Table of Contents

04

Glossary of Terms

6

Executive Summary

8

A Message from Laurent Dartoux

10

Bridgestone Commitments

12

Our Journey

16

DE&I Scorecard

18

Our Culture

20

Employee Resource Groups

24

DE&I in the Business

30

Communities

40

Wim Van der Meersch Letter

4205

Glossary of Terms
Diversity

Encompassing all the characteristics thatmake one individual or group different fromanother. A broad definition includes not

only race, ethnicity, and gender, but also

gender identity and expression, age, national
origin, religion, disability, sexual orientation,socioeconomic status, education, marital

status, language and physical appearance,
ideas, perspectives and values.

EquityTreating everyone the same and giving

everyone access to the same opportunities.
Working toward genuine fairness, removing

Underrepresented Groups

Describing a group whose representation
in a company, organisation, profession or

department for instance, does not match theirrepresentation in society at large. Typically, thisrefers to gender.

Job Categories

Job groupings with comparable responsibilities
within an organisation.
•

Band 6: Executive•

Band 4: People Management: Senior•barriers and providing support to those whose
opportunities have been limited by individual

circumstances and societal obstacles. Equity
does not guarantee success, but it does giveeveryone an equal chance to succeed.

Inclusion

Genuinely putting excluded individuals and/or groups at the heart of processes, activities

and decision/policy making. At Bridgestone, thismeans creating a work environment that not only
recognises and celebrates our differences but

enables all teammates to participate in a culture
where they are Free to Be and able to thrive.

06

•
•

•

Band 5: Director

manager, manager. Individual contributor:
expertBand 3: People Management: Team leader.
Individual contributor: specialist

Band 2: People Management: supervisor.
Individual contributor: Entry level,
experienced, seniorBand 1: Individual contributor: Support

entry, support experienced, support senior,
support specialist

Geographic Scope

The EMEA report includes case studies andmetrics for Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

07

Executive Summary EMEA
Employee Experience

Vision91%

Guided by the

Salaried
Total
1
Employees Population2

Bridgestone E8
Commitment,

feel Bridgestone EMEA values diversity.

our business in
Europe, the Middle
East and Africa
is on a journey tocreate an equitable
experience forcolleagues fromunderrepresented

customer in thecommunities thebusiness serves.
This will be achieved

women.

have completed DE&I

Bridgestone EMEA measures female representation by Band 2+ level and overall

training.

age, country of origin, and gender. This data has revealed that
Bridgestone EMEA offers equitable experiences in all threepriority areas.

In 2023, Bridgestone EMEA continued to develop to invest in

leadership development for underrepresented groups and multiple
DE&I programmes, including: Women in Motion, Women in Tech,
BWIN, BPROUD, and the Young Professionals programme.

experience, pay
and workforce
indicators.
08

population. The business set an aspirational target to make 50% of hires at band
representing a 6.1 percentage point increase year on year.

Female representation overall remains low (14%) due to the historically heavily
dominated male frontline colleague population, but band 2+ (typically salaried
positions) representation for women is 24%, which is approximately a 1
percentage point increase versus the prior year.

In 2023, Bridgestone EMEA trained all of its internal HR business partners

and representatives from 87% of its external recruitment supplier network

in DE&I recruitment training. The company also introduced enhanced talentreview sessions focused on succession planning for female talent at EMEA

Pay
Having seen no significant pay gap relating to age, gender, or
country of origin in our 2022 report, Bridgestone EMEA was

71%+
6.1pp

1pp
87%

Management Board level.

Bridgestone EMEA continuously measures and monitors different groups

to ensure the business benefits from diverse colleague perspectives fromacross all age demographics.

disappointed to record a 2.0% gender difference in favour of men
in 20233. Though this was only evident in higher management
bands and isolated to a small group of countries, the reasonsare being investigated and will be addressed as the team strives
towards equity in 2024.

Next Steps, DE&I Mission & Priorities

Average from 3989 respondents throughout 2023 from monthly Pulse survey
to salaried employees in BSEMEA

Going forward, Bridgestone EMEA is focusing on cultivating an even more
inclusive culture that advances equity, embraces individuality, and helps
increasingly diverse teammates, customers, and communities thrive.

by focusing on
the employee

71% of new hires4 at our Technical Center and Roma plant in Rome, Italy wereColleagues

The employee experience is measured and monitored acrossto offer an inclusive
every colleague and88%

A specific focus on women in technology is delivering positive results as in 2023,

2+ women by 2025. While it fell short of this goal, 34% has been achieved,

groups. The goal isexperience for

65%

Workforce

1

Results from 14,854 respondents to 2023 Bridgestone EMEA Employee
Engagement survey conducted in September 2023.

2

Wage gap analysis is based on an employee with average age and length ofservice, weighted over countries, business areas, and salary bands. This isimportant as women tend to be younger and have less tenure in the company.
Representation also differs significantly between countries and business areas.

