1,800 graduates applied for one of the coveted tickets to attend the 25th Career Day for Family Business. On May 20, 650 lucky ticket recipients met for the event on the premises of Goldbeck GmbH. More than 50 family businesses, including well-known firms such as Haribo, Hilti, Schüco, Vaillant, and Nobilia took advantage of the opportunity to present their companies in person, after a two-year break due to Corona. With our new booth in the fresh HERISTOGETHER motif, our booth was a real eyecatcher at this year's event.
Demonstrating career paths
"The response was truly amazing," said Benedikt Meuers, Key Account Manager at the heristo Group. "The recent graduates were very enthusiastic about the sheer variety of opportunities that family businesses in our region offer them. Even just our Group, with more than a dozen companies, can offer young people tremendous options, and most of them are so unaware of it." And that made the HERISTOGETHER team all the more excited for the opportunity to show the attendees heristo's possible career paths and personal development opportunities.
The advantage of family businesses
It's no secret that family businesses are not always the first choice for many graduates. Young, freshly minted graduates of university management and administration programs in particular are often drawn to large companies and corporations. However, career opportunities at the big players are not better per se; the decisive factors are good structures and opportunities for individual personal development. And this is where family businesses have caught up enormously – in no small part due to the pressure caused by the shortage of skilled workers. "Here at the heristo Group, there are numerous examples of successful careers – both within specific companies and across companies. Because by moving to another company in our group, new opportunities are always opening up with us. For everyone!" Meuers explained.
Instead of a career in the metropolis
The location of family businesses in rural areas is not necessarily a disadvantage either. Stefan Klemm, organizer of a Career Day hosted by the Entrepreneurs' Club in Munich, noted that "The professionals and managers of tomorrow want to live in regions like these, which are characterized by mid-sized cities such as Bielefeld. They want to start their families here – not in the huge metropolises." So there are many arguments in favor of a career in the region's mid-sized companies as well. "Highlighting these arguments even more is an important task for us – and for other family businesses," explained Meuers. "That's another reason that we're looking forward to a lot more Career Days for Family Businesses!"