Early Careers
Whether you're looking to jump start your career, find mentorship, or try your hand at a new skill, our Early Career programs are designed with holistic growth in mind.
Early Career programs at On have been created for individuals in the beginning stages of their career journeys – designed for a range of entry levels, and typically without prerequisites. We want to keep the playing field as inclusive as possible so that you can come in fresh to learn and grow – hopefully, teaching us something along the way too. We believe in mentorship, growth and fresh ideas – all of which you would get through the three programs below.
MAKER SPACE WORKSHOP, ZURICH
Programs we offer
Select an area:
Internship
Our internships offer the chance to make a direct impact at On and contribute to On's growth journey.
Internships are available across our global hubs in Europe, the US, and Vietnam within a range of teams from marketing to R&D, Finance, or Talent to name a few. You'll generally be with On for six months and we promise you'll be fully embedded within the team.
Application Period: November-December and May-June
Start Dates: March and September (EMEA), June (USA)
Trainee Programs
The Product Creation Academy is our flagship rotational trainee program based in Zurich and Vietnam. The PCA offers the chance to kickstart a career in the sportswear industry through a 24-month journey, designed to develop true functional experts while giving cohorts the opportunity to be hands-on within a variety of teams along the product creation process.
Over two years, trainees rotate through four teams. If starting the program with PCA Zurich, you’ll have one rotation spent with our team in Vietnam, and similarly, with PCA Vietnam, you’ll spend three rotations between Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh and one with our team at On Labs in Zurich. This is an experience to learn first-hand what it takes to bring our products to life across a variety of functions.
Mentorship plays a big role for our trainees too – you’ll be paired with one of our senior product creation leaders, providing coaching and support one-to-one throughout the program.
PCA Zurich – Applications open: February | Program start: September
Apprenticeship
Apprentice programs are a core pillar of the Swiss education system. We offer commercial apprenticeship opportunities (KV) for Swiss students who have completed their 9 years of compulsory education.
As an apprentice, you'll rotate among six departments over three years. In each department, a coach will support your development. Alongside three days of practical work at On, apprentices attend KV Zurich Business School the rest of the week. We also offer a 'sports apprenticeship' taking 4 years in total, with two years at On and two years at the UNITED School of Sports.
Apprentices obtain a Federal Diploma of Vocational Education and Training at the same time as their Federal Vocational Baccalaureate. The latter will entitle you to enrol in Switzerland's universities of applied sciences without further examination once having completed their apprenticeship.
Application period: Spring-Summer
Program start date: Mid August
Spirits
Spirits
We want to make a positive contribution, the right way. For ourselves. For runners. For the planet. We believe how you do things is just as important as what you do. That’s why we strive to live and work by five guiding Spirits. Discover the values that bring us together and set us apart.
On SpiritsExplorer
The Explorer Spirit challenges the ‘status quo’ and brings in 'the new' in humankind’s path to progress. We embrace the human drive for positive change. A better world, a better life, a better feel. How? By being different, taking a more contrarian view. Questioning, debating, both are always welcomed – encouraged even. And we take smart risks to discover the new. New innovations. New territories. New directions. New ways of solving problems. This means making calculated, courageous moves when venturing into the unknown. Yes, the journey can be long and without instant rewards, but we always push ahead. Often, survival will call for a hands-on ‘gut-feeling’ approach when decisions need to be made. There is no phone to call home.
Rethink and venture into the unknown.
On SpiritsAthlete
The Athlete Spirit celebrates today’s wins. But, also knows that tomorrow is a new day with new challenges and new opportunities to perform even better – new opportunities to strive for excellence. We trust in our fine skills to rise to even greater heights. Knowing our strengths and recognizing our weaknesses fuels our constant restlessness, our drive to succeed; whether at work or play. The more we train, the more we learn, the better prepared we are to face whatever future obstacles come our way.
Build the better you.
On SpiritsTeam
The Team Spirit harvests the power of the whole. We have learned to combine different skillsets within diverse teams to divide and conquer. This is how the game is won, again and again. And again. Not by the occasional spark of flash by star-strikers eager to display their individual brilliance, but by consistent, hard, team work. When everybody contributes, our team wins. We cross the finish line together and treat each other with respect. However, we are a sports team, not a family. This means that belonging requires contribution by all. Those who contribute the most, lead the team. At On, leadership is earned, not given.
