A recruiting initiative to find next-generation leaders

Bertelsmann makes talent management a top priority. In 2008, CEO Hartmut Ostrowski, several members of the Executive Board, and numerous other executives welcome around 100 students to Bertelsmann Unter den Linden 1 in Berlin. All of them have distinguished themselves as “top talents” with their CVs and creative applications. Workshops and discussions serve as opportunities for exchange, and professional career coaching is provided to support students with their entry into working life. Among other things, participants create presentations that they then present before a jury of top Group executives. There are attractive prizes for the best teams. The careers event “Talent Meets Media” – known as “Talent Meets Bertelsmann” since 2009 – kicks off the new employer-branding campaign "Create Your Own Career" and is its first highlight. The idea is to increase Bertelsmann's attractiveness as an employer and position the media group as a company of entrepreneurs. The initiative is a resounding success and wins multiple awards in the following years.