34
Out of 52 teammates onboarded during 2023 including interns, temporary,salaried and hourly .

The business is excited to pursue its DE&I goals for the coming year. These
goals are aligned with Bridgestone EMEA’s values, mission, and vision, andwill create value for our business, its stakeholders and society.

09

A Message from
Laurent Dartoux
Welcome to our 2023 Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DE&I) annualWe’ll continue to do that, despite theEurope, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region.

regulatory, and economic climate we face.

report, which is the second report created and published by Bridgestone’s

Last year, we shared the work we had done to embed DE&I into ourculture. We also shared the research that informed our 2025 goals,
showcasing examples of our progress during 2022.

For this 2023 report, we’ll be sharing updated figures and highlighting our
initiatives, events and achievements, made across Bridgestone EMEA
during the past year.

I believe the report illustrates how we are uniting our efforts acrossdifferent countries to empower our people to bring their whole selves towork, regardless of where they work or who they work with.

From the beginning, Bridgestone has had a history of innovation. We
believe that this pioneering spirit comes from harnessing the diverse
views, perspectives, backgrounds and skills of our people.

Geographically, the company is naturally a diverse place to work, withalmost 15,000 people from 35 different countries and many backgrounds,
faiths, genders and sexual orientation.

increasingly challenging and uncertain political,
Why? Because we passionately believe it

benefits Bridgestone, our people, customers
and the communities we work within.

I hope you enjoy our 2023 DE&I Report as you

read about our progress and key achievements.

These include an increase in diverse promotions
and the number of women in the business,the growth of our Employee Resource Groups,(which unite people with shared interests,

beliefs or attributes), and the launch of our new
Employee Value Proposition.

This is a long-term journey,
but we’re passionate about
contributing to a better
Bridgestone EMEA and abetter society.

Laurent Dartoux
Group President, Bridgestone EMEA

However, we appreciate that there is significant room for improvement as
we strive to more fairly represent the communities we serve. We are far

from perfect, which is why we’ll continue to be honest in sharing the areas
we need to work, while taking pride in the progress we’ve made.

Our mission is to ensure our people and customers feel free to bethemselves at Bridgestone, regardless of race, background, gender, sexual

orientation, gender identity, faith or any other unique aspect of their being.

10

11

The
Bridgestone E8
Commitment
Sustainable Solutions Dependon Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
In 2022, Bridgestone introduced the Bridgestone E8 Commitment: eight

focus areas to build a more sustainable society for the future. It is a global
corporate commitment that clearly defines the value Bridgestone will
deliver to society, our customers and future generations.

The Bridgestone E8 Commitment connects to every aspect of thebusiness and guides decision making through the development anddelivery of our products, services, and solutions.

At Bridgestone, the mission has always been ‘Serving Society with
Superior Quality’ – it’s why it exists.

Bridgestone creates solutions for the areas in which our people live,

move, work and play and aspires to create value for people. People areat the heart of all the company does, and that’s why Empowerment isa value of the Bridgestone E8 Commitment.

Empowerment represents initiatives to increase accessibility anddignity for all people by promoting diversity, equity and inclusion(DE&I), solving social issues through support of local communities

and creating a corporate culture that empowers colleagues. Because

increasing accessibility and dignity (not just for this generation, but for
future generations) is what really matters.

1213

Employee Value
Proposition
Bridgestone is committed to serving society with superior quality beyond thecaliber of innovations. The Bridgestone team across the Americas, Europe, theMiddle East and Africa is the driving force behind the business’s core pillars:
uniting, empowering and pioneering.

These pillars are at the heart of Bridgestone’s Employee Value Proposition(the experience we promise colleagues and what is expected of them in

return), which guides all corporate activities and represents a commitment
to the team, the work they all do, and the impact they leave on the world.
Whether Bridgestone is pioneering revolutionary product technology tosupport the future of mobility or showing up for colleagues when they need it
most, together we can help the world discover what really matters.

The three core pillars of the Bridgestone Employee Value Proposition are:Global Human
Rights Policy
Commitment

Uniting individuals with diverse perspectives to create a world-class team

where you can thrive

Empowering you with unique opportunities to make a meaningful
impact and shape your career

Pioneering innovative solutions together to make mobility safer, more

efficient and more sustainable

In 2022, Bridgestone announced an updated Global Human Rights

Policy that defines human rights practices in five specific focus areas.
These include respect for diversity and inclusion, a zero-tolerance

approach to discrimination and harassment, a focus on workplacesafety and health, a commitment to responsible labor practices, andprotection of free speech.

The Global Human Rights Policy is a broad statement of the standards
and behaviors that all Bridgestone employees around the globe canand should expect from the company, its managers and teammates.
Mandatory training on this policy is planned for all Bridgestone
teammates within the first quarter of 2024.

