A service company with a social mission offers support for students

According to the Hessian Law, the Studentenwerke have the task of supporting students economically and health-wise. The Studierendenwerk Kassel offers services in the areas of catering, housing, student financing and counselling. Based on the social consensus of equal opportunities in the education system, we thus guarantee the social infrastructure within the framework of higher education. We see ourselves as a comprehensive supporter of all students. We work in a field of tension between social pricing and free social services on the one hand and the need to generate cost-covering income on the other. In order to unite these contrasts, the Studierendenwerk Kassel is dependent both on the semester fees of the students and on state subsidies. Against the background of technical changes and changing social and individual values and lifestyles, we tailor our services to the needs of students.

Our cooperation with the university

The Studierendenwerk exists because the University of Kassel exists. We see ourselves as an efficient and expert partner for the people who work and study at the University of Kassel. In order to live up to this claim, the university and the student union must work closely together and maintain a constant exchange of information. Our aim is to improve the social and economic conditions for studying and, together with the UniK, to strengthen the university location and the North Hessian region. With our support, students, researchers and teachers from Germany and abroad should find an attractive place to stay at Kassel University.

For the students

The students of the University of Kassel are our most important customers. We feel obliged to them beyond our legal mandate. We must be aware that the students finance our work through their semester fees, which are levied in accordance with the principle of solidarity. It is therefore our aim to offer high-quality products and services and to satisfy the various needs and demands of our customers in the best possible way. A prerequisite for this is the constant exchange of information and opinions with the students. Their interests are also represented by the student members on the board of the Studierendenwerk. Conflicts with students are also part of our daily work. We strive to solve these conflicts in a friendly, objective and determined manner.

We - the employees

We contribute our different skills and experience to the work for the Studierendenwerk in order to satisfy the needs of our customers in the best possible way. Within this common task, each person assumes responsibility not only for his/her own workplace and the quality of his/her work, but also for cooperation with colleagues. For this to succeed, we need recognition for our work and our personality. We also want to give this recognition to our colleagues. We must treat each other fairly and respectfully and resolve conflicts in a relevant manner. Everyone is called upon to inform themselves and others about the work and development of the Student Union. In this way, we contribute to preserving our jobs. The Staff Council represents the interests of our employees and plays an important role in achieving these goals.

Leadership: Encourage and challenge
Leadership tasks are performed at all levels in the Studierendenwerk. Leading employees of the Studierendenwerk are characterized by special professional skills and qualities in dealing with personnel. This is the basis for their position in the company hierarchy.
Managers must be aware of their role model function. They promote and demand self-responsible work, respect the abilities, expertise and ideas of the employees. Managers involve employees in setting work goals and designing work processes. They make overriding goals clear and justify decisions. Recognition and criticism of work results are immediate and direct. By supporting, informing and listening to team work, making decisions and instructions transparent and specifically promoting further training, managers motivate their employees to commit themselves to the goals of the Student Union.
Executives are called upon to take care of conflicts. They are responsible for their decisions and their consequences. They are expected to develop visions and long-term perspectives for the Studierendenwerk.
 
Career and family
We promote the compatibility of work and family. Our goal is to take the family concerns of our employees into account, while taking into account the needs of the company.
Cooperation with other student organizations
We seek cooperation with other German student organizations and comparable European institutions. The cooperations range from project-related cooperation to permanent links in various fields of work. We expect this to lead to better use of the work, time and knowledge potential available in the individual student organisations, as well as more effective representation of our interests vis-à-vis politicians and the general public.
 
Expectations of politics
In order to fulfil its social mission, the Studierendenwerk Kassel needs the ideational and financial support of those politically responsible, and within this framework conditions must be created to further promote the economic and organisational independence of the Studierendenwerk. This is necessary in order to be able to plan and react to the changing expectations of the students.
 
Open to the public
Information and marketing are becoming more and more important in the Studierendenwerk and, in conjunction with our internal and external target groups, are of decisive importance: the quality of our services must be proactively presented to the outside world. At the same time, we cooperate with other institutions and groups wherever common goals and interests demand it. We are open to ideas and criticism and promote communication within and outside the student union. An unbureaucratic and lively exchange with the students is particularly important to us.
 
Demands on our business partners
We purchase products and services from our business partners and expect solid product quality at reasonable prices. We expect reliability, professional competence and flexibility in our cooperation. In addition, we attach great importance to regionality and environmental protection. As far as possible we use the services of the University of Kassel.
 
Framework conditions: Economic efficiency and environmental protection
We want to use the income generated, the state grants and the semester fees of the students to promote the social conditions of the students in the best possible way. At the same time, we strive to make decisions and act in an environmentally friendly and sustainable manner. In doing so, we orient ourselves to the principles of economic efficiency and make use of modern business management instruments.