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Volkswagen orients its human resources work worldwide to its growth strategy

Wolfsburg / Pamplona - The Volkswagen Group is orientingits human resources work worldwide to the company’s growth strategy.Some 70 HR managers from all of the Group’s sites met at the Pamplonaplant to discuss this issue. Dr. Horst Neumann, member of the Board ofManagement of Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft with responsibility for HumanResources, commented: “Volkswagen is en route to becoming a topemployer. That also involves outstanding HR work devoted to competencedevelopment and the personal mentoring of all employees.” Concretestandards and programs to that end were agreed in Pamplona.

Around the world, Volkswagen will in future be orienting jobqualification and training to high uniform standards. This is of particularrelevance for countries which do not have vocational training legislation.In addition, the Group will be establishing its own training schemes atfurther sites. Globally valid basic building blocks for graduate entryprograms were also agreed in Pamplona. These include customer contacts,involvement in the production process and knowledge modules relating to theGroup and the respective brand and region.

Developing specialist skills will be more closely oriented to jobfamilies which encompass all the members of such a family from entry-levelto expert jobs. Job family members will be offered individual qualificationfor their specific work situation; beginners will be supported by coaches.According to Dr. Neumann: "Volkswagen must move swiftly to become ateaching and learning organization. We can only achieve our growth targetswith an excellently qualified and trained team." At the same time, theVolkswagen Way, the ongoing efficiency enhancement program, fosters theparticipation of employees.

"Volkswagen must perceive itself as a high-performance organization,"the board member for human resources stressed. In a presentation entitled"Enjoying Job Performance", Professor Felix von Cube, a pioneeringbehavioral biologist and motivation researcher, addressed the participantsin Pamplona. He explained the evolutionary biology behind motivation: "Topperformance is created by "flow", or in other words, by a constant streamof new challenges, by acknowledging good job performance and by bonding inachievement-oriented teams." Working together with the Group’s HRmanagers, this concept will be used to define the basis of human resourceswork and organization at Volkswagen. Professor von Cube commented: "That ishow Volkswagen can harness the findings of modern behavioral research tothe benefit of all employees."