The public service provider Holding Graz is on board with EuroSkills 2021 as a Gold sponsor. For the largest municipal service provider in the south of Austria, tomorrow’s skilled workforce is a matter of great importance. That’s why Holding Graz offers in-house training for apprentices in 18 different skills and trades.

Holding Graz is an organisation that supplies an incredibly wide variety of public services, covering not only public transport but also water and waste management in Graz, the city’s open air swimming pools, Graz Airport, burials and even the cable car up Graz’s very own mountain, the Schöckl. 3,000 staff work hard to keep the city of Graz up and running. And at EuroSkills 2021, Graz Holding will be a reliable partner when it comes to ensuring fast public access to the venue. Everyone involved in the event will receive a free pass for travel on public transport. The fact that Holding Graz is supporting young, skilled workers by sponsoring the event is completely compatible with its corporate strategy. As well providing a highly diverse range of services, the training opportunities it offers are also extremely varied. Holding Graz’s portfolio of apprenticeship training spans 17 different trades and skills, from “traditional” ones such as office administration or technical areas like chassis technology or mechatronics, through to more unusual training opportunities, for example in railway construction technology.

Training with future prospects

Why is it worth taking a closer look at Holding Graz as a potential employer? Wolfgang Malik, CEO of Holding Graz explains: “In order to keep the infrastructure of the City of Graz up and running, we need well-trained staff. It is therefore enormously important for us to offer in-house training for apprentices and to make sure they are happy and, hopefully, will want to stay with us. As an extremely diverse organisation, Holding Graz features a great many opportunities for personal development. Whether in the areas of transport, water management, energy or leisure services – our staff members have the opportunity to learn about many different fields of activity.”  Holding Graz offers “regular” in-house training in its own workshops and facilities, courses and seminars at external training centres, additional training, apprentice days and support for anyone aspiring to combine an apprenticeship with upper secondary education qualifications. It also provides an excellent working environment, since team spirit and sense of community play an important role at Holding Graz. The many different areas of work offer plenty of opportunity for self-development or even a change of career direction, especially for young people. And, after training has been completed, there are of course also opportunities to showcase one’s expertise in some skills or trades at national and international competitions such as EuroSkills or WorldSkills, measuring up against the top young, skilled workers from different countries.

Apprentices from Holding Graz talk about their work

Nadine Fickel, a garden specialist in her first year of apprenticeship, explains why she decided to do an apprenticeship at Holding Graz: “Holding Graz gives you the great opportunity to get a taste of your dream job before you apply. That’s what I did. I was there for a few days and then I was so enthusiastic that I applied and was subsequently accepted.”

Similar feelings are shared by Viola Dier, who is currently training to become an office administrator and has already “had a taste” of other areas of work at Holding Graz – the variety has remained a particularly positive memory for her: “The diversity is a lot of fun for me and I am also very open and am most happy when I can learn something completely new. That’s why I’m not looking forward to a specific department, because there are many areas at Holding Graz that I would still like to get a taste of.”

Lukas Köldorfer, a prospective car body technician in his third year of apprenticeship, is also more than happy with their decision to take this training path. How he would describe his profession? “Very, very extensive. So you learn pretty much everything you can do on and with a car body. Replacing parts, repairing, of course various sanding and painting jobs. The list of my tasks is so long, I can’t even list it all now (laughs).”

Career opportunities at Holding Graz

Do any of the career opportunities on offer look like a perfect match for you? You’re just three steps away from training for your dream job. You need to send an error-free letter of application to the right address and contact, pass an acceptance test and attend an interview, for which you should find out all you can about the organisation in advance. Some insider advice from Holding Graz: be sure to arrive at least 10 minutes early, because all the Holding Graz sites are huge and you’ll need to leave plenty of time to find the right room where your interview is being held. Applications for the available apprenticeship positions starting in autumn 2022 are still being accepted until February 2022. For further information, please click here.

Photos Gallery: Photo 1: © Florian Vallant/Marco Press | MMMMR; Photo 2: Marija Kanizaj; Photo 3: © Joel Kernasenko