Social contribution
Bühler’s success depends on people, collaboration, and the ecosystems we build. On an individual level, it is about building awareness of global challenges and making changes. On a company level, it is about valuing our most important resource – our employees. On an industry level, it is all about collaboration and building ecosystems, as no individual or company alone has the intellectual or financial power to create impact.
Social contribution
Bühler’s success depends on people, collaboration, and the ecosystems we build. On an individual level, it is about building awareness of global challenges and making changes. On a company level, it is about valuing our most important resource – our employees. On an industry level, it is all about collaboration and building ecosystems, as no individual or company alone has the intellectual or financial power to create impact.
Irene Mark-Eisenring, Chief Human Resources Officer, explains the importance of leadership, talent development, and addressing the impacts of the global recession in 2022. The past year became an employee market in nearly every area, not just IT and automation. Bühler addressed this with a long-term view on people and talent development. Bühler welcomed 78 new apprentices in 2022 and expanded its apprenticeship program in North America. It also completed primary construction of the new Bühler Energy Center in Uzwil, Switzerland, which will open in June 2023. In 2022, One Young World (OYW) Switzerland was founded by Bühler and OYW. The SWAP mentoring program was globally relaunched, with more than 300 participants. Watch the video to learn more about Bühler’s people development initiatives.
Accelerating change
The past few years have taught businesses that the only true certainty is the need to be prepared for uncertainty. The global pandemic, market volatility, unprecedented disruptions in supply and logistics markets, soaring energy costs, a summer of climate threatening temperatures, and global economic turbulence all demonstrate the need for a resilient, skilled, and flexible workforce directed by purposeful leadership. It takes the right mindset for future success in a world that is volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous (VUCA). It takes time and a purpose-driven approach to establish the culture by which a company can facilitate lifelong learning and accelerate the skills that provide the foundation for future leadership. Throughout 2022, Bühler has been building on, refining, and complimenting the programs it has in place to secure the safety, development, growth, wellbeing, and lifelong learning of its 12,738 full-time equivalent employees globally.
Leadership programs
In 2022, Bühler placed a strong focus on strengthening its leadership capability by targeting programs suitable for employees at different points of experience and seniority. At the senior level Bühler continues to develop its TOP leadership program established in 2021 in cooperation with IMD Business School, in Lausanne, Switzerland. This initiative creates impact by taking the 100 plus top leaders on a personal leadership journey and provides them with the tools to build high performance teams to enable Bühler to continue to play to win.
Aimed at experienced people leaders, Bühler launched its Advanced Leadership Program (ALP) in February 2022 with a pilot group of 21 colleagues from seven countries who all successfully graduated from the course in September. The success of the pilot means ALP is now an integral part of Bühler’s global leadership development architecture. Designed with professors from the Hult International Business School, ALP is targeted at experienced people leaders with significant leadership experience. Over the six-month course participants in virtual training sessions that teach them how to lead in the VUCA world. The training covers resilience and well-being, influencing across a networked organization, the power of collaboration, the relationship between power and organizational culture, and how to translate strategy into action. The ethos of the ALP is centered on three concepts:
- “Best Self – understanding oneself”,
- “Best Teams – building and managing high-performing teams”, and
- “Best Business – understanding the matrix”.
Now in its sixth year, the Excelerator Program continues to develop the specific needs of individuals so that talented employees are first recognized from within the company and then enabled to mature and develop into leadership roles. This year was the first time Excelerator participants were assessed outside of the Bühler headquarters with four candidates participating in an assessment event in Leobendorf in Austria.
Targeted at first time leaders, Bühler has also this year launched the Ready-to-go Leadership Essentials program, a leadership journey for employees stepping into their first people leadership role whether through appointment or promotion. Leadership is a path you should not start alone and so the training is designed to support colleagues in their new roles by getting them ready for Bühler leadership from the very start. This learning journey not only provides learning materials, personality assessments and a
360-degree feedback opportunity but also enables experience sharing and networking. By the end of the 12-month program individuals are familiar with the key management processes and principles at Bühler and well equipped to step into their first leadership role with the tools in place to develop a common leadership mindset and increase leadership engagement with the minimum of business disruption.
All leadership training programs are based around Bühler’s corporate values of Trust, Ownership, and Passion (TOP). In addition to the above-mentioned, Group-wide programs, several regional leadership programs were designed and launched in 2022 to facilitate career development for leaders and talents in the regions. Key examples are the Middle East Africa & India (MAI) Leadership Program, the Leadership Sprint Program in China, and the Basic’s in Bühler Management (BBM) for Europe.
