Short Internships and Digital Matchmaking: German Regions Deploy New Tools to Tackle Labour Shortage
11.06.2026 - 01:22:35 | boerse-global.de
In the district of Kleve, 33 companies are opening their doors to teenagers this summer. From 20 July to 1 September 2026, the Ferien-Praktikumswochen NRW programme lets young people aged 15 and up sample different professions in one-to-five-day stints. These short, no-obligation placements act as informal pre-onboarding, allowing both sides to test expectations without committing to anything longer.
The initiative is just one piece of a broader push across Germany and Austria to attract and retain young workers in the face of persistent skilled-labour shortages. Alongside hands-on formats, digital tools are gaining traction. The Ausbildungskompass, an online platform for career orientation, recently earned a spot in the federal Ministry for Research, Technology and Spaceflight’s digital showcase, the "Marketplace of Innovations". It already placed second at last year’s Munich Digital Innovation Award and is now nominated for the Innovationspreis Bayern. Such platforms aim to improve the fit between applicants and employers.
Regional innovation extends to classroom–workplace links. In St. Veit, Carinthia, the UBIT Dialogue Initiative is fostering closer ties between vocational schools and training companies. The goal: align curricula with current economic demands, ensuring apprentices learn skills that match real-world needs.
Meanwhile, organisations are investing in specialised HR staff to professionalise recruitment and integration. The BESA QSys AG, a national competence centre for nursing-needs assessment based in Bern, plans to hire an HR specialist for September 2026, aiming to optimise its personnel processes. And on 24 June 2026, the IHK Lüneburg-Wolfsburg is hosting a "Fachberatertag Berufsorientierung" at the IdeenExpo trade fair. The event targets career counsellors at Lower Saxony’s schools, focusing on MINT subjects and sustainability, and offers a forum to share practical examples that professionalise the interface between education and industry.
