About Knowit

Knowit’s role in society is growing in an increasingly digitized world. Understanding how society is changing means that we can be better placed to seize opportunities, manage risks, and shape our business. One of our most important tasks relates to sustainability.

For us, sustainability is about creating long-term value by integrating environmental, social, and financial risks and opportunities in business strategy and operations. Integrating sustainability contributes to creating an attractive and flexible company that is equipped for a changeable business landscape.

With a basis in our vision of a sustainable and humane society through digitization and innovation, we can be a positive force in matters relating to both environment and sustainability in a broader perspective.

Our policies reflect the ten principles of the UN Global Compact, which means that we shall conduct business in an ethical manner, showing respect for our own employees and those of other companies, as well as minimize our negative environmental impact. With a basis in the principles, we strive to develop our operations in accordance with sound business practices and correct behavior in the areas of human rights, labor law, environment and anti-corruption.

Our Code of Conduct, equality and diversity policy and environmental policy are rules which govern and reflect our work in the sustainability field.

With the future in focus

The trends that are often proposed to be significant for the future of society relate to a connected world, demographic changes, lacking resources, and climate change. These are the driving forces that affect our environment, the development of society, which companies people want to work for, and how we are perceived by clients and society.

An increasingly connected world

The development toward a connected world can be summarized as digitization and automation, which reinforce relationships, increase efficiency and facilitate innovation. New technology does not just change our way of life, but also our values and relationships.

With technical development comes threats to privacy, security flaws and data breaches, cybercrime, and growing gaps between groups within society.

The solution to many serious societal challenges depends on mankind’s ability to use new and existing technology. Based on our competence in new products and services, such as artificial intelligence, automation, and robots, we are well-positioned to take part in and influence the digitization of society in a positive direction.

New technology – lower consumption of resources

Energy, water, food, and raw materials are some examples of scarce resources. New technology can contribute to increased efficiency and lowered consumption of resources.

However, very little today indicates that technology development, in and of itself, is the answer. Instead, the recycling of resources must increase, and a circular economy should be promoted.

We have every possibility of creating new business models based on digitization, in line with the underlying ideas of the circular economy: lower input, greater efficiency, and less wastage of resources.

The climate – how we contribute to lower emissions

Sweden is aiming to have 60 percent lower carbon dioxide emissions in 2030, at the latest, as compared with 1990.

By developing services that help clients gain information on their direct and indirect impact, for instance by following up on energy usage, that provide transparency regarding the carbon dioxide impact of e-commerce, and that streamline logistics and transport, we can contribute to lower emissions.

Our competence contributes to increased efficiency with the help of smart power meters and other digital solutions. We also increase connectivity, promote the use of public transportation or renewable energy sources and provide systems that gather information about energy usage, so our clients can increase transparency as regards their CO2 emissions.

Read our environmental policy. 

We are working for a fossil-free Sweden

Together with around 40 companies in the IT consultancy sector, we are working to create a route towards a fossil-free, climate-positive, and competitive IT consultancy sector. The plan is being devised within the framework of Fossil Free Sweden and will clarify how our industry, along with users of digital solutions, politicians, and other decision-makers, can facilitate a transition to a fossil-free Sweden by 2045, while also driving globally sustainable solutions.

Environmental certificate

It is important for us to combine the needs and requirements of the client with our environmental knowledge. Therefore, we continually train our employees regarding environmental issues. Parts of Knowit are environmentally certified in accordance with ISO 14001:2015.

Download Knowit's ISO-14001 certification.

At Knowit, we have around 2,000 employees in six countries. The average age is 41 years and 25% of us are women, a number we are working to raise. Equality is an important issue and it is important to us that all employees shall be treated equally, regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, religion, etc. We regularly send out employee surveys to identify how we can improve as an employer.

Our employee promise

GROW

We have an innovative environment that contributes to personal development, with an emphasis on security, involvement, and joy.

CREATE A DIFFERENCE

With our unique knowledge, competence, and characteristics, we contribute to a more sustainable and humane society.

TOGETHER

We collaborate and support one another to create the opportunities to be creative in our work. We share our knowledge and work closely with colleagues, clients, and partners.

Increased diversity in society

In 2030, 33 percent of the Swedish workforce between 25 and 64 years will be born outside of Sweden. Team leaders must understand and manage groups characterized by increased diversity and other differences.

We can reinforce our competence by employing new citizens and creating a healthy, attractive workplace, with a positive, inclusive culture that leads to both diversity and a gender balance.

Employeeship and attracting competence

We regularly measure employee satisfaction and the willingness to recommend the workplace. Both employee satisfaction and the willingness to recommend Knowit as a workplace remain very high. According to the employer branding company Universum's Career Barometer, Knowit was ranked in 20th place within IT/computers in the group Young Professionals, and is thus the only Swedish IT consultancy firm on the top 50-list.

The healthy workplace

Poor health in the IT sector in general, as well as at Knowit, is at around three percent, which is low compared with society in general.

The largest health risk in our industry relates to psycho-social aspects, impacted by a demanding work situation and stress. During 2018, a project on the healthy workplace will be initiated to create the conditions for decreasing poor health.