Expert careers
Innovation is central to our ability to accelerate impact together when tackling global challenges and Bühler relies on the expertise and strong knowledge base of its employees. One example of an expert community in Bühler is M2M (market to market). Our M2M employees have the technological and research skills to drive the innovation behind the connectivity that lies at the heart of Bühler solutions. Over 1,000 Bühler employees, or nearly 10% of our workforce, work in the M2M community. They are involved in research and development, product management, and supply chain engineering at over 20 sites globally.
This pool of talent and experience must be maintained and nurtured, which is why in 2022 Bühler launched the M2M career path to attract, retain, and develop talent in the field of technology and, in recognition of the importance of career development for these experts, the M2M Principal. The first Principals have been nominated as part of the annual Talent Board process and are bringing the expert career path to life. They have not only been selected based on their expertise in their field but are also role models of living Bühler’s TOP values and their passion for sharing their knowledge and expertise.
Lifelong learning
In order to play to win in a fast paced, uncertain world, it is imperative for all that we are open to learning new skills to stay relevant. For organizations, this means that a learning environment needs to be established and a learning offering provided to facilitate continuous up- and reskilling for its employees. As a technology company, it is the know-how of our experts that allows us to drive customer success and it is the collective knowledge of our workforce that makes us successful.
At Bühler, lifelong learning for all employees is a core principle, regardless of age, location, or career stage. Flexible learning programs help employees choose the most appropriate learning medium at different life stages. Bühler continues to develop the B-Learning platform delivering a broad spectrum of learning opportunities through videos, e-learnings, classroom trainings, and webinars that offer training in formats that are short, relevant, engaging, personalized, and mobile.
Bühler runs several academies, including the Sales Academy, a salesforce training program that recognizes that frontline staff need to be highly adaptable to quickly react to dynamic market changes. Bühler is on a sales transformation journey from business type selling to account management, and it is therefore critical to ensure customer facing colleagues have the skills they need. Sales staff are often the first contact customers have with the company, which is why Bühler is dedicating resources and time to developing the sales training skills matrix, to build the skills required by the individual salesperson. Over 1,430 customer facing colleagues globally participated in a development program and a network of local trainers was established to embed the new sales skills in the organization.
Training centers and schools
Responsibility for lifelong learning does not end at the company door. Bühler has Application & Training Centers in 23 locations, some of which cover multiple industrial applications located around the globe where we offer dedicated trainings for our customers and provide them with a platform to test new product ideas and experiment with product innovations. Over 2022, Bühler focused on learning within the field of insect processing technology with the opening of the Insect Technology Center in Uzwil. Bühler’s Application & Training Centers provide the opportunity to share knowledge and learn from specialists while providing access to the latest generation of Bühler technologies.
The principle of offering lifelong learning to our customers also extends to different specialist schools around the world including the Cocoa Innovation Competency Centre in Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast) and the International Rice Milling Academy in India, which offers training programs covering the entire rice value chain from seed to packaged rice. Other schools include the Swiss Institute of Feed Technology, the African Milling School in Kenya, the Training Center in China, and courses on offer at the Food Application & Training Center in the US. Bühler also supports schools run with partners in the US, Mexico, and the UK.
In addition, through Partners in Food Solutions, a nonprofit organization which aims to strengthen food security, improve nutrition, and increase overall economic development across Africa, 65 Bühler employees volunteered a total of 886 hours to pass on their know-how to 59 companies in Africa in 2022.
Vocational training
More than 8,250 apprentices have been trained at Bühler since 1915 with a total of 500 apprentices globally who are in vocational education in different Bühler locations in 2022. These apprenticeships are based on the Swiss dual-vocational model, a global benchmark that has been adapted by other countries, where students receive a mix of practical and academic training. These three-and-four-year courses cover nine different vocational fields. In 2022, we onboarded 230 new apprentices across Europe, North America, South America, Africa, and Asia. The apprentices are paid during their training and Bühler also provides tools, books, computers, and uniforms. The courses continually evolve to meet the changing skill sets required by companies. In 2022, 66% of the apprentices finishing their courses chose to pursue careers within Bühler. Thirty-two apprentices worked abroad in 2022.
We are proud that Bühler apprentice Noah Salvisberg became Swiss Champion in the designer’s category at the SwissSkills in Bern while Manuel Ulmann won the bronze medal in the welding category. Jan Meier, as the Swiss Champion of the Design Engineers 2020, was a medal contender at the WorldSkills in Bordeaux, France in October 2022, competing with 20 participants for the world title in Mechanical Engineering CAD (Computer Aided Design). He was awarded a Medallion for Excellence and placed seventh in his category. We also provide sports apprenticeships to talents who are athletes. We are particularly proud that Bühler apprentice Monique Halter became U19 World Champion in Mountain Bike at the World Championships in Les Gets in France in 2022.
