developing the next generation

A delegation of German Aalberts companies, from different businesses, recently held the company's first Azubi Event, which brought together up and coming young talent from across the German organisation to share knowledge and ideas, appoint ‘value’ ambassadors, and get to know one another and the company through a series of high-energy presentations and interactive events.

sharing knowledge
“The company's first Azubi Event was a tremendous success,” says Julia Brey, director of HR at Aalberts surface technologies. “Azubi is short for 'Auszubildende' in German and during this event we brought together 35 young talents from different Aalberts businesses across Germany, including VTI, Meibes, Isel and surface technologies. These employees are following a three-year technical, practical education at one of our sites before receiving their technical degree. Our aim was to create an environment where participants could share and learn not only from one another, but also from management. We achieved our goal successfully over the course of two fantastic days, during which management gave informative presentations, we shared experiences and career tracks of former 'Azubis', worked on Aalberts’ values and nominated value ambassadors, as well as providing practical examples of taking ownership at Aalberts and how to design a career within the company.”

recruiting and retaining
In addition to sharing insights and knowledge, participants also found time for a range of other activities. “One very popular project was packing boxes with food and hygiene products for people in the Ukraine, which everyone participated in enthusiastically,” Julia says. “And as part of a team building event, we also visited a theme park and had a great time riding roller coasters before closing the day over a BBQ with management. The Azubi Event was a great possibility for young people, who usually never leave their production site, to exchange knowledge, build up a network within Aalberts and also to act as Aalberts ambassadors in the future. Recruiting and retaining young talent for our plants is a crucial part of our People & Culture strategy, and events such as this one are key to ensuring we have the right skills in place as we continue to grow going forward. Looking ahead, we are very much looking forward to welcoming even more Aalberts Azubis next year.”