global Equal Opportunity Policy and the DEI Toolkit.

A Commitment to Fairness and Inclusion

The Global Equal Opportunity Policy reflects our unwavering commitment to a workplace free from discrimination, harassment, and bias. It is a pledge to uphold fairness, respect, and dignity for all employees, ensuring that everyone has the opportunity to thrive.

Empowering Through Actionable Tools
The DEI Toolkit is a practical guide designed to help every employee and leader integrate inclusivity into their daily work. With tools, learning resources, and personal development plans, it empowers individuals to actively contribute to creating a more equitable and collaborative workplace.

Why This Matters
As a global company with a presence in over 56 countries, we know our strength lies in our diversity. By accelerating our DEI efforts, we aim to:

• Foster collaboration and innovation across our global teams.
• Break barriers and achieve gender balance and equity at all levels.
• Create opportunities for everyone to succeed and contribute meaningfully to Bata’s shared success.

Empowering Women: A Key Focus
Empowering women is at the heart of our approach. Our goal is to ensure women feel supported, valued, and respected. We’ve been working diligently to balance the gender makeup of our workforce and leadership, resulting in an increasing proportion of women in managerial positions, including senior executive roles.

We also look to the next generation by partnering with nonprofits, funding scholarships to harness business skills, hosting competitions, and offering mentorships for young female entrepreneurs.

Within our workforce, we closely monitor succession planning to maintain a robust pipeline for critical business roles. Career support is bolstered through initiatives like the Bata Leader of Tomorrow program. Additionally, we collaborate with other companies to reflect on our practices, ensuring collective progress.

We focus on 3 pillars:

Voices of Commitment

Xiaohan Guo, Group Chief Legal Officer, shares “On international women’s day, I am proud to share Bata’s heritage that has long included women as an integral part of our workforce, since the 1930s. Continuing to support and advocate for the women in our teams by ensuring they have the space and opportunity to develop and lead, not only enriches the range of experience, perspectives and approaches to problem solving at an organization, but also enables the creation of more equitable and sustainable societies that Bata serves, driving generational change. Today, I celebrate the power of collaboration through inclusive and diverse teams —where people of different backgrounds </ -em>< -em>are able to</ -em>< -em> grow and succeed together.”

Marco Agnolin, Bata Europe President, adds "Diversity drives performance, and inclusion drives innovation. Along my whole professional experience these have not just been words but a powerful reality. In particular referring to women. I am committed to ensuring that women across Bata Europe have a strong voice, equal opportunities, and the full support to reach their highest potential."

How You Can Join Us
This International Women’s Day, let’s challenge ourselves to go beyond thinking about gender and focus on recognizing and supporting each individual’s contributions. By fostering a culture where performance and potential are celebrated equally, we can create a truly inclusive workplace.

Together, let’s break barriers, celebrate diversity, and shape a brighter, more inclusive future.

Be bold. Take action. Make a difference.