Client of the month (04/2022): Christian Witwicki, courierfactory

seniors@work: Mr. Witwicki, you are the CEO and - together with your wife - founder of courierfactory GmbH, a specialist for scheduled shipments in the pharmaceutical sector. You are a "manufactory" with 38 employees in Switzerland and Germany, where speed, precision and an individual approach to each customer are important. You have already recruited three retired specialists via seniors@work, and you have recently placed two more advertisements with us. How did this come about?

Christian Witwicki: I'm over 60 myself and it annoys me every time I see how many companies treat experienced employees over 50. So much potential, experience and loyalty is simply "thrown away". That's not right! My ideal is much more to have people from 20 to 60 in the company so that everyone can benefit from different perspectives and life experiences, whether young or old, male or female. Just as it used to be in an extended family - that also fits in well with our family business.

seniors@work: So the shortage of skilled workers was less of a reason for you to hire retired applicants?

Christian Witwicki: Finding good employees is a Herculean task. Especially for a company as specialized as ours, which operates 365 days a year, it's not easy. There is also no training for exactly our requirements. We are therefore looking for open, lively doers who are willing to adapt to new tasks and teams. Fortunately, we have been able to find good people through word of mouth so far, but the shortage of skilled workers due to the retirement of the baby boomer generation will of course hit us much harder in the future.

seniors@work: How did you find out about seniors@work?

Christian Witwicki: I think I saw something about the platform somewhere in the media, but I can't remember exactly. But since I already hired the first candidates from seniors@work in 2020, the platform is already part of my standard repertoire when I'm looking for employees.

seniors@work: Of course we are very pleased about that! What positions have you filled with retired candidates so far?

Christian Witwicki: It varies greatly, but of course we are looking for positions that do not involve a high level of physical exertion, but rather tasks in incoming orders and scheduling. For example, we are currently looking for someone to support a divisional manager and build up a completely new subject area - so we really need young-at-heart, active people who are open to new challenges.

seniors@work: And do you always give part-time jobs to retired candidates?

Christian Witwicki: Yes, that simply suits the requirements of the retirees best - and so far we have always found a workload that suits everyone. As a rule, it's 50-80 percent. Although young people nowadays would also like to work 80 percent.

seniors@work: Not Many companies already have so much experience in employing retired specialists. What do you have to watch out for?

Christian Witwicki: As a company, you should be open to the life experience of older candidates. I can't understand the occasional concern that older people don't fit into the team, because I place great emphasis on a cross-generational approach. Of course, the team has to be right, but I let all promising applicants work on a trial basis anyway - no matter how old! - and then we decide as a team whether it's a good fit or not. You can't lump the older generation together when it comes to digitalization either. After all, today's 64-year-olds experienced all of this before they retired. And as I said, those who are open and willing to learn will cope well. And what many people forget is the BVG: These contributions are very high before retirement, but are eliminated after retirement! 

The Zurich start-up CARIFY (www.carify.me) is now known throughout the country as the largest platform for car subscriptions in Switzerland. Customers can change their car according to their mood (or the weather and season): a convertible in summer, an SUV in winter. The dream of many drivers!