360° inspiration
Fostering a culture of commitment & contribution. Committing to the customer, weaving connections and facilitating development.
360° inspiration
Fostering a culture of commitment & contribution
Focused on the customer
Blending your learning
Every customer has different training preferences. Are you more of an online learner? We invite you to go fully digital with one of our live webinars or consult one of our many e-learning modules and how-to videos. Or are you more of let’s-get-together-seminar type of learner? We are happy to host you at one of our training centres in Blieskastel, Ottfingen or Heltersberg, Germany. We can also come to where you are. Our eleven regional trainers are close to most locations in Germany. Or perhaps you would like to have a combination of both? Our teams are eager to come up with a learning package that suits your needs. We also offer our customers training on new rules and norms within the industry, as well as certified training.
Yves joined the company as the very first technical trainer in Germany for Hager products and solutions over 30 years ago.
Our training offers go back a long way. 30 years ago, Yves Peters joined the company as the very first technical trainer in Germany for Hager products and solutions. At the time, he was based in the factory in Blieskastel. Over the years, customers wanted to learn more and other colleagues became more knowledgeable about our products and solutions. The logical next step was to set up a specific department for training and information. So Yves has gone from a one man show in 1992 to heading a specialised team with over 20 trainers who serve almost 50,000 customers each year. Like the department, the training offer has been adapted over time to become a blended one. While our digital training is a great hit with customers, our trainers are still delighted to meet face to face with trainees. Ideally, they do this at one of our custom built centres, where you can literally get hands-on experience with products and see how they fit into an electrical installation, from the smallest of products up to the colossal “unimes H”.
In the past two years, it has been difficult to hold face-to-face seminars. We have made a virtue out of a necessity.
Who do we train?
The target groups for our specialised training range from installers and wholesalers to planners, building specialists and architects. Each training is adapted and fine-tuned to specifically meet the needs of the target group in both commercial and residential markets. Dedicated workshops in Blieskastel, Heltersberg and Ottfingen mean that training can take place in real-life situations, e.g. so installers can handle the products and test how they all fit together on the job. These centres of excellence are invaluable places for trainers and trainees to work together, profit from direct feedback and discuss what could be improved or adapted in specific situations.
You name it, we’ll train you on it!
Our training dream team
Andreas Salzmann
Dirk Fritscher
Katharina Wille
Yves Peters
Andreas has over 30 years’ experience at Hager Group and has been training customers for over two decades.
Coming back for more
Andreas is the go-to man for anything you need to know about trunking systems for underfloor, walls or ceiling. He has over 30 years’ experience at Hager Group and has been training customers for over two decades. His role is to help installers, planners and architects better understand our solutions, so they come back wanting more. He creates how-to podcasts and videos, runs webinars, visits customers and welcomes them at Blieskastel and Heltersberg. Some of the topics he covers are LED lighting in cable management, how to mount the latest trunking systems for socket and data outlets, the complexities of underfloor systems and new regulations for cabling. For example, when he trains customers in person, they get hands-on experience testing different trunking options for flexibility in their installations – and profit from his sharp eye for detail.
“I am in contact with quite a wide range of customers, which is great because I really enjoy working with people. Mostly, I help installers with the hands-on stuff, while architects are more on the lookout for new ideas and innovations. I simply love giving customers new ideas and tips for installation practices.”
Whatever Andreas does, the challenge remains the same: making something technically complex easy to mount and use. Helping customers get a handle on trunking systems is indeed his source of inspiration. “If I do a good job training them, they’ll come back for more. Which is ultimately what we want.” It is also important for Andreas to make sure his direct colleagues benefit from his specialised trunking knowledge, so he regularly trains them, too, and keeps them up to date. “Transferring knowledge benefits everyone. We are a team, we help each other to be better and I still learn something new every day, even after more than 30 years in the industry.”
A digital day in the life of Dirk Fritscher
A KNX Technical Training Officer for the German market.
