Do you feel stuck right now? Have your tasks become routine and you see nothing new on the horizon within your area of responsibility? Then it’s time for a change! But no, not to a new employer – to another team. With our flex.forward programme, Kaufland e-commerce offers you the flexibility to gain new experiences within the company and broaden your perspective. Here’s what the programme is all about:
The flex.forward programme explained
As much flexibility as possible, gaining new experiences and constantly developing: Our HR department at Kaufland e-commerce has launched the flex.forward programme to make the KECs’ wishes a reality. It offers employees the opportunity to change teams or even departments – either temporarily or permanently.
Temporarily get a taste of life in another team and gain valuable experience:
As the name suggests, the flex.forward programme is designed to offer complete flexibility. That’s why there is the option to switch to another team for a maximum of three months.
The process begins with discussions between the employee’s Team Lead and the responsible HR colleague, as well as the potential new Team Lead and HR. Topics include the employee’s motivation to change and the new areas of responsibility.
Advice is also given about whether there are sufficient resources within the team to be able to show the employee everything without disruption. If this is the case and everyone agrees to the change, the three months can begin!
Manuela is currently taking part in the temporary flex.forward programme and has moved from Marketplace Controlling, which is part of Marketplace Management, to Online Marketing – or more precisely, to Marketing Engineering & Controlling:
With the flex.forward programme, I have the chance to apply my previous skills in a different context. Where I used to be analysing our seller performance, now I am evaluating the performance of our marketing activities. And the best part about it? Without having to change companies, I can bring all my knowledge and experience to another department. This was completely unknown territory for me at first, but now I wouldn’t change it for the world.
Reorientation: Changing permanently to a new team:
As well as the temporary model, the KECs also have the option of completely changing teams. To do this, the employee must organise an interview with their Team Lead and their HR contact and apply for a specific position advertised by us – just like any other applicant. This is followed by a meeting with the potential future Team Lead and the HR department to discuss the employee’s motivation and suitability for the new role. If all parties involved agree on a change, it can take place at the earliest two months later – this way, the teams have enough time to look for a replacement and to hand over the old position.
Sollte trotz sorgfältiger Prüfung der Fall eintreten, dass der Mitarbeiter mit seiner neuen Rolle überfordert ist oder diese nicht im Sinne seines neuen Teams erfüllt, so kann er ohne negative Konsequenzen in seine alte Rolle zurückkehren.
The benefits of flex.forward
The flex.forward programme was created with employees in mind. It is the brainchild of HR colleagues Anne and Laura:
We created the flex.forward programme because we wanted to offer our employees room to develop beyond the confines of their current roles. This creates a win-win situation: employees remain motivated and all their knowledge and various talents stay within our company for a long time. – Anne, Senior HR Project Manager Leadership Development
The flex.forward programme is a great option to avoid losing employees to another company, especially if there are no further development opportunities in their current role or if they do not want to develop further within this role. The programme also helps you to broaden your horizons, to get to know new fields of work and perhaps even discover a new passion for certain topics.