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Building a culture of well-being: Employee mental health support
Manufacturing is not an industry to simply get a job, but one where you can truly start a career. At Flex, we embrace highly-motivated candidates around the world who are interested in helping our diverse customer base design and build products that make the world a better place. Flex offers on-the-job learning and upskilling opportunities to empower our teams, whether they’re developing Industry 4.0 technology on the manufacturing floor, or helping shape company strategy.
Part of our dedication to our teams is offering early career programs. By prioritizing employee safety, well-being, and development, we support every colleague to thrive, regardless of where they are in their manufacturing careers.
With a global footprint in over 30 countries across 100+ sites, Flex offers a variety of internship, apprenticeship, and co-op opportunities that help early professionals from diverse backgrounds gain valuable work experience and grow through jobs in the manufacturing industry.
From the classroom to a manufacturing internship
Our local programs dedicated to early career talent provide meaningful hands-on opportunities for students and graduates to work in a business environment, learn new skills and choose from a wide range of career paths before committing to a full-time job.
As a Flex Intern, you can learn first-hand how supply chain challenges or IT developments impact day-to-day manufacturing. You can also be part of innovative projects that improve our HR, engineering, IT, operations or finance processes.
A hands-on internship experience provides a faster adoption of new skills and concepts, builds confidence, and can certainly lead to full-time employment. Barjouth Aguilar, our Head of Global Sustainability Program & Flex Foundation officer started at Flex as an intern, for example, along with many other employees still at Flex today.
Skills in high demand for careers in manufacturing
Flex offers a number of challenging and diverse roles and welcomes a wide variety of skillsets and backgrounds. Whether aiming for a technical engineering role or looking to understand this dynamic industry before settling on a career path, organizational and analytical skills are encouraged to see the big picture.
An extraordinary learning lesson I got from my time at Flex is that it’s often the tiny details that matter and that it’s important to have a good team to work with.
— Adam Wernig, Assembler, Flex Austria
Most roles also require building on your verbal, presentation, and written communications skills in order to develop leadership abilities and be a part of projects where you will gain experience collaborating with senior managers and leaders.
The manufacturing industry is fast-paced and often requires tight deadlines and multiple moving parts which is why overall, clear communications, time-management, and problem-solving skills are standout.
Internship, apprenticeship, and co-op programs at Flex
We offer entry level manufacturing jobs such as internships, apprenticeships, and co-op opportunities at many sites around the world, and each program is run according to local laws and regulations.
Internships in the Americas
U.S.
We offer summer internships and year-round co-op programs for students and graduates looking to explore careers in manufacturing spanning technical/non-technical roles. These paid internship programs are 10 to 12 weeks long, usually between May and August, and offer a hands-on experience to collaborate and learn from Flex professionals in their fields. In addition, the U.S. internship experience includes formal and informal learning activities, such as volunteering to support local charity organizations or social events to network and bond with the teams.
I learned so much about the manufacturing industry, and there is so much more to learn, but I think the most valuable lesson was how to be a more confident communicator.
— Brooke Anderson, Marketing Intern, U.S.
Mexico
In Guadalajara, hundreds of professionals and students jump-start their careers by enrolling in internship programs in the fast-paced manufacturing industry. Our teams developed two flexible paid internship programs that can be the steppingstone for a career at Flex. University students in their final semesters can enroll either in a full-time internship across 12 to 18 months or in a part-time internship over six months. All interns are guided by mentors, become part of the teams, and are encouraged to complete project assignments. The Flex Guadalajara internship programs provide a hands-on experience to prepare professionals for jobs in the manufacturing industry in engineering, supply chain, program management, and other functions.
Internships in EMEA
Our teams lead government-mandated dual education programs in parts of Europe, Austria, and Switzerland, providing apprenticeship experiences after secondary school. In addition, as neighboring countries, our sites organize student exchange experiences by traveling from one country to another to connect and learn more about the apprenticeship programs in Austria and Switzerland.
Austria
The state-mandated dual education program offers a structured apprenticeship experience for three or four years, where 80 percent of the learning happens in the company and 20 percent in school. This empowers students to pursue careers in the field they are studying and gain real-time work experience before completing their studies.
Early professionals looking for jobs in manufacturing can join Flex in Althofen, Austria, through paid apprenticeship programs in electrical engineering, IT, mechatronics, logistics, and many other areas. Often, these experiences turn into full-time employment opportunities.
