Portraits of employees of the Pöttinger Real Estate Group and their lines of work
It is with considerable pride that we look back on more than 80 years of company history. However, a positive company history is inconceivable without committed and loyal employees. We would like to take this opportunity to thank every one of them. Below we would like to introduce you to a few of our employees working in various departments.
D. Leideritz
Foreman
“What really makes it special working here are the new challenges we face every day and the support you get from colleagues. Some of my colleagues have even become close friends over the years. It makes me very proud working for Pöttinger, for example when, as a turnkey foreman, I get to hand over a project and hear the enthusiastic comments.”
H. Waller
Technical Manager / Costing
“For me, working at Pöttinger means tackling interesting challenges with individual responsibility. What I also appreciate is the direct line to senior management, which helps to keep decision paths short.”
A Success Story
Ottobrunn, July 11, 2017: A little more than two years ago, Berhane Tekelay, now 26, made his way to Germany via the “classic“ refugee route. It was a long and bumpy road. He had taken the decision to leave his home country when he and a few of his colleagues from the construction industry were confined to a fenced and guarded compound where they were ordered to build a new university building. In this very night he left. At first his path led him through Sudan where he learned Arabic to find work and earn enough money to continue his journey. With other boat people he finally reached the Italian coast. Actually, he wanted to travel on to the UK as he speaks English perfectly. In Germany, however, he was officially registered and sent to a refugee shelter in Neubiberg. Having spent one year in the shelter, his hopes were gradually fading, but then fate treated him kindly.
At an event celebrated in the shelter, he accidentally got into contact with an employee of the municipality of Ottobrunn. Having heard that Tekelay was a trained construction engineer, he found him an internship at the municipality of Ottobrunn where Tekelay got familiar with the applicable German DIN standards and the pertinent construction regulations and where he was provided with a valuable insight into the German building industry including the water supply system. At the end of his internship, Tekelay was recommended to the Pöttinger Real Estate Group as a qualified employee. The Pöttinger Real Estate Group is a long standing Ottobrunn enterprise. 80 years ago, the highly successful company history started with the foundation of the Pöttinger Construction Company in Prinz-Otto-Straße 13. To this day, the headquarters of the family-run business can be found at this very address.
Pöttinger has employed Berhane Tekelay on a part-time basis. His daily work time ends at 1 pm. He works in Höhenkirchen-Siegertsbrunn where the Real Estate Group currently builds terraced houses, semi-detached houses and condominiums under the project name “Im Hirschwinkel“. The afternoons are reserved for a regular German course. He already speaks German very well. If, nevertheless, communication problems arise, his colleagues, to whom Berhane Tekelay refers to as his new family, speak English with him. Laughingly, Tekelay remembers initial misunderstandings. One day, for example, when asked for a spirit level, he got a bucket of water. Meanwhile, however, these problems are a thing of the past.
On July 05, 2017 Tekelay was notified that his studies of civil engineering have been recognized in Germany and that he is thus entitled to officially bear the professional title of “Engineer“. It was a milestone for him, especially as regards his professional career. Now, Pöttinger will offer him a permanent work contract as site manager. His first job in this responsible position will probably be a building project in Oberhaching. The planned project comprises the construction of 19 turnkey terraced houses including an underground car park with 24 spaces. Berhane Tekelay looks forward to this new challenge. He is eager to learn a lot more in Germany which differs in so many aspects from his home country. So far, he maintains no private contacts. In his spare time, he plays football with the Brunnthal e.V. in the German district league and he is very fond of his colleagues at Pöttinger. “But after the final whistle or after work the people here all go their own way", says Berhane Tekelay. In his home country, by contrast, social life is centered much more around the extended family and the circle of friends.
When asked about his future plans, Berhane Tekelay hopes that the dictatorship in Eritrea will come to an end and that he will be able return to his family. At the moment, he maintains contact to his parents, brothers and sisters only via telephone. And, what is extremely important, he would like to contribute all the expertise and practical experience obtained in Germany to help reconstruct Eritrea once the country has been liberated. It may take a while though until this happens. We hope that Berhane Tekelay will continue his lucky streak – and that one day it will even spread to his home country.