brandannual 2019

Innovation
Foto: Sascha Wurzinger
Foto: Winery Scheiblhofer
Foto: KNAPP AG
The Hall of Legends at the winery Scheiblhofer in Burgenland
High qualified employees are very important for KNAPP AG in Styria
from one location to the next just because there is a tax
credit or cheap property for a factory. In Austria in particular,
there are many examples of companies that have
been based in one location for generations and remain
faithful to it even in difficult times, even though cost
calculators and business consultants have shown that it
would be possible to produce much cheaper anywhere
else in the world.”
This tradition also has to be built upon in the future
with new forms of cooperation between regions and
companies, suggests Rintersbacher: “This is first and
foremost about education and training. For example,
when leading companies are involved in the planning
of training priorities in secondary or higher-education
colleges and universities in the region, this ensures that
the companies will have the requisite skilled workers
in the long term; and young people also have the opportunity
to find quality jobs in the region, without which
they would otherwise have to leave.”
This is also emphasised by Christian Grabner, CFO,
of the globally leading intralogistics specialist KNAPP,
based near Graz. “Intensive cooperation with secondary
schools, colleges and universities in Styria is enormously
important for us in order to be able to gain the
highly qualified employees we need to be successful
worldwide for the future. Our jobs are certainly just as
challenging and attractive for university graduates as
those in Silicon Valley – as a leading company, we want
to keep the best-trained minds at Austrian universities
in the country and create value here.”
To sum things up: The ties between regions and their
leading businesses is not a must, but a great opportunity
in the globalised economy. Enterprises gain invaluable
advantages in the battle for the best minds, and the
regions have an effective weapon against emigration
and deindustrialisation.
ABOUT LEITBETRIEBE AUSTRIA
Leitbetriebe Austria is an independent and cross-industry
excellence platform for leading companies of the Austrian
economy as distinguished by the Leitbetriebe Institute.
Leading companies are pioneers in innovation and are
characterised by their economic success as well as their
value-oriented and sustainable corporate governance.
These leading companies stand for value-oriented goals
such as innovation, growth, market position and employee
development with their motto: “We are a brand when we
work together”. Leitbetriebe Austria provides an active
forum for decision-makers to communicate as equals.
The Business and Investment Magazine brandannual 59