Annual Report2022
Making
a Difference
Together
Making
a Difference
Together
How HENSOLDT employees support people from Ukraine
HENSOLDT also stands for social responsibility beyond its core business. Many initiatives arise from the workforce itself. The company encourages its employees to be actively involved and regularly supports them with concrete measures. One of the focal points in 2022: help for Ukraine.
The effects of the war on the Ukrainian civilian population have shaken HENSOLDT employees across all company divisions. Shortly after the war began, many HENSOLDTians had already become active in aid projects on their own initiative. Together with the workforce, the Management Board looked for ways to help people from Ukraine as a company as well and to make a contribution to civil society involvement. The result: A corporate volunteering programme from which employees could quickly and easily access financial support for aid projects of their choice. The programme was launched by the Management Board in April 2022 and endowed with 100,000 euros.
“HENSOLDT’s support has motivated me a lot”
Simona Patap, Marketing Manager
Simona Patap from the HENSOLDT Marketing team coordinates all donation applications and their swift processing. She herself has sponsored an aid project at her son’s school through the programme. She said: “What has always impressed me ever since I started at HENSOLDT is that lots of colleagues are not only very committed to their work, but also to social causes and within many organizations. I have never experienced that before. And HENSOLDT supports and promotes that. Our Management Board team was also immediately involved in the Ukraine aid project.”
Michael Roth, Technologie Transfer Manager
As part of the corporate volunteering programme, HENSOLDT places the aid campaigns selected by its employees at the center of its corporate support. Projects are supported in which the employees are also involved themselves, mainly directly on site in Germany. Michael Roth, Technology Transfer Manager, had already provided housing before the programme started. With the donation from HENSOLDT, he was additionally able to co-finance language courses for refugees from Ukraine in Putzbrunn and says: “The people from Ukraine are very happy about the help. I think it’s great that HENSOLDT supported us quickly and without bureaucracy. For the company, the programme with its many small actions naturally meant more effort. But that is precisely why it has a very great personal aspect. They may only be tiny drops of effort, but they spread across the board. That has motivated me a lot.”
The distribution of the donations, after a review of regulatory criteria, is made as simple as possible in line with HENSOLDT compliance rules. The only basic requirement is that the donation can only be paid out to a legal entity – namely, an association or group of helpers, an organization, foundation, or municipality. The maximum amount available in each case is 2,500 euro, so that as many campaigns as possible can be helped.
Alexander Kaganov, Commercial Project Manager FCAS
Like that of Alexander Kaganov, Commercial Project Manager FCAS. He speaks Russian and has previously helped refugees from Ukraine on a voluntary basis, such as with visits to the authorities. Together with the Jewish Community of Ulm and the German Red Cross, he used the HENSOLDT donation money to organize ambulance transfers for suffering civilians from Ukraine. “I know from my own background how difficult it is to be a refugee. For me personally, this pragmatic support through the HENSOLDT programme is therefore a very important sign as an employer and important player in the defence sector. As a company, we are committed to a safer world. With our products, which are also in use in Ukraine – and also with initiatives like this one, with which we can specifically help people from Ukraine.”
CEO Thomas Müller also believes the interim result is positive: “The multifaceted commitment of HENSOLDTians in aid for the Ukraine really moved me right from the outset,” he emphasizes. “Because it shows how close, as a team, we are in terms of our technologies and our hearts with the sufferers of this war. And that we simply roll up our sleeves and get going when we are convinced of a cause. That’s why we, as a company, have opted for a form of support that increases the scope for individual commitment and helps as simply, quickly, and unbureaucratically as possible.”
Rolling Up Our Sleeves
The list of aid projects realized as part of the corporate volunteering programme is long and varied. Examples show how HENSOLDT employees help to make the arrival and everyday life in Germany a little easier for refugees from Ukraine:
- AktionsBündnis Katastrophenhilfe: Emergency aid for refugees arriving in Germany.
- Familienzentrum Unterschleißheim: Food and drinks, clothing, hygiene items, and interpretation services.
- Förderverein Albrecht-Berblinger Grundschule e. V.: Financial support of projects for a preparatory class for children from Ukraine.
- Förderverein Freibad Hildrizhausen: Funding for the purchase of outdoor pool season passes for refugee families from Ukraine hosted in the community.
- Fußballverein Isny im Allgäu: Soccer training and equipment for children and youth from Ukraine and soccer camp during the summer vacations.
- Freunde schaffen Freude e. V.: Housing for Ukrainian families.
- Helferkreis Unterföhring e. V.: Supporting Ukrainian families with language, school, education, training and work, finding housing, medical care, sports, and cultural activities.
- Hilfswerk Bodensee e. V.: Mobility and accommodation for refugees as well as assistance with visits to authorities and language courses, organization, and operation of a clothing store for Ukrainian refugees.
- Hopegenic n. e. V. – Hope for Ukraine: Providing relief supplies to war-affected or bordering areas and assisting refugees.
- Kitzinger Tafel e. V.: Food for the food bank.
- Mittelschule Wiesentheid: New classroom, school supplies, and activities for students from Ukraine.
- Rotary Hilfe e. V. Heidenheim-Giengen: Financial support for Ukrainian refugees arriving in the region.
- RT 220 Service Club e. V.: Purchase and delivery of Christmas gifts for Ukrainian children who are in Ukraine.
- City of Ulm – Department of Social Affairs: Support for Ukrainian families arriving in Ulm.
- Trisport Erding e. V. – Association for the promotion of endurance sports: Sports training, sports clothes, and equipment for children from Ukraine.
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