On the way to becoming:
The most attractive employer

The UNIQA Group is continuing consistently on its path to becoming the most attractive employer in the industry. With around 6,000 new employees in the last three years and a large number of strategic initiatives, we reached some additional important milestones in 2024. We remain fully committed to our goal of achieving at least 4.5 out of 5 stars in terms of employee satisfaction as defined in the UNIQA 3.0 strategic programme. In an environment characterised by diverse challenges, the competition for talent is a particular focus of our strategic agenda.

Recruitment and employer branding

The UNIQA Group’s targeted employer branding strategy is resulting in some clear successes: We received 16,177 applications for office staff at the head office in 2024. The 2,122 interviews held with job applicants resulted in 302 external hires and 104 internal transfers. With 53 per cent new appointments and 47 per cent replacements, this is impressive proof of our company’s dynamic development and innovative course. The high offer acceptance rate of 85 per cent for 443 offers made also underlines UNIQA’s attractiveness as an employer. This achievement was honoured with the silver Best Recruiters seal for the fourth time in a row.

We place particular focus on giving new employees the best possible start in order to make their “journey” at UNIQA a positive one from the moment they sign their contract. Future colleagues are given access to important information and simplified administrative processes during the pre-boarding phase. There is a dedicated “Success Factors” module for managers that forms part of our 4Us HR platform. An established buddy system supports the integration of all new employees into the company and creates a positive working atmosphere right from the start.

Active employer branding

We brought our employer brand #startyourbetter to life in 2024 through numerous communicative measures both within the company and externally. In addition to various initiatives aimed at increasing employer attractiveness – such as a 50 per cent subsidy for public transport tickets and remote working opportunities throughout the EU – the employer brand was also boosted internally through specific campaigns. For example, the Buchtelmobil catering wagon from social business “Vollpension” made the intergenerational dialogue clearly visible on the “Day of Older Generations” at UNIQA Tower.

We also continued to invest in raising our profile in 2024. Particular focus was placed on the target groups of apprentices, pupils and students, with us reaching these directly through our holistic employer branding presence at numerous careers events at schools, universities and selected trade fairs. Our appearance at Career Calling was particularly successful with the largest UNIQA stand to date.

Training and education

The UNIQA Group specifically invests in the development of its employees. A total of 305 employees completed 34 different training sessions in 2024 – both in person and through webinars. The coaching platform from external provider Haufe recorded 48 coaching enquiries, 25 per cent of which came from specialists, 4 per cent from top managers and 70 per cent from middle management. Participant satisfaction was rated with an excellent 5 out of 5 stars.

Our reverse mentoring programme, which was introduced in autumn 2024 alongside traditional mentoring, promotes the exchange of knowledge across different generations: Younger employees, especially from Gen Z, support older colleagues in developing digital expertise, while they themselves benefit from the wealth of experience of their older colleagues. The tried-and-tested job shadowing programme – which was implemented for the third time in the 2024 financial year – continued to receive excellent feedback with 4.7 out of 5 stars. More than 430 employees took advantage of this opportunity to accompany top managers for half a day.

Apprentices: the labour force of the future

We expanded our apprenticeship training in 2024 to include a specialised internal sales apprenticeship. With more than 120 apprentices currently, UNIQA offers flexible training paths: from the classic three-year apprenticeship to the apprenticeship with a school-leaving certificate to the “turbo apprenticeship” with credit for previous experience. The sound dual training programme enables a seamless career start and is of strategic importance, especially in view of the increasing number of retirements in the baby boomer generation.

Leadership development

The “Inspiring Coaches #leader_ship Journey” programme was completed successfully in 2024 with 427 participants in 40 training sessions. The new “Growing Impact 2025 – 2026” programme was launched alongside this, which focuses in particular on UNIQA’s strategy and the development of AI expertise.

We have also established an exclusive executive education programme with a leading European business school for 80 top executives. In addition to leadership skills, the focus is also on current trends, dealing with strategic challenges and promoting AI literacy.

Digital and AI literacy

We also made significant progress in the area of digital expertise: with 286 employees completing Microsoft CoPilot workshops and 229 taking part in AI roundtables. A digital skills compass in Czechia and Slovakia records the status quo of digital skills and enables targeted upskilling measures. Basic training courses on the AI Act were also developed to provide a fundamental understanding of the legal framework for artificial intelligence.

New ways of working

Innovative formats such as the “Agile Coffee” or “Creativity Breaks” offer short and practical learning nuggets. In 2024, a total of 55 teams received lean coaching sessions and 340 individuals took part in Communities of Practice. These measures boost cooperation and promote an open learning and feedback culture.

Honoured as a “family-friendly employer”

UNIQA is committed to providing all employees with the best possible work-life balance. We have undergone an intensive audit in recent months with regard to measures for a better work-life balance and were awarded the national government’s “Family-friendly employer” seal of approval in December 2024.

Goals and measures were also developed in the course of the audit aimed at further improving work-life balance, with UNIQA committed to implementing these over the next three years. These include establishing a consistent parental leave management process, support for family carers and further raising awareness of family issues among managers.

Diversity and inclusion as a strategic success factor

The UNIQA Group sees the diversity of its employees as a key success factor – not only out of ethical conviction, but also out of economic interest. A diverse workforce makes it possible to understand and address new customer groups more effectively. This is reflected in the diversity strategy, which was revised in 2024 and defines four key priorities:

1. Equal pay for work of equal value: We set a Group-wide target aimed at reducing the adjusted gender pay gap for the first time in 2024 and also included this in the variable management remuneration. Developments in 2024 were also positive once again: While the gender pay gap was still 4.0 per cent across the Group in 2023, this was reduced to 3.1 per cent in 2024. The target of a 20 per cent reduction was therefore even exceeded slightly. The initial figure of 1.3 per cent in Austria was successfully reduced even further to below 1 per cent (0.9 per cent).
2. More women in management positions: UNIQA’s Women’s Career Index – a recognised benchmark for the development of women’s careers in companies – had already reached a record level of 77 points in 2023, and was therefore well above the target value of 70. The proportion of women in senior positions in Austria in 2024 was 25.6 per cent and 45.4 per cent internationally. There has also been a woman on the Group Management Board since April 2023. Flexible working models such as job sharing, part-time management and comprehensive options for working from home support this development.
3. Inclusion of people with disabilities: Job shadowing, internships and permanent positions were made possible through successful collaborations in Poland, Czechia and Austria. All vacancies have also been published on the myAbility job platform since October 2024. We have also implemented measures alongside this aimed at raising awareness among managers and have improved accessibility in various areas.
4. Generation management: UNIQA specifically promotes young talent with more than 120 apprenticeships and the international trainee programme “My unique Summer”. Piloted in 2024 in cooperation between Austria and the SEE region, the programme will be implemented in a number of countries in 2025. Mentoring and reverse mentoring programmes provide a further boost to exchanges across the generations.

Networks and initiatives

Various employee networks are actively driving the diversity agenda forward:

UNIQA has also supported and emphasised numerous initiatives outside the company in Austria. Examples of this last year were the Special Olympics Austria, the Austrian Women’s Shelters and the EuroGames in Vienna (the multi-sport event of the LGBTQIA+ community).

More information on diversity management can be found in the Corporate Governance Report.