New HUBER Global Service Academy: knowledge as a success factor
With the ongoing internationalisation and steady growth of the HUBER Group, the transfer of knowledge is becoming a decisive success factor – both internally and in customer relations. The newly created Global Service Academy aims to impart expertise relating to our products and services systematically and scalably. An expanded range of training courses, digital learning platforms, and practical training formats will provide a framework for the future that makes know-how available worldwide efficiently, in a standardised way, and sustainably.
Harald Neumann has been heading this new strategic division since April 2025. In this interview, he talks about his new role and his goals, while also sharing a little about his private life.
Harald, you have been the manager of the new Global Service Academy at HUBER since April 2025. How has your career at the company progressed so far?
Harald Neumann: I joined HUBER in November 2002 and initially worked in International Sales for mechanical sludge treatment products. In 2005, I moved to Product Management, where my responsibilities included the Q-PRESS®, S-DISC and STRAINPRESS®. I completed my studies in Environmental Process Engineering at Nuremberg University of Applied Sciences, writing a thesis on drinking water treatment in Australia.
What particularly appeals to you about the new position?
The direct contact with colleagues and customers who work with our products every day – that's what I find particularly exciting. I find it very motivating to work at the interface between technology, service and knowledge transfer, and thereby actively contribute to the long-term quality of our services.
In your opinion, what strategic advantages does the Global Service Academy offer, particularly to HUBER as a whole?
The international nature of our team and the increasing number of HUBER products in use make structured, scalable knowledge transfer essential. With the Service Academy, we can provide standardised training content digitally across the globe. At the same time, we are significantly expanding the range of face-to-face training courses for service employees and operators, which promotes knowledge transfer in both directions.
What specifically does the training content focus on?
Our proven in-house training courses for colleagues remain central. What is new is that we are now focusing specifically on continuous, traceable further training, right through to certification. In future, the focus on our customers will be particularly important: Operators of our systems should receive training courses that can be designed flexibly in terms of location and content – a key aspect of holistic lifecycle services and, above all, of the new business model in the HUBER Global Service product portfolio.
Could you please provide details of the approach you are taking to establish and develop the Academy?
As a first step, we have created an internal training calendar for our top-selling HUBER products. At the same time, we are digitising the content and making it available online. We are also documenting the skills of our international service teams to identify and proactively address their specific training needs. In future, software will support this process. In terms of content, we are expanding our portfolio to include topics such as automation, measurement, and process technology. Operator training will also be a central component.
What is the most important aspect of the Global Service Academy for you personally – especially with regard to its international orientation?
Digitalisation, quite clearly. Not only does it enable consistent quality and the further development of content, it also makes content available across time zones and language barriers. Technologies such as video telephony, 3D illustrations, and augmented reality have great potential to overcome language barriers and convey complex content clearly and concisely.
A new team, a new environment – What are your first impressions?
Very positive. The communication channels within Global Service are short, which makes collaboration much easier. I particularly like the mix of experienced and new colleagues. Naturally, the high number of new employees brings challenges in terms of training, but that's exactly what we're here for.
Finally: What do you do in your free time, away from setting up the Service Academy?
I'm 49 years old, married and have a 15-year-old daughter. In my spare time, I often go cycling, and I still take part in competitions every now and then. I also enjoy listening to music and going to concerts whenever I can.
Thank you very much for talking to us, Harald, and good luck with further developing the Global Service Academy!
