With the “Talent Talks”, the Styrian Chamber of Commerce (WK), the Chamber of Labour (AK) and the Public Employment Service (AMS) are creating a seamless pathway through career guidance. The Chamber of Labour supports preparation and follow-up work in schools, the WKO’s Talent Centre identifies strengths, interests and skills, whilst the AMS’s Career Information Centres offer personalised advice. In this way, the three partners are filling a crucial gap: Young people not only receive their talent report as a result, but are also supported in using it to identify specific training and career paths. A survey of former participants, conducted by the Talent Centre to mark the organisation’s tenth anniversary, demonstrates just how important this further development is. Overall, 28.1 per cent of young people discover new strengths through the Talent Report, whilst just under half (48.6 per cent) learn about professions they were previously unaware of. A direct comparison shows that systematic follow-up in the classroom significantly enhances the impact of the Talent Check.
“When young people choose a training programme that matches their strengths, everyone benefits: young people gain career prospects, businesses secure motivated and suitably qualified skilled workers, and the economy saves costs by reducing the number of training dropouts and career detours,” says Josef Herk, President of the Styrian Chamber of Commerce. “In light of demographic change, we cannot afford to overlook talent. The structured follow-up makes the Talent Check even more effective. Through the Talent Talks, the Chamber of Labour, the AMS and the Styrian Chamber of Commerce are pooling their expertise to ensure that young people’s skills are developed into the skilled workers that our businesses and Styria as a business location urgently need.”
Follow-up leads to a higher success rate
Of the young people who received follow-up support at school following the Talent Report, 74.6 per cent stated that they had a good or fairly good understanding of their own strengths and talents after the Talent Check. Without follow-up support, the figure was 66.5 per cent – a significant difference of 8.1 percentage points. Special thanks therefore go to all teachers who actively shape educational and career guidance and continue to work with the results of the young people’s visit to the Talent Centre. The results clearly show that whilst the Talent Check provides a scientifically sound foundation, the guided work with the Talent Report translates these insights more effectively into concrete prospects.
In addition, 35.0 per cent of the young people who received follow-up support at school stated that, through the Talent Report – alongside the confirmation of strengths they were already aware of – they had discovered entirely new strengths and talents in themselves. Without follow-up work, the figure was 24.2 per cent – a difference of 10.8 percentage points. Young people’s perspective on potential career fields also broadens more significantly when they continue to work with their Talent Report: with follow-up support, 53.2 per cent learnt about new occupations through the career suggestions; without follow-up support, the figure was 46.0 per cent. This represents an increase of 7.2 percentage points.
In any case, the Talent Check itself increases confidence when choosing a training programme. 75.3 per cent of former participants would choose the same training programme again, compared with 71.6 per cent of young people who did not take the Talent Check. At the end of Year 4, 66.7 per cent of young people who had taken the Talent Check felt ‘confident’ or ‘somewhat confident’ about their choice of further training path. Without the Talent Check, this figure stood at 58.5 per cent – a difference of 8.2 percentage points. The survey involved 2,687 people and was carried out between February and July 2026.
Three partners, one seamless pathway
The Styrian Chamber of Labour has been providing schools in Styria with the ‘My Future’ career guidance pack free of charge for over 10 years. Teachers can use it in lessons to explore, amongst other things, pupils’ interests, personal strengths and training pathways, as well as to prepare for and follow up on visits to the Talent Centre. Furthermore, the Styrian Chamber of Labour offers its ‘14 Years Old – What Next?’ workshops to schools in Graz and the surrounding area to follow up on the Talent Report.
“The range of educational opportunities is becoming ever more diverse, whilst at the same time the world of work and careers is undergoing profound changes. This makes information, guidance and personal advice all the more important – and this is where the Talent Talks organised by the Styrian Chamber of Labour, the Styrian Chamber of Commerce and the Public Employment Service come in,” explains Josef Pesserl, President of the Styrian Chamber of Labour. “The AK’s Education Department has always been there to support young people, parents and schools with advice and practical assistance: with teaching materials for teachers and workshops such as ‘14 years old – what next?’. The experts help participants to understand the results of aptitude tests and to use them to identify concrete next steps. The latest figures show that thorough preparation and follow-up strengthen young people’s understanding of their own abilities and open up new career prospects.”
This is where the Talent Centre comes in. Young people in Years 7 and 8 then undergo a scientifically based potential analysis. At 48 test stations, interests, cognitive abilities, career-related skills, motor skills and receptiveness are assessed. This results in a personalised talent report with suitable career suggestions that can be pursued through apprenticeships, school or higher education.
Building on this, the Career Information Centres of the Styrian Public Employment Service (AMS) offer free, personalised counselling sessions in schools across Styria – together with parents where necessary. Young people can make sense of their results, compare training pathways and develop concrete next steps.
“The AMS Styria supports young people as they take their first steps into working life: through the new Talent Talks, in cooperation with the WKO Talent Centre and the AK, we help young people make well-informed decisions about their education and careers,” says Yvonne Popper, deputy regional CEO of the AMS. “Experts from our ten Career Information Centres – which have been operational for a week now – are visiting schools across Styria. There, as part of personalised educational and career guidance tailored to individual needs, they discuss the results of the Talent Report with the pupils. This service offering free, personalised educational and career guidance is generally available to all young people and adults in Styria, supplemented by numerous online tools on apprenticeships, jobs and careers.”
Ten years of the Talent Centre: 56,154 talent assessments
The launch of the ‘Talent Talks’ coincides with the Talent Centre’s tenth anniversary. The Styrian Chamber of Commerce (WKO Steiermark) opened the centre – developed in collaboration with the Institute of Psychology at the University of Graz – in September 2016. Since then, with the support of the Styrian Education Authority, 56,154 young people have completed a Talent Check.
“For more than ten years now, the Talent Centre has been supporting young people in choosing their future educational and career paths – one of the most important decisions in life,” explains Peter Riedler, Rector of the University of Graz. “The foundation for this is laid by the tireless work of the researchers at the University of Graz, whose expertise has laid the groundwork for this impressive track record. Here, science and applied business know-how come together perfectly. For research to find its way into the business world, it takes time and, above all, planning certainty. Only when research is secured for the long term can we proudly tell stories of success spanning a decade.”
Today, schools from all regions of Styria make use of the programme. 61 per cent of Styrian secondary schools and lower-level AHS classes take part, with 87 per cent of pupils rating their visit as ‘very good’ or ‘good’. Each year, around 6,500 young people in Styria take the Talent Check – 60 per cent of them attend a secondary school, and 40 per cent an AHS. In 2019, the Talent Centre received the ‘Best Education and Training Project’ award at the International Chamber of Commerce congress. Since 2023, the Talent Centre in Bolzano has also been operating according to the Styrian model, reaching a further 3,500 young people each year. In total, around 10,000 young people are assessed each year using the system developed in Styria.