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Index Kirson increases its training quota Teacher
already in the managing director's chair for the fifth time Kirson employees donate almost € 5,000 for Burma Kirson sponsors author readings in schools Day care facilities protect against child poverty
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reading, you become more and more interested in Sebastian who is introduced to the secrets of the region's culture by a die-hard
Bavarian. And the audience, which also included a large number of
non-Bavarians, will have probably learned a great deal when the subject matter switched to Bavarian swearing and
insults.
Sebastian Glubrecht
who, as a native of Hannover, was never in a position to pick up a dialect from
birth, explained at the beginning of his book presentation that he had taken speech lessons in preparation for his
readings. Those who thought that Glubrecht had taken elocution lessons or drama classes soon stood
corrected. No, he took Bavarian language lessons so that he could successfully recite the Bavarian quotes and expressions in his book and not embarrass himself in front of his
audience. And the audience witnessed again and again just how valuable his lessons
were. Only once or twice did Glubrecht, who incidentally read very fluently and spoke well, have to interrupt his reading and start over again in an attempt at mastering some really complicated Bavarian
sentences. The audience showed their gratitude for this with loud laughter and paid credit to his
"foreign language" skills with applause. |
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Some of the guests – such as the wheelchair user and Kirson employee G. Dossin – made
sure to wear traditional clothing befitting of the subject matter in hand. With this employee - who actually
comes from North Rhine Westphalia - the assimilation already seems to be in its advanced
stages.
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After many hiccups and bursts of laughter, the reading ended with the tune "Ein Prosit der Gemütlichkeit". The audience did not yet want to get up and
leave, so Glubrecht gratified his guests with an encore. The romance which blossoms between Sebastian and his Munich love-interest Roni and which is then broken off due to a terrible gaffe on the part of Sebastian – does it have a happy end? This information was never revealed by the
author. After all, the audience should still have an incentive to buy the book and read it for
themselves.
The audience soon acted upon this incentive and the author had to sign the books just purchased by his new fans for almost an
hour. Afterwards, curious observers were able to find out if the author can now handle white sausages better than his alter ego Sebastian in the novel at the beginning of his time in Munich.
By this time, Kirson GmbH employees and many of the other guests had already had something to eat and drink from the
buffet. The author and his work were still being discussed for a long time. And there was a lot of speculation about whether the novel had more autobiographical content than the author admitted to. A second book will show whether Glubrecht is capable of developing other characters in addition to Sebastian. And whether they will also be engulfed by the great acceptance experienced by the Prussian Sebastian
who, this evening at least, was able to charmingly describe to all how he learned to love Bavaria. |
Link to newspaper article from the "Mittelbayerische Zeitung"
Index
July
2008
New training course solely for secondary school (Hauptschule) pupils
Kirson increases its training quota
Kirson GmbH has a good reputation for its on-the-job-training among the schools in the Kelheim district. The training quota over the last few years was always in the top single-digit percentage range. With the exception of those pupils leaving school in 2006, the company from Neustadt was able to offer employment to all those trainees who completed their courses in the years 2003 and later. Keeping in mind the high investments made by the company for its trainees, anything else could be viewed as being negligent.
In June 2008, ten young employees were in training. With a staff level of 113 employees including trainees, this corresponds to a proportion of trainees amounting to almost nine percent. After successfully passing their final exams in July 2008, two trainees will have completed their training in industrial business management and business administration and will be employed by the company.
The new training year 2008/2009 will see the training quota increasing to almost twelve percent. This 33 % rise is due to the fact that Kirson will, for the first time, be filling two training vacancies in machine and plant operation (textile technology) as of the new training year.
The training in machine and plant operation is a course which only lasts for two years and which is particularly aimed at secondary school (Hauptschule
***) leavers who were not necessarily the best performers in their year. Practical aspects are at the forefront of this training. Trainees who have been gripped by ambition during the course can, if suited to do so, add a third year to their training and sit the examination to become a textile engineer.
The managing director of Kirson, Jörg Göhl, gives two important reasons for setting up this new vocational training programme. Even though, up until a few years ago, pupils from secondary schools (Hauptschule) were occasionally employed for both industrial and technical vocations, the training school requirements to be met and the tasks to be fulfilled at the workplace became so demanding that practically only middle school (Realschule) students could be considered during the allocation of apprenticeship training positions. The new training courses now mean that secondary school pupils could once again be offered apprenticeship positions on a regular basis. This way, there is a chance that talents which were not so apparent at first glance could still be discovered.
