24 October 2019
With funding from the Baden-Wurtemberg Economic Ministry, and created by German company Trumpf, one of the global leaders in industrial laser manufacturing, F4DIA (Fit for...
6 June 2019
Spanish telecommunications giant Telefónica, which is present in 24 countries and employs more than 120,000 people across the world, spoke to Planet Labor about its digitalisation ambitions and the measures required to make these a reality. The push includes a comprehensive policy involving all its...
18 April 2019
Like others in the insurance industry, French insurance company Maif (7,500 employees) is facing a thorough overhaul of its entire business, not least with the arrival of insurtech startups, and as such since 2015 it has positioned digital transformation as a key...
21 March 2019
In line with the rest of the industrial world, Germany’s largest auto-parts manufacturer, Bosch (400,000 employees), is having to deal with enormous challenges that must be met, or else risk the company falling behind, or failing entirely. These challenges stem from technological and organizational changes that are revolutionizing how learning and knowledge is managed. In order to meet these challenges Bosch is looking to transform itself into a ‘Learning Company’. Launched in 2015/2016, the Learning Company...
12 March 2019
What is the impact of digitalization on training and lifelong learning within businesses? How can we identify essential competences several years ahead? How can we learn to learn in the digital age? Working on these types of questions is the daily work of Matthias Reuter, Global Director Learning and Digital Transformation, at Siemens AG. Matthias Reuter explained to Planet Labor to what extent the company has to shorten the time required for developing new competences as well as to alter how learning occurs....
28 February 2019
Europe’s largest industrial and electro-technical manufacturing company is also facing the changes being brought about by digital transformation, artificial intelligence, and energy transition. In order for its employees to adjust their know-how and expertise, Siemens has launched a €100 million ‘Future fund’ (Zukunfstfonds) to cover funding until 2022 for qualifications that will help manage major ‘structural transformations’. However in contrast with current training options, with this fund employees...
25 October 2018
In May 2017 the Minister of Economic Affairs appointed a steering group to prepare Finland for reaching its goal of becoming a global leader in the use of artificial intelligence (AI). The group has already published two interim reports and its recommendations have been included in government policy. HR professionals are particularly focused on the second report called ‘Work in the age of artificial intelligence’ that was published in June 2018 and that asks questions about the HR role and activity.
8 December 2017
As part of a pilot project named CROSS (Competence Rotation Over Several Sectors), 14 workers at Mercedes-Benz, Airbus and BLG Logistics participated in an employee exchange programme, between September and December in Bremen. The programme was geared towards improving workers’ ability to work together, offering them the experience of a new corporate culture and enhancing their...
30 November 2017
Germany’s automaker has just launched a major further-training ‘campaign’ called ‘data.camp’, which should enable “faster and more targeted skills acquisition for employees in areas for the future,” namely big data and artificial intelligence (AI). This is a long-term initiative that will affect all the company’s divisions, depending on identified needs. Susanne Herr Audi, spokesperson for personnel and organization management, explained the initiative to Planet Labor.
27 April 2016
As expected, Nokia’s acquisition of Franco-American rival Alcatel-Lucent has had significant social consequences. Although the Finnish group did not provide any global figures beyond 1,300 job cuts for Finland, 400 for France and 1,400 for Germany, Bloomberg reported that redundancy notices could affect between 10,00-15,000 of the group’s 104,000 total headcount. At the same time, in a bid to temper the impact of the lay offs, Nokia announced that it would restart its Bridge program. The Bridge program is...
15 January 2015
British employers are campaigning for soft skills to be taken seriously as business success factors. They estimate soft skills to be worth 88 million GBP (113.5 million euros) to the British economy but are not accepted as important.
21 October 2014
In Daimler they are called the ‘Space Cowboys’. Like with the Clint Eastwood film where 4 elderly retired astronauts are called back into service for a crucial mission (to save the earth), Daimler, the German automotive company is calling back some of its former employees, now pensioned, to work on specific temporary projects. The objective of the company is to take advantage of their skills and experience and to extend beyond their retirement age the period of knowledge and skills transfer to younger...
24 September 2014
Can we go back to school after more than 20 years spent in a factory filling bottles. What are the benefits and challenges of such an approach for both the employee and the employer? During the German Federal Government’s “Corporate Social Responsibility” awards ceremony in Berlin on September 17, 2014 (c.f. article No. 8600), Armin Baust head of human resources at the family run...