ETH Zurich wants to promote the transfer between science and business on many levels. The newly formed ETH Entrepreneurship division is a central component of this. The group is to challenge and support young talents on their way to successfully founding a company. To this end, the Scholtysik agency has developed an image with a "strong symbol for entrepreneurship at ETH", according to the agency.

 At the university, communication is constantly lively on all possible channels. To be seen and heard, ETH Entrepreneurship needs a catchy name and a concise visual identity. The new sign can be read as the abbreviation EE, but also as dynamic movement and advancement. The bright color gradient supports the dynamism of the form as well as the transformative character of ETH Entrepreneurship's activities. Important touchpoints are events, social media, outdoor advertising on campus and the website. To get close to the culture of the Entrepreneurship team, Scholtysik developed the appearance in a particularly diverse design team with young and experienced designers from Switzerland, Italy, the UK and Germany. In 2020, Scholtysik had already developed the overall appearance of ETH and the newly founded ETH AI Center.  

Studio Thom Pfister has not only developed a new appearance for the Bernese florist Melanie JeanRichard, which focuses on a signet - with her initials and the addition of "Mediterranean flowers" - but has already launched another special campaign, to which numerous creatives were invited. Using flowers from Melanie JeanRichard, which the creatives could pick up for inspiration in her flower store, they were invited to design their own motifs. The titles "free staging" and "way of living" of the last years were followed by the theme "encounters" in this one. All the works were incorporated into a wonderful, colorful art magazine celebrating the fantastic Mediterranean floral world of Melanie JeanRichard and her team. Website, postcards, social media, stationery and much more were adapted accordingly.

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Responsible at MJR: Melanie JeanRichard (Owner). Responsible at Studio Thom Pfister: Thom Pfister (Creative Director, Idre/Concept), Ursula Rytz (Consulting), Roland Zenger (Art Director), Daniel Hackiewicz (Graphic Design & Web Development), Kim Wüthrich, Juli Martinelli (Graphic Design and Illustration). Photography: Angelika Annen, Annette Fischer, Daniel Bolliger, Jonas Kambli, Lea Moser, Martina Meier, Nicole Pfister, Pedro Rodrigues, Sabina Bösch, Tamara Janes, Urs Bigler, Ursula Sprecher. Illustrations: Isabelle Bühler, Juli Martinelli, Marie Wolf, Martina Walther, Niels Blaesi.

In the past two years, many companies have had to master one crisis after another - crises that massively accelerated the transformation of the economy:

• March 2020. The first corona-related lockdown. Suddenly, digitization becomes essential for companies to survive. Employees, suppliers, customers and partners are using new tools in their daily lives, have learned new ways of working and have acquired new digital skills. McKinsey estimates that Corona accelerated digital transformation by five to seven years.
• Fall 2021. In many companies, replenishment no longer works because the international supply chains have been interrupted in some cases to this day. Thousands of ships full of goods are bobbing around in front of the ports because no one is taking away the containers parked there. In addition, the shortage of skilled workers is more noticeable than ever.
• February 2022. Russia attacks Ukraine. Suddenly, the energy transition is also relevant to security policy. The dependence on fossil fuels must no longer be radically reduced purely for climate policy reasons, but also for economic policy reasons.

These highlights describe the situation in the DACH region in 2022. Digitalization, the shortage of skilled workers, and the accelerated shift to climate-neutral production are three mutually reinforcing trends. This is resulting in a turbo change that is affecting almost all industries. By 2030 - according to the forecast - a completely new economy will emerge, at least in the industrialized nations: digital, less dependent on skilled workers and climate-neutral. Everything will be put to the test, so to speak: from workplace design to the strategies for the future that will guide companies in their actions.

It's not just companies that need to reinvent...

