Porsche 2012 Annual Report Download - page 97

by the International Auschwitz Council and
Volkswagen Coaching GmbH, the trainees from
Volkswagen and Polish young people travel to
Auschwitz at least four times a year for two weeks in
each case in order to work on maintaining the me-
morial. More than 2,100 young people from Germany
and Poland have participated in the program so far.
Since 2012, vocational trainees at other Volkswagen
subsidiaries and investment companies have now
also had the opportunity to help with the mainte-
nance work on the memorial site in Auschwitz.
On completion of their training, since 2006
young people at the start of their career have had
the opportunity to take part in the “Wanderjahre”
(Years Abroad) program, spending twelve months at
one of the group’s international locations. Today,
32 the Volkswagen group companies in 17 different
countries participate in this development program.
So far, over 320 young employees of the
Volkswagen group have taken advantage of this
opportunity. 46 young people from Germany and
ten participants from seven other countries started
their Years Abroad program in the Volkswagen
group in 2012.
Developing university graduates
Highly qualified young talent is essential for the
future of the company because innovative strength
is one of the decisive competitive factors in the
automotive industry. Volkswagen uses a differenti-
ated approach to support its academic young tal-
ent: the Student Talent Bank and the Academic
Talent Pool.
Volkswagen has been using the Student Talent
Bank since 1998 to develop particularly high-
achieving students in functional and crossfunctional
areas. Since then, roughly 2,100 students have
successfully completed an internship at Volkswagen
thanks to their committed approach. Volkswagen
supports these former interns during their further
studies and invites them to presentations and semi-
nars by specialists or on excursions to Volkswagen
locations, for example.
Talented students are added to the Academic
Talent Pool just before they complete their degree or
doctorate. This new recruiting tool makes selected
potential employees visible in the company, mean-
ing that they are considered for starting a career in
one of the functional areas because of their prior
experience.
Volkswagen offers the “StartUp Direct” trainee
program to young university graduates to get them
off to a flying start in the company. Over a two-
year period, participants in the program not only
work in their own department and familiarize
themselves with the company, but also attend
supplementary training seminars. The program
additionally includes multiple-week placements in
production and sales as well as an optional foreign
placement.
University graduates with an international focus
can alternatively enter the “StartUp Cross”
program. This international program includes a
three-month international placement during its
18-month period. Over 2,000 trainees have gained
their first Volkswagen experience in one of these
two programs since 2008.
With its “StartUp Europe” trainee program, the
Volkswagen group has offered young engineers
from Southern Europe an opportunity to gain inter-
national work experience since 2012. This
Volkswagen program is initially targeted at university
graduates from Spain and Portugal. The graduates
start off in a company in either Spain or Portugal,
followed by up to 21 months in a group company in
Germany. Permanent positions may be offered after
completion of the two-year program.
Advancement of women, family-friendly HR
policies at Volkswagen
Volkswagen’s corporate culture places a very high
value on both job and family. For Volkswagen, family-
friendly human resources policies are a key success
factor. This commitment has tradition behind it: in
1989, Volkswagen was the first major German
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