Start and finish as a team.
On SpiritsPositive
The Positive Spirit is what drives us to inspire those around us. This starts with our interactions and what we contribute in this most fundamental activity. How we listen, how we speak, how we tell a story, how we give joy. And the result? Happiness. A greater sense of well-being for all in our community. Positivity is contagious and has the power to create light, excitement and connection out of seemingly nothing. A power that we can use proactively and give without expecting to receive. Give, don’t take. Be selfless, not selfish. At On, we take pride in living the Positive Spirit, and delivering Wow.
Deliver 'Wow'.
On SpiritsSurvivor
The Survivor Spirit has kept humanity thriving for thousands of years. It brings us together to overcome adversity. And it’s as essential as ever. Faced with the climate crisis and widespread social challenges, the Survivor Spirit fuels our fearless optimism. It reaffirms our Mission by reminding us that the human spirit unlocks the extraordinary – but also that progress demands we prioritize people and the planet. That’s why we take responsibility: to reduce negative impact and make a bigger, positive difference. The road forward won’t be smooth. But we move further, faster by bringing others with us. Collaboration starts with ensuring fair conditions for all who work for and with us. It leads us to seek partners who can help us innovate – to create processes and products that inspire people to rethink their choices, in sportswear and beyond.
For people and the planet.
The Explorer Spirit challenges the ‘status quo’ and brings in 'the new' in humankind’s path to progress. We embrace the human drive for positive change. A better world, a better life, a better feel. How? By being different, taking a more contrarian view. Questioning, debating, both are always welcomed – encouraged even. And we take smart risks to discover the new. New innovations. New territories. New directions. New ways of solving problems. This means making calculated, courageous moves when venturing into the unknown. Yes, the journey can be long and without instant rewards, but we always push ahead. Often, survival will call for a hands-on ‘gut-feeling’ approach when decisions need to be made. There is no phone to call home.
Rethink and venture into the unknown.
The Athlete Spirit celebrates today’s wins. But, also knows that tomorrow is a new day with new challenges and new opportunities to perform even better – new opportunities to strive for excellence. We trust in our fine skills to rise to even greater heights. Knowing our strengths and recognizing our weaknesses fuels our constant restlessness, our drive to succeed; whether at work or play. The more we train, the more we learn, the better prepared we are to face whatever future obstacles come our way.
Build the better you.
The Team Spirit harvests the power of the whole. We have learned to combine different skillsets within diverse teams to divide and conquer. This is how the game is won, again and again. And again. Not by the occasional spark of flash by star-strikers eager to display their individual brilliance, but by consistent, hard, team work. When everybody contributes, our team wins. We cross the finish line together and treat each other with respect. However, we are a sports team, not a family. This means that belonging requires contribution by all. Those who contribute the most, lead the team. At On, leadership is earned, not given.
Start and finish as a team.
The Positive Spirit is what drives us to inspire those around us. This starts with our interactions and what we contribute in this most fundamental activity. How we listen, how we speak, how we tell a story, how we give joy. And the result? Happiness. A greater sense of well-being for all in our community. Positivity is contagious and has the power to create light, excitement and connection out of seemingly nothing. A power that we can use proactively and give without expecting to receive. Give, don’t take. Be selfless, not selfish. At On, we take pride in living the Positive Spirit, and delivering Wow.
Deliver 'Wow'.
The Survivor Spirit has kept humanity thriving for thousands of years. It brings us together to overcome adversity. And it’s as essential as ever. Faced with the climate crisis and widespread social challenges, the Survivor Spirit fuels our fearless optimism. It reaffirms our Mission by reminding us that the human spirit unlocks the extraordinary – but also that progress demands we prioritize people and the planet. That’s why we take responsibility: to reduce negative impact and make a bigger, positive difference. The road forward won’t be smooth. But we move further, faster by bringing others with us. Collaboration starts with ensuring fair conditions for all who work for and with us. It leads us to seek partners who can help us innovate – to create processes and products that inspire people to rethink their choices, in sportswear and beyond.
For people and the planet.
FAQs
