Money can buy the image of a progressive university, but not the reality!
Schlecht am Arbeitgeber finde ich
The biggest issue was the gap between KLU’s international, progressive image and the experience of staff. There was a clear hierarchy between faculty and staff, with staff often receiving less respect, support and recognition. Recruitment appeared to be strongly influenced by personal connections, while inappropriate behaviour by supervisors did not always seem to have consequences. The difference in relocation support and salary between faculty and staff was also striking. My own dismissal, after being recruited internationally on the explicit understanding that German was not required, was particularly difficult to understand given that I had completed the project I was hired for and had received no prior indication that my position was at risk. KLU has an anonymous mechanism for reporting conflicts with supervisors, but what concerned me was the apparent response: based on what I was told, supervisors facing repeated complaints were not necessarily removed but could instead be sent to management training. In my view, training someone not to make sexist or xenophobic comments should not be the first solution to repeated complaints about their behaviour.
Verbesserungsvorschläge
KLU should address inappropriate behaviour by supervisors instead of relying primarily on training after repeated complaints. Recruitment and promotion should be based more clearly on merit and qualifications rather than personal connections. Staff and faculty should be treated with the same level of respect and support, and international staff should receive meaningful relocation support. Communication should also improve, particularly when staff need information from faculty to perform their legal and administrative responsibilities. Finally, employees should receive clear and honest communication about changes in their role or job requirements rather than being dismissed after the fact.
Arbeitsatmosphäre
I joined KLU after working at two other private universities abroad. I chose KLU because I expected a small, international university to have less hierarchy and more room to bring ideas forward and implement projects. I was recruited internationally for an imminent project and explicitly told German would not be required because KLU was an international, English-speaking university. Almost two years later, after successfully completing that project, I was dismissed because German had supposedly become necessary for more Germany-focused projects. I had an unlimited contract and received no prior warning, improvement plan or indication that my job was at risk. I was told during my performance review, when I had planned to ask for a salary increase because I believed my performance was good.A few months later, my former manager hired a friend. Typical KLU behaviour. This action reinforced my impression that personal connections can matter significantly in recruitment. The culture is highly hierarchical, with a clear gap between faculty and staff. Staff are often expected to accommodate faculty while receiving dismissive, arrogant or condescending communication in return.
Gehalt/Benefits
I joined KLU expecting professional development, ownership and opportunities to progress. Instead, I found career development strongly influenced by hierarchy and personal connections. Recruitment often appeared to happen through existing networks; in my own department, my former manager eventually hired a friend who had previously applied for another position at KLU. There was little structured support for career progression. Staff salaries I encountered were generally around €45,000, while information available to me indicated that even relatively junior faculty could earn around €80,000. I cannot verify every individual salary, but the difference was substantial. Staff were expected to provide extensive administrative support while receiving significantly less recognition, support and respect than faculty. My own experience was particularly frustrating because I entered my final performance review intending to request a salary increase, only to be informed that I was being dismissed. After almost three years, I left feeling that KLU’s international and progressive external image did not reflect the reality experienced by staff.
Arbeitsbedingungen
The physical workplace itself was generally fine; the main problems were organisational and interpersonal. Staff and faculty were treated very differently. Staff were expected to accommodate faculty, while basic requests for information needed to perform administrative and legal duties could be treated as an inconvenience. When these issues were raised, I was told that staff should not “bother” professors. Responding to administrative requests is part of working in a university, and staff need this information to ensure that processes comply with regulations. When my manager told me I lacked initiative, I asked what I could have done differently. His suggestion was that I should clean the office, despite my being employed in an administrative role with no responsibility for cleaning. I found this particularly inappropriate coming from a male manager speaking to a female employee. I also heard from several current and former colleagues about sexist, misogynistic and racist comments from supervisors.
Gleichberechtigung
KLU’s international image did not match my experience as an international employee. Relocation support for staff was essentially zero: my manager showed me a map of Hamburg, drew a circle around an area where I should look for accommodation, and HR gave me a list of four property websites. In contrast, international faculty appeared to receive substantially more financial and practical relocation support. The difference in treatment between faculty and professional staff was one of the clearest inequalities I experienced. I also found it striking how few non-German employees I saw in senior positions despite KLU’s international profile. I personally experienced and heard from colleagues about behaviour perceived as sexist, misogynistic, racist or xenophobic. I was also told that more than ten complaints about supervisors had been received in less than a year. What concerned me most was how such cases appeared to be handled: rather than seeing supervisors removed, I was told that some were sent to training courses on how to manage or supervise appropriately, including behaviour that should arguably be basic professional conduct in the first place!!
Image
Work-Life-Balance
Karriere/Weiterbildung
Umwelt-/Sozialbewusstsein
Kollegenzusammenhalt
Umgang mit älteren Kollegen
Vorgesetztenverhalten
Kommunikation
Interessante Aufgaben
Arbeitgeber-Kommentar
Thank you very much for your detailed feedback. We take your criticism very seriously. A respectful, non-discriminatory work environment and the equal treatment of all employees are core values for us. We will thoroughly review the issues you raised internally and critically examine our processes.
If you would like to discuss this in person, we would be happy to meet with you.