Degree level programs
Together with ETH Zurich in Switzerland and Ashesi University in Ghana, Bühler offers a master’s program in mechatronics engineering. The aim is to promote the next generation of leaders in Sub-Saharan Africa who will take responsibility for sustainable development in the region.
Bühler is also an active Corporate Partner of UNITECH International, which connects European universities with engineering companies with a global reach to develop the next generation of engineering leaders. The UNITECH Diploma is awarded to students who complete an academic exchange at one of the partner universities, three coaching modules, and an internship at one of the corporate partners.
In 2022, Bühler continued to employ 10 UNITECH interns to run the Environmental Quantification Program, research and development projects, automation and digitalization projects, data science, and Bühler’s product development process. Furthermore, Bühler increased its employer branding, strengthened its position in different face-to-face fairs and online fireside chats, which made the company visible to young, talented engineers. The partnership is a great pipeline reaching many highly educated talents, including female engineers.
Future readiness
Bühler Generation B is a global initiative that aims to inspire employees to be engaged and motivated in initiatives that will shape the future of Bühler. Generation B is an opportunity to look at global challenges and take ownership of how Bühler can address them. In 2022, Generation B has not only continued to be a platform for employees to build the company they want to work for but also showcase to other organizations how to establish an intercompany movement and consult them to get started.
Bühler is a proud partner of One Young World, the NGO that brings young people together to create impact. 2022 saw the launch of the Swiss chapter of One Young World with Bühler as founding member. The One Young World Caucus brings together future leaders from different industries and backgrounds to connect and exchange ideas to discuss how we live within the boundaries of our planet. The event brings people together from sustainable start-ups, sustainable tourism, and grass-root movements to generate business ideas to build a more sustainable planet and build ecosystems with the creativity to make real change.
Employee wellbeing
The Covid-19 pandemic took a toll on mental health and wellbeing for many. During 2021, Bühler launched a range of mental health and wellbeing support. In 2022, we continued with this support through our six global health ambassadors, one for each region, to help drive both physical and mental health strategies across the organization at a local level.
In 2022 we launched the Bühler Olympics, an event taking place over three months around the world with 120 participants joining the sport challenge from all six regions. We ran a virtual global event on women’s health and the power of prevention, and Mental Health Days covering superpower resilience, positive resilient leadership, and employee wellbeing.
Bühler Energy Center
Bühler believes that achieving innovation and productivity requires a skilled and healthy workforce. It is currently building the Bühler Energy Center on its campus in Uzwil, Switzerland, to support its employees in gaining knowledge and becoming fit for the future in both their personal and professional lives. It is expected to open in June 2023 and will be made up of three distinct zones: Health & Lifestyle, Lifelong Learning, and Prototyping & Production.
In the Health & Lifestyle area employees of all ages will be able to enhance their individual health skills. Information on nutrition, exercise, recreation, and stress management will play a key part in the process.
The Lifelong Learning area will offer employees state-of-the-art training opportunities for automation technicians, plant and apparatus engineers, polymechanics, design engineers, apprentices, computer scientists, and more. It will set a new milestone for lifelong learning providing colleagues with the tools for long-term and sustainable success. New didactic methods will consider individual learning needs and interests.
The Prototyping & Production area is where new manufacturing technologies will be developed and where prototypes and functional models as well as series parts for our products will be produced. The zone will enable professional and innovative cooperation between the research and development departments of the business units and the production teams.
Employer branding
For the fourth year running, Bühler is pleased to announce winning the prestigious Swiss Leading Employer Award, ranking us among the top 1% of more than 40,000 Swiss employers analyzed.
Bühler took second place in the mechanical and plant engineering category, sixth place across all categories in the St. Gallen region, and 112th place in the overall evaluation. Despite challenging times Bühler has maintained its top ranking among Swiss companies.
We continue to leverage our social media presence to build our employer brand among potential recruits to the business. In 2022, we launched Meet Bühler Monday, where every second week we use LinkedIn to introduce our Bühler employees from our different regions who are at different career points, and to showcase our diverse career offerings.
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
We are proud of our diverse workforce who make us Bühler! Their dedication and passion for our business is inspiring. As a global organization, we see it as our corporate responsibility to represent the societies we operate in. It is a business priority for us to harness the diversity of our global workforce and include them in their amazing uniqueness to create a culture of belonging guided by our TOP values. We are proud of the progress we have made in 2022 in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DE&I) and invite you to read our dedicated DE&I report.
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