The second – equally important – reason is that, even though importance is placed on completed vocational training when filling production jobs, in the district of Kelheim, it is almost impossible to find employees with textile training. Through the new training programme, it is hoped that Kirson will be able to draw upon employees who are qualified in issues relevant to textiles.
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***
In Germany, children start attending school at approximately six years of age. All children go to elementary (primary) school for four years. In most of the federal states – as is also the case in Bavaria – the pupils then attend either a "Hauptschule" (for five additional years), "Realschule" (six additional years) or Gymnasium (nine additional years). Third-degree education can be started once the pupil has successfully completed his/her time at the Gymnasium.
Pupils who attend the Hauptschule or Realschule mostly take part in three-year dual vocational training in companies, social welfare facilities or public agencies. During this period, they receive on-the-job training and attend a vocational school for one to two days a week.
Over the last few years, it has become increasingly more difficult for those pupils with a leaving diploma from the Hauptschule to be awarded a training position.
Index June
2008
Riedenburg
middle school teacher at Kirson
Teacher
already in the managing director's chair for the fifth time
For the first time back in 2003, Kirson took part in the "teacher
in the managing director's chair" campaign which was being
held throughout Bavaria and (is) aimed at contributing to a
greater understanding between schools and the business world.
The visit of the deputy vice principal of the Riedenburg-based
Johann-Simon-Mayr school, Mr. Thomas Dachs, saw Kirson
participating in this campaign for the fifth time.
For the managing director, Jörg Göhl, this special day has
since become something of a routine. Following a company tour
and corporate presentation, Mr. Göhl arranged for Thomas Dachs
to take part in a few meetings to give him an genuine impression
of what working for an industrial corporation involves.
Following preliminary discussions on the implementation of a
lean management audit for particular machine operators, Mr.
Dachs was also able to attend the visit of an external
training-course provider who is commissioned with conceiving a
training course on the dangers which could arise when working
with the internet for Kirson employees.
The teacher from Riedenburg, who also gives lessons on economics
in his school and is a committed contributor to workgroups in
the district which promote collaboration between companies and
schools, appeared very interested in the activities at Kirson.
In the next school year, the managing director, Mr. Göhl, is
expected to pay a return visit to Riedenburg.
The souvenir photograph shows Thomas Dachs with Jörg Göhl at
the lean information centre in Kirson's production facilities.
The day of the visit started off with the setting up of a
permanent "exhibition stand" for all company employees.
The information boards are aimed at informing the employees
about all current projects linked with the introduction of lean
management at Kirson. Lean management is a concept which can be
traced back to the car manufacturer Toyota and which was
successfully implemented for the first time in Germany at
Porsche. With lean management, work sequences are continually
improved and all areas of squandering and waste in the
production and administration departments consistently
eliminated.
You
can find more information on this "Teacher in the Managing
Director's Chair" campaign, which has been held now for the
eighth year, under the following link:
www.lehrer-im-chefsessel.de Index
Mai
2008
Corporate excursion to celebrate 45 years since the company's founding
Kirson employees donate almost € 5,000 for Burma
In 2008, Kirson GmbH is celebrating its 45th anniversary. To celebrate this occasion, three quarters of the workforce embarked on a company outing to the Rhineland. The agenda started with a visit to the Cromford industrial museum in Ratingen. This museum is located in the first real factory (to work using industrial methods as opposed to the hand-crafted manufacturing methods used up until then) to be founded on German soil.The visit was particularly interesting due to the fact that it is a textile factory which, back in those days, did not manufacture technical products, but rather cotton yarns.
The highlights of the three-day excursion were the visit to the ABBA musical "Mamma Mia" in Essen and the festive ceremony in the "Früh" brewery restaurant in Cologne to celebrate the company's 45th anniversary. The managing director, Jörg Göhl, used his speech to prepare the staff for the ambitious targets set out for the next five years leading up to the company's 50th anniversary. To allow each employee to better identify with these targets, a pin was attached to the lapel of their festive clothing.
Due to the fact that, over the last few years, the company has experienced that many people have put their names down to take part in events and then have subsequently failed to turn up, Kirson GmbH also requested the payment of so-called "trust money" for particular events, money which the participant is only reimbursed if he or she actually attends the event. In view of the flood disaster which occurred a few weeks prior to the corporate excursion, the managing director, Mr. Göhl, proposed to those participating in the trip that the money be donated to Burma. To increase the incentive, he offered that the company would double the total amount raised through the trust money and other donations.
