German Young Professional Rankings 2024: Rheinmetall Among the Top 10 Most Attractive Employers for the First Time

Professionals Survey 2024 | Germany 

Berlin, October 9, 2024 

• Companies in the aerospace, security, and defense industries, such as Rheinmetall and Lufthansa Group, are gaining attractiveness. 

• Leading companies in the semiconductor sector benefit as employers. 

• For the first time, an automotive company is not at the top of the engineering rankings, with Siemens taking the lead. 

   

Media attention, an innovative image and attention in society are all factors that seem to be strongly related to the employer branding success of the top companies.  

Rheinmetall, Siemens, and the semiconductor industry (AMD, Intel, or Infineon) are benefiting from this effect amongst young professionals. This is the result of a survey conducted by Universum, an employer branding consultancy belonging to The Stepstone Group. For the Universum Young Professional Survey, nearly 9,400 young professionals across Germany were surveyed between September 2023 and April 2024 about what they value in their jobs and careers.* 

Some notable trends from this year’s survey include: 

Aerospace, Security, and Defense Industries Continue Their Upward Trend 

Since the demand for security and defense technology has increased in recent years, companies in this sector have become significantly more attractive to young professionals as employers. In addition to Rheinmetall, companies such as Airbus and Thyssenkrupp are also improving. Rheinmetall, which began its rise in 2014, has now entered the Top 10 most attractive employers for young professionals with an engineering degree. 

"The public perception of the industry has clearly shifted for the better. It shows once again that companies can benefit from current societal developments and increased media attention. However, they need a strong employer brand to capture and amplify the momentum. Otherwise, the effect fades away. Rheinmetall has successfully done this and has been able to position itself more strongly with young engineers on the issues that matter to them," says David Falzon, Country Manager Germany at Universum. 

Salary is a Key Factor for Young People 

Salary is a major topic for young professionals. Alongside an attractive base salary (ranked 1st) and flexible working conditions (ranked 2nd), high future earnings rank 3rd among the top career preferences for young engineers. More than half (58%) expect high future earnings at Rheinmetall, a 21% increase compared to 2021. In general, about 33% associate the aerospace, security, and defense industries with this topic, and Rheinmetall ranks 25 percentage points above the average. For 61% of young engineering professionals, Rheinmetall offers attractive products and services (ranked 17th in career preferences), a 13% increase from 2021 and 11 percentage points above the industry average. The same goes for an attractive base salary and the opportunity to make a personal impact. 

Semiconductor Industry Benefits as an Employer 

Leading semiconductor companies have become much more attractive to young IT professionals compared to last year. For example, Intel (+11 spots to rank 16), AMD (+7 spots to rank 32), and Infineon Technologies (+6 spots to rank 49, entering the Top 50) have gained positions in the IT sector's top employer rankings. Software and hardware companies are also rising. Companies in these sectors are strongly associated with innovation and new technologies by young IT professionals, and both are among the top 10 criteria for choosing an employer. "Many of these companies are establishing large new facilities in the east, offering opportunities and positioning themselves as highly innovative and attractive high-tech employers," says David Falzon. 

What Sets Siemens Apart? 

Siemens is now more strongly associated with topics that are particularly important to young professionals with engineering degrees. This is especially true for openness to new technologies, one of the top 10 career preferences. 57% of young professionals expect this from Siemens, a 44 percentage point increase compared to 2021. Additionally, 52%—29% more than in 2021—associate Siemens with attractive products and services. 

Innovation, ranked 11th among top career preferences, is also significant for young engineering professionals, although it ranks 19th for business graduates. Siemens stands for innovation for 58% of engineering and 61% of business professionals, a roughly 40 percentage point increase compared to 2021. 

Who Are the Most Attractive Employers for Young Professionals? 

While the top positions in the Young Professionals rankings remain largely unchanged from the previous year, Siemens takes the top spot for engineering, displacing an automotive company for the first time. Bosch has overtaken Porsche to take second place. The biggest leap into the Top 5 has been made by the Lufthansa Group, rising six places among young business graduates. Amazon (+5 in the IT rankings) and ZEISS (+6 in the natural sciences rankings) also climbed into the Top 10. 

“We need more momentum in the country! Companies that succeed with young professionals today stand for innovation, a spirit of the future, and a belief in Germany as a business location. Our traditional and still strong employer brands, which have secured our current prosperity, must see this as an opportunity to remain in the global top league. Only then can they inspire young talent and attract international professionals,” says Dr. Tobias Zimmermann, labor market expert at The Stepstone Group. 

 Top 10 Employers for Young Professionals at a Glance: 

East and West: Differences in Location and Company Preferences 

Young professionals in East and West Germany have nearly identical priorities regarding work and career. Both prioritize an attractive base salary, followed by flexible working conditions and support for work-life balance. However, there are clear differences in market success and inspiring company goals: 37% of East Germans, but only 27% of West Germans, rank the latter among their top three career themes. For 24% of West Germans and 16% of East Germans, market success is important. 

There are also differences in preferred work locations and company types. Most young professionals in East Germany prefer to work for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) (56%) and in large cities (67%). In contrast, a larger proportion of young professionals in the West prefer large companies (54%) and smaller cities (48%). "This likely reflects the fact that rural areas in the East are somewhat weaker economically, with economic power more concentrated in large cities. In the West, it is more evenly distributed, and even rural areas are economically strong," says Benedikt Strobel, Senior Analytics Project Manager at Universum. 

There remains a small 5% difference in current salaries (56,905 euros in the East versus 60,059 euros in the West), but this gap is closing. In 2020, salaries differed by 15%. Currently, the largest gap is 6.8% for young professionals with an engineering degree, while it is only 3% in IT. 

About the Universum Young Professional Survey 2024 in Germany 

The Universum Young Professional Employer Rankings 2024 are based on a survey conducted between September 2023 and April 2024, involving 9,375 young professionals across Germany. Young professionals are defined as academics up to 40 years old with at least one and no more than eight years of work experience after graduation. The respondents provided insights on which companies they would like to work for, the criteria they use to evaluate employers, their salary expectations, and their long-term career goals. More information and full rankings for all fields can be found at: https://universumglobal.com/rankings/germany/business/professionals/. 

About Universum 

Universum, part of The Stepstone Group, is a global leader in employer branding. With over 35 years of valuable experience, we have a presence in 15 countries. Our surveys of students and professionals, conducted in 20 markets worldwide, provide HR managers with unique insights into what young talent seeks from companies. Our data-driven results are trusted by 2,000 clients, including many Fortune 500 companies, and global media partners who publish our annual rankings and trend reports. More information: www.universumglobal.com/de. 

Press Contact: Universum Germany

David Falzon / Country Manager Germany / Mobile: +49 172 456 44 67 / Email: david.falzon@universumglobal.com 
Anke Schölzel / PR Consultant Germany (external) / Mobile: +49 160 75 55 887 / Email: anke.schoelzel@universumglobal.com 

About The Stepstone Group 

The Stepstone Group is a leading global digital recruiting platform that connects companies with the right talent and helps people find the right job. Through AI-powered job marketplaces and programmatic marketing solutions, we connect more than 130 million applications with around 140,000 employers annually. In fiscal year 2023, The Stepstone Group generated revenue of around 1 billion euros. The company operates in over 30 countries, including Stepstone in Germany, Appcast in the US, and Totaljobs in the UK. The Stepstone Group, headquartered in Düsseldorf, employs around 4,000 people worldwide. More information: www.thestepstonegroup.com/de. 

Press Contact for The Stepstone Group:  

The Stepstone Group Press 
Email: presse@stepstone.de