The 2022/23 financial year has continued to underline the challenges being faced by the global community. As the Ukraine war persists, tensions in other parts of the world continue to grow, impacting all aspects of society.
Nations are understandably concerned about their borders, national security and the stability of the international order, leading to increased defence budgets and heavy investments in modernising military capabilities to meet the growing demand for security worldwide.
The need for digitalising defence forces around the world has resulted in huge demand for Systematic’s command-and-control (C2) system SitaWare, which enhances a nation’s defence capabilities and readiness while strengthening its ability and capability to collaborate with allies.
In FY2022/23, Systematic signed new contracts with several defence customers in the EU, NATO and the Pacific. SitaWare is not only a tool for interoperability and situational awareness – it is a catalyst for collaboration and partnership, which is greatly needed in the world today.
While navigating geopolitical and foreign policy conditions is difficult for most companies, their impact on our business is undeniable. As a company developing defence products, we run the risk of becoming a hot topic in political arguments. To help us understand how we best guide our operations in the area, we have elected a new board member and recruited staff with long experience in the political arena.
At the beginning of FY2022/23, the Board of Directors established a Risk & Compliance committee. Its main focus is cybersecurity risks and export control compliance, and it oversees how the organisation mitigates risks, ensures compliance and continuously improves in these areas.
Along with our new policies on diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging, harassment and bullying and human rights, we have launched Systematic’s women’s network ‘Headway’. This is a manifestation of one of our dedicated diversity efforts, promoting equity in career opportunities for women across our organisation. We want Headway to be an equally aspirational and approachable community for sharing and listening to change and acting on it together. While it may seem exclusory to form a network for only women, we face a real and important challenge in terms of attracting and retaining top female talent – especially in tech roles. The network is a way of helping us to position Systematic better to support female talent and help us become an even better workplace. Not just for women, but for everyone.
Last year, we initiated a thorough gender pay assessment in Denmark and made sure that we did not have any unexplained gaps or bias in compensation because of gender. We continue to conduct annual comparisons of average salaries per job code to ensure we offer equal pay for equal work.
As a successful company, we strive to embody the principle that success is most valuable when shared; consequently, we contribute to local initiatives and organisations in the areas in which we operate, spanning healthcare, social welfare, education, culture and sports in the local communities where we are located globally. Organisations such as TrygFonden’s Family House for families with sick children, Macmillan Cancer Support, which provides services for people living with cancer while also conducting research and lobbying ministers, and Reden Aarhus, which supports socially marginalised women. Whether it is supporting educational initiatives with technical universities, cultural institutions such as ARoS art museum and Musikhuset Aarhus, or our local sports associations AGF (Aarhus football club) and Aarhus Handball Club, we believe in fostering a better tomorrow through diverse and impactful collaborations.
Supporting those who serve, we back veterans in Denmark through the ENGAGE Festival, and in Australia with paid leave for reservists and by sponsoring the Commando Welfare Trust to help Australian soldiers. Additionally, we partner with ‘VELKOMMEN HJEM’ in Denmark, contributing mentors for ex-servicemen transitioning to civilian careers. In the US, Systematic Inc. received the U.S. Department of Labor’s Gold Medal award for their efforts to recruit, employ and retain veterans.
Striving for environmental impact reduction, we cut CO₂ emissions as well as our consumption of water, energy and goods. Future ESG reports will include our carbon footprint, which is vital for documenting our sustainability. In September, we signed Klimaalliancen Aarhus’s Commitment Paper. This outlines measures for the City of Aarhus’s 2030 carbon-neutral goal, and which requires Systematic to transition its company cars to emission-free vehicles and support eco-friendly employee commutes. We have already made considerable strides with our electric and hybrid car fleet, just as we have compelling incentives for those with company cars to choose electric vehicles. Our waste policies are designed to ensure that all waste – food, paper and used IT equipment – is either recycled or disposed of in the most environmentally friendly way possible.
To meet the growing demand for our software products, we need to expand our workforce. Consequently, we are opening yet another development centre, this time in Copenhagen. Over the next couple of years, we plan to employ 200 new employees in our Defence division – many of them in Copenhagen, but also at our 12 other offices worldwide, including at our head office in Aarhus in Jutland.
Our main promise to current and potential employees is as simple as it is powerful: Never stop developing. It means that when you join Systematic, you will never stop developing – professionally and personally. Our employees are our most important assets, and we want them to realise their full potential while ensuring a work-life balance that allows them to pursue their passions and enjoy a healthy work-life balance.
For us ESG reporting is not just about fulfilling regulatory requirement but about making a difference with our product and services while aiming to reduce our environmental footprint and continuously supporting social activities locally and globally.