In order for the desired or required transformation to succeed, companies must hit the "reset button," so to speak, at the following four levels:

• Corporate strategy
• Organization
• Leadership and
• Mindset of the employees

These four levels are inextricably linked, because: What use is the most forward-looking strategy if the corporate structures remain in the old, the managers do not follow suit and the employees do not develop further? In order to carry out the often necessary reset, companies must first question everything they have thought and done up to now and break it down into small puzzle pieces - in other words, mentally set everything to zero. Before the pieces are put back together to form a new whole, the following questions, among others, must be answered:

• Which of our (core) competencies are still relevant in the future or which new ones could we develop?
• Which products will (still) be in demand in the medium and long term? What could our new product portfolio look like?
• How do we need to work together in the future - also with external service providers such as suppliers? Which new ones do we need?
• How can we as an organization optimally respond to the changing customer needs, economic conditions?
• How can we make the best possible use of the opportunities resulting from change?

 ...employees must also be ready for the "reset button

However, the new strategy can only be filled with life if the employees support it, if not enthusiastically, then at least with conviction. It must therefore be communicated to them and discussed with them - across all functions and divisions. In addition, further training concepts are needed that provide employees with the new know-how and skills they need. And the employees? They must be prepared to take advantage of these opportunities and proactively acquire the skills they will need in the future. Employees are usually prepared to do this if they can actively help shape the change. Moreover, if they are credibly communicated to: If you participate in the transformation, the small branch you are currently sitting on may break, but there is a thick branch underneath that will catch you and support you stably in the years to come. To the author: Dr. Jens-Uwe Meyer is the author of the book "Reset - How Companies and Organizations Reinvent Themselves," which will be published in April 2022 by the Publisher BusinessVillage has appeared. Meyer is CEO of the software company Innolytics AG and a sought-after keynote speaker in the field of innovation and digitization.

This article originally appeared on m-q.ch - https://www.m-q.ch/de/den-reset-knopf-druecken/

Oracle has developed Oracle ME, a comprehensive employee experience platform designed to help organizations increase employee engagement and ensure employee success. As part of Oracle Fusion Cloud Human Capital Management (HCM) Oracle ME enables HR management and executives to optimize communication across the enterprise and increase productivity. This is made possible by the platform guiding employees through complex tasks. Talent retention is also improved as the platform fosters more supportive and trustworthy relationships between employees, their managers and colleagues.

Better understand the needs of employees

The vendor explains the development of the Oracle ME platform as follows: Workforces worldwide have changed as a result of the events of the last two years - people's expectations have evolved when it comes to what they want and need from their employers. According to the latest Oracle AI@Work study, 85 % of the global workforce are dissatisfied with the support they receive from their employer, and 87 % believe their company should do more to address the needs of its employees. So the pressure on organizations to focus more on the employee experience is intensifying. Without truly understanding the needs of individual employees, it's difficult for HR and managers to do their jobs in a way that provides sufficient support for employees to succeed both professionally and personally, Oracle notes. After all, personal priorities drive professional decisions, and employees need direction to achieve their goals and meet expectations. According to Yvette Cameron, senior vice president of global product strategy, Oracle Cloud HCM, Oracle ME is now about bringing together employee information, key insights, workflows and preferences into a technology solution that everyone can call their experience. "It's the only comprehensive employee experience platform that aims to understand the 'I' behind every employee. This gives companies new ways to listen to, communicate with, support and develop their hybrid workforce," Cameron said.

Comprehensive employee experience platform

Oracle ME guides employees through relevant workflows based on their unique characteristics and situations. This strengthens internal relationships and gives employees the opportunity to provide continuous feedback to managers. Oracle ME also enables managers to track and respond to employee sentiment in real time. At the same time, HR teams can deliver personalized employee approaches and support all staff with direct access to the tools they need. The following Oracle Cloud HCM solutions are included in Oracle ME:

