“This is how Germany techs” with Simpleclub CEO Giesecke: Companies train people like they did 50 years ago

Cruel training system
“Companies train like they did 50 years ago”

December 27, 2023, 8:05 a.m

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Started as a learning platform for students, Simpleclub now focuses on trainees. Founder and CEO Giesecke explains at “So techt Deutschland” why many companies are doing training “like they did 50 years ago” – and how things can be done better.

Germany’s economic success is based on many pillars. One of these is the internationally unique dual vocational training. The problem: the lack of offspring. Almost 69,000 training positions are unfilled. The current DIHK skilled workers report shows that 55 percent of companies cannot fill positions that they actually intended for people with dual vocational training.

The reasons for the misery are varied. One could be the rigid training system, says Alexander Giesecke. The founder of Simpleclub remembers a visit to a car manufacturer a few years ago. The trainees stood in front of a vehicle with pieces of paper hanging on it. “It was a printed Powerpoint presentation of over 500 pages. And that was the learning material they had available,” says Giesecke. This is where Simpleclub wants to start and digitize vocational training.

The startup now works with over 300 corporate customers. The differences are big. Some companies are pioneers, with internal academies or their own studios to produce learning videos. “Then there are other companies that still feel like they are living in the Stone Age,” says Giesecke. What all these companies have in common: They have recognized that the way of learning has changed. “The very young people are used to being on YouTube, on TikTok, etc.” This trend must also be taken into account in vocational training.

At the same time, Simpleclub continues to grow. The startup, which was founded by, among others, Alexander Giesecke when he was still a student, now has over 100 employees and operates internationally. Alexander Giesecke explains in the new episode of “So techt Deutschland” how they always stay up to date, what artificial intelligence means for the company and what Germany is doing as a training location.