BEIJING - With new plants under construction and new products in the pipeline, German automaker Volkswagen Group has reached out to new local talent for its fast-expanding business in China.

The carmaker started a program in the middle of the year called "China 60" to search for qualified professionals to fill high-level positions at key functions of its China joint ventures.

The company doesn't have enough people at its German headquarters to support operations in China, so it came up with the program to hire 60 top professionals, said Klaus Dierkes, executive vice-president of human resources and board member of Volkswagen Group China.

Recruits will be trained for 18 months, including six to 12 months in Germany, before they take on "key positions" at local joint ventures that used to be staffed by German experts, Dierkes said.

He noted that the recruiting plan is not focused on a particular field but offers positions ranging from technology and sales to human resources.

"We expect to find all 60 of the people by the middle of next year," he said, adding that the program will continue if it yields satisfactory results. "The actual demand for talented professionals at our China operations is more than 60."

Although the job opportunities are all in China and mostly target Chinese applicants, the company has received applications from people of different nationalities, said Heino Dannemann, director in charge of the program.

He said the company expects qualified people to be keen on working in China and developing with Volkswagen in the country, but has placed no requirements on nationality.

Volkswagen's efforts in talent development in China are not limited to high-level managers. It has been investing heavily in training frontline employees in its local operations to provide sustained competence.

The automaker opened a sales and service academy in Beijing in March this year, where about 700 trainers will take courses over the next five years before they go on to instruct service and management staff at dealerships across the country. The Beijing institute is the first outside Volkswagen's headquarters in Wolfsburg to issue trainer diplomas.

In September it also founded an academy to improve training of purchasing staff.

And for the first time ever, two employees from the joint ventures of Volkswagen in China were awarded the "best apprentices" at the end of November in Wolfsburg, taking their place among 27 winners from the carmaker's branches worldwide.

"We are willing to invest in talent," Dierkes said, noting that along the way to becoming the world's No 1 automaker, Volkswagen also aims to be the best employer in the industry.