Forget Barbie dolls – our ’Mini Girls’ had the opportunity to immerse themselves in the technological world of PALFINGER. The ten girls from various nursery schools in Salzburg chose PALFINGER totally of their own accord to give themselves an insight into typically ‘male careers’.
High-tech but child-friendly
The children (aged 4–6) were first told lots of fascinating facts and figures about PALFINGER. Female PALFINGER employees from Sales, Finance, Marketing and PALFINGER 21st talked about their work and all the different kinds of career opportunities offered by PALFINGER.
Getting hands-on
The children were then given the chance to test controllers and piece together various products into a jigsaw. After a brief and healthy snack for refreshment, they continued on to the next highlights in the training centre. The girls had the opportunity to operate lifting platforms, loader cranes and truck-mounted forklifts and were also able to try out our virtual reality glasses. After some initial hesitation, the girls became increasingly bold and had great fun trying out all the different products. After an exciting morning of fun, ‘Mini Girls Day’ came to a successful end. The children’s faces were lit up and they were left with a host of new insights and memories.
Why did we organise the ‘Mini Girls Day’?
‘Mini Girls Day’ was launched a few years ago by the state of Salzburg as a fun way of introducing nursery school children aged between 4 and 6 to careers that do not fit typical stereotypes. The initiative focuses on various male-dominated careers, including careers in technical companies such as PALFINGER. The aim is to break down gender stereotypes about careers at a very young age, inspire a passion for technology and help girls overcome any sense of intimidation they may have about technology-oriented careers. This initiative was inspired by the Europe-wide ‘Girls Day’, which is aimed at girls aged between 10 and 16.
For us at PALFINGER, too, it is important to penetrate male domains and promote and empower women in technical careers. It’s never too early to start doing this – and we are already looking forward to meeting our future female employees!
