I had a excellent meeting
with Mario Kempf from the Austrian Federal Economic Chamber (WKO).
Mario had travelled in Australia about 8 years ago after he finished Uni.
Mario
is the Vorarlberg Chamber of Commerce, Industry Division contact for the
electrical and electronics industry, professional representation
Austrian
Federal Economic Chamber (WKO)
WKO
represents the interests of Austrian companies
- · Membership is mandatory for all Austrian businesses under Austrian law “Every single person who is entitled to operate an independent business venture in crafts and trades, industry, mining, finance, banking and insurance, transport, information and communication, broadcasting, tourism and leisure, as well as other services, is a member of the Federal Economic Chamber under Austrian law.”
- · >450,000 members
- · committed to forward-looking policies which benefit the economy e.g. tax relief, cutting red tape, subsidies.
- · offer fast expert advice on topics from labour laws to customs information.
- · support Austrian companies with our expert knowledge on educational facilities – WIFI, universities of applied sciences
Discussion points
·
Vorarlberg
has a strong history of educational and industrial development
·
Vorarlberg
is famous for high tech manufacturing eg.
o
Doppelmayr
- urban transport and cable cars are used across the world https://www.doppelmayr.com/en/
·
The
vast majority of Vorarlberg produce is exported approx. 95 percent,
·
“Employees
are really important” and businesses invest in education, PD and recruitment
·
Vorarlberg
is informal and usually on a first name basis which is unusual for Austria
which tends to be quite formal in their approach
·
CEOs often
come from a trade background and have risen up through their business ranks to
lead their companies.
·
A
company in Vorarlberg manufactures cranes for shipping terminals even though
there are no shipping terminals in Austria.
·
Another
company manufactures shade systems eg soccer fields, Dubai mosques,
·
Sustainability
is important, 100 percent sustainable power, mainly from Hydro electric
·
Public
transportation is great, many Austrians don’t have a car
·
Bikes,
including electric assist, are commonplace with bike tracks within and between
towns, Bikes are easy to take on public transport
·
Mandatory
army service for men - 6 mths? Or civil service eg hospitals or emergency
services, retirement homes, museums
·
STEM
is as big an issue here as it is in Australia. They are very concerned about
attracting enough technical employees
·
Low
enrolments of women in tech fields eg 5-10 percent. They have trialed lots of
different plans to attract and support women into technical jobs
·
Trade
students can now complete a 4+1 program to get their Matura. 4 yrs
apprenticeship then 1 year then they can get a Matura which is the entry ticket
to go to University.
·
Trade
students make much more money than Uni students till approx. 35 yo then are
left behind in earnings by Uni graduates
·
WKO
has very strong relationships and communication with its business members
·
WKO
and it’s partners run a lot of events locally or with partners for local
businesses eg innovation night. They are usually very well attended.
·
Assessment
for workplace students
o
Some
companies feel there is too much paperwork especially since EU but it really is
quite easy. 1 contract with sign-off by all parties
o
Recruitment
occurs on a common date for all companies. Recruitment day is standard early
April
o
Orientation
is standard for all staff WP or employed
o
HR
Dept has to do paperwork for healthcare,
o
Companies
spend a lot on work placement support services eg. Blum - approx 80K euro in
costs over 4 yrs for each workplace student
o
Approx
80-90 percent stay with the company after the work placement
·
Feedback
from companies taking workplace students
o
Companies
have to complete a survey after each work placement
o
Basically
very happy with the system but the survey data is dropping every year.
o
Tech
subjects are very complex and it is hard for schools to maintain their
standards. “The curriculum is getting more full with less time for technical
subjects”
o
WFO
keep pushing that Maths and Tech subjects are important and needed to maintain
standards
o
Big
problems with language skills for some students from non german backgrounds.
·
Feedback
from industry to the schools and Uni’s
o
Relationships
are very strong. They know each other at a personal level and communicate often
o
Build
relations to work with them and influence them
o
Class
mentoring programs where a company mentors a class over a 3 year period.
Started this program as a trial 3 yrs ago.
o
Tools
driving licence - start in grammar school then move through a series of 16
tools, just physical tools at this stage but this may extend in the future
after the trial
o
ECDL
still common in Austria, this is the same standard as the ICDL that was used in
Australia about 10 years ago
o
CEOs
have a lot of influence in politics and this extends back into feedback to the
educational system
o
WKO
provides funding that is matched dollar for dollar by the government directly
into schools to help them. Approx $100K for each school for special funds eg Used
for equipment, PD, bonuses. The funds are managed through a panel with WKO and
school members
o
WKO
runs an incentive scheme where students from businesses who achieve a quality
level funds are fed back into the company to be used for bonuses or more
development programs
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