14

Read more on
Bridgestone.com

Our Journey
In 2022, Bridgestone EMEA conducted an

PayWorkforce

DE&I and to identify focus areas of particular

In 2022, the business did not find pay

In the 2022 Report, representation

to age, gender, or country of origin. Theredemographics. Female representation andacross the dimensions of age, gender andanticipated.

analysis to understand where it stood on

significance: age, gender, and country of origin.

inequities across the EMEA region related

was spread appropriately across age

The intent was to gather baseline data for

was also little to no variation in performancenon-native representation was lower than

was disparity in:country of origin.

•

The employee experience: how2023 UPDATE: Bridgestone EMEA foundincreased female representation atunderrepresented groups and how people

women6. Though significant and something thatmanagement job categories, which is

gap is isolated and not present in new hires.

stretch target to make 50% of new hires

each of these areas and to understand if there••

2023 UPDATE: 2023 data showed

Bridgestone invests in talent froma pay gap of 2.0% open between men andall levels, particularly in the seniorfeel about working at Bridgestone EMEA.

will be addressed in the coming months, thegood progress. However, having set a

Pay: how people are compensated fortheir work.

Workforce: how Bridgestone EMEA
recruits and retains teammates.

The resulting analysis showed:

The employee Experience
In our 2022 analysis, Bridgestone EMEA

found that the employee experience wasrelatively the same for all colleagues

regardless of age, country and origin. Women,
however, tended to rate collaboration, value
fit, work pressure and company mission
lower than males.

women by 2025, it is now clear that thebusiness will fall short of this goal. The
team will continue its efforts to reachfor this target in the coming years as it
remains fully committed to increasing

female representation in the business.
Based on these results and further

analysis, three areas of improvement
were identified•

Continue to measure and maintain pay•

Increase female representation with a•2023 UPDATE: The 2023 report showed

equality.

focus on hiring and retaining women.
Maintain an inclusive workplace inBridgestone EMEA’s 35 countries

ensuring that teammates can be theirimprovement in this area, with no strong

whole selves, while building towards a

gender differences bar two questions inleadership population reflective of thethe monthly pulse survey where womendemographics they lead.

scored lower. Furthermore, 91%5 of the

EMEA salaried population and 67%6 of total
population feel Bridgestone EMEA values
diversity.

Average from 3989 respondents throughout 2023
from monthly Pulse survey to salaried employees in
BSEMEA
5

Results from 14,854 respondents to 2023
Bridgestone EMEA Employee Engagement survey
conducted in September 2023.
6

16

Scorecard
In 2022, Bridgestone EMEA published its first
DE&I annual report with a desire to be fullytransparent around our initiatives, focus areas,
areas in need of improvement, and progress.

Leaders across the region are also being encouraged to consider diversity in their promotion

decisions, leading to an improved promotion rate, with 91%1 of our salaried employees feelingthat we value and promote diversity – something I’m very proud of. This is an increase of

2% compared to the previous year. As Bridgestone EMEA looks to 2024, we will continue tofocus on retaining and developing female talent and growing efforts to find female talent in thehourly salary band. We’ll also continue our pioneering efforts to enhance the development offemale talent through programmes such as Women In Motion, Women in Tech and our B-WIN

employee resource group. Age and country of origin remain stable dimensions of diversity thatare necessary for inclusion and we’ll continue to monitor this.

The report, which is available at the Bridgestone EMEA newsroom,

Lastly, Bridgestone EMEA must be vigilant to maintain pay equity for all employees.

gender and country of origin.

this is a long-term journey, we are fully committed to achieving DE&I for the benefit of ourcontained the results of statistical analysis in three focus areas: age,

Diversity, equity and inclusion is something we are incredibly passionate about. While we know
people, customers, society and the business.

Moving forward into 2023, the way we select focus areas as being

evolved to align with other parts of Bridgestone. The scorecards willmeasure representation, pay practices, and the employee experience

with a greater level of transparency. This change will allow us to clearlycommunicate not only the findings, but the impact of the work done toaddress those findings. Another change from our 2022 report reflects
the fact that, since a global re-organisation, our business in India has
moved into Bridgestone’s Asia Pacific India China strategic business
unit and is no longer featured in our analysis or highlights.

It is imperative that Bridgestone EMEA’s communities and employees
understand the progress being made as the company aspires to aneven more inclusive environment.

As you review the findings, you will see that we’ve committed tohiring 50% of women at band 2+ level (see glossary of terms) by

2025 and have committed to having a leadership team that is more
representative of the entire work population by 2030.

While we’re making progress in our efforts to grow the percentage offemale hiring, we realise that we likely will not reach our 50% stretch
target by 2025.

However, although the company’s total female population remains

lower than our goals, it is improving.This is a result of our increased

focus on finding and hiring the right talent and ensuring we carefully
consider DE&I during the full recruitment process.

Average from 3989 respondents throughout 2023 from monthly Pulse survey to salaried employees in
BSEMEA1

18

19

Empowering our people to be themselves at work

That’s the inspiration behind
the Free to Be initiative, which
continued in 2023. Highlights
included:•

Running an EMEA-wide Free to Be
campaign in March with the theme‘Because who you are is what we need’.

