DGFP Profile
The German Association for Personnel Management was founded by representatives from the worlds of business and science in 1952. This was a time in which new achievements such as autonomous wage bargaining, many new acts of parliament such as the Labour-Management Relations Act and the start-up of the social market economy were exercising a strong influence on company personnel and social-welfare policies. In order to manage these new challenges, those responsible sought some kind of supraindustry interchange of views and experience. This continues to be a priority at DGFP. DGFP is a non profit-making organization, headquartered in Düsseldorf, with regional offices in Berlin, Frankfurt/M., Hamburg, Leipzig, Stuttgart and Munich. It comprises about 2000 members ranging from large, medium-sized and smaller companies. According to its charter, DGFP's mission is to promote human resources management - in practice, research and teaching.
DGFP activities and services:
Sharing experience
There are more than 125 experience-exchange groups which we organise for our member companies. In those groups approximately 4000 personnel managers and specialists in human resources management, social welfare and personnel training are representing their companies. The exchange meetings are organized regionally or nationally, by industry or function. The meetings are held two to three times a year covering a variety of personnel, social and business topics. At the exchange meetings papers about various personnel subjects are provided as well as information about the hosting company and their current HR topics. Furthermore, the meetings focus on inter-company exchange of experiences acquired in day-to-day HR practice.
Education and training
The personnel Management Academy at DGFP takes due account of the growing significance of further education. There is a wide range of course offerings dealing with fundamental and topical aspects of in-company personnel and further education as well as labour law. In addition to the seminars for personnel managers, the programme includes courses for members of the works council. Special conferences organized by the DGFP deal with subjects of current interest, commented on by experts and analysts from the world of business and science.
Personalführung - the magazine
Our monthly magazine "Personalführung" for members and others interested in personnel management subjects, reports on the latest developments in human resources. Each issue features a main topic. The authors are predominantly company representatives writing about HR relevant topics - according to the principal of "practical experience for practitioners". The subscriber spectrum goes far beyond those working in HR and includes a wide variety of readers in Germany and abroad.
Information PERDOC
Our personnel-management related documentation is available to member companies as a source of information. Not only articles from special interest magazines and technical literature are compiled and analysed but also documents from member companies. The aim is to provide help in resolving problems in day-to-day HR practice.
Working groups
Groups of experts elaborate practical tools such as codes of practice, frameworks and checklists on relevant HR topics. Additional surveys complete the research.
Tools and empirical studies are published regularly in the so called "PraxisEdition" books and in working papers called "PraxisPapiere".
DGFP Congresses
Since 1985, the DGFP's annual congress takes place in Wiesbaden with more than 1,200 participants. The date for the next congress in Wiesbaden is 10-11 June 2010. Keynote addresses and panel discussions analyse present and future subjects of human resources management. As member of the European Association for People Management (EAPM) the DGFP is also involved in the organisation of the biannual EAPM congresses (see below "International Activities").
DGFP mbH - the profit center
In 1989, DGFP has founded a subsidiary which provides modern and innovative services. These include in-house seminars, employee surveys and a number of comparisons. The GmbH organizes fairs and exhibitions and provides its own consultancy services.
Membership of DGFP
Any company headquartered in the Federal Republic of Germany and keen to promote the aims of DGFP may become an ordinary member. Companies, registered outside Germany, may become corresponding members.
Personnel consultants and consultant firms have the possibility of becoming extraordinary members.
International Activities
In 1962 the DGFP was one of the founding members of the European Association for Personnel Management (EAPM). Its aim is to promote the exchange of information between personnel management professionals across Europe. EAPM is the representative organisation for personnel management in Europe. Every two years the EAPM organises an international congress. The venue of the congress in 2011 will be Istanbul, Turkey. More information about the EAPM you will find under http://www.eapm.org.
The World Federation of Personnel Management Associations (WFPMA) is the umbrella organisation for personnel management. Founded in 1976, it embraces regional associations of North America, South America, Europe, Asia/Pacific and represents more than 300.000 personnel management professionals world-wide. In the years between the EAPM congresses a world congress for personnel management takes place. The next World Congress will be held in Montreal/Canada on 26-29 September 2010 (http://www.hr2010.com/). More information about the WFPMA can be found under http://www.wfpma.com.
Due to this large international HR network the DGFP is able to set up contacts for its members world-wide. For years now, bilateral und multilateral contacts have existed with many reciprocal organizations abroad.
The DGFP organises annual meetings in various countries for the purpose of an international exchange of views. There are annual exchange meetings for example with "Germany-Austria-Switzerland", "Germany-Hungary-Eastern Europe" and "North-West-Europe".
