Efficient measures for recruiting specialist staff
Number of employees and trainees up
Staff development tools optimized
Diverse approaches for motivating staff

Human resources strategy: Finding and retaining the best

Highly qualified employees with above-average motivation form the basis for HOCHTIEF Group's sustainable worldwide success. Hence, in this age of globalization, our human resources management activities aim to identify talented individuals in Germany and internationally at an early stage, to secure them for the company and to support their continuous development. A key aspect of these activities is comprehensive skills management, ranging from the training phase through to the development of new managers. Active knowledge management ensures that knowledge is transferred between all HOCHTIEF units, both nationally and across national borders. In this way, we set HOCHTIEF apart from its competitors and generate sustained growth. Our human resources strategy is thus an integral part of our overall corporate strategy.

Effective response to shortage of specialist staff

The companies in the international HOCHTIEF network – just like the construction industry as a whole – are facing an acute shortage of skilled and management personnel. This situation persists even in these times of financial crisis. In 2008, we were notably seeking employees for the technical facility management, electrical engineering and energy management sectors. It was still difficult to recruit construction engineers for international assignments. Nevertheless, we managed to fill 70 percent of vacant positions in the HOCHTIEF Group in the year under review through a range of activities.

This success was thanks in part to the Global Recruiting Initiative launched in 2008. Our international network makes it possible to advertise vacant positions across national borders and fill them in a targeted way. The HOCHTIEF companies HOCHTIEF Construction, Thiess, Flatiron and Turner are all part of the network and, with their brands which are well-known in their respective regions, help to establish HOCHTIEF as an attractive employer worldwide.

Our Group program "Employees Recruit Employees" has once again proven highly efficient. In 2008, 88 positions were filled in this way in Germany alone. Worldwide, several hundred employment contracts have been signed so far. Turner benefited from similar measures, taking on 196 new employees in the fiscal year.

Intern retention program launched

It is our goal for the company to retain the top ten percent of interns long-term. To this end, for instance, we offer them the opportunity to write their final thesis at HOCHTIEF. The intern retention program set up in the year under review offers above-average engineering and economics students the opportunity to discover the whole spectrum of the company. Experiences have been positive and the program has been very well received by students.

Potential future employees actively approached

In 2008, HOCHTIEF further increased its presence at university job fairs and graduate conventions. Also in the year under review, we began to hold "practical seminars" for particularly talented engineering students four times a year at a number of locations. These meetings not only offer the participants a chance to get to know HOCHTIEF better, they also give us a good idea about how qualified our candidates are. The seminars are already proving a success. The recruiting ad concept and the new Job opportunities section on the HOCHTIEF website also generated additional interest. The number of applications increased tangibly.

Schoolchildren enthused by technology

HOCHTIEF's efforts to ensure the next generation of engineers begin in schools. In the year under review, for instance, we again took part in "Girls' Day", where girls are introduced to technical professions. HOCHTIEF launched further initiatives in 2008 to get children excited about technology at an early age, and these will be intensified in 2009.

Further increase in staff numbers in 2008

In the year under review, the number of persons employed by HOCHTIEF increased by approximately 23 percent over the previous year. Two reasons for this continued rise