Great Place to Work: "If we rule out the home office option, we will no longer be competitive as an employer."
How does a company become a particularly attractive employer? In an interview with FLEX Director People Jan Hauke Holste, Nadine Przyhodnik, Head of HR & Administration at the FLEX portfolio company Formware, reveals the steps her company took to be recognised as a Great Place to Work.
Nadine Przyhodnik,
Head of HR & Administration, Formware GmbH
Nadine Przyhodnik is an expert in the areas of HR and administration. The business administration graduate has been working for FLEX portfolio company Formware since 2013, where she quickly found herself promoted to manager of the human resources and administration department. In 2019 she was appointed General Manager of Formware.
Jan Hauke Holste
Director of People, FLEX Capital
Jan Hauke Holste has been part of the FLEX team since January 2022 and is responsible for the People department. Before becoming Director of People at FLEX, Holste worked as a HR expert in a variety of companies including PlusDental and KPMG.
Hello Nadine, and congratulations on the Great Place to Work certification! Can you introduce yourself to our readers?
Nadine: Thank you, Jan, and I’m excited to share a little of our journey. I’m an authorised signatory and at the same time responsible for HR and administration at Formware. I’ve been working for Formware for around 10 years, and the award represents a lot of hard work by everyone here.
Can you tell us more about those efforts? What steps has Formware taken over the years to earn Great Place To Work certification?
Nadine: We have our headquarters in Nußdorf am Inn. In practice, that means we compete with the many companies in Munich and Rosenheim. Added to this is the general shortage of skilled workers. Against this background, we’ve made great efforts in recent years to increase our attractiveness as an employer.
We now offer a wide range of benefits, one of which is flexible working time models. These have been very well received by our employees; the 40-hour model is now actually dying out with us.
In addition, every employee now has a firm right to work from home. This option is very much appreciated, especially as everyone strives to achieve a better work-life balance.
We also offer a job bike grant. Around 30 per cent of our workforce now has a job bike that Formware has subsidised. Especially in a rural region like this, the offer of the "Job-Rad" subsidy is much appreciated. We also offer supplementary company health insurance depending on length of service; for example, vision insurance and additional dental insurance. Thirty days of holidays per year are standard at Formware, as is a lucrative bonus system. Of course, our employees’ families are very important to us. That’s why we offer child care during the summer holidays, for example.
The company suggestion system is also very much appreciated as it gets our employees asking questions and helping make positive changes. At least as important are our regular employee surveys. We also put a lot of effort into building a healthy work environment. For example, every employee has a height-adjustable desk; we offer back courses—be it on site or digitally during the pandemic—and health days, and we’re constantly working to further develop these measures.
We compete with the many companies in Munich and Rosenheim. Added to this is the general shortage of skilled workers. Against this background, we’ve made great efforts in recent years to increase our attractiveness as an employer.
Nadine Przyhodnik
I think that out of the entire FLEX portfolio, you at Formware are the ones with the most mature employer-branding-employer-being concept, and you’ve seen the most benefits in terms of not only quality, but also quantity. Have you noticed that these measures have an impact on corporate culture or your return on investment?
Nadine: : I can confidently say that the benefits have significantly improved the overall work atmosphere. Employees tell us on a regular basis, be it in conversations at the coffee machine or through official surveys, that they appreciate the work we’ve put in.
In the area of recruiting, we noticed that our colleagues are proud of the company and its culture and therefore recommend us to others. For example, they mention our vacancies when an acquaintance is looking for a job. We’ve clearly felt this trend in the last one or two years.
Of course, you can also determine the influence of our measures on tough key figures. For example, we have very low fluctuation and a low rate of illness. In addition, we at Formware have an above-average length of corporate affiliation. Our managers have been with us for an average of 15 years, and the average length of service for other employees is 11-12 years, which is really very long. After all, HR departments today expect that people will change jobs every five years.
Of course, you can also determine the influence of our measures on tough key figures. For example, we have very low fluctuation and a low rate of illness. In addition, we at Formware have an above-average length of corporate affiliation.
Nadine Przyhodnik
