Together with the Zentrum für Sozialforschung Halle e.V. (ZSH) of Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, which coordinates the project, IAMO and the Agrarunternehmen Barnstädt e.G. will work from the beginning of January 2014 on "Kompetenzmanagement zum Aufbau ausländischer Arbeitskräfte zu Fachkräften in der Landwirtschaft" (Human resource management to integrate professionals from abroad into agribusinesses). The joint project combines practical issues and the expertise of an agricultural company with sociological and agronomic expertise. The project is funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) and will commence in January 2014.
Over the next years, agricultural companies are threatened by a loss of competence and experience as a result of demographic change. Against this background, the project wants to enable agribusinesses to secure their human resource base by attracting skilled workers from abroad. New instruments aiming at the professional integration of foreign workers for operational purposes shall be developed. Moreover, for successful implementation, a teaching module for managers shall be compiled.
Within the project, IAMO will accomplish empirical studies about the profiles and potential of foreign professionals in agriculture. Based on this data, new insights about the challenges of developing young professionals in East German agribusiness will be generated. Furthermore, recommendations for designing organizational transformation processes will be derived.
Integrating professionals from abroad into East German agribusinesses
Research project to develop human resource management tools which unlock the potential of professionals from abroad starts in January