The week was used to launch a dedicatedFree to Be hub on the intranet. The hub
includes links to useful resources andinformation on two EMEA employee

resource groups, BWIN and BPROUD,

across the region.

Nicolas Van Den Steen

Launching the first Bridgestone EMEA

DE&I Report on International Women’sto DE&I across the region, theprogress made, and areas identified for
improvement.

Holding a ‘What’s your DE&IQ’ quiz on
the intranet to encourage colleagues tomeasure their knowledge of DE&I related
issues.
•Empowering Our People to Be
Themselves at Work.
Bridgestone is passionate about creating an environment where

included embracing equity, gender, andsexuality, gender, faith or background.

Diversity is a strength, because it helps Bridgestone better represent
the communities it serves and gives the business a unique range of
opinions, ideas and talents from all areas of society.

20

Continuing Free to Be Conversations

and extending them to include panelists

people feel Free to Be themselves, regardless of race, culture,equitable business, where everyone feels
comfortable to be their true selves, every single day”

Day, showing the business’s commitment•

EMEA a truly inclusive, diverse andwhich were established in 2022. Paneland learning events were held in sites•

We are passionate about making Bridgestone

from the United States, EMEA and Latin
America. The virtual events saw panel

leaders and colleagues raise and discuss
DE&I related issues. Topics in 2023

a discussion on the legal and businessaspects of DE&I.

HR Leader for DE&I

Embedding DE&I
Into Our Culture••

IIntroducing enhanced talent review•

Providing the language learning platformsessions focused on succession planning

GoFluent, which breaks down language

for female talent as part of Bridgestonebarriers and aids collaboration by helping

EMEA’s talent management programme.

colleagues learn languages including
English, Spanish, German, French, Italian

Sharing the Bridgestone EMEA

and Portuguese, Dutch, Arabic, Chinese,

Commitment to DE&I with recruiters,

Russian and Korean. GoFluent currently

empowering people to reach their potential, and to embed a culture where DE&I is prioritised.

detailing the business’s manifesto andhas around 5,300 active users who spent

explaining the vital role recruiters play

a combined 6,500 hours on the platform

Diversity as a Strengthin helping realise DE&I goals acrossin 2023.

At Bridgestone, we appreciate that learning and development is critical to attracting diverse talent,

Bridgestone EMEA.

During 2023, the company made meaningful•progress in bringing diverse talent into theorganisation and in developing and advancing
diverse talent in some areas, including:••+800 people downloading thePsychological Safety training guide,•

Offering Lead4Success training, including

Encouraging colleagues to complete aa launch pilot for women. The programme,‘What’s Your DE&IQ’ quiz during Free towhich was completed by more thanBe Week.

80 leaders in 2023, helps aspiring andnew leaders in the next stage of their

Increasing DE&I awareness with thedevelopment and aims to embed DE&I into

launch of a dedicated Free to Be hub.

the thinking of future leaders.

launched during Pride Month.
•

152 women joining ‘Women in Motion – Lead
Inspire Connect’ programme since launch
in 2021, which is focused on improving
business results through leveraging genderdiverse approaches. Bridgestone believes
it can make a difference collectively byempowering female talent. Graduates have•campaign in EMEA saw +2,500 take part

created six taskforces to improve employee

in training sessions aimed at readying

experience for women.
•

Running dedicated Women in Tech and
Women in Production programmes tothem for the challenges of the future.
•

88% of colleagues across the business.

and grow talent pipelines.
Running our Young Professionals
Programme, which helps develop, empowerand connect young colleagues acrossBridgestone EMEA.

Launching a mandatory DE&I training
course in EMEA, which was completed by

reduce the gender gap in STEM functions•

The Be Future Ready ACTIVE8 Wellbeing•

Providing DE&I training to all HR business
partners and recruitment partners withparticipants earning a DE&I recruitment
badge and certification. 87% of HR
business partners and recruitment
partners have completed the training.

22

A big challenge for a technical center is to build an environment in which

diversity is a value that’s embraced by all teammates. With this in mind, we put

in place several initiatives, including unconscious bias training, a Young Advisoryboard in TCE and operation, Women in Tech, and Women in Production. We
will continue to nurture this DEI culture in 2024.”

Silvia Brufani
HR Leader Technology, Manufacturing, Quality

23Giving people access to wellbeing support

whatever their background or wherever theywork is something Bridgestone is passionate
about.

The 2023 ACTIVE8 Wellbeing campaign

in November saw Bridgestone EMEA offer

four weeks of wellness-related learning anddevelopment, with 2,559 participants in 15
learning sessions.

One of the top priorities of the campaign was toempower people to be ready for the challengesof the future, with a range of training on offer toparticipants, including for personal resilience.

Topics also included physical and mental healthand time management.

Earlier in the year, we offered psychologicalsafety training to colleagues, with a particularfocus on inclusion of LGBTQIA+ colleagues.

