Employee referrals at Krombacher: A recruitment boost for hard-to-fill roles
Industry: Food & Beverages
Locations: 4 locations in Germany
Employees: 1,500
Customer since: 2023
The Challenge: Filling technical vacancies efficiently and with qualified candidates
Every day, 5,500,000 bottles of beer are filled at Krombacher. That’s 120 bottles per second. To make this possible, the company needs not just talented master brewers. Whether automation specialists, food technicians, or industrial mechanics: technical positions continue to be an exciting challenge for Krombacher’s recruiting team. Strong employee identification with the Krombacher brand and occasional informal referrals suggested that, with the right tool and a well-designed strategy, a significant recruiting channel for this hard-to-reach talent group could be created.
The Solution: A dedicated referral system instead of basic ATS features
Krombacher already used an applicant tracking system (ATS) that included basic referral functions. However, to fully digitalize and sustainably scale employee referrals, the recruiting team wanted to go one step further. Beyond seamless integration with the existing ATS and transparent tracking, they needed a holistic system that continuously motivates employees and maximizes valuable referrals.
Stories as the sidekick, gamification as the turbocharger
A referral program stands or falls with employees’ ongoing activity. But employees don’t always immediately know the right people for current vacancies. So how does Krombacher keep engagement high in its ambassador program?
The answer: Stories! With CleverConnect, employer-branding content becomes easily shareable. Employees can act not only as recruiters but also as brand ambassadors, using their networks to boost Krombacher’s visibility as an employer.
Traditional “employee-refers-employee” programs rely on success bonuses paid when a referred candidate is hired, sometimes only after probation. While four-digit bonuses may seem attractive, the barrier to achieving them is high. The alternative: gamification with micro-incentives.
With this approach, employees earn points for every activity that could potentially lead to an application: sharing job ads or employer-branding content on social media, generating clicks on these shared posts, or directly referring contacts. Krombacher’s customized point system is designed to increase the reach of postings, ultimately boosting the volume of high-quality applications.
“It was clear to us that we wanted to give something back to our employees for supporting our recruiting activities, beyond the classic hiring bonus. CleverConnect’s gamification approach fits perfectly with this philosophy and, thanks to its playful nature, ensures continuous employee motivation. The result: more valuable referrals.”
Celine Schuer
Recruiter @ Krombacher Brauerei Bernhard Schadeberg GmbH & Co. KG
The Results: Employee referrals consistently in the top 4 recruiting channels
The concept has paid off: Today, around 20% of hires in the critical technical area come from referrals. Even more encouraging is the steadily increasing share of referral hires in technical roles during the first three quarters of 2025.
Additionally, the recruiting team benefits from a positive side effect we see with many customers: Sales employees tend to be highly connected and know other sales talent. It’s therefore no surprise that sales roles rank second, with around 15% of hires coming from referrals over the past two years.
Quality of Hire: Measurable applicant quality that delivers
Filling positions is good. Filling them with the right people is even better. Krombacher uses the ATS’s 5-star rating system to track the average quality of hire across recruiting channels. Referred hires perform exceptionally well here, consistently outperforming all other sources.
“Employee referrals are one of our top recruiting channels and a true success story. We see that relying on employees as recruiting ambassadors is working extremely well, especially in the technical area. What makes us particularly happy: In our internal quality rankings, referred candidates clearly outperform those from other sources.”
Celine Schuer
Recruiter @ Krombacher Brauerei Bernhard Schadeberg GmbH & Co. KG
Gamification with seasonal campaigns: A motivation booster with budget control
Even though employee referrals are relatively budget-friendly compared to other channels, open gamification systems where points are exchanged for prizes of varying value are difficult to plan financially. Krombacher therefore decided to move away from small continuous rewards and instead run time-limited campaigns with leaderboards and attractive prizes.
For example, on the one-year anniversary of its referral program “Krommunity,” the most active employee won a hot-air balloon ride for two in the Krombacher balloon. This approach provides two major benefits: Campaigns generate internal buzz and raise awareness for the program, and the fixed prize model ensures 100% budget predictability.
“The referral campaigns give a clear activity boost among our employees. In addition to internal marketing for our Krommunity referral program, we launched an external-facing campaign this year: The winner of the 2025 Referral Challenge received a stand-up paddleboard in Krombacher branding — a great way to show brand pride even in their free time.”
Celine Schuer
Recruiter @ Krombacher Brauerei Bernhard Schadeberg GmbH & Co. KG
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