Training with insights across locations.

Sitting in front of the exact same computer every day while programming, programming, programming - is this what everyday life is like for an IT apprentice? Well not at ebm‑papst. In three years of apprenticeship, the apprentices work in different IT teams - even across different locations. This way, the apprenticeship managers Lisa, Stephan and John-Erich want to make the training experience even more attractive.

On June 7, 2022, for the first time, three apprentices changed locations: Tobias moved from Mulfingen to Landshut, David from St. Georgen to Mulfingen and Sebastian from Lauf to St. Georgen. Their assignment: to get to know the respective IT department in four days, exchange ideas with their colleagues and, above all, gain lots of new experiences and ideas for their own location.

"We have transferred a lot of responsibility and initiative to our apprentices."
John-Erich,
apprenticeship manager IT Mulfingen

The first day started off the same for all apprentices: with a friendly welcome from the apprenticeship managers and getting to know one another in the respective IT teams. A tour of the local production halls and information on production lines and machine functions were also on the agenda for everyone. However, the perceptions were somewhat very different.

"To be honest, I was overwhelmed. I knew that the Mulfingen site, the IT and the plant were much bigger than in St. Georgen. But seeing it was something else," says David. "I also learned a lot about a warehouse system that we want to introduce in St. Georgen." Sebastian's impression of St. Georgen is similar: "The head office alone is as big as our entire plant in Lauf. Accordingly, the IT department is also larger and has more colleagues. There are only three of us in Lauf." Only Tobias' impression goes in the other direction: "Landshut is smaller and more manageable. In Hollenbach, the IT department is located on two floors. Whereas in Landshut there are two offices."

"I was able to set up 'Click Share' for our CEO and was able to get to meet him in person."

David, IT apprentice St. Georgen

Then it was time to get down to business: the apprentices took on various tasks on their own responsibility. While setting up cell phones and tablets was familiar territory for David, the training on the management tool used was new to him. A small preview of what was yet to come in St. Georgen.

Tobias was particularly interested in the tasks associated with the server infrastructure in Landshut. In Mulfingen, he has a greater number of IT colleagues, which is why the specific topics are assigned to different teams. He had no previous experience with the server systems and was now able to learn plenty of new things. He was able to create admin groups and assign authorizations. He also set up virtual machines for Microsoft Exchange Server.

"We sat together for quite a while and talked about everything under the sun. It was really nice being able to also get to know each other better personally."

Tobias, IT apprentice Mulfingen

Sebastian already knew many of his new colleagues from meetings held via Microsoft Teams. So it was all the greater for him to finally be able to meet them live. His tasks included all the steps involved in setting up computers and smartphones. As part of a departmental relocation, he and his trainer Lisa took over the dismantling and setup of an entire workstation. The insight into the server room was also particularly fascinating for him.

In addition to the work, the trainee exchange also included plenty of free time. All three apprentices discovered the city on their own or enjoyed activities with others. For example, David visited an indoor karting track with trainer John-Erich: "It was my first time in a kart. But according to John, I did really well." Meanwhile, Sebastian spent a barbecue evening with the Team Helpdesk Service at team leader Andreas' house, including a small darts tournament in the living room. And Tobias went to a beer garden in Landshut with two colleagues after work.

"I was able to take my time to have a look at all the hardware installed in St. Georgen, while my colleagues explained a lot to me. That was exciting for me, because in Lauf all the things are on a smaller scale."

Sebastian, IT apprentice Lauf

The four days flew by. The apprentices returned to their locations. All three of them took away many new experiences and ideas. They look back on the encounters and exchanges with their colleagues with pleasure and draw a consistently positive conclusion. "I thought the apprenticeship exchange was very successful and I would be delighted if there was another one. It's just a great opportunity to get to know other locations and talk to colleagues with whom you have little or nothing to do," says David. And Tobias adds: "It was a great privilege to be able to take part in such an exchange program. It's not something that every company offers." Accordingly, the apprentices can also imagine another exchange - but then at a different location and perhaps for a day longer.