• Oracle Touchpoints is a new "listening" solution that helps leaders strengthen relationships with their employees and better promote their well-being and success. The tool enables leaders to regularly capture, track and respond to employee sentiment in order to gain the trust of their teams and foster an inclusive work environment. It gives bosses continuous employee insights through pulse surveys. But they also receive recommended actions such as "schedule check-ins," "provide feedback," or "celebrate important moments."
• Oracle HCM Communicate is a new employee outreach solution that enables HR teams to influence, share, monitor, and measure the impact of outreach. HCM Communicate integrates directly with Oracle Cloud HCM, connecting it to an organization's HR data. This allows HR teams to easily create personalized speeches for groups with specific characteristics. For example: HR teams can send a message to employees in a specific city or country who have been employed for less than two years and are enrolled in a specific training course. With HCM Communicate, HR teams can also use open rate analytics to measure interactions with content and seamlessly send follow-ups or set up ongoing campaigns to drive more effective and engaging addresses.
• Oracle Journeys is a workflow solution that simplifies complex tasks with step-by-step processes and personalized guidance. This guidance helps employees navigate personal, professional, administrative, and operational activities such as onboarding, returning to work safely, advancing career opportunities, managing team compensation, or opening a new facility. With enhanced capabilities, employees are now able to make informed decisions with personally relevant instructions, training, and analytics available to them on their guided digital journey.
• Oracle Connections is an interactive workforce directory and org chart that fosters collaboration and increases opportunities for inclusion and internal mobility by making it easy for employees to search for and connect with others across the organization. Employees can import their LinkedIn profiles, record video introductions, highlight their unique skills and qualifications, and leave feedback on others' bulletin boards to get to know each other better and expand their professional network.
• Oracle HR Help Desk is a service request management solution that makes it easy for all employees to get the answers they need and for HR departments to effortlessly track tickets without confidential data falling into the wrong hands. Employees can search for content, submit requests, and open help tickets across multiple channels.
• Oracle Digital Assistant is an HR chatbot that provides a conversational user interface for employees to get instant answers to questions and complete transactions directly via voice or text commands. HR teams can rapidly deploy Oracle Digital Assistant to support over 90 predefined transactions and extend the solution accordingly to support new processes or requirements.

Oracle ME is an open platform that spans the Oracle Fusion Cloud Applications Suite. It also connects to and automates processes with third-party systems and works across multiple channels such as email, SMS, web browsers, collaboration tools, and video conferencing. HR teams and executives can easily manage changes in Oracle ME and adapt to the dynamic work environment without help from IT support. Source and further information: Oracle

This article originally appeared on m-q.ch - https://www.m-q.ch/de/employee-experience-plattform-fuer-dynamische-mitarbeiterbeduerfnisse/

The issue of privacy has gained considerable attention in public discourse. And at the latest since Google announced that it would block third-party cookies in the Chrome browser from 2023, the marketing world has turned upside down. Because this means that two fundamental promises on which digital marketing is based are being shaken: measurement accuracy and individualized targeting. A paradigm shift is taking place toward consumers' need for greater transparency. New solutions are therefore required.

Actively driving the development of the industry

Only those who recognize and understand the transformation process can actively shape the future of marketing with targeted measures. That's why Webrepublic and the Digital Creative Business School Hyper Island are jointly launching the online course "Data Privacy in Marketing - digital communication in the post-cookie age". The course is designed to give marketing professionals from all industries an understanding of where the limits and opportunities of digital marketing lie. Working together in peer groups, participants develop hands-on solutions for future-proof marketing and devise individual strategies that they can transfer directly into their daily work. "The end of third-party cookies is currently one of the most pressing topics in marketing," explains Tobias Zehnder, partner and co-founder at Webrepublic. "With this course, we want to actively drive the development of the industry and give participants the tools to reach their target groups with relevant advertising in the future." The course starts on June 10. More info and the opportunity to register is available at the Course website.

