Behind the scenes
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by Catherine Barth
Hip, hip, hooray! We are among the top 10 employers in the IT sector
20.10.2020
Translation: machine translated
Pictures: David Kübler
Every year, the consultancy firm Universum selects the top employers in the IT sector. This year we are popping the corks: We have made it into the top 10 for the first time - straight into 5th place.
Manuel Stadler scurries past me in the office. When I ask him about his top position in the Universum ranking, he pauses. He is clearly delighted. Manuel is responsible for recruiting new employees for our software development department at Digitec Galaxus. He is close to the action and knows how difficult it is to find suitable specialists. Between October 2019 and April 2020, the consultancy firm Universum surveyed around 4,500 specialists on the attractiveness of employers in the IT sector. Various criteria such as flexible working conditions, salaries and opportunities for further development played a role.
We have made it into the top 10 for the first time. What does this mean for us as a company?
Manuel: We primarily want to impress with our authenticity and not with good rankings. But it would be a lie to say that we don't care about these rankings. The good result confirms that we are on the right track and that we can constantly increase our attractiveness as an employer, especially in software development. With digitec and Galaxus, we have two strong brands. And it's great to see that we can also inspire with our employer brand. I am convinced that customer satisfaction goes hand in hand with good positioning as an employer. After all, you can only position yourself as an exciting employer if your core business meets with a positive response from the public. This is why all employees have contributed their articles.
The employees carry our success stories to the outside world
What do you hope to gain from this ranking?It is a nice confirmation that our culture and working methods are well received. The award should help us to attract more talent. As well as sending a signal to the outside world, it is also a reward for our existing employees, who have invested a lot of energy and passion in recent months and years. They are the ones who live the culture and give our spirit the necessary something. They tell our success stories to the outside world and we get the attention of people who also want to work like us.
The battle for IT talent is tough. In which areas is it particularly difficult?
Recruitment is particularly difficult for senior software engineers. There are various reasons for this: an experienced developer has usually dealt with a certain tech stack in recent years, has worked in a certain industry and therefore has a clear idea of where they want to go. Many want to move away from pure coding, take on more coordinative responsibility or move into disciplinary management. This is why the suitable pool of applicants for senior positions is smaller than for other positions. In this context in particular, it is all the better to know that we were voted directly into the top 5 in the ranking of experienced IT specialists, so-called professionals, this year.
How do we score points with potential employees?I could now talk about flexible working hours, working from home, part-time management positions or training budgets. However, I am convinced that all of our competitors on the market have now arrived in the 21st century and also offer these conditions. I would therefore like to focus on something completely different. All our employees work with a great deal of personal responsibility and can contribute new ideas every day. It is important to think "out of the box" and try out unconventional ideas. As an employer, we welcome such innovative thinking. It doesn't matter who comes up with a good idea, whether it's a junior engineer or a lead engineer, if it's good, it will be implemented quickly. Our "Innovation Board" is the linchpin for this. Compared to other companies, we are certainly ahead of the game here and can score points with potential employees who are "piratesque". However, we never forget to develop our employment and working conditions in line with the times.
Finally, I would like to mention our in-house café bar "Pause" in Zurich, which has become an important meeting place at Digitec Galaxus. Whether for an exchange of expertise or an after-work drink. The Pause is popular with both internal and external employees. Of course, potential employees are always welcome too.
And where do we still have some catching up to do?
I believe that we need to offer potential applicants, whether they are actively looking or not, even more insight into our day-to-day work. Be it in the form of a blog, an article or via another channel. Pure position descriptions come across as generic and are quickly lost. With more content, we can offer potential employees detailed insights and tell them more about our daily business, our goals and visions. And who can do that better than our own employees?
We don't want to be a good employer for the sake of prices
We are a little further down the rankings for students in 9th place. Do we offer fewer opportunities for graduates?
We offer graduates a rapid induction programme based on a high level of personal responsibility. This allows graduates to quickly enter the daily work routine and gain valuable experience. Due to our structure and the fact that we have developed our own ERP system, flexibility and inventiveness are not neglected and are actively encouraged. We recruit many graduates every year and will continue to do so in the future. However, there is still room for improvement: we are currently investing more energy in university marketing, which is why I hope that we can improve our ranking next year. It would also be nice if we could score points not only in computer science, but also with graduates in other fields.
And next year we'll be in first place?
Sure, ambitious is one of our company values. But at the end of the day, we don't want to be a popular employer for the sake of awards. We remain who we are and focus on the benefits that set us apart from the competition. In other words, we want our employees to be able to contribute their own ideas and upset the status quo. Yes, they should. That's what sets us apart. We must continue to do this and expand where possible. Then we will automatically get closer to the POD.
Norina Brun
Senior Communications Manager
norina.brun@digitecgalaxus.chNews aren’t enough for me – it’s the stories behind the news that capture my interest. Curiosity is my constant companion and the reason why I spend Saturday afternoons in my favourite café, eavesdropping on city stories while planning my next travel adventure and creating new event ideas. Zen meditation can wait.
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