Hoffmann: That sounds great, but the question that always comes up is: How do they manage to do it in terms of time? Do they do it during their working hours or is it voluntary? How do you organize it? Time is a very, very precious commodity, especially in the health sector, and people don't sit around at twelve or four o'clock in the afternoon after their shift has started and think: "Hmm, it's a bit boring. Now I'll take another look at what I can do as an employer ambassador." - or do they?
Schäfer: There are various concepts. So this training that I was talking about is offered as advanced training. And just as I combine advanced training for, I don't know, specialist training as an endoscopy nurse with working hours and clarify with the employer which part I can do during working hours or how it is combined, the same applies to my employer ambassador training. And time is always made available in our company too.
For example, there is a creative workshop where nursing staff work forex data in different positions, and who then spend, let's say, 0.2 percent of their time in the creative workshop, and they also have the time to shoot my HR marketing video or distribute bicycle saddle covers with me, which is what we did this week. So they officially have the time to think about ideas like that.
Hoffmann: I find that particularly interesting, because what you are describing is that your strategy is based on an existing corporate culture that already left room for other things. How important is corporate culture for a strategy like this?
Schäfer: Very important, of course. And yes, there is also... Ms. Fuhr, because she always encourages ideas that come from the staff and not only takes them seriously and listens to them, but also really stands behind them and says: "Yes, of course, we'll do that, that sounds good." And then she also provides the opportunities to do that. And that was the case before I came. But it wasn't so visible, it was only ever noticed by those who were involved in this or that project.
And I see it as my job to provide a little information about it. Because of course our social media channels or the career blog are not only read by applicants, but also by our own employees. Of course there is also the intranet, where information is provided, but I would say that the younger generations in particular might find out more quickly on Facebook that I have handed out bicycle saddles than they read it on the intranet. So there is always a lot of communication.