B.Sc. Electrical Engineering and Information Processing, at aoloa from 2016 - 2020

"It was important to get the chance to get started and then prove myself on the job"

It is September in a turbulent year 2020 and changes are on the agenda, also for Tobias. From October on he will take up his new position at the Car.SW Org. Corona-compliant via video call, we want to take this opportunity to take a look at the past four years in which Tobias has developed with aoloa from trainee to system architect. It's a steep career and a success story that needs to be told.

Graduation in the pocket - and then?

With Tobias, the answer was clear: first of all, going abroad. After he went to school in Australia for two years as a teenager and graduated from school there, the answer to the question of where he should go in 2016 is also to the English-speaking world. With his Bachelor's degree in electrical engineering and information processing from the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) in his pocket, he first travelled the United States of before returning to Germany and to start looking for a job.

Being open for new things - whether in his job or in interpersonal encounters

With the same openness with which Tobias encounters other people and cultures, he also approaches innovative technologies and professional challenges. During his studies, he had therefore positioned himself as broadly as possible. From wind power to medical technology, "anything but a car," he adds with a laugh. Surprisingly, however, it is the position as "Trainee Automotive Software testing" at aoloa-Engineering that catches his eye during his job search. It offers him the ideal opportunity to gain practical and application-oriented knowledge in addition to the theoretical knowledge he gained during his studies, which until then had been too little for his taste. Although he had written his bachelor's thesis in a company, the topic, in which a gas was to be determined based on its resonance curves, was more of the area of research and development. It had become increasingly clear to him that he preferred practical application to pure research: "I prefer to take technology that already exists and do something with it," he explains. Determined to put the theory he had learned into practice and to take the step into the professional world, Tobias sent his application for the trainee position to aoloa.

Trainee positions as career booster

"At aoloa, we want to promote and use talent and not just employ people," explains Okan Altay, Managing Director and initiator of the trainee program at aoloa. Since in his experience many service providers lack individual support, he decided to become active himself. The aoloa trainee program should enable young, motivated graduates to develop into specialists and not just be managed as employees. The trainee program started in 2016. "One of the first positions we advertised was the one Tobias applied for," he recalls.

The step into the working world and to aoloa

Immediately after receiving his application, Okan Altay calls Tobias back. "After the interview, I hung up and thought: that's it," Tobias grins as he talks about the phone call. To his surprise, he was nevertheless invited to a personal meeting. Altay had recognized his potential and was convinced that he would fit well into the trainee program. However, there was still some doubt as to whether he had the necessary skills for the position. It was Altay's assurance that aoloa would accompany him on his way and not leave him to his own devices, and, moreover, Altay’s persuasion that with his willingness to learn and his commitment he could achieve a lot, which led to Tobias' decision for the trainee position. Tobias Trainee started directly with the work in the customer project. Entirely in the spirit of learning on the job, he worked closely with two colleagues there, who supported and trained him during this time, so that he was soon able to fulfill his tasks as a HILTester for ECU communication, especially at BUS and protocol level.

Becoming a specialist with on-the-job training

The will to develop further and the readiness to face new challenges are "essential traits, on which we at aoloa attach importance" confirms the managing director. "We take a lot of time for our trainees and train them intensively, especially in the beginning. This does not stop later. Our employees want to develop themselves further, show commitment and trust aoloa to support them on their way. Whether in the company or in a customer project". After only two years of on-the-job training, Tobias had already acquired so much specialized knowledge and developed professionally that Okan Altay felt it was time to propose him for a position as Development Engineer for Networking/Protocols at Porsche, which would involve more independence and responsibility. From now on, Tobias took part in cross-brand group coordination on behalf of the customer as a stakeholder. Tobias is convinced that the path via aoloa and then as a trainee in the project is a great opportunity for career starters. "Getting started is the most important thing," he explains, "and by working on the project, you gain an insight into a wide variety of areas and can better find out where you want to go in the long term. At the same time you get to know a lot of people and make important contacts.” Tobias finally received the reward for his work and the expert status he has earned over the years in the summer of 2020, when he was offered a position as a "system architect E2E communication-technologies" at the Car.SW Org. "I'd say I did everything right," he says happily. In his new position, Tobias is responsible for test integration and test management of various protocols, among other things. We are happy with him about this great opportunity. "The success of the employees is also the success of the company. For us, this is not just an empty phrase," Altay adds. "Even though we would have liked to keep Tobias with us, we naturally support him in his professional development. At aoloa, we see ourselves as a kind of talent factory that promotes young talents in particular on an individual basis and creates the best conditions for them to advance professionally - whether with us or with the customer.

Tobias has acquired the following skills during his time at aoloa-Engineering GmbH:

• project Management
• test integration for the communication protocols SOME/IP, ViWi, ServiceDiscovery and http
• modeling, further development and commissioning of the TestbilityService
• test tool further development
• expert knowledge in the areas of: simulation creation, CANoe SOME/IP Traces Analysis, AUTOSAR

The conversation was conducted by Corinna Schleinschok, marketing consultant at aoloa.