Business management competence for digital, networked and sustainable industry

In everyday working life now, added industrial value is characterised by the digital networking of manufacturing and control processes. Production and planning systems are offering increasing flexibility and are facilitating new business models which have their foundations in the cloud and in e-commerce, and commercial and industrial tasks are growing more closely together.

In such a dynamic and multifarious environment, industrial clerks need to adopt a commercial and business management approach whilst also deploying comprehensive process understanding. This also includes using digital media and dealing with large quantities of data in a sensitive manner so as to take due account of data privacy and data security.

Industrial clerk is one of the most popular training occupations in Germany and one of the most attractive options in the industrial sector. In order to bring it up to speed in terms of current competency requirements within the economy, the Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training (BIBB) has joined forces with the relevant ministries, the social partners, and experts from the field of company practice to modernise the training regulations. New regulations will enter into force on 1 August 2024 in Germany.

This "update" will shape the occupation in a modern and attractive way while retaining tried-and-tested aspects. The trained skilled workers of the future will be both all-rounders and specialists within their area.

This will involve a wide-ranging, cross-interface core qualification with strong roots in business administration and extends all the way along the value-added chain in industry. It encompasses the planning and management work provision, procurement, logistics and warehousing processes, the planning and implementation of marketing measures, the realisation of distribution and human resources processes, and the execution of commercial monitoring and control.

Towards the end of the training, this provides a foundation for the more detailed imparting of competencies in a selected specific field of deployment over a period of six months. This occupation also requires specific content in the areas of digital business processes, communication and cooperation, project-oriented work, and international employability skills extending far beyond the standard occupational profile positions which apply in all training occupations.

The examination regulations were also extensively revised. The introduction of an extended final examination was accompanied by an update of the examination contents and instruments in line with requirements.

The occupation of industrial clerk had more than 40,000 trainees in 2022 and is one of the most popular training occupations in Germany.

The modernised training regulations offer industrial clerks a very good springboard into working life, excellent future prospects and a diverse field of activity in the various industrial sectors, branches, companies and fields of deployment.

A variety of advanced training and career planning opportunities are available to industrial clerks upon completion of training. These include more general programmes of higher vocational eduvation and training (VET) leading to qualifications such as Bachelor Professional of Business Administration and Operations, as well as to more specific qualifications including Bachelor Professional in Marketing, Bachelor Professional in Procurement or Bachelor Professional in Accountancy.

The modernised training regulations and the coordinated skeleton curriculum for the school-based part of the dual VET replace existing German training regulations which date back to 2002.