24

25

Employee Resource
GroupsBridgestone is passionate about promoting a culture of diversity
and inclusion. One way this is achieved is through Employee
Resource Groups (ERGs), which unite teammates and allies basedon shared characteristics, life experiences and interests.
The groups are colleague led, championed by the executive team, and open to everyone. In addition
to instilling cultural competence and awareness in teammates, ERGs help the business thriveby bringing unique voices to the forefront and enabling the team to grow.This ultimately delivers
stronger results and enables Bridgestone EMEA to better serve its diverse customer base.

Astrid Rahn
Chief Financial Officer and sponsor of BWIN

Employee resourcegroups are an important
step towards ourpeople feeling free
to be themselvesat Bridgestone. By
connecting colleagues
and allies, they createa support network thatempowers individuals tobe their best.”“Our ERGs provide a
supportive community
and the chance to
network and learn fromeach other as well
as offering valuable
feedback for Bridgestone
to improve its practices
in the future.”
Liesbeth Denys
Director Corporate Communications andSponsor of BPROUD

26

27

Bridgestone’s Women’s Initiative Network(BWIN) employee resource group (ERG)

provides a platform for women to reach theirfull potential.

Its mission is to champion diversity, foster

gender equity and empower female colleagues
to excel and lead with excellence.

Empowering Female Talent

The BWIN mission statement, shared in 2023, is to help Bridgestone

Members of BWIN benefit from professional

thrive, accelerating achievement, encouraging constant improvement, andThe session helped to build a sense ofdevelopment, networking, and mentoring.

togetherness, courage and self-belief.

The fully inclusive group is open to anyone.

BWIN also launched a [wo]men’s talkThis collaborative approach is key to theevent, attended by more than 140 people,group’s mission to transform Bridgestonewhere male and female leaders sharedinto a company of choice for women.

their experiences of tackling bias andBWIN structures its activities around four

working towards gender equality.

pillars: networking, awareness and training,
mentoring, and communication.

•

During 2023, the group made significant

Networking: internal networking training
was held and BWIN ran a networking

E-Coffee event where participants sharedstories and experiences.
•

Awareness and training: a ‘Leadership
Strategies For Women’ course on

LinkedIN Learning was followed bya reflection event aimed at tacklingthe imposter syndrome and tendency
for women leaders to apologise more

Mentoring Circles to build mutualrole in our future success. It will help create a culture where women canchampioning equality, encouragement and inclusivity.

Supporting International Women’s Day
Bridgestone EMEA marked International Women’s Day 2023 with theCommunication: BWIN membershipincreased from less than 100 to more than•Things kicked off with a panel discussion titled Increasing Genderso much in 2023

member from valued Bridgestone partner, Maserati. Nearly 900

on that in 2024.

•

300 in 2023. This was aided by increased
communication through a dedicatedintranet hub, Viva Engage community,
regular newsletter, three events andone targeted communications campaign
focused on manufacturing: Women in
Plants.

have seen BWIN

membership andinitiative will gather momentum in 2024.
•

We’re delighted totheme of ‘Embrace Equity’.

encouragement, support and growth. The

progress in all these areas, including:•Mentoring: the BWIN group is introducing

become a company of choice for women, empowering them to play a key•

engagement increase

Diversity – Opportunities and Obstacles, which included a panel

and we hope to build

people attended the event.

Creating a sense

Sites across the region including in Germany, Italy, the UK, Spain,

support will help

International Women’s Day breakfasts, round table sessions, online

to become a placeof community andFrance, the Middle East and South Africa held events including

Bridgestone continue

seminars, and charity fundraisers.

where women can

The day was also used to promote EMEA’s ACTIVE8 DE&I

potential.”

across the region.

Brenda Barrios

campaign, which encouraged colleagues to bring DE&I to life

thrive and reach their

BWIN Chair,
Bridgestone EMEA

often compared to male counterparts.

28

29

The BPROUD employee
resource group (ERG) is a
vibrant platform for LGBTQIA+
colleagues and allies,
embodying the principlesof equality, diversity, andinclusion.
The group organises networking opportunities,
events, and supports community events andservices across EMEA. Highlights in 2023
included:•Marking Pride Month with a month-longpromotion of the BPROUD group and

LGBTQIA+ awareness. This included apanel event with members of the leadershipteam in EMEA.
•

Running an EMEA-wide campaign in Juneand launching a dedicated BPROUD hub

on the intranet. The hub not only promoted
the group and useful support details, butalso provided answers to frequently asked

questions, an explanation of allyship and aguide to Pride Month.
•

Producing a guide for leaders on improving
psychological safety in their teams, which
was particularly focused on LGBTQIA+

matters. The guide was downloaded by+800 people.
•

Agreeing and sharing the BPROUD mission
statement with leadership and colleagues.

I’m delighted with the progress we made in2023 to build a community for Bridgestone
teammates who identify as LGBTQIA+.
In 2024, we plan to introduce further

initiatives that will increase the voice of

our LGBTQIA+ colleagues and allies andhelp the wider Bridgestone community to
be more conscious and aware of how to
support them.”