Interviewer: Dirk, I’m guessing there is no such thing as a typical day for you?
Dirk: Correct, it just doesn’t exist. Every day is different. It’s the nature of the job. I am a KNX communication protocol trainer, so I am specialised in technical software training. I provide certified training, electrical planning software hagercad training to plan electrical infrastructures, and specialised training for domovea solutions in smart homes. Every training session is different. It depends on the customers, their knowledge level, the type of training needed – there are so many variables.
Dirk is a KNX communication protocol trainer, he is specialised in technical software training.
So one-size-fits-all isn’t an option for you?
Certainly not. Training customers is all about adapting to their needs and skill levels. Sometimes I can skip a section in my training session and sometimes I have to really go into the details or get back to basics. Also, it depends on whether the training is face to face or in a webinar. The advantage of a webinar is that customers can simply “click and learn” the basics and the theory at their convenience, but we need a hybrid model with the option for face-to face training so customers can get their hands on the products and learn from trial and error with my help.
When you say “customer”, what type of group are you specifically referring to?
I mostly train installers for the commercial and residential market. KNX is compatible with any type of building, be it a small family home or a large shopping centre. I also train planners, particularly with hagercad for its technical possibilities and specificities and sometimes architects.
You mentioned hybrid solutions. Tell me a little more about this digital offer.
Before Covid, most of our training sessions were run on site. But then with all the various lockdowns we had to adapt our offer, make it attractive and easy for customers. We already offered some digital training. The last couple of years, though, were really an opportunity to push the boundaries further, so we took our WBT Web Based Training to the next level. It was a bit of a no-brainer as my line of expertise is technical and IT based anyway, so offering online training solutions was a natural progression in our increasingly digitalised world. Installers can attend live webinar sessions at their convenience, come back to them later and then combine with some how-to tutorials and hands-on sessions once the basic information is understood. Before 2019, we trained about 2,000 customers digitally a year, now it’s around 25,000. It’s a much broader reach. We are one of just a few companies to offer this type of extensive specialised training. Our customers recognise this and are impressed by the extent of our training solutions. At first, some of the installers were naturally a little unsure about online learning, but once they started it, they saw the many advantages. It is easy to attend and absolutely adapted to their needs.
How do you adapt to differing levels of expertise when you run the webinar session. Obviously not everyone has the same needs?
Take the KNX webinars, for example. Over a three-month period, we build up gradually and have different modules that cover different aspects of the knowledge one needs to successfully install and use the system. A session on switching. Another on dimming. Then, step by step, we consolidate competencies so installers feel comfortable. It’s totally flexible with some sessions being run in the morning and others as an after-work option and, of course, they don’t have to attend them all. The number of customers per session is quite variable. And then, of course, we have hands-on sessions, which are essential to take the system for a test drive. When it comes to software solutions, it takes a lot of trial and error to really get up to speed with it.
So, who trains the trainer? How do you keep your skills up to date?
Well, it’s part of my job to make sure I stay up to date. When there are new products and solutions, internal market managers or sometimes the product managers help us, depending on the product. And everyone in the training department is a certified trainer.
Starting early with e-volution
Calling all trainees, master students, teachers and instructors: e-volution is a unique Hager Group programme to provide knowledge about electrical engineering. The German Marketing Department is in charge of the initiative, which is open to a broad spectrum of learners. As with many of our learning solutions, this is an online offer which takes advantage of the many possibilities of digitalisation to bring people even closer to the world of Hager.
