“At university I thought that science was my entire life, but at DSM I see broader possibilities for both personal and professional development. We all have many talents: at DSM it is possible to develop them all”. Alfi, Associate Scientist.

Training and development are key issues at DSM. As a decentralized organization, DSM knows that giving its staff greater responsibility and authority serves to benefit the business and the individual alike. So when it comes to training, we treat employees as individuals. Even though employees have autonomy, they can still expect first-class professional and managerial development support.

Three cornerstones of training and development

• Never stop learning: Throughout your career at DSM, training and development will be crucial. As you progress, you will continue to set new goals and determine what training you will need to achieve them.
• Never stop networking: One of DSM's strengths is the integration of its companies. So we realize how valuable it is for our people to make contacts throughout the organization. Delegates for all courses are drawn from a cross-section of DSM with the aim of reflecting the diversity of its disciplines, businesses, and international locations.
• Understand the whole business: At DSM you need to see the complete picture. So DSM develops courses to familiarize non-technical people with our technical work, and non-commercial people with our commercial work.

During their career at DSM, employees might want to take on more responsibility in their position or pursue a new role. This could be inside or outside their own department; in any of the DSM business groups, in any country where DSM operates. Within five to ten years they should have achieved professional status in one or more fields. As their responsibilities increase, employees will move into a specialist area or into higher managerial positions. A career at DSM is the employee's responsibility.

Young professionals
DSM believes it is important to invest in young professionals. We have set up a specialized program to get people acquainted with DSM.

• The DSM Orientation Course (DOC) introduces starters to the range of DSM's activities — its products and processes — and its strategic and business goals. Other courses help them develop the basic skills they will need to succeed in their specific role. On-the-job training is supplemented by in-house and external courses.
• After a year, the Basic Management Course (BMC) further develops employees' horizon, giving them even greater insights into DSM and their own performance.