SAP Switzerland awards every year since 2008 Quality Award to customers who excel in the planning and execution of implementation projects. Successful SAP implementations demonstrate not only project planning at a high level of quality, but also a focus on fast and cost-effective implementations close to the SAP standard. The projects are evaluated by a jury on the basis of the ten quality principles recommended by SAP, the observance of which promises better results in the implementation of standard software. The aim is to achieve project results that generate measurable added value and meet the demand for short implementation cycles and rapid value creation. This year, the SAP Quality Awards 2022 once again recognized customers who demonstrate exceptional performance. At the same time, the awards foster the emergence of a community of "thought leaders" in which collaboration with customers and partners is strengthened.

SAP Quality Awards 2022 for 13 projects in 4 categories

This year, SAP Switzerland presented Quality Awards in four categories:

• The category "Business Transformation" includes large projects with more than 500 users, a project duration of more than 6 months and an effort of more than 900 person-days.
• In the category "Cloud Transformation" large-scale projects are evaluated according to the same requirements as the business transformation projects, but the focus is on the transformation of cloud solutions.
• Under the category "Rapid Time to Value" fall under small and medium-sized projects with less than 600 users, a project duration of 7 months or less and a project effort of less than 1000 person-days.
• In the category "Digital Pioneer" projects with an innovative functional approach of SAP solutions are evaluated, as well as solutions that use innovative technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Internet of Things (IoT), Robotic Process Automation (RPA) or Blockchain.

In each category, one main winner and, if appropriate projects were available, further winners were honored with an award. This year, a total of thirteen projects from companies operating in Switzerland were honored, whose projects met the award requirements to a particularly high degree. The main winners from Switzerland automatically take part in the SAP Quality Award Europe. The winners of the Quality Awards at European level will be determined in 2023.

Award winner in the "Business Transformation" category

The Swiss Post impressed with strong organizational change management in its S/4HANA transformation project aimed at harmonizing all business areas and value flows. The strong entrepreneurial commitment enabled the achievement of the desired results with strict application of project management principles. Swiss Post with its implementation partner SAP Switzerland were therefore named Grand Winner by the jury. The other award winners in this category, all of whom shone with an outstanding on-premise implementation of SAP S/4HANA, were:

• Basel Transport BVB, supported by partner NOVO Business Consultants,
• Cablex as a network infrastructure company, supported by Swisscom,
• Swiss Army Logistics Base (LBA), supported by partner BearingPoint,
• The furniture with the implementation partner SAP Switzerland,
• Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority FINMA, supported by Swisscom.

Winner in the "Cloud Transformation" category

The main winner of this award category is JT International (JTI). The award-winning cloud transformation program is part of JTI's Vision 2030. The goal of the global project was a globally integrated business planning process with improved demand forecasting, planning for sales and operations planning with the SAP cloud solution Integrated Business Planning, and detailed manufacturing planning. The jury particularly recognized the professional project management with a strong focus on organizational change management, communication and motivation of the project team. The scope of the project, supported by SAP Switzerland, was impressive. The other winners in the "Cloud Transformation" category are:

• Hälg Facility Management, provider of professional facility management services, supported by partner AGILITA,
• Swiss Re, one of the world's largest reinsurers, with implementation partner Mibcon NDC.

Award winner in the "Rapid Time to Value" category

In their industrial project Oetiker Switzerland migrated the existing SAP ERP landscape to SAP S/4HANA on Premise - during an extremely short project duration of only six months. According to the jury, they were impressed by the excellent application for nomination and the pragmatic project approach that made the short duration possible. Swisscom supported the project as an implementation partner. Another podium finish in the "Rapid Time to Value" category was achieved by the optical components development and manufacturing company Optotune, supported by AGILITA.