Stuart Attfield

BPROUD Chair, Bridgestone EMEA

30

31

DE&I in Business
Focus on Women In Tech
The Women in Tech programme at Bridgestone’s Technical Centre
Europe (TCE) aims to attract young female talent to the company,
increase diversity and prepare a talent pipeline using a fast-track
approach, empowering colleagues.

The six-month programme was completed by 14 female trainees in 2023
who received training, job shadowing, tours of different functions andbenefited from monthly meetings with mentors across the company.

Furthermore, 71% of new employees hired at our Technical Centre andRoma plant during 2023 including interns, temporary workers, salariedand hourly teammates were women.

Young Professionals
Programme
The Young Professionals Programme gives
young colleagues the chance to identify
their personal leadership direction.

I found the Young

The year-long course helps them develop skills while empowering

Professionals Programme

other young professionals and leaders.

development, giving me

The programme’s four modules include Leading Self, Interacting

improving my connections

Through Change.

the next step in my careerthem with mentorship opportunities and connecting them within Teams, Leading Projects Career Reflection, and Navigating

Around 18 young colleagues have graduated so far, with manyothers still completing the programme.

invaluable to my personala lot more confidence,and empowering me forjourney.”

Pascal Mueller

Trade Marketing Specialist,
Regional Marketing (Sales)32

33

Insights Shape Action in Spain•

record in areas such as the employment of people with disabilities and gender representation,•

which shaped the action plan for 2023. This included continuing to comply with regulations

•

•

•

colleagues and close family with disabilities. The programme isfamily members apply for disability certification with one certificate

what unconscious biases are, where they come from and how to mitigate them.

importance of DE&I in leadership and decision making.

Launching the Aflora Programme, which offers support toalready helping 14 Bridgestone and First Stop colleagues and eight

Holding Unconscious Bias training sessions attended by 138 people. The goal was to understandTraining on Leading With DE&I which helped more than 50 leaders and recruiters understand thesocial networks. The event aimed to challenge prejudice and stressworkplace.

launched in 2024.

•

Promoting Disability Week through internal communication andthe importance of incorporating people with disabilities into theand researching an Equality Plan for gender representation and remuneration, which will be

Highlights of the year included:

and training covering culture, age, origin and gender as well ascelebrating International Women’s Day.

In Spain, the team began the year by defining a DE&I action plan to increase awareness andempower colleagues to make a difference. Analysis was carried out to measure the team’s

Holding a week of Free to Be events in Bilbao with workshops

already granted.
•

Activating the BPROUD employee resource group (ERG) andrunning a campaign to raise awareness of LGBTQIA+ issues during
Pride Month, including an interactive whiteboard where colleagues

A session where more than 80 Bridgestone leaders learned from the stories of Google and Ikea

could share their stories and messages of support.

who provided insights into their DE&I journeys and the challenges they’ve overcome.

•Celebrating International Women’s Day and Free to Be Week withan inspiring session led by women leaders from Bridgestone andFirst Stop. 182 people attended.

As part of LGBTQIA+

community and BProud
ERG, I’m proud of the
progress we’ve madein 2023. Together,

we’re striving to makeBridgestone an employerof choice for everyone

while ensuring diversity,
equity is front of mind

when we make recruitment
decisions, so our team fully
represents society.

Diego Montes
HR Support South West
Region34

35

Valore D Partnership

Reaching the Next Generation

Bridgestone’s Technical Centre Europe (TCE) continued several DE&I training initiatives in

Bridgestone EMEA’s Young Advisory Board was established topartnership with Valore D. These included:•••

The Valore D Talks Academy, which is dedicated to promoting gender balance and inclusionand covers topics including unconscious bias, the significance of purpose, and techniques forhandling challenging conversations.

Diversity-focused development sessions, including participants from other organisations.
Access to an intercompany mentoring programme.

empower young colleagues across operations and technology

functions to make an impact on business issues and decisions, giving

Bridgestone the benefit of a broad range of perspectives, while aiding
personal development and growth.

Members discuss business ideas, strategy and processes and offer

insights and recommendations through cross-functional collaboration.
The initiative aims to help Bridgestone benefit from diverse

perspectives and innovation while contributing to members’ personal
development. Members serve a minimum of two years on the Young
Advisory Board.

Tackling Under Representationin Production Roles
The Women in Production programme was launched at Bridgestone
EMEA’s Roma Plant to increase diversity by onboarding female

operators. Participants join the company with an internship aimed totrain them on different topics, both on the job and in the training room.
Eight women completed Women in Production in 2023.

Fighting Stereotypes andDiscrimination
Women colleagues in Italy have completed a programme aimed

DE&I in Focus in Hungary

at preventing and overcoming gender discrimination and its

B-International Week in 2023 was a chance for the Hungary team to celebrate other cultures and

The course was open to everyone and included four modules giving

was Italy. The Hungary team also marked Integrity Day with a panel discussion and took part in

the legal aspects and creating an inclusive workplace throughconsequences.

enhance collaboration. Following events focused on Japan and Spain in 2022, 2023’s theme

participants an understanding of the issue, how to identify cases,

International Women’s Day with several events.

communication.

