Individual support through further training to become a business IT specialist (HWK)

adesso is known for its progressive and flexible working culture, which is strongly focussed on the development and promotion of its employees. An outstanding example of this is my personal experience with the individualised support that enabled me to complete the Chamber of Trade's Business IT Specialist. This story shows how adesso reacts to changes and takes individual needs into account, even if this means deviating from an originally planned training programme. I report on my experiences in this blog post.

Responding to change is more important than following a plan

In the agile manifesto from 2001, one of the four principles is Responding to change is more important than following a plan. In my annual review at adesso, a training plan was drawn up based on my professional goals and the company's requirements. Shortly afterwards, however, the opportunity arose to become a business IT specialist (HWK) - an opportunity that was not included in the original plan. This is where my line manager Christoph Weyrauch showed flexibility and adaptability: instead of sticking strictly to the plan, he gave me the opportunity to complete this valuable further training programme.

The basis: the business IT specialist

The HWK further training programme to become a business IT specialist is an extension of the business IT specialist. It is a recognised advanced vocational training course in accordance with the Vocational Training Act (BBiG) and is on a par with the business administrator and the master craftsman. After training as an IT specialist from 2001 to 2004, I only found out about this opportunity a few years later. I was then able to complete it locally in my home town in 2011. I found the training programme to be very practice-oriented. There was always a practical exam for each module, in which, for example, a small programme or a configuration in Linux was tested. At the time, the further training programme to become a business IT specialist was also used by some lateral entrants who had to pass a short entry exam to gain access. The business IT specialist is suitable for example for:

• Career changers who want to take a first step towards IT.
• Trained people from the IT professions - including IT specialists, IT clerks or IT systems clerks who want to expand their knowledge both in terms of depth and breadth.
• Experienced IT specialists who, in addition to expanding their knowledge, also want official proof of their skills.

Unfortunately, there were not enough people interested in the business IT specialist programme at the HWK Neumarkt at the time. For some years now, the Business IT Specialist and the Business IT Specialist have also been available in a blended learning format. This means that there are only very few attendance phases on site and the majority of the lessons take place in live online training.

About the content and my experiences

The further education programme

The further education programme for business IT specialists is divided into three areas:

• Accounting and Controlling,
• project management and
• Business English.

The first part, accounting and controlling, was surprisingly interesting and practically orientated. Although I have a general interest in business topics, I feel much more comfortable in the technical area. Thanks to the lecturer's pragmatic examples, the right sense of logic and methodology and the very clear focus, every minute of the lessons was actually very interesting. After a long working day, a lecture on teams from 19:00-22:00 can really sap your energy and concentration.

In the subsequent project management section, the focus was exclusively on classic project management. Unfortunately, agile approaches were not covered here, probably also due to time constraints. The focus here was very much on the technical aspects. I was also allowed to use an internal project idea as the basis for a practical project for the exam.

The last part, Business English, was my personal highlight. The lecturer was born in the USA but also has German roots. This means that she speaks perfect English and German. She is also very familiar with German and English grammar. As a result, she was able to deal with the specifics from both perspectives very well. I also found the insight into American culture enriching and, from a personal point of view, very important for understanding and interest in a language. The content was also from the field of technical English. In addition to project management and conversation, there were also some sections on IT terminology.

There was a theoretical and a practical test for each part.

The only point of criticism was that, in contrast to the business IT specialist, the exam was unfortunately still purely analogue. This is very time-consuming, especially when drawing network diagrams, if you normally work exclusively on a PC. However, the course leader confirmed that they are working on digitalisation.

Flexible support from adesso

In order to make the few training days on site possible, my line manager made a special quota of hours available to me. This flexibility and support showed me that adesso takes my professional development seriously and is prepared to invest in the further training of its employees.

Funding opportunities

There are currently very extensive funding opportunities for participants resident in Bavaria. For example, in addition to higher levels of funding through the Upgrading Training Assistance Act (ABFG), which is independent of income and assets, the Master Craftsman Bonus is also available, which is endowed with 3,000 euros each for business IT specialists and additionally for business IT specialists.

Integration into the official continuing education programme

The Learning Guide is a very comprehensive further training programme at adesso. The majority of the training courses are organised by adesso. It is a colourful potpourri of internationally recognised certifications and our own topics. My experience so far has been consistently positive. Now I had the idea of possibly expanding this programme.

My line manager made the right contacts very quickly and easily. On the same day, I was able to exchange ideas with a colleague from the training team. Here, too, the experience was very positive and the suggestion was received with great interest. For next year's talks, the possibilities offered by the Chamber of Crafts will also be evaluated directly.

Conclusion

adesso's support for my further training as a business IT specialist (HWK) is an impressive example of the company's individual support and agile culture. It shows how adesso responds to the individual needs and changes of its employees and thus supports their professional development. This flexibility and support not only contributes to employee satisfaction, but also strengthens adesso's position as an attractive employer and innovative company.

Would you like to find out more about the adesso learning guide and what other specific learning and development programmes are available? Then take a look at our website.

You can find more exciting topics from the world of adesso in our previously published blog posts.