AMNYTT amnytt.no 5/2020 | Page 125

Professor Dr. Gunther Olesch is one of the most prominent representatives of Phoenix Contact Incidentally, this is not just the case for academic careers, but also for skilled workers. I would like to see a 50: 50 distribution between genders. Today, 82 to 84 percent of all applicants decide to make an application, among other reasons, because they obtain information from the job evaluation portal Kununu, for example. This figure includes apprentices and skilled workers, not just academics. And we are simply perceived by the outside world as an attractive employer. This is how we are securing the attention of our potential young talent. è How are our employees structured, especially our future employees? In terms of gender, I still see a big challenge, and this has been the case for more than 20 years. No one is forbidding women from taking up engineering professions, but despite all our efforts, the proportion of women in engineering professions is just five percent. In medical professions, for example, the picture is completely different, with more than 75 percent of all students being female. This is a situation that only exists in Germany. I also teach international students at the university. In the case of Indians, Pakistanis, and the Chinese, the sexes are represented approximately equally. Here in Germany, we still have to do a great deal of persuading in the technical professions. We are trying to garner interest early on, at school level. At first, the female pupils are quite taken with the idea. But later, they decide to become medical assistants or hairdressers or go into the commercial sector. Around 10 years ago, 18 percent of people working in technical professions were women, but this has been declining again for some years now. And this is despite the fact that technically trained staff have a much better future. Commercial fields are constantly being streamlined by software, with the PC taking over more and more of the work. But, of course, we cannot force anyone to work for us. è Young talent at Phoenix Contact – which trainees are “the best”, and which ones are you wary of? I love those new employees who tell me that their training was merely the entrance ticket to the theater performance that is the professional world. That they want to create something new, like Steve Jobs or Elon Musk or Bill Gates. Those who set themselves a vision for their own life, and go on to pursue it. Those who say they just want to do their job, otherwise they want to be left alone – they are the ones I am wary of. è Are we taking skilled workers away from the trades? How does Phoenix Contact get along with the trade companies around us that provide training? I am also the vice president of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, so I have to deal with this issue all the time. I have to say that a large number of skilled workers are responsible for this themselves to a large extent. Anyone who needs skilled workers must also be prepared to train them. è But isn’t craftsmanship considered the training machine of small to medium-sized enterprises? It used to be. That has not been the case for a long time. If it was said here in East Westphalia that there was a lack of training places, then in recent years this was often in the craft trade sector. We have always trained very intensively, with up to 400 apprentices and trainees at the same time. If the craft trade sector lacks skilled workers, it is often because they have not recruited the next generation themselves. Let’s not kid ourselves: It is not money or working hours that always have to be used as an argument when it comes to competing for talent. Those who are satisfied in the craft trade will stay there. But if they are not happy, they leave. Many start in a company because of the money and stay or leave because of their supervisor. Across Germany, the turnover in staff is around 11 percent. The turnover here is a mere one percent. There is a great deal more to this than just making a quick buck. Above all else, it is because of our corporate culture. If your heart lies with a company, you don’t leave. (lo) • The Phoenix Contact innovation magazine UPDATE 5/20 39