Sustainability
We are building a smarter society
Sustainability is an integral part of Unikie’s business as a builder of a smart society. Our main sustainability impact is related to the technological solutions we provide to help our customers to contribute to the sustainability of their own operations. We help our customers to become more efficient and thus reduce their emissions. We also build a safer society by enabling devices and data to be securely connected across networks. A significant part of our own emissions comes from commuting, and we offer good teleworking opportunities to help reduce this.
We are committed to doing business with integrity and to providing a working environment free from discrimination and harassment. Unikie does not tolerate bribery or corruption in any form. We have a whistleblowing reporting channel operated by an external service provider to report potential misconduct.
Unikie’s accountability and way of doing business is guided by shared values: together, clients and results first, competence, honesty and responsibility. In addition to complying with the law and good corporate governance, we follow our own Code of Conduct.
Our Main Themes of Corporate Responsibility
Building a smart, environmentally friendly, and safe society
Our most significant impact on the environment comes from our solutions to help emission-intensive industries, such as manufacturing or maritime and port industries, to become more efficient and thus reduce their energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.
By making port and terminal operations smarter and improving their data flow, Unikie can also make a significant contribution to their environmental performance. Unikie’s autonomous driving solutions allow people and goods to be transported more efficiently and with fewer emissions. In addition, space utilization in a car park or auto factory, for example, can be made more efficient.
We build a safer society by providing public and defense players with data security solutions that enable the security and integrity of critical societal functions, as well as secure communications for public authorities. In addition, we provide protective and data security solutions for networks and applications in sectors such as telecommunications and the automotive industry.
Responsible use of artificial intelligence and digitalization
System and data security is the foundation of all our technology platforms. Our own operations also meet the highest security standards for the European automotive industry (TISAX AL3 level). We also require our suppliers to comply with the same requirements, and we are continuously improving our security.
We recognize that AI decisions can have ethical implications. We use data and AI responsibly and ethically to drive our customers’ business. Our code of ethics allows machines to process data, but decisions are always made by humans.
We store and process personal data in accordance with the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and our Privacy Policy. We will clearly explain to the user what the data will be used for and how it will be processed.
A major employer in the IT sector, contributing to the Finnish technology competence
At the end of 2022, Unikie had 462 employees in seven different countries and 14 locations. Our workforce has undergone strong growth with an increase of about 20 % in 2022. Our subcontractors amounted to over 100 persons at the end of 2022.
In Finland, we are a major employer in the IT sector. Although we have been successful in recruiting new talent, the software skills shortage in Finland remains a challenge. We also have an important role to play in increasing the sector’s competence capital. In 2021, we launched our own mentoring program to educate recent graduates or early-career software developers to become top software engineers.
According to the feedback we receive from our recruiters, the factors that make Unikie an attractive employer include interesting projects and the opportunity to work for big, well-known clients, good salary levels, a fair and transparent remuneration model based on skills, and the company’s growth prospects.
A competent, healthy, and fair working community
We treat all employees equally, regardless of gender, ethnicity, religion, age, sexual orientation, or similar factors. We aim to ensure that our employees meet the demands of the job and of our customers to the best of their abilities, and we want to play our part in supporting and promoting diversity.
In 2022, Unikie had employees representing more than 20 nationalities. Women made up about 10 % of our workforce and around a fifth of our extended management team. As in the industry in general, the challenge for Unikie is that women continue to apply for jobs and training in the industry at a lower rate than men.
Our culture emphasizes working together and constantly learning from each other. In our self-directed organization, we seek to give teams more responsibility and power to decide on their own activities based on our common direction and principles.
We encourage our employees to develop their skills and provide them with training in a flexible way, tailored to the specific development needs of each individual. We offer the opportunity to complete, for example, IT certifications alongside work. However, the best skills are transferred from one person to another through practical project work, and from the most experienced to the younger ones through mentoring and coaching.