Start-ups
Skilled workers for Germany
An increasing number of companies are lacking skilled workers. As a result, more and more roles are being advertised abroad. However, many bureaucratic hurdles have to be overcome before work can start. Ankaadia has developed a piece of software that makes this process smoother. The company was singled out as the state winner of the KfW Entrepreneurs’ Award for Hesse in 2023.
Outstanding
Ankaadia’s software makes it easier to recruit specialists. In 2023, the company received the KfW Entrepreneurs’ Award for the state of Hesse.
It is not just many restaurants that are on the lookout for staff. Teams in hospitals, the trade sector and nursing homes are overloaded and there is a shortage of new recruits. One of the main reasons for this is demographic change. Those born during the baby-boom years are now retiring, but there are not enough young trainees entering the workforce. This is not only placing strain on businesses, but also the pension and social systems. The German Federal Government has responded and set out a skilled work strategy including the regulated recruitment of specialists from countries outside the EU.
A fresh start in Germany
Pacifique Hirwa has joined the Internal Medicine department: “You get a lot here, which is good.”
Pacifique Hirwa is one of the people who can solve Germany's dilemma. For the past few months, the nurse from Rwanda has been employed at a hospital on the outskirts of Hamburg. She applied through the agency Alfa Personnel Care GmbH, which uses the software from Ankaadia. However, the moving process required some patience. “It takes 12 to 18 months before a specialist can actually start working here. During this time, about a third of those interested abandon the tedious process or find a job elsewhere,” says Stefan Reininger, co-founder of Ankaadia.
“So many bodies are involved, not only specialists and employers, but also authorities for professional recognition or residence permits. This is a complex process and everyone needs different information. This, in turn, has to be entered into an infinite number of forms, which differ depending on the industry or even the state,” he adds.
Less effort thanks to more digitisation
Personnel gap
We all feel the shortage of skilled workers – after all, it is difficult to get an appointment in the doctor’s office or a place in a nursing home. The founders of Ankaadia are helping to change that.
For three years, Ankaadia’s goal has been to facilitate labour migration. To achieve this, they have automated the necessary formal process. The team of four entrepreneurs have developed data protection-compliant software that maps the entire document management system. This means much less effort for employers or recruiters, and everyone who applies benefits from the leaner method, too. For example, the requisite forms are automatically filled with the stored personal data. This is followed by a targeted release process for the various purposes or recipients. “The progress of the application process can also be tracked, so that the specialists are much more involved,” explains Reininger.
Digitisation does not replace relationships
Ankaadia initially focused on the healthcare sector, as it suffers from a particularly high shortage of specialists. The service is due to be expanded, including to the trade and hospitality sectors. Direct cooperation with authorities is a long-term goal. “We want to change the mindset here. After all, partnerships with start-ups are still viewed with some scepticism, even though they are often much further along than large consultancy firms,” the entrepreneur reveals. Ankaadia has already won over investors – EUR 1.8 million in capital is being used to secure the expansion.
Pacifique Hirwa, who is now a permanent member of the team at the German hospital, also confirms that Ankaadia’s solution has made things a lot easier for her:
“From Rwanda, it would take ten days to send my post. But I could simply upload everything here, and it went very quickly. The system is good, anyone can easily use it,” she says.
Published on KfW Stories on 12 June 2024.
The described project contributes to the following United Nationsʼ Sustainable Development Goals
Goal 4: Quality education
Refusing people access to education means depriving them of a basic human right – and of important development prospects for individuals and society. Education enables people to improve their political, social, cultural, and economic situations. Worldwide, 58 million children and 63 million young people still do not have access to primary and secondary schools. 90 per cent of all children with a disability never go to school. 781 million people are illiterate. 7.5 million people with functional illiteracy live in Germany alone.
All United Nations member states adopted the 2030 Agenda in 2015. At its heart is a list of 17 goals for sustainable development, known as the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Our world should become a place where people are able to live in peace with each other in ways that are ecologically compatible, socially just, and economically effective.
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