The first round of our trainee program started in 2001. Since then, over 65 people have already completed the program successfully, with REWE International’s current CEO Mr. Marcel Haraszti as one of the first graduates. Over the years, the program grew and adjusted to young talent’s requirements since we want to remain attractive as well as competitive. In 2020 the very successful Austrian “Management Trainee Program” was promoted to be REWE International’s “International Management Trainee Program”. And we are more than proud that for almost two years young, motivated potentials are sourced in all REWE International countries to become part of the REWE International family.  

We asked some of our current trainees and graduates to give you some insight of what it’s like to be part of this program and what their most remarkable experiences were so far. You find their stories below.

MY TRAINEE PROGRAM EXPERIENCE
“Throughout my studies I had several areas of interests and gained insights in different industries and departments during various internships. After finishing my master`s in International Management, I wanted to continue enhancing my intercultural competence and work in an international company, however still was not quite sure what my final position should look like. The trainee program at REWE International seemed like the perfect opportunity to narrow down my areas of interest through various rotation possibilities. So far, the most interesting aspect for me was how much work and dedication lies within daily store processes, to ensure customers have a good experience in stores. During my current International Project Phase in Bratislava (Slovakia) I am able to acquire a deep understanding of strategic decisions and their impact within a multinational company. In the next few months I will get the chance to work on a sustainability topic within the CEE region. I am really happy about this chance as sustainability means a lot to me personally and I think there are still measures which can have a huge on our environment, even though REWE International already has a lot of cool projects ongoing. Overall, it’s been a pleasure and I am looking forward to all upcoming challenges and opportunities at REWE International.”

MY TRAINEE PROGRAM EXPERIENCE
“During my studies in Export-oriented Management I already had the opportunity of gaining international experience by studying and working abroad. However, after graduation I still wanted to further increase my knowledge and actively participate in an international business environment. I decided to join the International Management Trainee Program as it provides me with the possibility of working in many different departments and countries, as well as the flexibility of actively choosing my career in the company. In particular, I appreciate the opportunity of taking advantage of the promoted learning environment. The program is designed to give you as many insights as possible and enables you to make connections within all departments. Hence, this does not only promote a steep learning slope but also the possibility of understanding cross-departmental processes which is important for error resolution. Since I most recently finished my store phase. I am very much looking forward to the Supply Chain Phase, where I will be able to see all operational activities in the warehouses, as well as gain insights in other departments such as Category Management and Purchasing. I think the time in the store was of particular importance to understand the daily activities and challenges on the point of sales. As the interconnectedness of the stores and operative logistics play such a big role in retail after all, I am eager to draw the connections between the new insights and my already build up knowledge in the first phase of the program."

MY TRAINEE PROGRAM EXPERIENCE
“The first experience of working abroad I made before graduating from school. Ever since I used every opportunity to work and study abroad. Living in different countries and being in touch with people of different mindset and culture brings enormous enrichment in life and enables to develop new views and visions. What makes this very program beautiful is the mixture of the different stages. Rather than selecting one favourite stage, I prefer to highlight the fact that you are able to drag very different take-aways and experience from each of the phases. Putting all the pieces together gives a solid base that can guide you through any starting position in the company and further. The traineeship gave me the opportunity to learn, develop and explore before deep-diving into the niche of a specified position. So far, I have been lucky enough to prevent my learning curve from flattening out, even during the post-traineeship period and I believe that the traineeship was building the ground for this. There has been hardly a week without learning on the go and this is exactly what keeps my motivation engine running. What I like about the company is the diversity of job profiles that it offers. It is not only about the differentiated profiles of your colleagues and co-workers that makes cooperation interesting and fruitful, but it also implies that you can find a multitude of options to develop further. Especially, when you are not 100% decided what your target position is in the next 5 to 10 years, and you would rather decide on it depending on which direction your strength and interest is evolving, then this company is giving you a good opportunity for that. I started as a Junior Category Manager in BILLA Slovakia and assisted two different Senior Category Managers in their category segments. In addition to learn about the operative business in Category Management, I got assigned to a project focusing on developing the assortment analysis process further. This allowed me to gain experience in both, the operative as well as the strategic aspects of the work with assortment, as the heart of the retail business.”

MY TRAINEE PROGRAM EXPERIENCE
“After my master`s in Executive Management in Vienna, I decided to reorganize my career and restart with the trainee program at REWE International. For several months, I stacked fruits and vegetables on shelves, ordered deli goods at the warehouse, baked bread, worked at the cash desk and even lead operations in a BILLA store in the center of Vienna. After learning a lot about sales and customer satisfaction, I moved to Slovakia for a few months where I introduced a new process in competition analysis on a commodity group level. The job rotation that concluded my program brought me back to the REWE HQ in Wiener Neudorf. After gaining such deep insights into the entire supply chain of REWE on an international level, I decided to stick to keeping this overview and joined the logistics unit in supply chain. My current job is a cool mix of operational and strategic activities in bundling national and international supply chains to all warehouses of our strategic units. REWE International values people, who are proactive and solve challenges in a sustainable way and I love doing just that. The program gave me the right tools to understand and evaluate the impact of my team’s action on the entire supply chain. If you are still seeking for your passion, this program might just be the right thing for you! Come join the team!”