From rookie to retirement
Demographic changes, a shortage of skilled workers and the transformation of the working world through AI and the like demand that companies continually develop and refine the vocational training system. Einhell Germany AG is meeting these challenges with a flexible training and continuous professional development strategy. Founded in 1964, the leading manufacturer of ultramodern DIY and garden tools from Landau an der Isar has turned itself into an internationally successful company with more than 2,400 employees and an active presence in over 100 countries.
The willingness of workers in Germany to switch employer has increased sharply in recent years, according to a survey by consulting and audit company Ernst & Young, with 63 percent recently expressing an interest in a move. At Einhell Germany AG in Landau an der Isar, though, some employees think differently. 18-year-old Sarah Stuckenberger, for instance, is currently in the third year of her apprenticeship as an industrial management administrator at Einhell, and she has already been told she will be taken on permanently in the Sales department. The young woman would like to stay with her employer for as long as possible. “There are many young workers and teams here at Einhell, so I can well imagine us continuing to work together for the good of the company and sharing a future,” she says. She first got to know the company at a training fair. Once she has finished her training, she would like to gain a further qualification in business administration or economics at Einhell.
Dominik Przybylski, too, sees himself having a career at Einhell. The industrial engineering student first completed an apprenticeship in electronics for industrial systems, and has since been taken on in the Amazon robotics team. “When I started at Einhell, my goal was to finish my training successfully. Following my integrated degree course, my goal now is to work in a position in which I can contribute my skills to the company and consistently develop myself further. I can see myself staying in the company for a long time. The sense of togetherness at Einhell is really unique,” Dominik Przybylski adds.
Staff development in a dynamic environment
“Our aim is to encourage our apprentices to continually develop themselves both personally and professionally so that they remain motivated and happy, and want to stay with Einhell as long as possible, maybe even until they retire,” says Hans-Peter Rostan, Director Group Human Resources at Einhell. “The central role of our company’s personnel policy is to prepare our employees for the many different development opportunities they will get in an internationally active and growing business. We incorporate potential changes into our planning at an early stage so that we can consistently pursue our long-term corporate vision of becoming the world’s leading supplier of battery-powered tools and garden equipment in the DIY sector. To achieve this, we promote not only the development of our career starters, but also that of all other employees in the company.”
One of the cornerstones of this approach is the company’s internal continuous professional development platform. “Our Einhell Academy enables us to support our apprentices and skilled workers as they seek to develop their professional expertise, for example by offering foreign language courses, e-learning for digital tools, and subject-specific seminars. This allows our employees to focus on the particular skills they need in order to perform their tasks or meet new challenges even better than before,” says Hans-Peter Rostan.
Success comes from teamwork
Another goal of this dynamic staff development is for new recruits to get to know both the company and the possible career opportunities at Einhell at an early stage while at the same time discovering a sense of togetherness in a strong team. Einhell hires almost 100 percent of its apprentices, a fact which persuades many of those embarking on a career to join the company. “At Einhell we generally take on exactly the number of apprentices and students that we will be able to hire later,” says Hans-Peter Rostan, adding: “We deliberately do not train more people than we need, because we want to encourage cooperation between our younger workers rather than a competitive mindset.”
Flexibility and empathy the recipe for success
For Hans-Peter Rostan, the recipe for success in the labor market, in which companies are having to compete ever more intensively for coveted talent, lies in a combination of flexibility and empathy: “Right from the start of their training, we attach particular importance to regular and personal interactions with our junior staff. That’s why our focus is not only on enabling them to complete their training or studies successfully, but also on identifying the talents and inclinations of the trainees so that we can help them develop in a position that is right for them.”
Einhell Germany AG currently has a total of 35 junior staff in Germany, 22 of whom are apprentices and 13 integrated education students. For the integrated degree program, the HR department of Einhell Germany AG has established a broad network of universities and colleges as cooperation partners, including Deggendorf Institute of Technology, the University of Applied Sciences Landshut, and the Technical University of Munich. The company also supports those studying part-time alongside their work (bachelor's or master’s programs). Einhell assumes some of the costs and also grants day-release or study leave. The apprenticeships available in Landau an der Isar include industrial business administration, e-commerce administration, electronics for industrial systems, warehouse logistics, systems integration and application development IT, digitalization management administration and, from 2023, retail administration as well. The company offers integrated study programs in business administration, industrial engineering, and business IT.
About Einhell Germany AG
Einhell is a leading manufacturer of state-of-the-art tools and devices for the house and garden and will be celebrating its 60th anniversary in 2024. From its headquarters in Landau/Isar (Bavaria), the internationally successful company has continuously expanded its innovative rechargeable battery platform Power X-Change and is now the market leader in the area of cordless tools and garden devices. For many years Einhell has set new standards in terms of endurance, performance, and safety. Einhell customers appreciate the freedom of cordless operation for all their DIY projects, as well as the excellent value for money that Einhell products represent and the first-class customer service offered by the company.