Fostering the Welcome Culture in an Industrial Power Region Exemplified in Upper Austria

The industrial power region of Upper Austria has recognized that key workers are highly beneficial to the wealth and growth of the region. In order to attract and keep highly skilled staff coming or return-ing from abroad, the project ‘Welcome culture Upper Austria – a contribution to protect the industrial location’ was developed. Based on prior identification of the key workers’ needs, a questionnaire called ‘Welcome-Check’ was created. The online, quantitative questionnaire is divided into nine dif-ferent dimensions which were identified as being of importance to new employees and which con-sists of a mixture of open and closed/multiple choice questions. The questionnaire was carried out face-to-face with 21 Upper Austrian companies and report about the state of the art of their welcom-ing culture. The ‘Welcome-Check’ constitutes the basis for developing checklists which will be provid-ed to companies, giving practical hints which can be applied immediately. Results of the questionnaire show that although there is an awareness of the topic studied, only few measures are currently being provided to highly skilled immigrants and returning emigrants. Instead of offering standardized services, helps tends to be offered on an informal level. Common needs of highly skilled staff coming or returning from abroad include assistance in overcoming the language barriers, integration of the new employees and their family and tailor-made, ad-hoc support. This paper provides an outline of the project ‘Welcome culture Upper Austria – a contribution to pro-tect the industrial location’ and its different stages. Furthermore, the results of the questionnaire ‘Welcome-Check’ will be discussed thoroughly, with the aim of providing practical insights into the current welcoming culture of Upper Austrian companies and suggestions for future improvement and development.