Seventy-five young people begin apprenticeships at Brose

Seventy-five young people will start their professional careers at Brose, the automotive supplier, when the new training year begins: fifty-five started their apprentice training on September 1st in one of the eight industrial/technical and commercial vocations. Thirty-two of them will receive training at the Coburg and Hallstadt locations, sixteen in Würzburg, three each in Wuppertal and
Berlin. In addition, Brose's catering enterprise, the Brose Gastronomie GmbH, will train three young men and one woman as chefs in Coburg, Hallstadt and Würzburg.

From October 1st, a further seventeen junior staff at the Coburg, Hallstadt, Wuppertal and Würzburg locations will take up degree studies in mechanical engineering, electrical and electronic engineering, industrial engineering and business informatics at a university of cooperative education. This demanding and practical training is becoming increasingly popular since it combines university attendance with company assignments.

Apprenticeship concept promotes technical and social skills

“We regard apprentice training as a key component in promoting junior staff. Sound training at an international company like Brose offers young people highly promising career opportunities in Germany and abroad,” stresses Michael Stammberger, head of apprentice training at Brose.

The apprenticeship concept of the Brose Group develops and likewise requires technical and social skills. Regular language courses as well as assignments to foreign locations in Europe and overseas lasting from several weeks to several months are also part of this concept. Participation in these is voluntary. A stay abroad is obligatory only for industrial engineering students from the universities of cooperative education.

As a company operating globally, Brose needs employees who display assurance in cooperating internationally and who have an open attitude towards other cultures. And because a good command of languages is indispensable in the age of globalization, Brose has integrated English as a subject in its internal training in all professions. As Michael Stammberger notes: “We want to make sure that even our youngest employees are able to work at international locations without any language barriers when they complete their training.”

To meet the wide range of requirements, language courses are tailored to suit the individual professions: there is one group each for industrial clerks and IT specialists, technical product designers, tool makers, machine and plant operators, mechatronics and electronics technicians.

Another important component of the Brose training concept is the Junior Company. Some eighty
apprentices are taught core competencies for their future careers in this "learning company" located in Coburg, Hallstadt, Würzburg and Wuppertal. "They learn how to work in an independent and autonomous manner. In addition, their technical, methodological and social skills for processing work orders are strengthened," says Stammberger when explaining the objectives of this extraordinary project which focuses on practical experience.

It all starts with getting to know each other

A four-day introductory seminar takes place at the youth center in Neukirchen/Lautertal for Brose apprentices in the first week of September where they will be welcomed by Jürgen Otto, CEO of the Brose Group. An overview of the company, the apprenticeship and training operation as well as the New Brose Organizational Model is presented to the young people. Initial details of their future training is provided in group work. And they also have time to get to know each other at a sports tournament.

The Brose Group provides training and apprenticeship programs to 252 apprentices and students of cooperative education and junior staff. 153 are located in Coburg and Hallstadt, 16 in Wuppertal, 73 in Würzburg, 9 in Berlin and one in Sindelfingen.