Innovative, informative, entertaining
The e-volution knowledge platform and programme are designed to accompany a person throughout their professional career – be they an apprentice, a master trainee, a teacher or instructor. e-volution offers learning aids, videos, webinars, podcasts and teaching materials. Users can log on whenever they want to consult practical learning tips and helpful methods for exam preparation. Teaching materials and exclusive web-based training and learning projects are at the fingertips of instructors and electrical engineering students, whether at the apprentice or masterclass level.
trainees received digital training in 2022 from the Hager Group team in Germany
20in-house and regional trainers
46000apprentices in the electrical industry in Germany
As the link between teachers and apprentices in schools, Katharina Wille is more than familiar with all aspects of imparting electricity knowledge. She wears many hats in her line of work. She has created a “Zukunft elektrisch” (Future Electric) podcast for apprentices to tune into. She accompanies, organises and manages in-house training sessions. She also actively participates in trade fairs with a special stand aimed at encouraging apprentices to take up the Hager product challenge, i.e. they get to use the products and see how they work in installations. Katharina is all about accompanying apprentices in their learning journey to becoming tomorrow’s technicians, electricians and electrical experts.
The importance of education and adapting knowledge to tomorrow’s working world
Part of Katharina’s job is to make sure that apprentices stay within the industry and that their teachers have the knowledge they need to help them progress and acquire relevant state-of-the-art skills. She wants them to become, as she puts it in her own words, “the expert customers of tomorrow”. The e-volution programme ensures that teachers have everything they need to teach. Her daily work includes creating videos, managing our social media presence and organising training sessions given by our German Sales force in local schools. “I know what teachers need, so I make sure that the relevant people are available to answer any questions and give them the best and most up-to-date knowledge. We provide webinars and seminars, and our website is always up to date. When we do our job well, everyone benefits!”
What she particularly likes about her work is being the voice of her target groups. She listens to them to understand what they need, adapts the learning offer accordingly and works closely with the teams in charge of training. It is an opportunity to help modernise vocational schools, especially regarding what is taught and how. “We need to make sure teachers have up-to-date knowledge and are using the best products and solutions. If the teachers’ skills are up to date, it improves the reputation of the school, which in turn makes it more attractive. Then more students will want to learn there and specialise in the skills needed for tomorrow’s electrical world.”
A strong culture of continuous learning builds successful businesses
LeAP
Leadership Acceleration Programme – reinforcing our leadership culture
The LeAP programme was developed to reinforce our leadership culture to better attain our company project goals, as well as to continuously develop participants. The key themes are focusing, growing and shaping our business. The programme accelerates individual leadership development for employees with strong leadership potential. To date, two sessions have run. More are planned. Criteria to be part of the 15-strong LeAP cohort include high performance, willingness to be mobile and a strong commitment to Hager Group. It is an opportunity involving training, coaching, workshops and conversation to demonstrate authentic and accountable leadership, proactively prepare for change and future career moves, as well as understand, appreciate and apply different leadership methods.
LIFT
Leading Into the Future Together – making the company future-proof
Our Hager Group LIFT programme was initially designed to shape the leadership culture we needed to reach our company project ambitions in 2017. It was a common ground programme for leaders to meet, discuss and receive specialised leadership training from in-house and external experts. It was about anticipating, discussing and sharing the skills necessary to support teams and get the best from everyone. Over 350 managers in four cohorts were trained by the end of 2022, and we are currently adapting our leadership programmes LIFT and LeAP in a continuous improvement spirit to further support our group’s ambition.
The Future Council
Encouraging intergenerational cross-working and learning
The idea for the Future Council came from the Young Professionals Club, an initiative to facilitate and support young professionals in their career path. In 2021 a pilot scheme was set up for a trial run. The Future Council is a sounding board where identified young talents and the Board of Directors meet up to discuss and understand mutual challenges and pain points. In a two-way discussion, the Board listens to the future generation to learn about their aspirations. In turn, the younger generation can make first contact with senior managers. The 10-member pilot group run in 2021 was such a success that, in 2022, a 15-member Future Council group was set up. Possible candidates for the council are carefully selected by Human Resources Talent Managers and the candidates create a presentation video. The first official cohort of 2022 discussed sustainability, development possibilities within the group and how to resolve some of the issues that companies may be facing, such as backlogs.
