Press release

At ib vogt, Work is Pleasure

Berlin, 28.01.2008 - The ib vogt GmbH is one of the 100 best small and medium-sized employers in Germany. That is the result of the current countrywide, cross-sector comparison of companies known as “Top Job.”

For the past six years this initiative has identified and honored the outstanding personnel policies of medium-sized companies. The former Minister of Economics and Labor, Mr. Wolfgang Clement, awarded the company the coveted “Top Job” certification Friday evening at a ceremony held in Duisburg, Germany.

The mentor of this middle-market initiative recognized ib vogt in the areas “Leadership and Vision”, “Motivation and Dynamism”, “Culture and Communication”, “Employee Development and Outlook”, “Family and Social Orientation”, as well as “Internal Management.” The engineering company – which is six years old and specializes in the design and realization of factories for the solar industry – was especially impressive in the category “Employee Development and Outlook.” For example, its ability to quickly integrate new employees into the rapidly growing company was taken into account. All new employees participate in so-called “First Days Training Courses.” The scope of these courses runs from introducing employees to the company software, to presenting the corporate philosophy, all the way to leaving them in the hands of a personal mentor.

The company with a staff of 160 employees offers a variety of services for factory planning in the solar industry, assisting in everything from site selection, to planning and management, all the way to the start of production. This calls for visionary thinking and operational methods. According to the company’s managing director Dagmar Vogt, the key to success lies in “internalizing the client’s ideas and implementing them with enthusiasm in the best possible way.” For this reason, employees are required to possess a number of different qualifications. The skills needed are identified during the annual performance reviews with the supervisors. This also explains why the employees praise the opportunities for professional development as much as the positive working environment.

In order to receive this award, the photovoltaic company, which generated a turnover of approx. 16 million euros in 2007, had to successfully undergo a three-stage process conducted by the Institute for Leadership and Human Resource Management at the University of St. Gallen. The human resources expert Professor Heike Bruch initially determined key company information with the help of a questionnaire. In the second step, a detailed online employee survey was conducted. Finally, the team from St. Gallen examined the management tools used by the human resources department. Everyone at ib vogt is all the more proud of their excellent position in an extremely competitive environment. As Vogt affirms, “we are now among the best medium-sized German employers. This will make us even more attractive to highly qualified employees in the future.”

All of the 100 “Top Job" companies will be presented in the book edited by Bruch and Clement, entitled “TOP JOB – The 100 Best Medium-Sized Employers.” In addition, they will be presented in full detail on the website www.topjob.de. The initiative was organized by the Überlingen-based compamedia GmbH. The application phase for the next round of the renowned award for medium-sized companies begins in February of 2008; deadline for entries will be April 30, 2008.

Head of Research The head of research for the “Top Job” project is Dr. Heike Bruch, Professor and Director at the Institute for Leadership and Human Resource Management at the University of St. Gallen. She is particularly renowned for her work in the areas of Change Management and Leadership.

The Organizer: compamedia GmbH compamedia specializes in the organization of benchmarking projects for medium-sized companies and the development of medium-sized networks. The company focuses on assisting projects in ways that generate media attention, with competent technical partners being responsible for the scientific implementation. In addition to the employer benchmarking project “Top Job,” compamedia has implemented two further projects promoting medium-sized companies, namely the project “Top 100,” honoring the 100 most innovative German companies which is mentored by Lothar Späth, and the project “Ethics in Business,” mentored by Ulrich Wickert.