“The company stands by its employees – even in times of crisis.”
Interview with Christoph Reck, plant manager at H-O-T.
How long have you been working for the H-O-T Group?
For over 11 years.
What opportunities has the company offered you?
How has H-O-T supported you in your personal development?
I started out as a production employee at H-O-T. The management has always supported, challenged and encouraged me in my personal development. At first, I was able to draw upon the expertise of older and more experienced employees who assisted me. I was then also given the opportunity to undertake further training externally (such as at a master school) with financial support from H-O-T.
In your opinion, what do you need in order to achieve success with the H-O-T Group?
This isn’t a monotonous job where you simply down tools after eight hours. You need to be open to new things. Motivation and flexibility are just as important as a willingness to learn, as no two days are ever the same.
What do you like most about your current job?
What do you particularly enjoy at work?
Every day brings new challenges. I enjoy taking on these new challenges, as you also learn a great deal for life – especially when it comes to dealing with customers. The job is never monotonous. You look at the clock early in the morning and the next thing you know it’s almost time to go home.
What do you like in general about your work for the H-O-T Group?
I like the fact that the H-O-T Group gives you the opportunity to go from normal employee to a management position with only a little experience, but plenty of commitment and initiative.
What do you think are the greatest challenges?
Making our customers happy. Or in other words, implementing our customers’ requirements to the extent that they are satisfied with us and continue to use us as a service provider. What’s more, the responsibility for employees that my position entails is something that sometimes stretches me to the limit. Finding the right people and managing them is one of the biggest challenges. However, at the same time, it also feels good to have overcome this challenge and put together a well-functioning team.
Why would you recommend the H-O-T Group as an employer?
The company stands by its employees – even in times of crisis. For example, during the financial crisis, there were quite a number of redundancies at other companies. The redundancies seem to have hit quickly at larger companies. Here, we spent a long time reviewing whether redundancies were actually worth considering, as we strive to retain good employees within the company over the long term. For this reason, opened-ended contracts are usually concluded.
What advice would you give someone who was interested in a career with the H-O-TGroup?
We are looking for people who are open to new things, willing to accept challenges and want to grow together with H-O-T.