Possibly due to the fact that the participants really enjoyed the excursion, almost no-one requested that their trust money be returned. This meant that, following the addition of a few donations, a total of € 2,320 was achieved. Kirson GmbH doubled the amount meaning that a grand total of € 4,640, thus almost € 5,000, was reached which was then donated to the "Deutschland hilft" (Germany helps) campaign for Burma.
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First impressions in front of Cologne
Cathedral following the train journey
from the south.
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A third of the employees in front of the
manor house of the Cromford textile
factory in Ratingen
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One of the windows in Cologne Cathedral
comes from Bavaria, something which was
naturally of particular interest to the participants
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Any guided tour of Cologne must include a
visit to the bronze figures of the original
Cologne characters "Tünnes and Schäl".
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The chairman of the works
council, Wolfgang Boy,
speaks on behalf of the colleagues taking part
and expresses his thanks for the wonderful excursion,
the excellent organisation and the successful
promotion of the staff's team spirit.
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A visit to the Rhineland would not be complete
without wine tasting. To greet the guests from
Neustadt an der Donau, the Leutesdorf wine
queen made a point of coming to the Mohr & Söhne
winery where the Kirson employees were gathering sustenance in preparation for the return
journey.
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Link to newspaper article from the "Mittelbayerische Zeitung"
Index
April
2008
Kirson gets you reading
Kirson sponsors author readings in schools
Since Kirson had held two author readings in its dispatch hall over the last two years with great success, it was felt that the time was right to make an attempt at achieving the same outside of the company grounds. Due to the fact that the company has an above-average training quota and is always on the look-out for trainees who display great promise, the management was quickly in agreement that the company would sponsor an author reading in local schools while simultaneously advertising Kirson.
In collaboration with a local bookstore, the search was on for a suitable author of books for young people. After a long period spent viewing current young people's literature, a selection was made in favour of Christoph Wortberg from Cologne.
On 17th April 2008, the author firstly read from his book "Die Farbe der Angst" (The Colour of Fear) to an audience of eighth grade pupils at the Johann-Thurmair secondary school in Abensberg. Maybe because it would have been boring for the author to read from the same book twice in the same morning, a few hours later he suggested to the eighth grade pupils at the Johannes-Nepomuk grammar school in Rohr that he would read from his latest novel "Easy" – a book as yet unpublished.
The grammar school pupils were only too pleased to agree to the proposed premiere. Christoph Wortberg managed to build up a rapport with his young audience at both schools extremely quickly. With the aid of questions, he was also able to get the few pupils who were rather reserved into the swing of the thrilling texts which dealt with the world of young people.
Wortberg had explained to the pupils that he was actually a trained actor. Individual pupils recognised him from his role in the ARD series "Lindenstraße". The author did not earn his money predominantly from writing young people's literature, but more as an author of screenplays, for example for the series "Tatort" and "Der letzte Zeuge" (The Last Witness).
Following the presentation, Wortberg offered to show the pupils how a screenplay evolves and what it looks like, an offer which was promptly followed by a cluster of female pupils gathering around his laptop. It may be possible that not everyone dreams of a training position at Kirson, but of a career as an
actor.
Index
December
2007
Christmas donation 2007
Day care facilities protect against child poverty
When the Christmas cards for relaying greetings to business partners are printed, the decision has yet to be made who will be receiving a Christmas donation from Kirson GmbH. For this reason, last year's greetings card only contained the information that Kirson would be donating approximately 12,500 euros. Late in the year, the people at Kirson then decided to support day care facilities for toddlers and school children.
This fitted in with the requirements indicated in an OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) study published just before Christmas, from which Jörg Göhl quoted in a small ceremony: "If you want to see more children being born, you must set up a reliable chain of childcare to allow both men and women to return to their jobs quickly and to allow them perform and be successful there. (...) The most effective strategy to counteract child poverty is to allow the parents to practise their
profession.“
Since the 2007 business year had proven to be exceptionally successful and the management level had decided to also support several public libraries in the towns of Abensberg and Neustadt an der Donau, a total sum of 17,000 euros was handed over to representatives of the beneficiaries.
The crèche in Abensberg and the elementary schools in Abensberg and Neustadt an der Donau each received a 4.000 euro donation. The public libraries in Abensberg, Bad Gögging, Neustadt an der Donau and Offenstetten were pleased to receive 1,250 euros
each.
The obligatory photograph of donation beneficiaries with Kirson executive managers
Reinhard Ferch (second from the left) and Markus Kirzinger (third from the right).
Link to article from the "Mittelbayerische Zeitung" newspaper
(PDF file)
Index
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News
(15.07.2008)