Winner in the "Digital Pioneer" category

The main winner is the Canton of Zurich, Finance Directorate, Office of Information Technology. In the hardship program of the Canton of Zurich, the rapid increase in hardship applications in the wake of the COVID 19 pandemic meant that the existing process had to be converted to automated recording within a very short time. This project was implemented in just three months on the basis of the SAP Business Transformation Platform and the special solutions for case management in the social sector (SAP for Social Protection) and cash and revenue management (SAP Public Sector Collection and Disbursement, PSCD). The jury was impressed by the pragmatic project approach, the short implementation time, the business benefits and the positive feedback from the auditors. The project was advised by NOVO Business Consultants. Also among the winners in the "Digital Pioneer" category was the Coop Cooperative for the introduction of the billing of parking fees via Supercard points, this project was supported by SAP Switzerland. Source and further information: SAP Switzerland

This article originally appeared on m-q.ch - https://www.m-q.ch/de/sap-quality-awards-2022-das-sind-die-gewinner/

TIE has been dedicated to software development in the solution areas of enterprise content management (ECM), workflow and process management with a special focus on the digitization of hospitals since 2002. Despite the complex environment, the Zurich-based company has successfully held its own in the international market for 20 years - with professional composure and technical brilliance. Now Mona and Mateo has transformed this successful mix into a new brand identity. TIE's founding appearance served as a springboard for the rebranding. At that time, handmade clay figures conveyed the company's services and values and ensured great differentiation from the competition. Under the new claim "When life becomes digital", the existing appearance was reinterpreted and made ready for the future of the company. The I-Cons - quasi the mascots of The I-Engineers - are now used as 3D animated clay figures and convey the brand values of simplicity, speed and flexibility. The active color world in combination with the I-Cons is intended to ensure a high level of attention on the market. In addition to the new CI/CD and claim, Mona und Mateo also developed far-reaching B2B communication measures for all channels for TIE.

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Responsible at TIE: Severin Summermatter, Selina Kindt. 3D Artist: Vincent Schwenk. Responsible for concept and implementation: Mona and Mateo.

Digital Realty, a global provider of cloud technology and carrier-neutral data center, colocation and interconnection solutions, has released the results of its first Global Data Insights Survey. More than 7,000 executives from 23 countries and nine industries participated in the survey. "Recently, we observed a new megatrend on our platform: the explosion of enterprise data worldwide. As all industries need to create, consume, analyze, store and share ever-larger volumes of data, they are becoming information industries," said Dave McCrory, VP of Growth and Global Head of Insights and Analytics at Digital Realty, explaining the motivation for conducting the survey. Earlier on this topic, the company conducted a similar investigation performed.

Data becomes the business agenda

The survey confirms that data is increasingly important and that business strategy and results depend on data-driven insights. Data is ubiquitous. Data volumes are multiplying across all business locations. As a result, information must be aggregated efficiently. 47 % of IT executives surveyed said they keep data decentralized, while 52 % keep it centralized. This highlights how different the strategies for organizing and managing data are across industries. This can directly impact an organization's ability to create value and results with data, and confirms that aggregation must be prioritized. IT executives indicated that data-driven insights are essential for improving the customer experience (50 %) for data infrastructure location strategy (37 %) for developing new digital products (35 %) and for driving business growth (28 %). In addition, a key finding of the survey is that large enterprises around the world are not investing enough in the tools and infrastructure needed to handle the growing volume of data.

Managing growing data volumes: Many obstacles

53 % of global respondents cited lack of sufficient investment in data systems or infrastructure as the main barrier to their company gaining data-driven insights. Similarly, 50 % of respondents cited a lack of sufficient investment in relevant analytics tools. To manage the rapid growth of data, companies need to ensure that data does not become siloed and that they are able to extract insights from it in a time-efficient and prescriptive manner. And this requires investment. The study shows where everywhere there seems to be a hitch: regulations, data protection rules, reluctant customers and a lack of investment in data systems are hindering the data-driven business agenda. 35 % of IT executives cited data privacy and regulations as one of the main barriers to data-driven insights. The majority also recognized the need to maintain local copies of data and applications to serve a growing number of end users and networked devices, and to ensure secure and compliant business operations

Build employee capabilities to derive value from data

The survey also shows that 65 of IT executives from some of the world's largest companies believe they need to invest in their teams' data skills to remain competitive and derive value from data. The importance of team development as a business-critical step surpassed investment in AI (59 %) when asked what was most important for companies to do in the next two years to gain more data-driven insights. When asked the same question, 61 % of companies with more than US$1 billion in revenue said they will prioritize executive education on the impact of data silos.