Throughout the year, the team set up a private DE&I Facebook group and ran a series of posts,
opening DE&I conversations.

36

37

Prioritising DE&I in the Middle
East and Africa
Bridgestone teams in the Middle East and Africa put DE&I at theforefront of several initiatives in 2023 These included:•
Ensuring that everyone
feels welcome at
Bridgestone in the Middle
East, whether they’recolleagues or customers,
is something we’re
dedicated to achieving.”

Kenza
Mernissi
LSCM CoE Manager,
Bridgestone Middle
East and Africa

•
•
•
•

Throughout the year, the South African teamcommunications technology equipment

several ways, including:

Hub at the Brits manufacturing plant.

•

hygiene workshop for female students in the Ivory Coast.
Offering Women in Leadership Training.

•

events throughout the year, including an

factors relating to DE&I with sessions for men and women.

and a session on suicide prevention andHolding a Diversity Cultural Breakfast in May.

mental health. The Men’s Panel also

40% of new hires were women.

teamed up with the Women’s Forumfor an event aimed at raising awarenessamong men on how to better support
women at home and at work.
•

Offering an education assistance subsidy,
which aims to give family members

equitable access to education. During2023, 228 children of colleagues

benefitted from paid school fees to the

Launching the Men’s Panel, which ran

online discussion focused on fatherhood

Bridgestone teams in South Africa marked Culture Week invalue of R1,7 million.
•

Celebrating Women’s Day, whencolleagues got to hear from organisations

such as A21 (dedicated to tackling humantrafficking) and TEARS (an NGO thatprovides support to survivors of sexual
violence).

Running financial education sessions
covering topics such as savings,

investments, tax and retirement, which

September by promoting and appreciating the diverse national

were attended by nearly 500 people andcultures of South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Zambia, andpromoted financial thinking to people ofeSwatini. Highlights included:•

rainbow flag at HQ and encouraging•

their workplace and life experiences.

Raising awareness of Bridgestone’s Code of Conduct, including

Celebrating Diverse National
Cultures

Celebrating Pride Month by raising the
LGBTQIA+ colleagues and others to share

Celebrating International Women’s Day with a communications
campaign, a ‘Break The Bias’ workshop, Lean-In Circle, and aby launching a fully equipped Learning

also showed its commitment to DE&I in

all backgrounds.

Holding an intercultural panel discussion featuring diverse

panelists who shared the commonalities and differences of theirrespective cultures.

•

Organising a Voice of Our Leaders event showcasing the stories•

Running a cultural video competition challenging teams to share•

Championing equitable access toand diversity of the senior team at multiple locations.

videos showcasing their unique team culture, won by the Supa
Quick retail team.

•Inviting the South African College of Applied Psychology(SACAP) to deliver a presentation on the integration of individual
and team culture.

•38

Holding a games event that saw colleagues at headquarters
and in manufacturing get together to play popular board
games, fostering multi-cultural interaction.

39

DE&I Brought to Life
Bridgestone Mobility Solutions (BMS),

the business unit focused on data-driven

mobility solutions including Europe’s leading
fleet management solution Webfleet, madeEmployees also shared their ‘ExPat Stories’on social media and internal communications
channels.

The employees of theBridgestone Mobility

Solutions business unit
are part of a separatebusiness unit and as suchare not included in theoverall Bridgestone EMEA

significant progress towards DE&I in Europe

scorecard earlier in theduring 2023.

report, due to differences inreporting HR data in 2023.

It achieved a target to ensure 50% of its
intern hires were women, which is an

important step in building equity across thebusiness. This commitment went beyond

interns, with 32% of overall new hires being
women, an increase on 2022.

During 2023, BMS in Europe offered specificprogrammes to support professional growthamong women.

These included the mentorship programme,
Shine Forward, the Women in Leadershipprogramme for managers, and participationin Women in Motion, Bridgestone EMEA’s
training programme for women.

Reflecting on our past initiatives, our DE&I
webinars sparked crucial conversations.

Diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging are at
the heart of what we do and we’ll continue to
strive to improve in these areas.”

Cecilia Clech

Director of People BMS, Europe

The benefits of investing in female talent

were evidenced in March, when Manager

of Business Development Mariska Matadin
was named among the top 10 women in

the electric vehicle (EV) industry at the EV
Summit.

BMS also increased awareness and support
around DE&I topics with online training
completed by 865 people.

It held cultural lunches in its offices topromote diversity, with colleagues enjoying
diverse flavours and traditions from aroundthe world. Multiple webinars were held

throughout the year, sparking meaningful

40

dialogues around gender and sexuality.

41

Community

Engaging with our Community
The Bridgestone South Africa team participated in the government’s Yes4Youth graduate

Encouraging Volunteering

programme, which aims to give young graduates work experience that will enhance their prospectsof permanent employment.

