Conti Sponsors South African Tourism Training Programme

Continental’s sponsorship of international football events has also yielded a new avenue for the company’s corporate activities. Just under a year before the start of the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, Continental AG has initiated a special on-location tourism training programme.

In collaboration with the successful “Energy Guides” tourism school in Johannesburg, Continental will train 13 young women and 13 young men – all previously unemployed and from in and around Soweto – for positions as part of Continental’s hospitality and back office team from July 2009 to January 2010. The international automotive supplier is one of the main sponsors of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. More than 200 people applied to take part in the training programme.

Heinz-Gerhard Wente, Executive Board member responsible for human resources at Continental explained the values behind the scheme, “We want to give these 26 highly-motivated South Africans the opportunity to acquire new career prospects through our qualification programme. We know from experience that we will have lots to do during the World Cup in order to make sure that our guests from all around the world have an unforgettable stay in South Africa. It therefore made sense to look for a team from the Johannesburg region, since locals are sure to be able to awaken visitors’ enthusiasm for the special features of South Africa more easily than a team from Europe.”
 
The training programme consists of a detailed look at the tourism industry, customer services, comprehensive application knowledge, geography modules, teamwork, and social and ethical values. In addition, the programme is rounded off by special English classes and information on FIFA, the 2010 FIFA World Cup, and the aims of the Continental Corporation’s communication and sponsoring activities. Once the course has finished, all
26 participants will spend three months gaining practical experience in well-respected companies within the tourism industry before beginning final preparations and training for the active phase of the Continental hospitality programme in May. Assuming that the project is concluded successfully, the aim and goal of all concerned is for the graduates of the programme to continue their employment following the World Cup.

Since 1995, Continental AG has consistently concentrated on international football sponsoring for market communication purposes and has already gathered extensive experience in implementing hospitality programmes through being the official partner/sponsor of the UEFA Champions League (1995 to 2000), 2006 FIFA World Cup (2003 to 2006), and UEFA EURO 2008 (2006 to 2008). As was the case for the previous tournaments, Continental has developed an individual hospitality programme that takes into account local features and conditions for the FIFA World Cup in South Africa. The central Continental project team for the implementation of football sponsoring in the run-up to South Africa consists of ten employees and is supported by the Swiss agency Interface Marketing, which specializes in sponsorship activation.

Continental states that its Passenger & Light Truck Tires division is the market leader in Europe and South Africa. In Port Elizabeth, South Africa Continental operates a factory for passenger tyres where a total workforce of 1,600 employees will produce around 2.9 million units in 2009. Its tyres are sold both to OE manufacturers and to the replacement sector. Moreover, Continental has a factory for commercial vehicle tyres, also in Port Elizabeth, which meets demand south of the Sahara and thus in the country hosting the 2010 FIFA World Cup.