Data First Strategies Make the Race

Leading organizations are realizing the benefits of data integration, security and controls in so-called multi-tenant data centers, where new intelligent workflows are being unlocked in centers of data exchange between employees, customers, partners and ecosystems. 82 % of IT executives agree that they need a global data center provider capable of offering global coverage, capacity and direct connectivity in major metropolitan areas on a single data center platform. In addition, 75 % of enterprises with more than US$1 billion in revenue have a formal data strategy, compared to 63 % of general global enterprises. This suggests that larger companies are a bit further ahead in terms of data processing. This likely gives them an advantage over smaller competitors. Source: Digital Realty

This article originally appeared on m-q.ch - https://www.m-q.ch/de/viele-unternehmen-koennen-datenvolumen-nicht-genuegend-bewaeltigen/

Global production bottlenecks caused by the Covid 19 pandemic, but also increasingly uncertain global supply chains in the pharmaceutical sector, have recently provided an additional boost to the already fast-growing market for pharmaceutical contract development and manufacturing organizations (CDMOs). As a result, Marketing Authorization Holders (MAHs) are increasingly building strategic partnerships with CDMOs to secure quickly needed capacity, but also to increase supply security through multi-sourcing. This trend will continue with the emergence of new and advanced therapies, according to the results of the latest "Global CDMO Study 2022" by Strategy&, PwC's strategy consulting practice. The study analyzed 150 of the world's largest contract manufacturers in Europe, North America and Asia.

Contract manufacturer with extensive service portfolio

MAHs are pharmaceutical or research companies that have marketing authorization to market certain drugs. CDMOs can work on behalf of MAHs in the research and development and manufacture of these preparations. But as contract manufacturers grow in importance, the nature of their collaborations with pharmaceutical companies is also changing. 28% of the CDMOs surveyed already offer a comprehensive service portfolio for all types of drugs - small molecules, large molecules and advanced therapies. At the same time, 56% of the world's largest MAHs are already engaged in contract manufacturing themselves to generate additional revenue and absorb costs. "MAHs currently at the forefront of pharmaceutical drug manufacturing are increasingly relying on the technological expertise of CDMOs. This is also true in the advanced therapies market, including cell, gene and RNA therapies. This puts CDMOs in pole position to benefit from and play a significant role in shaping one of the fastest-growing markets. MAHs, on the other hand, should consider which production technologies are suitable for outsourcing and which fields they want to continue to strategically occupy and expand in the future," explains Dr. Jens Neumann, co-author of the study and Partner at Strategy&.

Cooperation instead of competition

CDMOs can benefit from increased transparency, greater flexibility, faster transactions and shared incentives in strategic partnerships with MAHs, the study notes. With end-to-end services, CDMOs significantly increase their chances of strategic cooperation with pharmaceutical companies, the analysis adds. 37% of the CDMOs studied therefore offer services that cover the entire value chain, from development to the manufacture of commercial drug substances and products to packaging. 43% of the companies analyzed that focus mainly on CDMO services ("pure play") now operate as full-service providers with end-to-end services. Only 17% of them focus their activities on a single step in the value chain. CDMO businesses of MAHs as well as generic manufacturers follow this trend (38% and 36% end-to-end services, respectively). Development services are already included in the portfolio of offerings at 92% of CDMOs in North America and 84% of CDMOs in Europe, while in Asia commercial production of drug substances is the most widespread and is offered as a service by 92% of CDMOs.