Bridgestone EMEA’s Volunteering Policy was introduced to encouragecolleagues to make an active contribution to their communities and the

The initiative saw the company take on 100 graduates (50% of them female) across allcauses they are passionate about.

Whether it’s inspiring

All Bridgestone EMIA regular full-time, part-time, fixed-term and temporaryof female talent

full paid day off a year (pro rata for part-time and temporary colleagues) toGirls initiative,

the next generationcolleagues are eligible to use the volunteering benefit, which offers one

through our Inspiring

dedicate to volunteering.

hosting training for

Active in the Community

running our social

Bridgestone teams in Italy ran multiple community initiatives during 2023
These included:•Partnering with Inspiring Girls, an organisation that raises awarenessamong school children of the career opportunities open in a diverse
range of careers. During 2023, colleagues from Bridgestone’s

Technical Centre in Rome visited schools to share their career stories
and loaded video testimonies to the Inspiring Girls Video Hub.
•

Rugby training for young people with and without disabilities tofacilitate inclusion and physical activity. The event was run with thehelp of 15 Bridgestone volunteers and attracted 100 attendees.

•

departments for a one-year placement, teaching them vital work-place skills and exposing them to‘on the job’ learning.

Other community initiatives the South African team completed in 2023 included:•

young refugees ormental disabilities,

learning outcomes in collaboration with Food & Trees for Africa.
•

we’re proud ofand aim to build

Daniel Muro

PinkDrive also extended to volunteering and maintenance of PinkDrive’s mobile units, which are•

Working with Wheel Well to enhance road safety, with a particular focus on children and young•

Running an annual disability awareness week at First Stop outlets including webinars and online

on that in the year
ahead.”

Donating R500,000 to PinkDrive for gender-related cancer awareness. The team’s support ofessential for reaching remote communities.

our community

involvement in 2023

Town, extending the commitment beyond Brits. Partnering with NGOs, the team planted trees

and established three food gardens at various schools, addressing nutrition challenges for better

farming programme
for people with

Expanding community support by planting trees and creating food gardens in Tembisa and Capeadults.

learning.

R&D Engineer and CSR
champion, TechnicalCenter Europe

Donating tyres to staff at six Komen mobile breast cancer prevention

clinics that perform checks across Italy. Colleagues also participated in
Komen’s ‘Race For The Cure’ fundraising activity.

•

Running a social farming volunteering activity for people with mental•

Collaborating with a local community partner on training for young

disabilities, which attracted 45 participants over three sessions.

refugees and people not engaged in education, employment or

training (NEET). The initiative included mentoring and a simulated job
interview with 27 volunteers and 70 attendees.

4243Wim Van der
Meersch Letter
I hope you’ve enjoyed reading our 2023 DE&I Report for Bridgestone

EMEA, which reflects our progress, challenges, and goals in promoting

a culture of respect, genuine fairness, and belonging for all members ofBridgestone.

I believe we made significant strides in 2023 to advance our DE&I

initiatives, such as continuing to grow our diversity in management
and leadership roles, celebrating our annual Free to Be week, andactivating the Bridgestone E8 Commitment through activities that

also support the mental and physical wellbeing of our teammates andcommunities.

We made significant progress in embedding our employee resourcegroups during 2023 and continued to pioneer with forward-thinking

learning and development programmes such as Women in Motion and
Women in Tech. I’m particularly proud that in 2023, 71% of new hires8

at our Technical Center and plant in Rome were women – a fantastic
achievement in roles that have, traditionally, been male dominated.
These efforts and achievements are ours to share with our leaders

and teammates and would not be possible without the dedication,

creativity, collaboration and commitment of teammates across thebusiness.

While we realise we now likely won’t meet our stretch target ofachieving 50% of female hires in band 2 positions and above by 2025,
it’s a commitment that we are still dedicated to reaching in the future
as we put diversity at the heart of our recruitment and promotion
decisions.

We are passionate about cultivating an inclusive culture. We know

our work is far from over, but we are committed to growing, learning,

As the report shows, we have identified
some areas of improvement, such as

representation in frontline leadership andcontinuing to promote and retain talent in our
underrepresented groups.

This issue is not unique to our company, but

we are committed to finding ways to attract,advance and retain the best talent.

Looking ahead, we are excited to pursue our
DE&I goals for the coming year. We believethat these goals are aligned with our values,
mission and vision, and will create value forour stakeholders and society.

Importantly, we appreciate that

improvements in DE&I will be driven by ourpeople, so we’ll continue to empower themto help us build a Bridgestone that embraces
difference and champions inclusion – which

Wim Van der Meersch

Chief Human Resources Officer, EMEA

will continue to be a focus of our people
strategy.

We’ll only deliver meaningful change by
working as a team, listening to diverse

perspectives and harnessing the power ofteammates, customers and community.

We look forward to updating
you on the next stage of thisexciting journey in 2024.

listening, and providing an environment where everyone is truly free tobe their whole self at work.

Out of 52 teammates onboarded during 2023 including interns, temporary, salariedand hourly .

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