THRIVE: (Em)powering Women to Grow Authentically in STEM
#careersponsorship
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At Bühler, we want everyone to have equal opportunities to grow and thrive. When insights and feedback from our global women survey highlighted the need for further action, we responded with a two-step approach. We first launched the Allyship Leadership Series to strengthen inclusive leadership and build a more inclusive culture. Building on this foundation, we created THRIVE to provide targeted support for female talent, enabling women to achieve their goals and authentically leverage their unique perspectives and strengths in a traditionally male-dominated STEM environment. THRIVE supports women in growing their careers at Bühler while strengthening our ability to attract, develop, and retain female talent.
Based on the feedback we received, we built THRIVE around four key areas: Personal Brand, Business Acumen, Strategic Networking, and Storytelling. Launched in 2024, THRIVE supports 25 women globally per cohort on a 12-month development journey. It combines four virtual modules, a face-to-face event at our headquarters, 360° feedback, peer exchange, senior female coaching, cross-gender peer mentoring, and a virtual deep-dive session tailored to participants’ needs.
THRIVE is already delivering tangible impact for both participants and Bühler. Among the participants of the first 2024/25 cohort, eight have been promoted or have moved into broader roles with increased responsibility, and an additional two have taken on international assignments to continue their development. Line managers have also observed clear progress in participants’ business acumen, presentation skills, self-confidence, and ownership of their career development. By accelerating career growth and internal mobility, THRIVE supports retention and strengthens our pipeline of female talent.
This Best Practice is part of the Gender Intelligence Report 2026.
Bühler is committed to fostering inclusion, diversity and equity by enabling lifelong learning for all and reflecting the societies in which we operate, with a focus on improving gender balance in STEM. As an employer in the STEM industry, we have a particular responsibility to strengthen gender balance and create equal opportunities for women to grow, contribute and lead.
Insights from our Women@Bühler Pulse Survey, senior female leaders, and Women in STEM community highlighted the need for action. In response, we first launched our Allyship Leadership Series and toolkit, which strengthened inclusive leadership among people leaders globally. Building on this foundation, we identified the need for an additional, targeted development journey for women. This identified need led us to create THRIVE: a focused programme that enables female talent to build confidence, authentically leverage their strengths, and take the next step in their careers – while contributing to a culture where everyone has equal opportunities to thrive.
THRIVE was designed to evolve, empower and encourage female talent early in their careers. Our goal was to strengthen the leadership pipeline by equipping participants with the confidence, skills and networks needed to take the next step in their careers. The programme supports women to leverage their unique strengths authentically, increase their visibility, build strategic relationships, strengthen business acumen and resilience, and take ownership of their career development. Ultimately, THRIVE prepares participants for broader responsibilities and future leadership opportunities while contributing to a sustainable and diverse talent pipeline.
We designed THRIVE together with leadership development partner EDIT Development as a tailored, blended 12-month development journey that translates employee insights into targeted development opportunities. The programme combines proven leadership development methods with Bühler-specific content and is refined based on feedback from each module and cohort.
“THRIVE gave me new perspectives and encouraged me to step outside my comfort zone and take ownership of my career. Connecting with women across Bühler who shared similar experiences and challenges was invaluable and gave me the confidence to take on a broader role with greater responsibility.”
Karla Kröchert Ching – Value Engineer at Bühler
Key elements include:
THRIVE is currently running its second global cohort and has already demonstrated measurable business and people impact through the results of its first cohort. Results include:
The iterative design approach and continuous participant feedback have helped further strengthen the programme after the first cohort.
THRIVE is part of Bühler’s broader Inclusion, Diversity & Equity strategy which is built around five pillars: Career Management, Lifelong Learning, Connection, Collaboration and Inclusion. Our approach is built on the belief that inclusion is not a stand-alone initiative, but must be embedded into business operations, leadership practices, talent development and everyday collaboration.
Our broader offering includes:
Together, these initiatives create an integrated ecosystem that supports career development, lifelong learning, inclusion, allyship and a diverse leadership pipeline.
For more information about this Best Practice, reach out to the author:
Sebastian Kubik
Head of Engagement, Diversity & Inclusion, Bühler AG
sebastian.kubik@buhlergroup.com
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