Apprenticeships offer an ideal springboard into professional life - they combine learning with practical application, allow you to earn your own money and are the first step towards self-employment. We spoke to four UNIQA managers who also laid the foundations for their careers with an apprenticeship about their experiences, lessons learnt and the benefits of an apprenticeship.
Markus Stadelmann, Regional Director Vorarlberg, for example, is convinced that you can always achieve the goals you set yourself - especially in an industry like insurance, which Olivera Böhm-Rybak, Chief Corporate & Affinity Business Officer, believes is one of the most exciting and varied of all. It's easier with good teamwork, because success can be celebrated quickly with a strong and motivated team, says Alexander Schinnerl, Country Director Upper Austria. When it comes to the benefits of an apprenticeship, Michael Hofer, Sales Manager Broker Sales Upper Austria and Apprentice Representative, sees a significant advantage in the fact that you start to build up a professional network at an early stage.
Markus Stadelmann: For me, the decision to do an apprenticeship was a step towards self-employment. As I am very interested in finance, an apprenticeship with an insurance company was the obvious choice.
Olivera Böhm-Rybak: I come from a family of migrant workers, so an apprenticeship was a quick way for me to enter the world of work, the opportunity to earn my own money and build a career. Chance led me to the insurance industry, where I started at the age of 15.
Alexander Schinnerl: I was actually attracted by the apprenticeship to become an industrial electrician. However, acquaintances who were already very successful in insurance at the time motivated me to apply to UNIQA as an insurance salesman.
In the insurance industry in particular, commitment and the will to develop open up a wide range of career opportunities.
Markus Stadelmann: I learnt one thing above all from my apprenticeship: If you set your mind to something, you can achieve it. In the insurance industry in particular, commitment and the will to develop open up a wide range of career opportunities. I was lucky that my managers encouraged my talents and also gave me the freedom I needed to develop further.
Olivera Böhm-Rybak: During my apprenticeship, I had the opportunity to get to know all areas of the insurance industry in a rotation programme, such as accounting, the policy and claims department, customer and telephone service, marketing, operational processes, reinsurance, investment, cost accounting, IT and much more. That was a gift, because it meant I knew all the processes and procedures from practical experience. The years abroad opened up new horizons for me and now I can say that I still learn something new every day. Our industry is so exciting, it combines a hundred different professions. However, the main learning experience is working with customers, colleagues and partners, which brings new topics and opportunities every day.
Alexander Schinnerl: Above all, I have learnt that you can be successful and achieve a lot with a strong and motivated team. And I would also like to give the junior staff and young employees in our team the same opportunities for further development in the company that I had: they can get to know all areas, and we want to ensure not only the best possible development of young talent, but also a better understanding of other areas of the company.
The apprenticeship provides a good foundation for getting to know the company from the ground up.
Olivera Böhm-Rybak: An apprenticeship offers practical training that enables a quick entry into the world of work. It creates a solid foundation for professional development and opens up a wide range of prospects. In our industry in particular, you can meet everyone from people who love numbers to the most creative minds, exchange ideas and discover for yourself where you would like to make the best contribution! What's more, my message is that anything is possible if you just try hard enough and get stuck in - even if you go on to study afterwards!
Michael Hofer: Teaching is an excellent way of combining theory with practice. At the same time, it does not rule out an academic career path. With the "Apprenticeship with Matura", apprentices also have very good training programmes available to them. In my opinion, the most important aspect is that you start to build up a professional network at an early stage, which is very important for personal development.
Alexander Schinnerl: The apprenticeship provides a good foundation for getting to know the company from the ground up. From a company perspective, it offers the opportunity to recognise young talents and promote them according to their potential and abilities. Our apprentices are integrated into the team right from the start, which means they are a strong pillar of the team from the very beginning.
My tip is to be brave and have the courage - contrary to all preconceptions, insurance is not at all boring, for me it's the most exciting industry of all!
Markus Stadelmann: UNIQA is characterised by the opportunity to be given freedom for personal and professional development as an apprentice. Encouraging talent and accepting mistakes creates an optimal learning environment.
Michael Hofer: An apprenticeship as an insurance clerk is so exciting because there are so many different fields of activity once you have completed your training. In addition, UNIQA is a stable, Austrian company that also operates internationally in Central and Eastern Europe. UNIQA attaches great importance to its own corporate culture, offers an excellent training structure and numerous development opportunities.
I would advise young people who are interested in an apprenticeship to take their personal interests and strengths into account when making their decision.
Michael Hofer: I would advise young people who are interested in an apprenticeship to take their personal interests and strengths into account when making their decision. As an apprentice myself, I really appreciated the early financial independence, the practical relevance of the training and the interpersonal interaction with my professional environment. The social recognition of apprenticeships has also increased enormously in recent years.
Olivera Böhm-Rybak: My tip is to be brave and have the courage - contrary to all preconceptions, insurance is not at all boring, for me it's the most exciting industry of all! An apprenticeship is not just a training programme, but also an opportunity to find your own path. An interest in people and processes, visibility and diversity are key to a successful career.
Alexander Schinnerl, Regional Director Upper Austria
Alexander Schinnerl, Regional Director Upper Austria, started his apprenticeship at UNIQA at the age of 15 and was the youngest broker advisor in the Group at 19. His various positions took him from back office sales support to regional manager for broker sales from 2008. In 2015, he became regional manager of exclusive sales for the north of Upper Austria. Alexander has now been Regional Director in Upper Austria since 2020. He describes himself as a person who thinks in terms of opportunities and not obstacles.
Markus Stadelmann, Country Director Vorarlberg
After completing an apprenticeship, which laid the foundation for his career, Markus Stadelmann began his professional journey at an Austrian insurance company. In his mid-20s, he was given the opportunity to take over sales management in broker sales. His career then took him through various positions at UNIQA to his current position as Regional Director Vorarlberg. Markus is also a member of the supervisory board of a bank.
Michael Hofer, Sales Manager Broker Sales Upper Austria and Apprentice Representative
During his career at UNIQA, Michael Hofer was able to familiarise himself with several departments. After completing his apprenticeship at UNIQA, he got to know customer contact from the ground up in the Service Centre of the Upper Austrian Regional Head Office. Later, he was also responsible for vehicle registration support in Upper Austria. This time was very formative for Michael's further development, as direct customer contact is essential both professionally and interpersonally. This was followed by a move into sales as a broker advisor in broker sales in Upper Austria, for which he took over responsibility as sales manager some time later. He and his team are UNIQA's interface to all business partners.
Olivera Böhm-Rybak, Chief Corporate & Affinity Business Officer
Olivera Böhm-Rybak began her career in 1990 as an apprentice at Zurich Insurance. From 1995 to 2000, she worked at Winterthur International as a property underwriter, with periods abroad in England and Switzerland. In 2000, Olivera joined UNIQA in the industrial insurance team. Other positions at UNIQA International included team leader for product development for private and corporate customers and country manager. In 2008 she was appointed to the Management Board of UNIQA International Versicherungsholding. Olivera is currently Chief Corporate & Affinity Business Officer and thus heads the entire corporate customer business of UNIQA International. She is also a member of the Business Executive Committee International and a member of the Supervisory Board in the Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary, Romania and Ukraine.
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