Roth Scaffolding: Philippe Wingeier succeeds Walter Fankhauser
Philippe Wingeier has been the new CEO of Roth Gerüste since the beginning of January. The 46-year-old from the Bernese Oberland intends to further consolidate the position of Switzerland's largest scaffolding service provider. His predecessor Walter Fankhauser will henceforth concentrate on the strategic fate of the traditional company headquartered in Gerlafingen (SO) as Chairman of the Board of Directors.
The new man at the helm of Roth Gerüste can draw on many years of management experience at a major Swiss construction company for his post: for 18 years, Philippe Wingeier held various management positions at the Frutiger Group, most recently as a member of the Executive Board. "I consider myself fortunate to be able to be at the forefront of a new trade and environment and to face the challenges that lie ahead," says the new CEO. In doing so, he says he wants to build on what has already been achieved, but also set targeted accents to lead the company into the future. He sees particular potential in the areas of digitization, logistics, and process optimization, says the passionate recreational athlete.
Reaching and inspiring young people
Philippe Wingeier considers the most acute challenges to be the highly competitive market, falling market prices and margins, and the shortage of skilled workers, which has long since affected the construction industry. In the area of human resources in particular, he says the strategy pursued to date is still the right one. "We invest a lot in our employees: progressive working conditions and a wide range of career opportunities are a matter of course for us," emphasizes Wingeier, who completed an apprenticeship as a carpenter and later trained as a wood and industrial engineer FH. The 65-year-old company is also well positioned in terms of equality, with two women in top management.
Although the company currently trains 25 apprentices in various professions at several locations, there is a need to catch up in terms of new recruits. Training in scaffolding is still little known among young people and demand is correspondingly low. Wrongly so: "Once you've got a foot in scaffolding, you can't shake off your passion for this versatile profession," says Philippe Wingeier with conviction.
At work with passion
Walter Fankhauser, CEO for 26 years and now Chairman of the Board of Directors of the company, also attaches a central role to the employees. "We give everyone a chance who really wants it," he says. A commitment that was also recognized by the consulting firm EY with the prestigious "Entrepreneur of the Year" award in 2009. Despite cost pressure, Roth Gerüste AG invests a lot of time and money in the training and further education of its employees, the jury noted at the award ceremony.
Walter Fankhauser, who joined the company in 1996, has accompanied the company's constant growth and led Roth Gerüste into the profit zone. The company has grown organically; with its own people and its own values, he said. "We have always aligned ourselves with the clientele and their needs," says the long-standing CEO and co-owner, outlining the strategy of the last three decades. Walter Fankhauser, who will reach retirement age in April 2023 and therefore hand over the management of the company to new hands, can look back on 10,000-plus projects that he has realized together with 700 employees at last count. Although each of these projects was quite different in scope and planning, there was always one common denominator: "100 percent passion went into every single job," says Walter Fankhauser.
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