Switzerland
Upon finishing compulsory education, the dual system offers apprentices the opportunity to combine working with studying. This structured program, which runs between two to four years, plays an essential role in the future of young talent, helping them pursue careers in manufacturing. The education program requires apprentices to work for three to four days at the company and study one to two days in the vocational school. Our teams in Switzerland offer seven different apprenticeship programs, Mechanical / Design Engineer, Process Engineer / Application Engineer in injection molding, Commercial Specialist, Information Communications Technology Specialist and Logistics, which enables them to enter the employer job market with newly acquired skills for a career in manufacturing.
The site in Hägglingen is home to many different departments, all of which are closely related to the profession of design engineering. The apprenticeship at Flex offers a varied experience and provides the opportunity to gain an insight into other areas of the company.
— Tobias Wildi, Mechanical Design Engineer Intern, Switzerland
Germany
At the Stuttgart Design Center, our teams support the next generation of manufacturing experts with several local programs dedicated to starting and advancing careers in manufacturing.
- The Co-Op / Working student program is dedicated to university students who want to work part-time at Flex in one of the engineering or commercial departments. The flexible working schedule of eight to 20 hours per week allows students to continue their studies while gaining valuable work experience at a design center where we build innovative products for customers.
- The internship experience in Flex Germany offers a full-time work schedule for three to six months for engineering, finance, HR, quality and IT, allowing students to gain deep insights into the daily business at Flex.
- The Master’s / Bachelor’s Thesis program is dedicated to students studying for their master’s or bachelor’s degrees. The program allows them to work on a practical project and to develop solutions for real-life challenges while being supported by our technical experts. This model allows the student to gain experience in a global company and collaborate with experts. The program usually consists of working 20 hours on the practical project at Flex while using the remaining time to do some theoretical research (e.g. at university).
- Each summer season, Flex Germany offers Holiday Jobs for students in various departments. These are typically full-time and can last between two and 10 weeks.
Flex is a global leader providing creative and valuable solutions. Being a firmware engineer, I thought an internship would be a great opportunity to work with the automotive team at Flex and contribute to innovative solutions.
— Kapil Mulchandani, Working Student, Stuttgart Design Center, Germany
Romania
Our local teams have implemented a robust paid internship program for university students. Every summer, 20 to 60 interns join our team in Timisoara for a comprehensive learning experience in IT, HR, Engineering, Business Excellence, or Quality, among many other functions. Each intern is assigned a team and a mentor who guides them in their Flex experience. Students are encouraged to learn through a hands-on approach, to get involved in the day-to-day processes, and create a project that summarizes their experience. At the end of the eight-week program, the students share their learnings with their mentors and leadership. The program successfully converted selected interns into full-time employees at the Timisoara site.
Internships and educational programs in APAC
India
Our teams developed an Education Assistance Program (EAP) for all employees designed to foster professional growth. Through this local initiative, eligible employees benefit from technical training or financial assistance for professional development through partnerships with engineering colleges.
I am learning engineering skills from the most fundamental to advanced techniques. In addition, I am getting trained with soft skills and leadership abilities since the curriculum focuses on more than the technical aspects.
— Palaniraj M, Assistant Manager for Testing, Chennai, India
Malaysia
To support employee learning and development journey through company sponsored educational programs, our teams in Malaysia created the Professional Competency Program (PCP) path for employees’ personal development and professional growth. By partnering with local universities, colleges and from various institute of higher learning, Flex employees can enroll in specialized professional certification courses and university degrees such as diploma, master’s or a PhD.
The program created a learning framework that includes internal and external courses, as well as on-the-job learning, designed to help every employee gain the skills needed to succeed, from manufacturing automation and logistics, to engineering, Industry 4.0, human resources or management. At Flex in Penang, any employee can study and enroll in a training course that will elevate their career in the manufacturing industry.
Flex is a gold mine of career growth opportunities and positive support. The diverse, inclusive and equitable working environment drove me to build my own path to success.
— Nur Fatin Rashiqah Binti Omar, Production Planning Administrator, Penang, Malaysia
From interns to full-time employees
According to the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) statistics concerning internship experiences in the U.S., 63.1% of interns were offered a full-time job after completing their internship, which is an effective way of starting a career in the industry. At Flex, we’re proud of our selected interns who have enriched our teams and continue to grow their careers in this dynamic industry.
As full-time employees, the learning and opportunities continue. Our Employee Scholarship Program, for example, gives employees opportunity to upskill themselves and attain degrees or leadership training.
From San Jose and Singapore to Althofen and Guadalajara, we’re committed to nurturing and providing a workplace environment rooted in inclusion with limitless career opportunities and support within a culture of inclusion for anyone looking to start and grow their careers in the manufacturing industry.
