People in Tech: Fanny Fremdling, SD Worx Sweden

SD Worx Sweden ranks among Sweden’s top employers in terms of working conditions and placed third in the tech industry in the Nyckeltalsinstitutet survey for 2025. But for the company, this work is about more than just strong results in surveys. By mapping employees’ backgrounds, SD Worx aims to create a more inclusive workplace where everyone has the opportunity to contribute and grow. This is according to Fanny Fremdling, People Country Lead at SD Worx Sweden AB.

For several years, SD Worx Sweden has been working systematically to monitor and improve its working conditions. In the Nyckeltalsinstitutet’s 2025 survey—based on data from approximately 400 companies and organizations with a combined total of over 800,000 employees—the company ranked third in the tech industry on the Attractive Employer Index. SD Worx is also among the employers that have qualified for the “Excellent Employer” certification, which is awarded to organizations whose results rank among the top 10 percent in the Nyckeltalsinstitutet’s assessments.

An important part of the company’s ongoing development efforts is to assess employees’ Swedish and international backgrounds. The goal is to gain a clearer picture of representation within the organization and to create a fact-based foundation for our work on diversity and equal treatment.

– The most important thing is that the survey helps us move from intuition to facts. We may think we’re an international and diverse organization, but when we actually measure it, we get a clearer picture of what representation looks like and where there are differences within the organization. This allows us to see patterns that are otherwise difficult to detect and provides a better basis for determining where we need to focus our efforts going forward,” says Fanny Fremdling.

The survey is one of several components of SD Worx’s work on equal treatment and serves as a basis for the company’s equal treatment plan. By analyzing the results, the organization can identify areas where there is a need to improve work practices and create better conditions for participation.

– The survey is one of several components of our work on equal treatment and helps us identify areas where we need to be more attentive—for example, in our processes and in how we create opportunities for participation.

One concrete example is communication. With employees from diverse linguistic backgrounds, SD Worx works to make information available in both Swedish and English. By combining written and oral communication, the company aims to give more people the same opportunity to access information and participate in the business.

– It may sound like a fairly simple thing, but to me, that’s exactly how equality work needs to function: these insights need to be put into practice in how we actually work on a day-to-day basis.

For the tech industry, where access to the right skills is crucial, there are significant opportunities in recruiting employees with diverse backgrounds and experiences. Fanny believes that a broader recruitment base not only provides access to a wider range of skills, but also to perspectives that strengthen the business.

– The great opportunity, of course, is to broaden our talent pool. If we recruit only from a limited segment of the labor market, we miss out on both skills and perspectives. For an international company, diverse experiences and perspectives are also a strength in and of themselves.

But successfully attracting international talent is only part of the challenge. It is just as important to create a work environment where employees from diverse backgrounds feel included and have the opportunity for long-term growth.

– The challenge is that it’s not enough to attract international talent. We must also create a work environment where people feel they can contribute, grow, and advance their careers on equal terms. That’s where issues such as language, culture, networking, leadership, and inclusion become important. The true measure of success, therefore, is not just who we manage to recruit, but who chooses to stay and grow with us.

As part of its development efforts, SD Worx also compares its survey results with those of other companies in the industry. This allows the company to place its own results in a broader context, understand the challenges common to the industry, and identify areas where it can learn from others.

– Above all, benchmarking gives us perspective. It helps us better understand what is specific to us and what reflects the industry or the labor market as a whole. It also helps us identify areas where we’re doing well and areas where we should be more curious and learn from others. For us, it’s less about creating a ranking and more about understanding our own position and development.

Despite the strong results in the Key Figures Institute’s surveys, Fanny views the work on diversity and inclusion as something that needs to be continually developed. Ahead of the next survey, she hopes, above all, to see that the insights have led to concrete improvements within the organization.

– Above all, I want us to be able to see that we’ve taken the next step from measurement to impact. Not only that representation is moving in the right direction, but also that we’re getting even better at creating an organization where different backgrounds and perspectives are actually given space.

Ultimately, this work is not just about the structure of the organization, but about the opportunities employees have to participate, grow, and succeed.

– The goal is not diversity for diversity’s sake, but rather to ensure that everyone has good and equal opportunities to contribute, grow, and succeed here.