Investing in People

Our ability to focus on meeting customer needs and addressing today’s challenges depends upon being an employer that attracts top talent and offers the opportunity for long term growth and leadership development. Stepan employees are changemakers, and we want to acknowledge and celebrate that mindset. Our goal is for each employee to feel their work is connected to the Company’s business priorities and to take pride in making meaningful contributions to Stepan’s success. To reinforce this, we redesigned our performance management process to clearly demonstrate the connection between employee contributions and Stepan’s performance. About 67% of Stepan employees participate in an annual performance review, gaining valuable insights for ongoing growth and development, as well as recognition and rewards for taking on greater responsibility aligned with Company goals.

Our Learning Governance Committee is responsible for management, development, and oversight of our learning and development strategy that caters to the various technical, functional, and soft-skill needs of our workplace. In alignment with industry best practices, we offer extensive training resources to support employees at all career stages. In 2024, we expanded the use of our Success Factors platform to deliver required and supplemental trainings across the organization. This platform is a key tool in our talent management strategy, enabling effective roll-out of on-demand trainings in local languages, tracking engagement in training programs, and identifying opportunities for improvement. 

Along with ensuring our employees are equipped with the right skills, the safety of our employees and the communities in which we operate is a priority. Stepan invests in behavior-based and task-based safety programs with an expectation that our global workforce will establish the behaviors and habits that promote safety awareness, thoughtful action and responsiveness.

Across our organization, employees are encouraged to find ways to live and work more sustainably and to engage meaningfully in their communities. Stepan employees are proud members of the communities where we operate and are grateful for the opportunity to make a positive impact. Across our global operations, team members contribute in meaningful ways—whether by supporting those in need, hosting blood drives or food collections, or inspiring young people to explore career opportunities. Through these and other efforts, we strive to create a lasting positive impact. Over the years, we have worked to establish new and ongoing initiatives connected to health and well-being, STEM education, environmental clean-up and restoration, and safety.

Find out if Stepan would be the right fit for you and review Stepan’s commitment to performance with integrity.