The project includes information to all employees, training of managers and employees, investments in physical therapy and in efforts to promote good health.

Equality and diversity

We prioritize the issue of equality. Since 2016, we have been making efforts to make Knowit more attractive for women to work for. About every fourth employee is female. It is important to us that all employees are treated equally, regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, and religion. As an effort to improve equality within Knowit and to retain and develop competence, we are during 2018 offering a consultancy development program aimed directly at women – GROW.

Working against sexual harassment

We conduct active work to prevent the occurrence of sexual harassment. An updated plan of action to deal with offensive discrimination and harassment/sexual harassment has been drawn up and introduced in 2018.

Great weight is attached to proactive efforts, focused on disseminating knowledge, offering forums for discussion, and creating a culture characterized by respect and security. The work is based on legislation and our responsibility as an employer, but also on psychological knowledge about needs in stressful situations. The goal is to create a process with concrete courses of action for managing incidents, including therapeutic support in safe conditions.

Read more in our Code of Conduct.

Gender-aware recruitment for improved equality

It is important to us that we reach all the competent candidates when we recruit for new positions. Regardless of gender. To facilitate this, we have applied more gender-awareness to recruitment, where we work actively with our job ads, so as to reach both female and male job applicants.

Services for humane digitization and a circular economy

Our strategy is based on creating long-term value for our clients through modern and creative solutions for digitization and innovation. We deliver projects that contribute to the development of society and take the human aspect into account, as regards both usability and privacy. One task is offering competence to increase the understanding of how digitization can contribute to a circular economy and an improved society.

Our competence in cybersecurity is an asset in both internal and external projects, to ensure that data and personal data are not used in negative or illegal contexts.

Security solutions at the forefront

Management of large amounts of data in the cloud creates increased complexity as regards security issues. We deliver both cloud services and security services related to implementation and operation. The same is true for AI applications, where technology and law are closely interlinked. We deliver both technical solutions and support for managing security related to privacy.

Services to reduce environmental impact

We offer services that contribute to more efficient use of physical resources, such as lower use of resources, servicification – for instance renting or sharing – and better recycling.

Labor law and human rights in accordance with our Code of Conduct

We operate on markets with highly functional legal systems as regards human rights and environmental impact. The suppliers and sub-consultants we work with must uphold the same basic values as us.

Our corporate culture, characterized by the meeting between responsible managers and employees, is based on respect, openness, and honesty.

In addition to observing the legislation and ordinances of the countries in which we operate, we also observe governing documents, such as company-specific regulations and policies.

All our employees and sub-consultants shall protect the tangible and intangible assets of Knowit and its clients.

Ethical business

We have robust systems for preventing corruption and wastage, and to increase transparency regarding risks. This is a basic requirement in order to deliver to government-owned companies and the public sector.

Pursuant to Knowit’s Code of Conduct, no employee may accept or give a bribe. Gifts or services may only be given or received within the framework of sound professional practices and on condition that they are within the limits of the laws in force for the markets on which we operate.

How sustainability is integrated into the business model and operations

We strive to minimize the impact on the environment. For that reason, our employees take an internal environmental education. Knowit AB and a few subsidiaries are certified pursuant to ISO 14001:2015. 

To measure and follow up on how our employees travel while at work, as well as to and from work, we have performed an annual sustainability survey since 2015. The direct CO2 emissions caused by business-related travel have decreased year on year since we started these measurements.

Code of Conduct

Our corporate culture is based on fundamental values regarding a sustainable society and is created in collaboration between responsible managers and employees and based on respect for the value and dignity of each person, as well as openness and honesty.

Code of Conduct

Communication policy

The communication policy provides us with joint guidelines for internal and external communication. It also describes how the responsibility for communication has been distributed.

Communication policy

Environmental policy

In their daily work, our employees, sub-consultants and other people working under our management in our offices should be aware of the company’s positive and negative environmental impact and strive to minimize the negative impact.

Environmental policy

Equality policy

Through information, we will increase awareness about equality matters and strive for an open attitude and equal treatment throughout the corporation.

Information security policy

The purpose of the information security policy is to protect our clients, Knowit as company, our brand, our employees and our operations from disruption, and reduce risks and harm by preventing and minimizing the impact of unwanted events or incidents.

Information security policy

Plan of action to counteract offensive discrimination and harassment

Knowit has zero tolerance of offensive discrimination and any form of harassment. The plan of action describes the measures taken to prevent offensive discrimination, harassment and sexual harassment. It also includes routines for how a report or statement regarding such incidents shall be managed and investigated.

Plan of action to counteract stress-related ill health

Stress-related ill health is increasing in society. This plan of action describes how we work within Knowit to prevent stress-related ill health, and how we work to rehabilitate people who are on stress-related sick leave.

Privacy policy

In our privacy policy, we describe the processing of personal data that occurs within the framework of our operations, the purpose of the processing, the legal bases for the processing, which entities we may come to share your personal data with, and your rights in relation to your personal data.

Privacy policy

Workplace environment policy

No employee should be affected by physical or mental illness or be injured as an effect of his/her work. If this were to happen, Knowit as an employer is prepared for managing the situation and assisting the affected person.