Success through Diversity
Diversity & Inclusion are key to corporate success. The St.Gallen Diversity Benchmarking of the University of St.Gallen supports you on this way.
St.Gallen Diversity Benchmarking
Diversity and an open corporate culture are important drivers of innovation and successful collaboration. Mixed teams perform better in innovation processes. Diversity is also important in view of current demographic developments. With a diverse and inclusive culture, you can overcome skills shortages, remain attractive as an employer, and manage your pipeline for key leadership positions.
The St.Gallen Diversity Benchmarking is a product of the University of St. Gallen.

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Target Audience
The benchmarking is designed for companies from any sector with at least 100 employees. An internal organizational benchmarking is possible for companies with at least 500 employees.
Benefits of the St.Gallen Diversity Benchmarking
For more than 10 years, we have been collecting diversity and inclusion key performance indicators KPI for the St.Gallen Diversity Benchmarking. These figures are analyzed objectively, efficiently and with reference to HR processes. The following diversity dimensions are evaluated:
- Gender
- Age
- Nationality
- Language
- Level of employment
- Education
You will receive a Benchmarking report that compares all participating organisations. Each company’s results are displayed individually and anonymously, allowing you to compare your company with others. The following sample gives you an idea of what the Benchmarking report contains. Upon request, we can also provide an individual multi-year report, showing your company’s individual progress over time.
Every year we focus on one topic.
Focus topic 2023: The full-time norm: It’s time to rethink working hours.
Results
You receive a benchmarking report that compares all participating companies. Each company is presented individually and anonymously. You can see where your company stands in comparison with other companies. Under the following link, you will find an example of a benchmarking report. A multi-year report (individual report per company) showing the development of your own company over time is also available on request.
The benefits of the St. Gallen Diversity Benchmarking are manifold:
Objective
The St.Gallen Diversity Benchmarking builds on objective, scientifically based analysis. We work with anonymous raw HR data from which we derive relevant key figures.
Practical
The St.Gallen Diversity Benchmarking not only delivers facts but also provides concrete recommendations for activities ranging from recruitment of talents of diverse groups to pipeline management and career planning. Conclusive figures and sector-specific analyses ensure practical relevance for participating companies.
Recognized
The St. Gallen Diversity Benchmarking sets the independent standard for diversity analysis in Switzerland. Renowned companies and trade associations (e.g. the Employers Association of Banks in Switzerland) rely on our benchmarking.
Economical
St.Gallen Diversity Benchmarking is efficient and economical. Simply export data records in a conventional format from your company’s HR management software. The effort on your end is between 6 and 8 hours.

Participants in the St.Gallen Diversity Benchmarking receive the label “St.Gallen Diversity Benchmarking – We participate” from the University of St.Gallen.
Extract of companies that participated in 2022
Case Examples
Our work is practice- and solutions-oriented. Our clients are renowned companies and organizations from a variety of economic sectors.
Head of Diversity & Inclusion, Helvetia Insurance
«In order to promote diversity in a company, detailed analysis and related key figures are an important starting point. The St.Gallen Diversity Benchmarking measures a company’s progress over time on the one hand and a comparison with the industry on the other. Based on this, we can get started with targeted measures to address key diversity & inclusion issues.»
Head of the Centre for Equality of Women and Men, City of Bern
«More Women in Management – easier said than done! Is there a lack of female applicants? Is the development of internal up-and-coming talent working as it should? And can we actually keep talented women? The internal benchmarking provides differentiated answers to these and many more questions and allows for tailored interventions.»
Country HR Manager, ABB Switzerland
«The HSG Diversity Benchmarking creates valuable transparency and clear feedback on our efforts and progress towards more diversity in the company. We are building further activities and measures on these results.»
How to participate
The Benchmarking requires little effort on your part. Simply send us your anonymized HR data by mid-April and receive a detailed benchmarking report in July. The report contains concrete recommendations and a direct comparison of your organization with other anonymous companies along meaningful dimensions. These can be from the same industry or from various sectors.
Costs
The cost of participating in the benchmarking is CHF 3’500.
Required data
Participating companies export data records from their HR management software in a conventional format and supplement these with data on job applications (if available) and diversity measures. The data are encrypted for transmission and then securely saved on a local server of the University of St. Gallen, which only benchmarking project team members have access to.
Here you will find a detailed description of what the requirements for your personnel data are.

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Your efforts
The effort on your end is limited to collecting the necessary data. Based on our experience, this requires only 6 to 8 hours.
Additional services
The Competence Centre for Diversity & Inclusion of the University of St.Gallen (CCDI) is your partner for effective Diversity & Inclusion management. We offer customized consulting to help your company reach its D&I goals. Our team has over 20 years of experience in this field and wants to put its expertise to work for you. In addition to the St. Gallen Diversity Benchmarking, we also have expertise in the following areas:
News
What’s happening in the area of Diversity & Inclusion? What does the latest research show? Read the latest news here.
For more information, please visit the Competence Centre for Diversity & Inclusion (CCDI) of the University of St. Gallen online. Get the latest information on events and news here.
About us
The Competence Centre for Diversity & Inclusion (CCDI) is part of the Research Institute for International Management at the University of St.Gallen (FIM-HSG). CCDI conducts research, provides consulting and offers continuing education for managers and HR professionals. We focus simultaneously on the benefits of diversity AND fairness. Using a variety of methods, we identify and address real challenges, develop effective measures, and offer customized services based on our clients’ needs. Our flagship product is the St.Gallen Diversity Benchmarking.
Our team is composed of Diversity & Inclusion experts who bring a variety of experience and educational backgrounds. We collaborate closely with companies and associations in order to ensure practice-oriented and implementable solutions.
Prof. Dr. Gudrun Sander (right) and Dr. Ines Hartmann are co-directors of the CCDI.
Prof. Dr. Gudrun Sander has been working with companies in the field of diversity management, inclusion, equal opportunities, etc., for more than 30 years. She is the author of numerous articles and books and a trainer/lecturer at the University of St. Gallen, in further education and in-house training.
Dr. Ines Hartmann is responsible for the St.Gallen Diversity Benchmarking. She leads numerous projects on inclusive leadership and diversity management. She teaches at universities and other schools on the topics of D&I and strategic management and publishes on topics such as diversity management and inclusive organisational culture.
Partners
Working with a wiede range of associations and companies increases the relevance and impact of the St.Gallen Diversity Benchmarking. The Federal Office for Gender Equality supports the Benchmarking with financial assistance in accordance with the Gender Equality Act.
Interested?
Online info sessions
Are you interested in participating in the St. Gallen Diversity Benchmarking, but would like to learn more about our offer?
Join us for an online info session on the St. Gallen Diversity Benchmarking, where we’ll provide an overview of the most important information, along with plenty of time for Q&A.
We’ll use practical examples to illustrate our approach and the various analyses that your company could benefit from, including an overview of the process, required data and investment on your part.
Please register using the following links:
Zur Zeit ist keine Informationsveranstaltung geplant, aber wir würden uns freuen, Ihnen in einem persönlichen Gespräch weitere Informationen geben zu können.
Would you like to participate in the St.Gallen Diversity Benchmarking? I look forward to hearing from you.
Dr. Ines Hartmann
Co-Director & Senior Project Manager
ines.hartmann@unisg.ch
+41 71 224 24 18
For all media inquiries regarding the St.Gallen Diversity Benchmarking please contact:
Aída Germann
Marketing Manager
How may I help you?
Dr. Ines Hartmann
Co-Director & Senior Project Manager