Telenor shared its experience from the Open Mind program in an online workshop for the business

Telenor organized an online workshop for the career development of people with disabilities. The event called “Chance for the people with different abilities” is part of the operator’s activities in the Open Mind program and gathered representatives from the business, the state administration and the non-government sector.

Participants in the event were Adriana Stoimenova, Deputy Minister of Labor and Social Policy, Galina Chuleva, Chief Human Resources Officer at Telenor Bulgaria, and Joana Koleva from the NGO JAMBA which helps people with diverse abilities to be included in the job market. Among the guests who joined online were representatives of more than 20 companies.

“For me it was a pleasure to contribute to the Open Mind program and to touch on important questions about the employment and opportunities for the people with disabilities. I am glad there was such interest by companies in different areas of activities, united by a common cause. I hope our joint work with the business will continue in the future”, said Adriana Stoimenova, Deputy Minister of Labor and Social Policy.

“Through the years we are having Open Mind, the program became part of our DNA and we are exceptionally happy that we can share the experience we gathered with the representatives of the responsible businesses. The program helps not just the people with disabilities but also us, it teaches us about empathy and encourages diversity and inclusion”, said Galina Chuleva, Chief Human Resources Officer at Telenor Bulgaria.

This year four new employees started working at Telenor as a part of the Open Mind program. The Open Mind program gives people with disabilities the opportunity to develop their social and functional skills and to raise their competitiveness and qualification by working in the company. During the program, the participants will have the opportunity to gather experience and to learn from Telenor’s best professionals, which will help them gather confidence for their future career development. After the program, Telenor will support the participants for their further professional development on the labor market and some of them may also receive an offer for a job in the company.

Telenor is planning to continue develop its Open Mind Academy with free professional development trainings for people with disabilities.

Telenor Bulgaria’s program for people with disabilities is held annually as part of the company’s long-term corporate responsibility strategy. In the editions so far, 24 participants joined the company as part of Process Management, Legal Affairs, People & Culture, Marketing, and other divisions. Of all participants so far, six stayed on permanent contracts with Telenor Bulgaria after the end of the program.