Suominen, a Finland-based company that manufactures nonwovens as roll goods for wipes as well as for medical and hygiene products, has bagged the Index17 award in Sustainable Process or Management Practice category for Suominen’s pioneering Blind Hiring recruitment process that ensures equal opportunities, by Edana, the international nonwovens association.

Index17 awards are the highest accolade for the best examples of excellence in the nonwovens industry and took place during the Index17 exhibition, April 4, 2017.

Suominen follows the Blind Hiring principle in all new recruitments, including top management, to promote diversity and to ensure equal opportunities when applying for a job at the company. As a result, the hiring manager will receive and assess candidates’ applications and resumes without any personal data on them. The masked data includes, for example, the applicant’s full name, gender, ethnicity, and age. This minimises the possibility of unconscious biases affecting the recruitment process.

Suominen successfully piloted Blind Hiring in 2015, and after, that it was defined as the default recruitment approach at the company.

Anu Heinonen, vice president of corporate communications & IR at Suominen said, “This is a great recognition not only for Suominen, but most of all for responsible practices in the nonwovens industry, and basically, the whole working world. We are very honoured and thankful for being presented with this award.” (GK)