The wave of layoffs at American technology companies is making the German economy sit up and take notice.

"They fire, we hire - they fire, we hire," says the head of human resources at Cariad, the software subsidiary of the car manufacturer Volkswagen, Rainer Zugeh.

"This is an opportunity for us."

Around 40 million cars are expected to run on Cariad software by 2030.

"We have several hundred vacancies: in the USA, in Europe and in China," the HR manager lures potential new employees from Silicon Valley and other large centers of American tech giants such as Seattle or Texas.

"Senior tech professionals who are highly talented and have valuable skills - exactly the people we're looking for at."

High inflation and the threat of recession are making life difficult for the American technology industry, which has been spoiled by success.

After years of almost unchecked growth, companies are preparing for years of slower growth and have initiated layoffs.

Google parent Alphabet is cutting about 12,000 jobs around the world, Microsoft plans to cut 10,000 jobs, Facebook parent Meta 11,000.

According to industry experts, a total of hundreds of thousands of jobs are up for grabs.

Developers and engineers are also affected

It often affects developers, engineers and other specialists who are desperately needed in Germany.

According to the Bitkom industry association, there are 137,000 vacant IT positions in companies across all sectors in Germany.

The Free State of Bavaria senses an opportunity because of the wave of layoffs on the other side of the Atlantic.

"I would like to extend a warm invitation to come and visit us in Bavaria!" Judith Gerlach, Minister of State for Digital Affairs, addressed interested parties in English on the LinkedIn careers portal.

The Free State offers the best conditions for IT specialists with a highly innovative research environment and many interesting business partners - from startups to medium-sized companies to the Dax group.

In addition, Bavaria offers a fantastic environment with a high recreational value.

"Did I mention Octoberfest?" writes Gerlach, who also advertises IT specialists for the public sector with reference to protection against dismissal and overtime compensation.

Such lure offers are well received by many a manager.

"I support your initiative very much!" writes the head of Lufthansa's IT service provider, Olivier Krüger, under Gerlach's LinkedIn entry.

Bitkom Managing Director Bernhard Rohleder doubts whether this advertising will be successful.

"The US is the promised land of IT," he says.

"Moving IT specialists from the USA to Germany is a difficult undertaking and only promising in exceptional cases."

According to this, many companies in the USA have a high need for IT know-how, so that those affected usually have very good career prospects within their own country.

"In addition, Germany competes with numerous other countries in the search for IT specialists, which geographically or linguistically are the more obvious alternative for those affected by job losses from the USA," says Rohleder.

And last but not least, taxes are high in Germany in comparison.

A move from the USA across the pond should therefore not be financially very tempting for many.

Warning against too much bureaucracy

Managers also have their doubts as to whether Germany is attractive enough for IT experts from California.

Without more help from politicians, recruiting could be in vain, warns Diana Stoleru from the Berlin startup Lendis.

"The bureaucracy in Germany is absolutely crippling for most highly qualified workers when they first encounter it, especially if they don't speak German," Stoleru points out.

If it is supposed to be a real initiative, then an invitation on LinkedIn is certainly not enough.

"But it could be a real fast-track program with a lot of support for highly skilled migrants."

In the end, the doubters might not be right, believe advocates of the recruitment campaigns.

The mood has turned.

Because of its job security, Germany is now also considered attractive for employees abroad, says an expert on the IT scene.

"Some envy us our collective agreements."