Responsible interaction with the employees is a major focal point of our company leadership. With this commitment, we want to act in a socially acceptable manner and at the same time make an important investment for the future. After all, it is our employees, with their high level of motivation and identification with schülke, our products and tasks that are the central prerequisite for fulfilling our Total Quality Management expectations and as a result, for the success of our company. In order to promote their professional and social skills, we offer targeted advanced training opportunities and make the training of junior employees the center point of our personnel management.
Co-determination
For a mutually beneficial and motivating working climate, the possibility of co-determination for our employees is very important. Only so is schülke able to benefit from their creative potential and make sustainable decisions. The intensive and good cooperation between the company management and the works council makes a constructive and open communication possible.
The Competency Model from our parent organization Air Liquide, which we integrated in our personnel management at all locations, calls for a minimum of one structured staff review per year. In this discussion, uncoupled from the work process, conflicts can be evaluated and discussed and individual goal agreements can be formulated. In order to alleviate concrete problems in the everyday working environment, we promote the formation of improvement teams and maintain an employee suggestion scheme.
Multifacted Training Opportunities
Traditionally, great value is placed on the training of motivated and competent employees at schülke and is an important part of our corporate culture. Even before the training offensive and the trend of promoting training, many training opportunities were open to schülke’s junior employees. For example, since 1996 we have been working with the Northern Academy for Business (Nordakademie – Hochschule für Wirtschaft). We familiarize our trainees with our company principles right from the beginning. A part of this is the early promotion of consciousness for sustainable action. Our trainees show special initiative with their own projects in environmental protection and sustainability and reward us with many new and innovative ideas. An example is the further development of our intranet Advent quiz on the topics of work safety, ecology, total quality management and IT security. In 2005, schülke received 1st Prize in the MIMONA competition for the exemplary motivation of our employees for sustainable action. In 2006, our trainees worked on creating an internet platform which gave other companies the opportunity to participate in this Advent quiz. In order to give our trainees the best possible supervision, we place trainers in every department who are especially schooled and trained for this task. The high quality of our training pays off for our trainees throughout their personal careers and ensures us competent and motivated junior employees.
Further Education
Further education also holds a place of importance at schülke. Promoting the professional and social skills of our employees with a variety of advanced training programs ensures that qualified personnel is employed in all positions in order to meet the growing demands of our customers and to offer our employees long-term career perspectives. In order to guarantee the efficiency of the qualification programs in use, we determine in personal discussions between the employee and supervisor what each employee’s individual training requirements are. At least once annually, these requirements are determined within the framework of the Competency Model. Training and career plans built upon it are then planned and prepared.
Work Safety and Health Protection
The safety of our employees has top priority for schülke and our parent organization, Air Liquide. We have therefore set a very high goal for ourselves: we strive for an accident rate of zero percent at all locations. Compliance with legal regulations is therefore a matter of course for us. In addition, we have also established extensive safety regulations. The safety awareness of our employees is continually developed with the aid of competitions and concerted actions (e.g., the Adventquiz). Fire protection is an important task at our Norderstedt plant. In addition to the plant fire protection and yearly carried out fire fighting drills, the close cooperation with the local fire department is of great importance. In 2004 our efforts in this area were recognized with the award “Partner of the fire department Norderstedt”.
Besides preventing accidents, health in the workplace plays a very important role. An important step for a healthy work environment is the new regulation for smokers. As of January 2008, all schülke buildings in Germany are non-smoking areas. Free influenza vaccinations are possible to help prevent illness and our plant physician is available as a health advisor. Together with our catering service, we support a consciously healthy diet.