Weaving connections and preparing talent
Talent management specialist Natalia is based in Poland and keen supporter of continuous learning.
There have been and continue to be many programmes and initiatives in place at Hager Group to develop talent and prepare the electrical world of tomorrow. Here are just three of them that have proved successful in the past. They are currently being adjusted to reflect evolutions within the company.
Talent management specialist Natalia Bugaj-Gebala oversees the organisation of these meet-ups. She also coaches and trains younger colleagues on how to present themselves, share ideas and communicate in a different environment. “It’s very much about making them future-ready and coaching them on soft skills. We all come from different walks of life and operate in a multicultural, multigenerational and diverse world. Each member brings new ideas and a freshness to help the company evolve. The fact that the group is so mixed encourages the openness, innovation and creativity which are integral to our success as a company. The Future Council builds bridges and deepens connections between the Board and younger generations at Hager Group.” It also challenges perspectives on both sides and strengthens the voice and perception of the next generation within the company. The entire 2021 Future Council were invited to the 2022 Management Summer School to give the next generation another chance to be heard.
Making learning an event
Can events help us learn, enhance our skills and learn new ones while broadening our knowledge base? Whether physical or virtual, they serve as enablers and provide food for thought. Events let us foster interpersonal relationships, share achievements and honour successes, while improving our motivation and mood at work. Ensuring success and even happiness are important goals for any business as they are linked to our ability to evolve and learn. However, no organisation or person is immediately successful, and learning is a life-long process with pitfalls along the way. Success is often preceded by a lack of it.
Making mistakes – does practice make perfect?
Mistakes lead us to success as our failures make us examine what worked, what didn’t and why. Unsuccessful endeavours could even be considered more important than successful ones as they reveal issues to address. When we feel comfortable talking about failures or shortcomings, we can work together, focus and think analytically. While practice might not necessarily make our skills or the organisation perfect – or even help to eliminate mistakes – it certainly is an important piece of the learning puzzle. As we have already seen with different learning options and hands-on practice, balancing methods is a key factor of success. Exploration is another interesting way to optimise skills development. Exploring and experimenting are important to the process of learning and helping us to remain relevant.
Unlocking potential through event participation
Let’s focus on just three of the many events at Hager Group that are contributing to our life-long education journey.
Awards
Reflecting the growth mindset with awards
Collective events give participants the freedom to learn, test, evolve and yes, sometimes even fail. Testing a new method or training programme will not always be 100% successful, even if it sometimes all goes horribly wrong, that failure doesn’t define us. Rather it promotes a growth mindset, it helps us improve the way we work and think. Our Hager Group Awards are a good case in point, colleagues submit projects according to the different categories and a jury analyse and vote on the best projects – ones that have an impact on the company and help us develop. All those involved would agree that running a project, creating a product, installing a system or simply working with others never runs smoothly, there are bumps along the road. It is these bumps that help us look at things from a different angle.
Awarding best practices to shape the business
For example, the 2022 Excellence Award went to the Hager Production System (HPS) 2.0 excellence programme team. Their project is a group wide system to ensure world class manufacturing. This system takes the best internal and external expertise for each process and converts it into a new standard for the group. It unifies excellence across all sites by reinforcing benchmarking and collaboration. To get there, various systems and methods had to be tried and tested before finding a way to harmonise working practices where employees gain a clear path to progress, and customers profit from even greater reliability.
Inspiring, innovating and sharing
2022 saw the first Hager Group Awards ceremony, a more global version of our Continuous Improvement Ceremonies of the past. This one-day event is a get-together, shining a light on colleagues whose projects contribute to building the electrical world of tomorrow. The most innovative projects, technical excellence, success and all those who make it possible are rewarded. The event is a source of inspiration, innovation and best-practice sharing to keep looking for new and better ways of doing things.