Increased focus on novel therapies

In addition to vertical expansion, CDMOs are also showing themselves to be strategic partners for MAHs in horizontal value creation activities. In particular, "Pure Play" CDMOs are continuously expanding their service offering to include the various production technologies. Around 38% of "Pure Play" CDMOs are active in all three of the above areas, with 92% still involved in traditional small molecule manufacturing. This underscores the need to maintain a risk-balanced portfolio of traditional and novel therapies. At the same time, 45% of the "pure play" CDMOs are already providing advanced therapy services (compared to 34% of all CDMOs within the study), leading by far the fastest growing market segment. "Strategic alliances are key for MAHs and CDMOs to launch new products and compete in the marketplace over the long term. A prerequisite for this is a critical look at their own overall strategy, which should also include the value chain, production technologies, services and locations. CDMOs should focus on offering their customers holistic and efficient solutions as well as quality products. On the MAH side, the establishment of professionalized CDMO management is just as essential for long-term business success as targeted communication about the future direction of the company to its own employees," concludes Dr. Jens Neumann. Source: PwC

This article originally appeared on m-q.ch - https://www.m-q.ch/de/selbstbewusste-auftragsfertiger-im-wettbewerb-mit-pharmafirmen/

The Change Code How people get excited about change and win companies over with it.

• Author: Dieter Lederer
• Publisher: Wiley-VCH, 2022
• Pages: 262
• ISBN: 9783527511075

Change projects fail because they are not people-oriented and ignore the feelings of employees. This is Dieter Lederer's central thesis. From it, he derives his "Change Code," which consists of three elements: a meaningful and understandable change strategy, the cohesive appearance of managers, and the appreciation of feelings. The book's target audience is primarily second-level managers. It is up to them to persuade their employees to follow the path. Psychological safety in companies How high performance teams really work. Author: Ina Goller and Tanja Laufer Publisher: Springer Gabler, 2018 Pages: 56 ISBN: 9783658213374 Psychological safety is crucial when it comes to motivating teams to perform at their best. But unfortunately, the reality in many companies is different - those who address problems reap silence or aggressive reactions. As a result, motivation and innovativeness, among other things, decline. The authors explain how it is possible to create a safe working environment, and why it is the managers who are most important. This is a book that is well worth reading, packed with practical tips, but with plenty of theoretical background as well. Boost - Thinking like Elon Musk and Co. Scientifically proven strategies for giant strides in work and personal life. Author: Ozan Varol Publisher: Books4Success, 2021 Pages: 416 ISBN: 9783864707315 The original title of this book is "Think Like a Rocket Scientist". Former NASA employee Ozan Varol explains here why it is not so difficult to think like a rocket scientist - but above all, what advantages it brings, for example, for product developers in the private sector. Loose in tone and enriched with many anecdotes, the book gives you tools with which you can leave well-trodden paths of thought and specifically question seemingly given facts. An inspiring book for those working in the field of innovation. Learning Hacks Step by step to an agile learning culture with simple routines. Author: Thomas Tillmann and Jan Schönfeld Publisher: Vahlen Verlag, 2021 Pages: 215 ISBN: 9783800664986 With their company Lernhacks, the authors have accompanied companies such as Porsche, Bosch, and Deutsche Bahn on their way to an agile, autonomous learning culture. They have compiled the best learning routines in this book. The result is a useful compendium with a beautiful, clear design. It offers many practical tips, methods and inspirations for everyone who wants to fill the phrase of lifelong learning with life - fun and success are guaranteed.

