Today’s young talents will be tomorrow’s top experts. Thomas understood this from an early stage and is known regionally for its great commitment as an apprenticeship trainer. Every year, young people in Herdorf take their first steps into the world of work in either a commercial or a technical profession. Ten apprentices, including two students following a dual curriculum, recently took their final exam. Everyone achieved outstanding results.
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We’re unbelievably proud of our apprentices and dual-curriculum students.
Christopher Richter, Instructor
The apprentices have thus come to the end of their course, while the students on the dual curriculum will continue with their on-the-job learning. The exams were held between mid-December and the end of January. Thomas’s young talents achieved an average score of 86 percent in their practical and theory assignments. This outstanding result is reflected in the breakdown of overall grades: three ones (“excellent”), five twos (“good”), and two threes (“satisfactory”). Training Manager Christopher Richter believes that the performance speaks for itself: “We’re unbelievably proud of our apprentices and dual-curriculum students,” the 33-year-old says. “Results this good don’t just happen by themselves – ultimately, anything that’s been covered in three and a half years of learning can come up in the exam.”
Memorizing three and a half years’ worth of material
All the apprentices and dual-curriculum students came well prepared. According to Richter: “Everyone was focused and serious about the matter in hand. The whole team shared in the excitement and kept their fingers crossed.” This was hardly surprising, as Thomas’s philosophy is that anyone embarking on an apprenticeship belongs at the company from day one. Every apprentice is a full member of the Thomas family – a family in which everyone pulls together and can rely on everyone else. In addition the colleagues alongside whom the next generation of talent had been studying the theory and practice of their profession over the past few years lived up to this claim once again.
Eight graduates take up offer to stay
After passing their exams, the freshly minted experts had more than just a certificate to enjoy, as Thomas rewarded them with a “bonus” for their outstanding achievements: a voucher worth EUR 200 for a grade of “one” and EUR 100 for a “two”.
Thomas had reason to be pleased too. Ultimately, the fact that apprentices make up a significant percentage of its workforce – between 5 and 8 percent on average over the past ten years – is in its own interests. In Herdorf, the company tailors its training to cover its own needs. Apprentices and dual-curriculum students who perform to a certain level are given the opportunity to stay with Thomas. This year was no different, with all graduates offered this opportunity. Eight of them have now signed their contract to stay on and are remaining part of the team
“We’re delighted that so many young people have chosen a career with us,” Richter says. “It proves yet again that providing training is worth it for companies like us. As in previous years, the exam candidates will be presenting their work to our Management Board, so we’ll all be able to celebrate the successes achieved by our next generation of young talents.”
Thomas would like to congratulate:
- Luca Scheidling, Nico Scheidling and Tom Laurin Schröder (technical product designers)
- Lars Bachmann (process mechanic)
- Louis Lenz (IT specialist)
- Louis Pinkert, Tom Schneider (mechatronics engineers)
- Samuel Schmitz, Paul Solbach (industrial mechanics)
- Isabelle Uhland (industrial business management specialist)
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