Deutsche Bahn (DB) reaches milestone with 30 percent female managers and sets a new target for 2035.
DB has now reached its previous target of 30 percent female managers by the end of 2024. With this milestone and the new project, the group is consistently continuing its path to becoming an increasingly female and diverse company with equal participation. Together with the FKi Diversity for Success (FKi) initiative, DB explained the project.
40% female managers by 2035
The company has set itself a new milestone: by the end of 2035, 40 percent of management positions are to be filled by women.
“Diversity makes Deutsche Bahn stronger, also for the major transformation tasks that we are currently going through. The fact that we have already achieved the goal of ’30 percent women in management’ makes me proud. I would like to thank all colleagues whose commitment made this success possible. Now we are tackling the 40 percent,” says DB Human Resources Director Martin Seiler.
Promoting diversity is a declared goal of the DB Board of Management and is firmly anchored in the Strong Rail Group strategy. Measures and progress are regularly reviewed.
The FKi initiative is in close contact with DB on diversity issues and projects. It recognizes companies that have made a special contribution to diversity and inclusion projects nationally and internationally. In March 2024, the FKi awarded DB the second consecutive award as the “Most Women-Friendly Company in Germany.”
DB Human Resources had developed a recruiting strategy specifically called “30 measures for 30 percent.” Now it is targeting the new goal with “40 measures for 40 percent.” Effective measures such as DB International Women’s Month in March and recruiting days for female candidates with job offers on the day of the interview will be continued. One new development is that university and school partnerships are being used to explicitly address female students about entering STEM professions and technical jobs.
To enable more women to take on leadership positions, there are special formats within DB such as individual career advice, development programs, mentoring and networking events.
As part of the so-called strategic succession planning, colleagues with leadership ambitions can also nominate themselves as successors for future vacant positions.
DB also advertises all positions with the option of part-time work. Employees can choose between higher pay, vacation or less working hours. Flexible working models also include the so-called “wherever you want jobs,” which allow mobile working throughout Germany. Finally, DB is increasingly offering job sharing for management positions.
The DB women’s network “Women at the Railway” with several thousand female colleagues is also helping to shape Deutsche Bahn’s corporate culture towards greater diversity and equality. The network has been offering different formats for network meetings for many years and is implementing projects such as the “Female ICE” that contribute to equal opportunities for women.
The company also wants to increase its overall proportion of women. Currently, more than 56,000 women work for DB in Germany.
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