Apprenticeships successfully begun as well as completed at KWS

Einbeck, August 5, 2021

For apprentices and their trainers, the summer months are always something special. This truism also applies to the plant breeding company KWS where 34 young people began a new stage in their lives with the start of their apprenticeships on August 2. Shortly before that, 46 graduates celebrated their successful completion of eight different apprenticeships and dual study programs.

Apprenticeships successfully begun as well as completed at KWS

Representing 34 new starters at KWS (from left to right): Ida Warnecke (industrial clerk), Marie Louis Schubert (plant technologist) and David Kemenji (B.A. Business Administration)

New apprentices get started

KWS recently saw many new faces at its front entrance in Einbeck: There on August 2, 34 young people stood eagerly waiting to step inside to embark on a new journey in their lives. They will spend the next three to three and a half years completing apprenticeships in the areas of plant technology, industrial mechanics, industrial electronics engineering, sales representative for wholesale and export management and industrial clerk as well as in the dual study programs of business administration (B.A.), computer science (B.Sc.) and business informatics (B.Sc.).

The majority of the apprentices will work in Einbeck, while some will train in the company's other German locations in Wohlde, Seligenstadt, Wetze, Klein Wanzleben and Petkus (Baruth/Mark). In addition, the business apprentices will complete assignments at KWS in Berlin. KWS is also training a farmer at its location in Dreileben for the first time ever.

Apprentices are especially excited at the start of their training. And a lot of questions run through their minds: What can I expect? Will I find my way around the company? What tasks will I have? How will the conditions of the coronavirus pandemic affect training? For a smooth start at the company, apprentices first participate in an orientation program organized by their training supervisors. Instead of listening to theoretical lectures, participants engaged in many intriguing tasks that led to a lot of laughter. They also got to enjoy a guided city tour of Einbeck as part of the program.

For the second consecutive year, the conditions of the coronavirus pandemic will shape the start of the apprenticeship. Yvonne Knaak-Schweiß, apprenticeship coordinator at KWS, explains: “The situation is, of course, unique for our apprentices. Working with our trainers, we’ve been trying to set up the kickoff program and the time following it so our apprentices still get a wide variety of vital insights into the company’s work areas, have continuous designated points of contact and obtain the opportunity to develop networks."

Successful completion of training

While the new apprentices are still at the very beginning of their professional careers, 46 young people successfully concluded the initial stage of their professional lives at the end of July at the KWS Forum. There, in small groups, they were recognized for completing their apprenticeships and received certificates and gifts from their training supervisors. These newly minted professionals include five industrial clerks, one sales representative for wholesale and export management, two dual-study program graduates (one with a degree in business administration and another in computer science), three industrial mechanics, three technicians for industrial electronics engineering, 13 plant technologists and 19 agricultural technical assistants.

Yvonne Knaak-Schweiß points out: “Throughout the apprenticeship and beyond, it has been important to us that our new employees acquire more than just technical expertise but also cultivate a sense of commitment and empathy to carry out their jobs with heart and soul. The goal is for young people to develop into independent, responsible individuals.”

About KWS*
KWS is one of the world’s leading plant breeding companies. More than 5,700 employees in 70 countries generated net sales of around €1.3 billion in fiscal 2019/2020. A company with a tradition of family ownership, KWS has operated independently for more than 160 years. It focuses on plant breeding and the production and sale of seed for corn, sugarbeet, cereals, vegetables, rapeseed and sunflowers. KWS uses leading-edge plant breeding methods to continuously improve yield for farmers and plants’ resistance to diseases, pests and abiotic stress. To that end, the company invested more than €200 million last fiscal year in research and development.

* All figures excluding the shares of the equity-accounted companies AGRELIANT GENETICS LLC., AGRELIANT GENETICS INC. and KENFENG – KWS SEEDS CO., LTD.

Follow us on Twitter®.

Your contact persons

Yvonne Knaak-Schweiß
Yvonne Knaak-Schweiß
Apprenticeship coordinator
Send E-mail
Sina Barnkothe-Seekamp
Sina Barnkothe-Seekamp
Lead of External Communications
Send E-mail
CONTACT