No Way but Forward - Sayed’s Journey

At just 14 years old, Sayed fled Afghanistan alone, arriving in Austria with nothing but a goal and determination – to build a secure future for himself. Today, he’s a mechanical engineer at Hilti, having completed his master craftsman’s examination with distinction. His journey, however, wasn’t easy. Paved with language barriers and overcoming personal loss, every step required discipline, courage to move forward, and the impact of those who believed in him. But for Sayed, this is just the beginning – his ambitions reach far beyond where he stands today.

Building a New Life from Scratch

To clear his head, Sayed can often be found in the mountains in his leisure time.

Sayed found himself alone in a foreign land back in 2015. From the start, he had one clear goal: to gain a foothold and build a life that would give him a secure future. “I knew that I needed to master the language and get a good education,” he says.

As he was living in a home for asylum seekers near Feldkirch, Sayed wasted no time learning German and searching for an apprenticeship with the help of a local social organization. He was determined to find something in a technical field—he loved precision, teamwork, and working with his hands. But finding an opportunity was not easy.

Then, one day, a door opened. Markus Grass, a vocational trainer from Hilti, visited the asylum home with a Hilti apprentice. They introduced the company’s mechanical engineering vocational training program. For Sayed, it was an instant connection. “It just clicked with me,” he remembers. He applied for an open house event immediately, eager to see more. That visit only strengthened his determination and motivated him to complete a three-month internship—six weeks in the training workshop and six weeks rotating through different departments. He knew he had found come to the right place. Soon after, he officially started his apprenticeship as a mechanical engineer specializing in automation.

Turning Determination into Success

From the very beginning, Sayed approached his training as he approached life - with discipline and curiosity. He enjoyed the precision of working with technology and the challenge of assembling heavy diamond tools. “I like the teamwork and the precision with which the work is done. And the tools are also really good,” he says with a smile.

He quickly became known for his willingness to learn, seizing every opportunity to expand his skills. “Listening, observing, and asking questions helped me find my way,” he explains. But his journey was not without its setbacks. In his fourth year of training, Sayed’s father passed away. The loss was devastating, and for a time, he struggled with whether he should continue his apprenticeship training or leave to support his family back in Afghanistan.

During this difficult period, his vocational training manager, Daniel Bitschnau, stepped in with guidance and encouragement. “He supported me when I thought I couldn’t go on. He showed me that I was doing the right thing and helped me find solutions to what I was dealing with,” Sayed recalls. “It’s my great fortune that I met people along the way who supported me when I could no longer see the path forward.”

A Future with Clear Goals

In July, Sayed passed his master craftsman’s examination and secured a full-time role at Hilti, working on the assembly line of diamond tools, and he’s already looking ahead. His next goal is to develop different prototypes and become a programmer, which he recalls as a big motivating factor during his master’s training apprenticeship to keep him going.

Sayed with his current supervisor Alexander Eberlein at the assembly line in Plant 4, Thüringen, Austria.

Determined as ever, he sought advice and together with colleagues in programming roles, mapped out a plan to achieve his dream. “I spoke to a lot of colleagues who are where I want to be…and made a plan how to get there,” he says.

Sayed has come a long way—from a teenager trying to find his place in a new country to a skilled professional carving out his own future. He’s faced challenges, taken every opportunity that came his way, and built something meaningful for himself. But if there’s one thing that stands out about Sayed, it’s that he’s never been one to stand still—his journey is far from over.

Scholarships for a better future

Young refugees from the 2015 refugee crisis have found new prospects in Germany and Austria in the form of a Hilti apprenticeship, which takes four years to complete. Enabling people to lead lives of independence and self-determination is at the core of who we are at the Hilti Foundation. Since 2015, we have been fortunate enough to support six apprentices in Plant 4 and four in Plant 6 (Kaufering, Germany) to complete their apprenticeships.