Hager Forum Talks for learning and inspiration
Garnering expert knowledge
Hager Forum Talks are a series of inspiring lectures and discussions, designed to present new and exciting ideas in the context of our working lives. Colleagues, customers and even sometimes the public can attend. The talks raise and answer various questions covering topics ranging from innovation to entrepreneurship from environmental sustainability to new ways of working together. Our internal experts share their knowledge along with external recognised experts in their field. These events are also an apt alternative for people wanting to study a topic in depth who do not particularly enjoy reading or participating in traditional training sessions. Alternatives such as having experts sharing their real-life experiences and tips are equally as valuable as formal learning situations. Our Hager Group talks have the advantage of being available to all via a streaming platform on the day with an easy-to-access recorded recap just in case you were unable to attend.
Let’s focus on just two of the many talks.
Being resilient for the long haul
One of the 2022 talks dealt with the topic of resilience and empowerment. How can we deal with stressful situations, recover from failure and stay on point during difficult times? These were just some of the issues addressed by a panel of four experts who shared tips, answered questions and spoke about their own experiences. From various walks of life, the experts ranged from a high-performance athlete to a Leadership and Mental Fitness Coach. All four agreed that some core competencies help us deal with what life and work throws at us. These can be learned to better cope with both expected and unexpected challenges.
How to boost innovation – turning today’s weaknesses into strengths
Another of the talks addressed innovation and entrepreneurship. An internal expert discussed with a masterclass lecturer form the University of Amsterdam about what it takes to innovate. Listeners learnt about the generation of new ideas and how to improve success when launching new products, solutions or business models. Discussions ensued about best practices, how to deal with innovation and of course bouncing back and learning from failure.
Unboxing our minds
Unbox your mind with Hager Forum talks; a series of inspiring lectures and discussions, designed to present new and exciting ideas for our working lives. Recognised experts in their field – both internal and external – share their insights with attendees be it virtually or in Hager Forum itself. There is always plenty of food for thought to go around.
Management Summer School
Legacy and culture – back to school with our Management Summer Schools
Right from the start, the company founders Hermann and Dr. Oswald Hager along with their father, focused on the future and generations to come. Their legacy lives on as we continue to leverage the engagement and competencies of our people. More than a decade ago we decided to revisit our investment into leadership development and launched several learning and development programs, one of which was our first Management Summer School in 2012.
Exploring, learning and finding the right solutions
Our Management Summer Schools are all about sustainable leadership and growing together. With top managers, young talents and special guests, over the past ten years we have explored how to shape our future, innovate and digitalise, to name but a few topics on the agenda. Our vision is that “we are a family business shaping tomorrow’s electrical world to make people’s life on our planet safer, cleaner and more enjoyable” and our belief: it starts with our people, customers and stakeholders. We listen to understand, and together we explore, learn and find the right solutions.
External inspiration
Since 2012, over 50 renowned guest speakers have shared their transformation and change experiences. “Learning expeditions” have also been integrated into the summer school programmes, their purpose being to connect to and be open to the external world. Over the years, participants have been inspired by outstanding locations, got creative in various workshops and capitalised on this unique learning culture, with of course a little bit of fun thrown in for good measure.
Our insights
We understand that learning together, being inspired by others and reinforcing a common learning mindset are elemental to success. The 2018 Management Summer School (MSS) is a particularly good example of the importance the group places on learning and looking for fresh new ideas externally. The entire event was organised as a learning journey; companies were toured and guest speakers extended insights and inspiration. Event participants visited companies whose specific fields deliver outstanding results, ranging from handheld power equipment manufacturers, to robotics specialists and to an automotive leader. Although the brands and companies were quite different, the participants benefitted from specialised knowledge with a potential for duplication in the Hager Group world.
Intergenerational learning and leadership
Since with new participants come fresh authentic ideas, every year the mix is shaken up to provide the benefits of mixing a range of experienced managers and a younger generation. This intergenerational approach is fundamental to working together with energy and motivation on redesigning our electrical future.