You want free professional advice on how to have more success with your applications for a job – be it in Bulgaria or abroad?
Meet our team on 19. 04.2018 from 13.00 to 17.00 at the Sofia unversity for a consultation or just a chat!
We are expecting you!
Team of Balkaninvest
It has been the second time that Balkaninvest took part as an exhibitor at the career fair in the Goethe institute in Sofia. Interesting applicants as well as potential clients visited our stand. Especially German-speaking specialists from Bulgaria took part in the fair which was organized by the Alumniportal Germany.
Maria Endreva and Enzio Wetzel
After a short presentation about the Alumni Germany Website by Ms Maria Endreva, reference person of the Alumniportal in Bulgaria and Mr Enzio Wetzel, head of the Goethe institute, the alumni had the change to do job interviews with the exhibitors.
Our stand was well-attended by well-trained visitors with excellent German-skills. The majority offered a specialist education and many marketing and IT candidates were interested in our job advertisements.
In addition to that some of them were already living in a German-speaking country and wanted to inform themselves about the current employment situation, job and future prospects in Bulgaria.
But also other exhibitors of the fair came at our stand for small talk which offered us the possibility to establish business contacts.
Our stall at the fair which took place in Goetheinstitut Sofia
We presented the job ads we posted on the Alumni Germany platform and received many CVs at our stand. Some candidates already knew our employment ads from the Alumni platform and asked directly about them. Many fair participants knew Balkaninvest already as we took part in this fair for the second time or as they already had an interview at our office.
We offered a lottery as highlight for our visitors. The participants had the chance to win one of three interview trainings worth 149 Leva. The price included the simulation of a typical job interview in our Balkaninvest office in Sofia as well as a CV analysis including a written evaluation.
The candidates had to do a short German fill-in-the-blank test,in the German level stated in their CV, to be allowed to participate. The winners will be informed until the end of next week.
Exhibitors and visitors were offered a buffet including water, juices, coffee as well as sweet and salty snacks. At the end of the event the guests were able to conclude the evening with a glass of wine and nice conversations between exhibitors and organizers. The operators were also asking the participants about feedback and improvement suggestions.
Summarizing it can be said that the career fair was a successful and professionally organized event. We were offered the possibility of informative talks and to socialise with important business contacts. We really look forward to take part in the next career fair “Trained in GermanY“.
As a follow-up of the participation of the Balkaninvest-team at the 2015 career-event at Goethe-Insitute, organized by the Alumniportal Germany, we had the chance to talk to the host. Ms. Endreva studied German philology at the Sofia university. After her studies, she started working at the department of German philology. She has been in charge of the Bulgarian section of the Alumniportal since 2010 (with a short break) and organizes events and conferences for people interested in Germany and German language.
In her interview with Balkaninvest, Ms. Endreva said that the great public interest in the career event shows that there is a big demand for qualified professionals with German language skills. She underlined, that Germany and Austria are among the largest investors in Bulgaria. Asked about the option for people with language skills to emigrate to Germany she remarked that this is a personal decision with pros and cons. But in her view, some years working experience in Germany would always a good choice.
Her advice for applicants at German companies was to show in the application that one is not only a qualified professional, but can also handle the cultural differences between the German and the Bulgarian mentality.
Asked about her satisfaction with the career event 2015 she said that it exceeded all expectations. For the next career event which will take place in November she hopes for even more attendants.
To read the full interview, please visit our German section.
On 01/06/2015 the Balkaninvest team had an exhibition stand at the career fair “Trained in GermanY – career with the German language”. Organized by the Alumni Portal Germany, the event took place in Sofia in the premises of the Goethe Institute Bulgaria.
This career fair should address German speaking Bulgarian professionals as well as recent graduates. A total of almost 150 interested people took the opportunity to network with various business representatives of German employers or other alumni and made sure that the career fair was a huge success.
The Balkaninvest-Team made valuable contacts – and welcomed more candidates than expected.
The Balkaninvest exhibition stand was well-attended by the visitors of the career fair. With our freshly printed banner and various information materials about job offers and our recruiting agency we were able to attract many interested visitors and conduct many interesting conversations.
But not only Germany alumni visited our stand, also other exhibitors were visiting us for a coffee and small talk. So we were also able to establish new business contacts.
During the fair, we carried out a prize competition at our exhibition stand. Three out of all participants were able to win a voucher for a simulation of a typical job interview with a German employer in our Balkaninvest office – including a written evaluation and suggestions for improvement (with a total value of 149 leva).
Prior to the event we had advertised our prize competition on different channels – with huge success. About 60 interested people took part in our prize competition – a resonance we did not expected. The three lucky winners will be notified through e-mail in the mid of this week.
In total, twelve companies of different branches presented themselves at the career exhibition. Besides Balkaninvest the ACO Severin Ahlmann GmbH located in Büdelsdorf in Schleswig-Holstein and companies such as DB Schenker, Lidl or the Lufthansa Technik took part at the career fair.
Reiner Itschertl of Goethe-Institut Bulgaria, Marcus Haas of German Embassy in Sofia, Carmen Struck for the German-Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce, Marie Fessel of the DAAD and Maria Endreva representing the German Alumniportal gave short speeches during the official opening of the event.
The organizers of the fair arranged an amazing catering offer for visitors and exhibitors. In addition to juices, coffee and water, cakes, cupcakes and sandwiches were offered. At the end of the exhibition companies and German alumni were invited to a glass of red wine and a “Get together”.
All in all, it was a successful and professionally organized event. We had great conversations, met a lot of nice people and are looking forward to meet all of you again at the next fair.
More pictures:
Our Team in discussion with organizer Maria Endreva.
Numerous attendees found their ways to the Goethe-institute in Sofia.
Keep smiling: Our team in action.
Interviews with Balkaninvest