Our mission for 100 years

We help people to maintain or regain their freedom of movement.

A sibling couple stands embracing in front of a canvas. One of them is sitting in a wheelchair for children.
Independence and quality of life are the essence of our brand.

Mobility for people

For 100 years, people have come first in everything we do. We work hard every day to improve the quality of life of our patients and users, and to enable them to live independent daily lives.

For us, quality of life is closely linked to personal freedom and independence. That’s why we help people maintain or regain their freedom of movement. To achieve this goal now and in the future, we focus on innovation and outstanding technology, combined with a holistic approach and global activities. We try to see the world through the eyes of our users and customers, and we pursue this aim with respect, courage and commitment.

Our values, our culture

Human, reliable, inventive – these are Ottobock’s company values. They form the basis of our day-to-day work in the company. Our values drive us.

We are human.

Ottobock is human and accessible. We attach great importance to personal relationships based on trust, and are sustainable, responsible and transparent in everything we do.

Close to people – close to life

  • Personal relationships: In our interactions, we treat the people who use our products as partners. We’re in contact with them every day so we can learn about their concerns, needs and interests. This creates a basis of mutual trust, which is essential for the time we share during treatment.
  • The joy of helping: We help people with limited mobility and want to encourage them and boost their self-confidence. We appreciate individual diversity and see limited mobility as a challenge to overcome barriers.
  • Honest stories: Authenticity is essential to us. That’s why we let people speak for us – they openly share their experiences with our products and services.
  • Commitment to society and sports: Our involvement in society extends from the Paralympic Games to regional projects, to advancing orthopaedic technology. Our goal is to put people with disabilities in the centre of society, dismantle fears and misconceptions and break down barriers.

Social responsibility

A man palpating the amputated leg of a young boy who is standing next to him with the help of wood crutches.

Help for those in need

The Ottobock Global Foundation is dedicated to relieving human suffering after national and international disasters. It provides people in need with devices to help them regain an element of normality and quality of life. The primary focus of the foundation is to fit traumatised children and teens with prostheses, orthoses and wheelchairs.
Ottobock Global Foundation
Professor Hans Georg Näder and Peter Maffay in front of the entrance to the Tabalugahaus

Safe spaces for children

A safe place for children and young people – a heart's desire for friends Professor Hans Georg Näder and musician Peter Maffay, which they put into action with the Tabalugahaus Duderstadt: In two historic timber-framed houses in the midst of the old town, physically and mentally impaired and socially disadvantaged children find a protected space where they can regain their strength. Individual nature and adventure programmes let the children experience new things, boost their self-confidence and impart a pronounced sense of community and a positive attitude towards life.
Tabaluga House Duderstadt

Necessity is the mother of invention

The coronavirus has turned the world upside down. We too had to adjust to new circumstances and overcome new challenges. We quickly adjusted to the situation, created structures to help employees balance their work and family lives and developed new areas of activity. Our employees formed interdisciplinary teams where they demonstrated their expertise and quickly manufactured door openers, hygienic handles, community masks and plastic visors. Outside the company, Professor Hans Georg Näder also supported children and young people from socially disadvantaged families.
#ottobockcares

We are reliable

Our focus is on reliability and mutual trust. This is paramount for us. We’re always there to assist our patients and partners. We attach great importance to working together to develop solutions and strategies which help people to master the complex challenges of everyday life and prepare them for the future.

A good partner – guaranteed

  • Quality management: Our quality management standards meet the highest requirements. Specific test methods show that our long-lasting products offer quantifiable advantages.
  • Responsible action: Assuming responsibility is the basis for our actions. We actively and effectively make decisions to achieve sustainable growth. Economic success and social involvement go hand in hand here. We are also committed to the ten principles of the UN Global Compact and support the 17 Sustainable Development Goals.

“Having Ottobock join the UN Global Compact was a conscious decision. Making our activities sustainable is up to us – with the ten principles as the basis. Taking responsibility is the only way we can give coming generations a future.”

Prof. Hans Georg Näder, Owner

  • We stay on course: Since our founding in 1919, we have stood for dynamic growth. Ottobock is active around the globe. Economic success and responsible actions go hand in hand at Ottobock.
  • Passion and pride: Our engaged employees are proud to work for Ottobock – and some families do so across generations. We help people improve their quality of life with our products and services.
  • Partnership: Employees from various fields work together at our company. We value their skills and rely on our team spirit. The same also applies for our collaboration in networks.

We are Ottobock

Solidarity, strength, development, courage, adaptability and a sense of responsibility: Our principles guide our actions. They build on our company values and provide us with fundamental orientation for leadership and cooperation around the world.