Insurance companies must have implemented the International Financial Reporting Standard (IFRS 17) by January 1, 2023. A challenge for insurance companies that want to fulfill this obligation with in-house developments or purchased "empty box" solutions. KPMG and Allianz, together with SAS, a leading provider of analytics and AI, have now presented a solution that is designed to significantly accelerate the path to IFRS 17 compliance. According to a statement released by SAS, the solution combines KPMG IFRS 17 Express "KPMG's extensive experience on the topic with SAS' market-leading analytics technology and a methodology that Allianz has successfully tested globally." The solution, he said, builds on SAS for IFRS 17 and offers a cost-effective approach that is designed to significantly reduce the effort required for recalculations under IFRS 17 through preconfigured options for automation and integration, according to the statement. "No one has to reinvent the wheel, let alone do duplicate work," said Christian Knoller, IFRS 17 project manager at Allianz. "Insurers can rely on using predefined IFRS-17 methodology and technology here, mapping the expertise of three market leaders." A key focus of KPMG IFRS 17 Express is to facilitate collaboration between actuarial, risk management and finance functions. To this end, the following functions are implemented in the solution:

• Fully functional calculation and accounting engine according to IFRS 17 standard for contract margins, including past, current and future reporting periods.
• Predefined data models and comprehensive booking options designed to manage a wide range of insurance and reinsurance products available worldwide.
• A structured workflow process within a single, integrated platform that ensures traceability, auditability, and transparency.

"The IASB amendments to IFRS 17 were intended to facilitate implementation. But the pandemic has slowed down compliance projects. As a result, many insurers are not yet where they want or need to be," says Mary Trussell, Insurance Accounting Change Lead at KPMG International. "By combining the technology and expertise of three global leaders, KPMG, SAS and Allianz, insurers can make up for delays and skills gaps and significantly shorten their path to IFRS 17 compliance," Trussell continues. "IFRS 17 is changing the way insurance companies calculate, manage and report on their financial exposures and risks," adds Troy Haines, senior vice president of risk research and quantitative solutions at SAS. The combination of expertise and practical IFRS 17 experience from SAS, KPMG and Allianz gives insurers of all sizes exactly what they need: a fast and sustainable solution for IFRS 17 compliance and a clear path for future growth. Source and further information: www.sas.com/ch

This article originally appeared on m-q.ch - https://www.m-q.ch/de/kpmg-sas-und-allianz-lancieren-gemeinsame-ifrs-17-express-loesung/

As CSS itself emphasizes, high-quality and cost-effective healthcare is an important concern for the company. That's why Switzerland's largest basic insurer has been investing in digital start-ups for a year and a half. CSS has now invested in four companies and is now also investing in Heartbeat Medical. This start-up operates a platform that links automated patient surveys with clinical data. Therapy successes thus become measurable and the patients' quality of life moves into the focus of decision-making and treatment. In other words, it's all about more patient-centered care.

Data as a basis for decision-making

Heartbeat Medical's patient-centered surveys are based on the system of so-called "Patient-Reported Outcome Measures" (PROMs). PROMs measure how a patient assesses his or her own state of health and at the same time show the effect of a treatment. Standardized questionnaires are used to digitally record information on quality of life, symptoms or treatment effects before and after an intervention. Medical specialists document additional information from the medical history and supplement it with further clinical data. This makes it possible to compare and measure the patient's perceived state of health during or after treatment. On this data-based foundation, the medical professionals then define the further treatment path together with the patients. More than 30 Swiss hospitals - including the Inselspital Bern - already use the Heartbeat Medical platform, which is registered as a medical device.

Quality-oriented remuneration and patient-centered care in lockstep

The data-based care pathway not only provides measurable outcomes and improved quality of life for patients. The improved quality of care can also have a dampening effect on healthcare costs. CSS also wants to place quality more at the center of treatment and create incentives for its remuneration. The largest basic insurer is working towards the goal of qualitative reimbursement systems with various initiatives. In addition to PROMs, these include the Value Based Health Care approach and the Patient Empowerment Initiative pilot project: CSS, SWICA, PwC, Basel University Hospital and Winterthur Cantonal Hospital are developing a tariff system based on treatment quality and patient benefit. The incentives are set in such a way that hospitals are rewarded for increasing satisfaction and a decreasing number of interventions. Source and further information: www.css.ch

This article originally appeared on m-q.ch - https://www.m-q.ch/de/patientenorientierte-versorgung-in-den-fokus-ruecken/