A lack of young talent in training is not a new development and poses a major challenge for many companies. Sattler Media has decided to respond to this development with a clear concept: Through international recruitment and good preparation, four young trainees from Indonesia have been part of the team in Barleben since the beginning of 2025. The project illustrates how companies can implement sustainable solutions even in difficult times.

Sattler Media GmbH’s impressive 330-meter-long production building in Barleben has stood directly on the A2, just outside Magdeburg, since 2003. Here, in one of the most modern high-volume printing plants in Germany, up to 355 million A4 pages are produced daily on a total of five web offset presses.

But as powerful as the technology is, it needs people to operate it. And this is precisely where the challenge lies: like many companies in the print and media industry, Sattler is also feeling the effects of the drastic decline in applications for technical apprenticeships, particularly at the Barleben site. Last year, not a single application was received for an apprenticeship as a print media technologist.

An unexpected phone call brought a new perspective into play: Michael Schölzel from the Agentur Beruf und Ausbildung International (BAI) inquired whether there was any interest in international trainees. The Sattler team in Barleben was immediately open to the idea. Just an hour later, Schölzel presented the model in person in the meeting room – and was met with great interest. It quickly became clear that this was not only an opportunity to fill vacant apprenticeship positions, but also to recruit committed specialists in the long term.

Global demographics as an opportunity
The focus quickly shifted to Indonesia, because: While one in four people in Germany is already over 65 years old and the average age continues to rise, Indonesia is a young society. Over 70 percent of the population is of working age and the average age is under 30. Every year, millions of young people enter the local labor market. As a rule, they are well educated, but often without suitable prospects. There is enormous potential here for companies in Germany if they are prepared to break new ground.

Sattler Media recognized this opportunity. Since February 2025, four young men from Indonesia have been working in Barleben as media technologist trainees. They have an Indonesian high school diploma and have studied German in Jakarta and Bali up to B2 level. Above all, however, they have a clear motivation: to learn a profession that offers prospects.

Sattler paved the way for them to get off to a good start in Barleben: two furnished apartments were rented close to the company and the rental costs were covered in full for the first three months. The structured start – linguistically, culturally and professionally – was made possible by an early arrival in February. This allows the trainees to settle in step by step until the official start in August. “It was a very good decision to bring the trainees in six months earlier,” says Stephan Böhme, trainer at Sattler in Barleben. “I would recommend the same to any other company.”

New approaches to training
The project shows how international trainee recruitment can be successfully implemented. In Barleben, the new colleagues were warmly welcomed right from the start. The teachers at the Johannes Selenka School in Braunschweig also report enthusiastically about the new arrivals. Cultural differences are evident in the details. Small moments of irritation – such as the question “Why aren’t your trees green?” on arrival in February, in the middle of the German winter – show how foreign the country must have felt to the young people at first. Concepts such as paid leave, which is hardly known in Indonesia, were also unfamiliar. Integration has been very successful so far. This is also thanks to the close support provided by BAI. The agency took on tasks such as obtaining visas, travel planning, opening bank accounts and dealing with the authorities, allowing the company to concentrate fully on training.

Prospects with potential
In Barleben, two more young women from Indonesia are to follow in summer 2025, one of them in the field of electrical engineering. The experience with the four trainees who have already arrived has been so convincing that action is also to be taken at other company locations: Preparations are already underway for the Bad Oeynhausen site to recruit four more international trainees. Sattler Media proves how the shortage of skilled workers can be overcome with foresight, openness and professional support. New paths require courage, flexibility and strong partners. Above all, however, it requires companies that are prepared to rethink their training strategy. If this succeeds, not only will new career prospects emerge, but also something greater: cooperation across borders.