Anonymous process revolutionised Metsä Group’s recruitment – more than 80 per cent of recruitment now takes place anonymously

Metsä Group is one of the few companies in Finland using anonymous recruitment as their main recruitment method. The goal of anonymous recruitment is to reduce the impact of unconscious biases and offer all job applicants equal opportunities during the recruitment process.

Anonymous recruitment has been Metsä Group’s main recruitment method since November 2022. It means that the applicants’ personal data such as name, age, gender and educational institution are hidden during the screening stage. The goal is that an increasingly diverse group of applicants reaches the interview stage, ensuring that the most suitable person is selected for the role, regardless of their personal characteristics.

“Anonymous recruitment was originally introduced in 2021 as part of Metsä Group’s comprehensive equality programme, and it has been the company’s main recruitment method for a year now. We welcome people from various backgrounds and life situations. We believe the best ideas emerge in diverse teams, and anonymous recruitment is an excellent way to increase the diversity of our workplace community,” says Susanna Tainio, Metsä Group’s VP, Recruitment and HR Development.

Currently, anonymous recruitment is used in more than 80 per cent of Metsä Group’s roughly 700 annual recruitments. It will also be adopted gradually in mass recruitments such as apprenticeship training and summer jobs. The latest round of apprenticeship applications was conducted completely anonymously for the first time.

The impact of anonymous recruitment is monitored closely. For example, the share of women among current recruits is 17 per cent higher than in 2021. This increase in the share of women comes not only from anonymous recruitment but also from the equality work carried out in Metsä Group. Based on the feedback from the company’s various units, the group of applicants reaching the interview stage is now more diverse.

“One of the important results is that our employees are now more aware of equality matters. Anonymous recruitment forces you to consider your biases. We hope our example can also encourage others to develop recruitment methods that improve equality,” says Tainio.

On the whole, applicants have also been satisfied with the anonymous recruitment process. Their feedback indicates that they consider anonymous recruitment to guarantee the equal treatment of applicants. However, some applicants experienced the process as being complicated and time-consuming. Metsä Group will continue to develop the anonymous recruitment process to ensure it works even better for both the applicants and the employer.

“We understand that the forest industry still has catching up to do in terms of diversity. However, our company has ambitious goals, and we are not afraid to change the course of development. One of our goals is to increase the share of women in Metsä Group’s management to 30 per cent by 2030,” says Tainio.

Read more about Metsä Group’s equality targets.