Andri Haran: Employers must lead in bringing young talent to manufacturing

Estonia's technical education is making progress and young people's interest in technology is growing rapidly, but this must be matched by employers' efforts, argues Andri Haran, an Estonian economic commentator. In his opinion, smart industry is the only path to raise Estonia's standard of living nationally. Advanced manufacturing creates well-paid jobs across the country for people with different skills. However, advancing smart industry depends on many actors, and the next bottleneck lies with employers.

Estonia has moved past the era of speculative trading, dubious Russian transit, and selling cheap labor abroad. As a fairly advanced industrial country, it competes on equal footing in the global market, where reliability and quality matter. To reach the next level, companies need a more strategic outlook and must take full responsibility for their future workforce. This means investing early in future colleagues.

Yet the attitude that only experienced specialists should be hired is still common. Haran stresses that companies must abandon the mindset that "someone else" should provide internships or first work opportunities. Creating and maintaining internship positions and other youth-related activities must be treated as an investment with a dedicated annual budget. Companies that aim for long-term success cannot simply wait for capable young people to show up; they must actively engage with vocational schools and universities to establish sustainable cooperation models.

Drawing on the German example, Haran notes that in Germany and Switzerland, companies plan development not in quarters but in decades. A typical German industrial company is structured so that there is a suitable role for everyone — from young job-shadowers to seasoned master craftsmen. Even in high-value manufacturing, interns, apprentices, and young specialists with limited experience are fully integrated. This approach builds trust and encourages hardworking, talented people to commit to the company long-term.

Welcoming students and recent graduates is only half the equation. Haran also emphasizes the need to spark technological curiosity in kindergarten and primary school children, and ensure parents support their children's interest in pursuing technical fields at vocational schools. He points out that in Germany, every respectable large factory is essentially a family-friendly visitor center with well-organized tours, considered already at the design stage.

Haran concludes that Estonia's future standard of living depends on smart industry. Technical education and young people's attitudes are far better than a few years ago. The bottleneck now is employers. He urges not to let the current — and unusually large — generation of young people become disillusioned with smart industry, but instead give them the experience of success so they can help lift Estonia to a higher level.