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A proud and technological history Werner von Siemens co-founded a telegraph company in 1847, and his firm was responsible for several technological breakthroughs throughout the 19th century. For example, the company installed the first long-distance telegraph system in Europe (1847), built the world's first electric railway (1879), and patented the first X-ray tube (1896). A billion dollar toll onto the Information Superhighway Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, Siemens expanded its business even further by acquiring companies like Bendix Electronics and Rolm Systems, and by entering into joint ventures with electronics makers worldwide. In 1999, Siemens entered the Internet market by spending $1 billion on three American companies. The three companies will help establish a new Siemens Internet division called Unisphere Solutions. Siemens had planned to develop its Internet venture inhouse, but the speeding online market forced Siemens to spend money on acquisitions. Siemens continued to augment its Internet presence in 2000. That year, it formed strategic alliances with Atecs Mannesmann, the automative and industrial division of Mannesmann AG; with SDRC, a provider of Internet-enabled development solutions; with Tandberg Television, a producer of open digital solutions; and with Richardson Electronics, a distributor of computer hardware. Siemens also acquired Moore Process Automation Solutions. A spark of a company By any measure, Siemens is a powerhouse. The giant company presently owns businesses in energy and power, industrial and building systems, communications and information technology, transportation, health care, and lighting. Moreover, it maintains a presence in 190 nations, where it makes everything from MRI scanners to power plants, light bulbs to high-speed data networks. All these far-flung operations are manned by Siemens' army of 443,000 employees. Of this number, nearly half are based in Germany. The other half are scattered throughout the rest of Europe, in the Americas, in Asia, and in Africa and the Middle East. Recently, the company expanded its medical business by acquiring Shared Medical Systems Corp., a leader in health care technology. Its energy division has built a thermoelectric facility in the Dominican Republic, and it has overtaken Estonian Energy. Semiconductors don't conduct good business Siemens has been relatively successful with its energy concerns, but less so with its semiconductor business. In December 1998, Siemens announced its plans to spin off its semiconductor group in an IPO. CEO Heinrich von Pierer disclosed that the reasons for the spinoff include the cyclical nature of the semiconductor field. Luckily for Siemens, the company has other businesses to rely on - other chipmakers are not so lucky. A venture is Siem-ented In a venture said by some to be one of Europe's biggest computer operations, Siemens recently signed a worldwide cooperation pact with Fujitsu Ltd. The two companies have not only agreed to purchase each other's products and cooperate on research and development, but they have merged, combining Siemen's computer subsidiary with Fujitsu's European operation. This new company, Fujitsu Siemens Computers, will eventually develop a single brand of computer for the European market. Mobile phone home In December 1999, Siemens agreed to purchase the mobile phone division of German company Robert Bosch GmbH, which had sales of approximately $415 million in 1998. Bosch had previously announced its intention to withdraw from the telecommunications business. The move was a crucial one for Siemens, which has only recently found success in the mobile handset business with new dual-band models.
Siemens' web site, www.siemens.com provides a link to a list of specific job openings. Because the company is so large and diverse, applicants should apply to the specific prospective research facilities, corporate offices, or manufacturing plants. Siemens' web site explains what each division does and what kinds of positions will be open there. Siemens also has an apprenticeship program at four different locations in the U.S. (Apprenticeships are common in Europe, but very rare in the United States.) Apprentices take classes integrated with paid work experience. (Note: more than 40 percent of the company's upper management began their careers in one of its apprenticeship programs.) Another noticeable portion of Siemen's workforce entered the company's portals as contract workers hired by professional services firms. Interviews at Siemens usually involve at least two interviewers. Sources say that their interviews for engineering positions usually involve technical questions that require a pencil and paper to work out. "I like to see the right answer, but I believe approach to problem solving is most important."
Women deficiency? Siemens employees say that they are proud to be working for "a name synonymous with success." Or as one insider remarks, "for manufacturing, Siemens is a great place to be." In spite of the company's size, employees comment that they are "treated as individuals" and receive both training and responsibility soon after beginning with the company. "They train you thoroughly before they send you out in the field to apply this knowledge," says one source. While some informants point out that the company has few women employees ("there are a fair number of women engineers, but percentage-wise, the number is still pretty low"), they also say that those that do work for Siemens are treated fairly and are often in key positions. International flavor Employees also like the corporate casual dress code, the "substantial investment" that Siemens commits to employee training, and the "international flavor" of the corporate culture. "In my office, there are 30 different languages and dialects spoken and about as many religions represented," says one Siemens insider. With such a global company, travel opportunities abound. "If you have a wondering soul, this is the place for you," crows one content source.
Human Resources
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