We aim to recruit, develop and retain the best talent across the business, and develop a winning culture grounded in our values and behaviour
Our approach
Our ambition in the third pillar of our sustainability strategy is to recruit, develop and retain the best talent across the Group. Hand-in-hand with this goes our cultivation of a diverse workplace, positioning our people and business for success,and developing a winning culture that is grounded in our values and behaviour. We strongly believe that supporting and developing our people are key to helping us achieve our strategic objectives as a company. We have continued to drive and embed a winning culture across the business through the creation of key initiatives, policies, procedures, systems and controls.
Creating a diverse workplace
Savannah is committed to being an equal opportunities employer and strongly believes that diversity throughout the organisation builds a strong workforce and improves business performance. Our senior management female gender diversity ratio was broadly stable year-on-year at 32% in 2024 (2023: 33%) as was gender diversity for the organisation as a whole at 22% in 2024 (2023: 23%).
We maintained our commitment to prioritising the hiring of local talent, with 99% local employees in Nigeria and 100% local employees in Niger (2023: 99% and 100% respectively). In the United Kingdom, we increased our ethnic minority representation from 40% in 2023 to 45% in 2024. This compares favourably to the 2021 England and Wales census benchmark for a non-white ethnic background of approximately 18.3%.
Fostering employee engagement and ethical behaviours
Our culture guides our people to behave in an ethical way and to do the right thing. We expect everyone who works for us to live up to this, including third parties. Our approach to ethics and compliance is outlined in our Code of Conduct and Group policies. Our compliance training programme aims to continue to increase awareness and understanding of ethics and compliance issues. All employees and contract workers completed our 2024 annual mandatory compliance trainings. More advanced training is provided to certain employees and third parties, tailored to the specific risks associated with their particular roles and/or nature of engagement.
We encourage employees, contractors and third parties to report any concerns they may have about actual or suspected wrong doings using our “Speak Up” process and assure them that all concerns will be duly investigated. Concerns can be raised through an employee’s line manager, through the Human Resources, Legal or Compliance functions, or anonymously through our confidential and independently managed “Speak Up” channels available 24 hours a day.
Our annual reporting metrics
- Number of employees.
- Total amount of training in hours.
- Gender diversity percentages for senior management and the Group as a whole.
- Percentage of local employees.
- Ethnic minority representation.
2024 performance
- At the end of 2024, Savannah employed a total of 271 people1 (2023: 276).
- We provided 20,306 working hours of training (2023: 15,858), an increase of 28%.
- Senior management gender diversity remained broadly stable at 32% (2023: 33%), as did our female representation across the Group at 22% (2023: 23%).
- We maintained our local content ratios, with 99% local employees in Nigeria and 100% local employees in Niger (2023: 99% and 100%).
- In the UK, we increased our employee ethnic minority representation to 45% (2023: 40%).
2025 objectives
- Continue to deliver our comprehensive leadership development programme tailored for our people leaders, aimed at defining the essence of effective leadership and achieving success. In 2025, we expect this to include a new series of master classes and the launch of a People Leader Forum;
- Launch a development programme for staff who are not in people leadership positions;
- Continue to refine our performance management tool, ensuring a cohesive trajectory outlining our organisational direction and the integral role our people play in this journey;
- Launch an online “Learning Management System”, which will enable us to deliver internal training and high-quality third-party content; and
- Focus on delivering the technical skills programme for field workers in Nigeria.
Rolling out our new hire development plan across the business
Savannah is committed to supporting new employees to quickly adapt to their roles and build strong foundations for career progression within Savannah. Our new hire development plan is designed to help team members identify skill gaps, align with role expectations, and take ownership of their professional growth. This ensures a smooth transition into their roles while reinforcing Savannah’s culture of continuous learning and development.
The programme begins immediately after a successful probation period and is designed to integrate seamlessly into the onboarding process. Key components include:
- Self-assessment and goal setting – new hires reflect on their role requirements, their strengths, and areas for improvement;
- Development planning – employees outline clear, actionable steps for upskilling and aligning personal growth with Savannah’s broader objectives;
- Manager review and approval – each plan is discussed with a line manager to confirm support, identify potential resources, and ensure alignment with performance expectations; and
- Ongoing check-ins and updates – regular reviews ensure continuous progress and allow for goal adjustments as needed.
Learn more about our culture and development
1. This figure includes Savannah employees as at 31 December 2024 in France, Niger, Nigeria and the United Kingdom.
