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For many years, Stephan Münchmeyer was among the top athletes in Nordic combined, a sport that consists of ski jumping and cross country-skiing. Between 2000 and 2006 he participated in numerous World Cup competitions and scored well. But Stephan was always aware of how important it is to build a solid basis for a professional future apart from sports. So in 2006 he became one of the first 26 athletes to enrol in a bachelor’s degree course specifically for elite athletes at the Ansbach University of Applied Sciences. Adecco has been the main sponsor of the course from the start. After only two semesters, Stephan was already planning an internship to gain initial work experience. His sports career had previously left little time for practical experience in the job market, however, which prompted his first contact with Adecco’s Athlete Career Programme.
In a series of counselling sessions, Janine Bischoff, the programme’s project manager, coached Stephan through the application process. Ultimately, he decided on Adidas as his employer of choice. Thanks to additional targeted coaching, Stephan’s interview was successful, and in September 2007 the athlete began a seven-month internship with Adidas. At its conclusion, he was given the opportunity to continue on a 30-hour-per-week basis in the company’s Olympics business unit. In July 2008, Stephan was also accepted into the Adidas ‘ReBound’ programme for a temporary position which ended in August 2009, at the same time as he had completed his studies. When he noticed a job ad for a position at Adidas as an assistant product manager in the marketing department of Men’s Training, he contacted Adecco again. Interactions with American colleagues in the Athlete Programme gave Stephan the support he needed for all his questions throughout the entire application process in English, which involved three rounds of interviews. The job offer from Adidas finally arrived two weeks ago. For Stephan, the transition from elite sport to professional career has gone better than he ever dreamed possible.
"The last months have been very stressful. I was really hoping to get an offer from Adidas. Now I can hardly believe my luck in finding a permanent position in marketing right out of school. Adecco’s Athlete Programme was enormously helpful. I still remember how hard my very first application was. Without the additional coaching, I would never have ended up with Adidas".
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