Belonging is not a coincidence: How ATP shapes 'Arrival'

Every company with a presence in several locations at once faces the same question sooner or later: how do you remain a cohesive whole? At ATP, with offices in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Poland, Croatia and Hungary, this question is not an abstract cultural issue, but one that is decided anew on every single first day at work. Yujin Lee is responsible for Learning & Development at ATP and, together with Emanuel Moosburger, Lead Culture and Integration, addresses the question of how new colleagues become part of the company. In this interview, she explains why onboarding is a strategic priority for ATP – and not one that should be left solely to managers.

Onboarding is often seen as an operational HR issue. Why do you view it strategically?

Yujin Lee: Because it addresses precisely where things become most challenging for a company with many locations: the question of what actually holds us together. ATP operates across more than ten locations in several countries. From a technical perspective, this can be organised effectively; each team functions independently. But identity and a sense of belonging do not develop automatically. If you leave this to chance, over time you’ll end up with many good individual offices – but no longer a unified company. That’s why this is a leadership task, and not simply an administrative one.

What does this look like in practice at ATP?

Yujin Lee: We have deliberately structured this across several levels that need to work together. The onboarding programme provides the technical and organisational framework during the first few weeks: processes, tools and your own team. At the same time, new employees are supported by their respective buddies at the site. Every new recruit is paired with an experienced colleague for the first few months, someone they can ask even the questions they wouldn’t normally ask anywhere else. And with the Welcome Day, we bring all new colleagues together – regardless of their location – to show them the bigger picture: who we are as a company and where we’re heading. It’s only through the interplay of these three levels that a new job truly becomes a sense of belonging.

What does ‘settling in’ mean to you in this broader sense?

Yujin Lee: It goes beyond the desk and the first few names in the team. Settling in means understanding where you fit into the bigger picture: where this company comes from, what its ethos is, and where it wants to go. These are questions that new colleagues ask themselves in the first few weeks anyway, but usually quietly to themselves. Our job is to give them an honest answer early on, rather than leaving them to piece it together themselves.

ATP deliberately focuses on direct dialogue with the decision-makers of the ATP Group during the onboarding process. What is the reasoning behind this?

Yujin Lee: The fact that our CEO, Albert Achammer, introduces himself and

How do you ensure consistency across so many locations?

Yujin Lee: By deliberately keeping it small, regardless of the company’s size. We consciously bring together small groups from different locations to foster a sense of closeness. Size and a sense of belonging do not automatically stand in each other’s way. They only do so if you fail to take a sense of belonging into account. An event such as our Welcome Day for new colleagues is one building block in this, but the real point is the mindset behind it, not the event itself.

Where do we go from here?

Yujin Lee: New colleagues should know not only which team they’ve joined, but which company. That’s the benchmark against which we measure ourselves – regardless of how the environment develops.

When do you arrive?
At ATP, we’re not looking for run-of-the-mill architects and engineers. We’re looking for those who see the responsible design of SPACE as an adventure. The brave. The curious. The creative. Those who, driven by enthusiasm and ambition, will work with us to shape a new building culture and leave a lasting mark on the built environment. Someone like you?
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