This coming Friday, eleven small and medium-sized businesses from Zittau will once again open their doors, giving anyone interested the opportunity to take a look behind the factory walls and into their production lines.
This year, the guided tours and facility visits at two of the eleven participating companies will be complemented by a very special discussion session:
At digades GmbH and Stadtwerke Zittau, visitors can learn firsthand everything they’ve always wanted to know about production processes and the day-to-day work of employees during the “On-Site Talk.” In addition to moderators who will facilitate and coordinate the discussions, student assistants from the Zittau/Görlitz University of Applied Sciences will also be on site. As experts on the crucial first steps toward a career in engineering or the natural sciences, they can answer any questions interested visitors may have about suitable degree programmes, application processes, and potential obstacles on the path to a professional career.
In this sense, this event benefits everyone involved—both the companies and the visitors. It aims to demonstrate that Zittau, often considered a structurally weak region, can indeed offer its young residents attractive career prospects thanks to the numerous and successful small and medium-sized enterprises based here. The companies, in turn, are struggling to fill their apprenticeship positions and job openings, in part because many potential candidates prefer to seek their fortune in regions with stronger economic structures.
The “Talk vor Ort” is intended to help address this discrepancy and the region’s severe shortage of skilled workers. In addition to exploring career options, young visitors in particular will have the opportunity to make important professional connections during these discussions to get their foot in the door—whether for an internship, an apprenticeship, or a job.
Another reason for the shortage of technically trained young talent is a lack of understanding about technical career paths. Through conversations with company employees and by exploring various career trajectories, it will quickly become clear that technical training does not necessarily lead only to the factory floor or to a desk in front of a computer. On the contrary: the opportunities for specialization are diverse.
Tony Zimmermann from Stadtwerke Zittau is proof of this. Starting out in the maintenance and upkeep of district heating systems, he later transitioned to measurement, control, and regulation technology. He is now involved in planning, coordinating, and expanding the network in Zittau. Tony is a trained mechatronics technician specializing in plant engineering.
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Anyone who would like to meet Tony, his colleagues from Zittau Municipal Utilities, and the staff at digades GmbH—and talk with them in person—will have the opportunity to do so this coming Friday, November 4, from 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. You’re all cordially invited!
Contact:
Christiane Matthieu
Center for Knowledge and Technology Transfer
Phone: 03583 61-2278