More than just a CV
The Eurailpress Career Boost digital showed how 90-second pitches can efficiently bring talent and companies together.
The second Eurailpress Career Boost digital took place on 17 Sep¬tember 2025. As at the premiere two years ago, Eurailpress editor-in-chief Georg Kern opened the event and guided the participating talents and company recruiters through the programme. Fourteen participants from the categories of railways, transport, urban mobility, sustainability, computing, engineering and construction each had 90 seconds to intro¬duce themselves in digital livestream pitches. Recruiters from companies such as Spitzke SE, CAF, Stadler Rail and Quattron followed the presentations and were then able to arrange meetings via the InnoTransPlus platform. ‘There's no pressure, everyone can talk to everyone,’ emphasised Georg Kern right at the start. After the pitches, he facilitated personal exchanges and picked up on details from the CVs that had not been mentioned in the 90 seconds.
Personal contact in the age of AI
The presentations offered exciting insights: Ajay Vishnu Sridhar, a master's student in transport, engineering and mobility, already holds two patents in the textile sector. Lars Hilkens founded his own research team on magnetic levitation technology due to a lack of suitable opportunities. Transport planner Katja Jaschke described how chaotic rail replacement services motivated her to develop more user-friendly solutions. ‘Naturally, pitches tend to focus heavily on educational qualifications. I think it is exciting to find out what kind of person is speaking,’ said moderator Georg Kern.
The talents also appreciated the format: ‘It's nice to be able to introduce yourself in person in an age when many people write their CVs with ChatGPT and recruiters use AI,’ said Nils Heising, who had discovered his early passion for trains through the German children's TV show ‘Send¬ung mit der Maus’. Recruiters such as Lucas Briesenick from Spitzke SE also emphasised the direct impression: ‘We can specifically focus on the most interesting candidates.’
Wide variety of perspectives and op¬portunities
The participants' geographical backgrounds were as diverse as their motivations and educational histories, ranging from Latvia, the Netherlands and the UK to Switzerland, Romania and Hamburg. ’I was overwhelmed by the talent. It was exciting to learn how each of them views the industry in a different way – this helps to better understand different perspectives,‘ said Master's graduate Ali Zarroug, who has already gained railway experience in projects in Sudan, Malaysia and Australia. Ajay Vishnu Sridhar also praised the format: ’As a railway engineer, Career Boost has helped me a lot to make contacts. I would like to see it take place every year or even every six months.‘
The next opportunity to kick-start careers will be at InnoTrans 2026 from 22 to 25 September 2026 in Berlin, where the Eurailpress Career Boost will once again take place live on stage at the InnoTrans Campus.
Fourteen international talents provided exciting insights into what motivates them to work in the rail industry.