“Top-Job”: Category win for DORMA for outstanding personnel development
 Duisburg/Ennepetal. In recognition of its exemplary personnel work, door system manufacturer DORMA was awarded first prize in the category “Personnel Development and Prospects” in this year’s nationwide “Top-Job” survey of German small-to-medium-sized enterprises. Qualifying as an SME, DORMA secured its success thanks in particular to the systematic and institutionalised training programmes that it has established. Beyond this category win, the company also received the “Top-Job” seal of approval for outstanding personnel work, identifying it as an attractive employer. At the prize-giving ceremony held in the “Landschaftspark” leisure facility in Germany’s “steel city” of Duisburg on January 25, 2008, project mentor Wolfgang Clement handed over the trophy and the coveted seal of approval to DORMA CEO Dr. Michael Schädlich and head of human resources Michael Ecker. “The ‘Top-Job’ quality award has enabled us to position the DORMA name as a premium brand well beyond our own region and sector,” said Dr Schädlich, underlining the importance of the accolade. “We are both proud and delighted at winning this category. In keeping with our motto ‘Gain through Change’, this success strengthens our resolve both to invest further in our already established personnel development measures and to effectively attune our programmes to our various target groups within the company.”
In the category in which DORMA took first place, the emphasis was on determining whether companies were able to provide their employees with challenging prospects and what those companies were doing in the field of further training and career support. “In the case of DORMA, we were particularly impressed with the quality and quantity of the strategies and offerings with which the company motivates its employees to pursue continuous professional and personal development,” explained Prof. Dr. Heike Bruch of the University of St. Gallen, scientific director of the “Top-Job” project. For example, young managers at DORMA are largely recruited from within the company’s own ranks and, following an intensive two-year trainee development programme, are further supported during their first few years of “active duty” – with group supervision, individual coaching and specific further training. The programme known as “SEIDO” (Shared Experiences Inside DORMA), enables experts to apply and share their specific knowledge in international projects while also furthering their own personal development.
Across the board, individual expertise, skills and potential are right at the focal point of the support measures on offer at DORMA. Its employee-centric approach is also at the core of the “situative management” model practised by the company. This involves regular employee meetings designed to provide the line manager with a comprehensive picture of the current situation with respect to employee performance levels and aspirations. Moreover, the assessment exercise is anything but one-way – for the employee is also given the chance to evaluate the performance of his or her boss.
This 2008 award means that DORMA has won its way into the “Top-Job” list of victors for the fourth year in a row. As part of the appraisal procedure, DORMA submitted itself to a thorough three-stage investigation by the Institute for Business Administration and Personnel Management of the University of St. Gallen. On behalf of the federal government’s “Top-Job” SME initiative, the institute examines the performance of the HR departments of German SMEs on an annual basis and then ascertains the hundred best employers. DORMA was required to prove its capabilities in six areas. Aside from the “Personnel Development and Prospects” category, also included in the analysis were the disciplines “Management and Vision”, “Culture and Communication”, “Family and Social Orientation”, “Internal Entrepreneurship” and “Motivation and Dynamics”.
With the aid of a questionnaire, the HR management experts assisting institute director Prof. Dr. Heike Bruch initially compiled the key facts and figures characterising DORMA as a candidate company. This was followed by a detailed online employee survey. Finally, in a second questionnaire, the HR instruments of the company were investigated. All the award-winning companies count among the “crème de la crème” of Germany’s SME landscape. According to the analysis, the top employers identified not only lead the way in terms of HR management – also with respect to return on investment, profitability and customer satisfaction, they do significantly better than those companies that failed to make the cut. This year, a total of 189 companies put their names forward for the “Top-Job” award.
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“Top-Job” roll of honour: DORMA garnered the best employer award in the category “Personnel Development and Prospects”. The prize-giving ceremony in Duisburg was attended by (from left) “Top-Job” project mentor Wolfgang Clement, scientific project director Prof. Dr. Heike Bruch, DORMA CEO Dr. Michael Schädlich, DORMA HR director Michael Ecker and presenter Ulrich Wickert.
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Wolfgang Clement (right) hands over the “Top-Job” seal of approval to head of DORMA personnel development, Thomas Höll.
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The “Top-Job” logo
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