A man concentrating as he leans over a table to work on the wheel of a wheelchair.
Play to win – with the courage to succeed

We are driven by innate enthusiasm and a quest for quality. We make courageous decisions but keep a keen eye on risks. We foster innovative talent. We approach our respective fields of responsibility with an entrepreneurial spirit. Why? Because we can. And because it’s fun.

Navigate through change – we master all changes

We shape our own future by engaging our customary entrepreneurial spirit and by looking ahead. We sport a positive attitude, we create transparency and we communicate openly and promptly. In this manner, we overcome all obstacles and celebrate success together.

A man and a woman sitting at a table and working on hand prostheses.
Develop continuously – we never stop growing and developing

Growth is part of our DNA. We believe in lifelong learning and questioning the status quo. We remain inquisitive and support personal development. So that we all grow – as people, as a team and as a company.

Man showing a woman and a man an Ottobock product in a room filled with people.
Human to human – strong relationships are our foundation

We trust each other and treat each other respectfully, whether colleague or customer. This includes actively listening to people, taking their concerns seriously, and helping and supporting each other. This mutual esteem will ensure our continued success.

Two employees working on a plaster model with a ThermoLyn thermoforming sheet in a facility with thigh plaster models.
Unite our strengths – together, we accomplish more

We are an international enterprise with many strengths which we continue to synergise. We foster inclusion, value diversity and strengthen local and global teamwork in line with our superordinate Ottobock strategies. We have a good network and will achieve our goals together.

An Ottobock employee is sitting in front of a woman who is touching her right hand with her left arm prosthesis
Walk the talk – no sooner said than done.

People can trust us. Always. We take responsibility, plan ahead, make transparent decisions and are dependable in the way we act. In this way, each and every one of us sets an example.

We make successful collaboration happen

Constructive, productive teamwork needs space – space for development, culture, safety and health. That is why continuous lifelong learning, occupational health and safety and environmental protection are just as much part of our self-image at Ottobock as health and travel safety measures. Our goal is to always support and encourage our employees, thereby generating added value for our customers and users.
Why Ottobock

We are inventive.

Since our founding in 1919, our technologies have set milestones on the road to the future. We combine playfulness and inventiveness with courage and tenacity in our research and development.

Each new product draws on our many decades of experience. As a result, we don’t see progress and tradition as a contradiction in terms, but rather as a single, progressive whole. Over the years, we have learned that humans must always remain the ultimate benchmark in our research and development. After all, we measure the quality of our products by the benefits they offer people.

An image of a leg illustrating the inner musculoskeletal system is shown next to the Genium and C-Leg leg prostheses.
Human biology is always the focus at Ottobock.

Biology inspires technology

The analysis of human movement patterns delivers insights into nature, which we seek to replicate as closely as possible with bionic solutions. However, the goal is not to produce a rigid copy of biological structures. Instead, we apply the principles to the technology so we can reproduce natural functions to the greatest extent possible. Thanks to this approach, our products match the natural model almost perfectly.

A tradition of progress

  • High tech: Our research and development is integrated in an international network of our own sites and scientific institutions.
  • Interdisciplinary cooperation: Our outstanding products create a solid and reliable basis for treating our users. This is complemented perfectly by the technical expertise and social skills of our employees and partners. They coordinate their work so we can achieve the best results for people.
  • A cutting-edge reputation: We put our products and company services to the test in international competitions involving a wide range of industries. The awards our company receives show us that we’re on the right path.
  • Space for ideas: We established an interface to Berlin’s creative scene by setting up the Ottobock Future Lab on the grounds of the former Bötzow brewery. This is where we’re building our digital future. From 2009 to 2018, the Ottobock Science Center Berlin transformed medical technology into a fascinating experience for more than a million visitors from around the world.

People make innovation happen

Additional topics

Two O&P professionals work together on a prosthetic socket in a workshop.
Careers

Why Ottobock

Our products help people to regain their mobility or maintain bodily functions. We offer meaningful jobs with a global leader in innovation.

Close-up of hands working on a car with the Paexo Thumb.
Research and Development

Innovations for people

For more than 100 years, we have been conducting research for our users, patients and customers - and setting new standards in medical technology with our intelligent solutions.

Ottobock O&P professional adapting a man’s C-Brace orthosis. Both people are sitting in a room on chairs.
Our engagement

Helping and supporting people around the world

We see Ottobock not just as a company, but also as an active member of society. That is why doing our part to ensure sustainable development is a matter of course for us, both inside and outside the company.

Wolfgang using his arm prosthesis and Myo Plus pattern recognition as he feeds a calf a bottle of milk on his farm.
Our sustainability strategy

Responsibility is our foundation

As a member of the UN Global Compact, we are committed to the 17 Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations and have integrated them into our sustainability strategy.