PUMA success story

Puma's journey to gender neutral pay

A global leader in sportswear, PUMA operates in more than 120 countries with over 22,000 employees. The company has made pay equity a strategic priority—anchoring its “People First” values in measurable action. With a focus on fairness and transparency, PUMA has transformed how compensation is defined, analyzed, and communicated globally.

PUMA’s journey has led to real results: near-zero gender pay gaps, formal recognition from Fair Pay Innovation Lab (FPI), and certifications across 10 entities. In 2022, PUMA was named Company of the Year at the German Diversity Awards, and in 2024 was recognized as a Global Top Employer.

Challenge

Creating pay equity across a diverse global workforce

Maintaining compensation fairness across decentralized markets with varying labor laws and cultural norms was a major challenge for PUMA. Employees increasingly sought clarity around how pay decisions were made, and regulatory momentum—such as the EU Pay Transparency Directive—made inaction a business risk.

To stay ahead, PUMA needed to unify compensation data, establish consistent frameworks, and ensure equal pay for equal work—regardless of gender, geography, or personal circumstances like parental leave or sabbaticals. 

Solution

Building a foundation for transparency and trust

PUMA turned to PayAnalytics by beqom in January 2023, seeking an enterprise-grade solution that could support ongoing audits, align with regulatory frameworks, and provide real-time reporting. Integrated with Workday, the platform allowed for centralized compensation analysis across regions.

Within weeks, the platform was analyzing pay data for over 19,000 employees. PUMA emphasized internal equity over external benchmarks, conducting regression analyses by job family and level to identify gaps. Independent experts from FPI validated the methodology and confirmed alignment with global standards.

Certifications followed swiftly. Within two months, PUMA became just the second company in Germany to receive the Universal Fair Pay Check. Additional certifications were earned in Sweden, Spain, and the Middle East—affirming a repeatable and global approach.

“PayAnalytics by beqom accelerated our pay equity journey at Puma. We went from demo in 2022 to our first pay equity certification in just few months,” said Gulya Bakeberg, Senior Director People & Organization EMEA. “The functionality of the software is user-friendly and yet very instrumental for analysis and decision making.”

Benefits

Closing pay gaps—and keeping them closed

With PayAnalytics by beqom, PUMA institutionalized pay equity as part of its operating model—ensuring fairness is no longer an annual campaign, but a continuous capability.

• Closed gender pay gaps to within +/-1% across 10 entities.
• Certified as a “Universal Fair Pay Developer” by FPI in Germany, Spain, Sweden, and the Middle East.
• Standardized compensation framework rolled out across 22+ countries.
• Increased transparency and trust by applying clear, consistent pay criteria—even for those on parental leave or sabbaticals.
• Improved gender diversity in leadership, with 43% of leadership roles held by women.
• Future-proofed compliance for the EU Pay Transparency Directive and similar frameworks.
• Streamlined data analysis by integrating PayAnalytics by beqom and Workday—saving time and improving accuracy.

PUMA’s achievement is a blueprint for what’s possible when values meet technology. By celebrating fairness, the company strengthened its culture, brand, and bottom line—proving that equity is not just good ethics, but smart business.