Why are there still fewer women on boards than men? Several factors come together here, as the founder of the management consultancy The Boardroom had to realize. It's not just the boards that are to blame, but it's not just the women either. The question of blame is a vexed issue anyway, because only with synergetic cooperation do the two groups converge!

Boardroom women on the way up - when the board becomes the goal

On a rainy May day in Zurich, nearly 20 women gather for a meeting to listen to successful businesswoman Mirjam Staub-Bisang (Blackrock Switzerland). She gives a lecture on investments, leadership challenges and diversity in business. All the listeners have one thing in common: they are professionally successful! Whether CEOs or HR managers, they have already found their way.

But that's not the end of the story, because the dedicated businesswomen want the space on the board of directors, for more diversity. Career women have one more thing in common: They belong to The Boardroom, the club that wants to revolutionize the quota of women on Swiss boards of directors.

Currently, only 30 percent of board seats are held by women, the rest by men. Diana Markaki, founder of The Boardroom, received her very first mandate at 36 and had only one female fellow member. She felt odd, alone, the great exception. Things didn't get any better after she moved to a Swiss company.

All of this led Markaki to feel a strong pressure to perform, which also brought insecurities. From the perspective of numerous other women, these feelings were a blessing. They eventually moved Markaki to create The Boardroom. The bootcamp where women (and men, too) can learn, to hold their own on the Board of Directors or get there at all.

With The Boardroom, an exclusive club, Markaki wants to change that and prepare women for leadership positions. The club's excellent network plays a major role in this and leads to advancing and living diversity within the framework of various event formats and trainings.

The right personalities are more important than gender

Although Diana Markaki thinks highly of women in leadership positions, gender is not the most important factor for her. It takes the right people for the position. Everywhere discussed about shortage of skilled workersMany of these positions are often filled incorrectly.

The more diverse people's experiences, the more the board benefits. Complex decisions often have to be made, which can be completely re-evaluated through different perspectives. The Boardroom is therefore not specifically aimed at female careerists, but also at those who have not yet thought outside the box. The goal is to tease out strengths and prepare women to assert themselves on boards. This works through networking, trial and error, and assertiveness, even with men!

This article originally appeared on m-q.ch - https://www.m-q.ch/de/the-boardroom-will-frauen-in-den-vr-holen-fuer-mehr-diversitaet-auf-der-fuehrungsebene/

The system for preventing backflow, known as STOPR, was developed by vonRoll hydro. The function of the human heart valve was the "godfather" for this development: the best flow values and reliable closure are crucial for the performance of the heart. The situation is similar with hydrants: they must be able to supply large quantities of water quickly and at the same time protect the water network against contamination caused by backflow. The spring-loaded non-return valve of the STOPR is mounted in the so-called Storz and reliably closes the hydrant from a pressure of 0.003 bar, which corresponds to the force of a water column of just 3 cm. The STOPR has been flow-optimized by vonRoll hydro engineers to ensure that water can be drawn without impairment. Where previous systems cause flow losses of up to 40%, the system does not significantly impair the performance of hydrants.

Easy mounting and permanent protection

Today, the safety of drinking water supplies is more important than ever. Accordingly, vonRoll hydro relies on permanent solutions for water safety technologies. The STOPR is permanently installed, which can be done in the simplest way on hydrants from all manufacturers, even retrofitted. Thanks to a patented venting system in the system itself, no modification of hydrants is required. By simply changing the Storz, any water supply can inexpensively implement a new standard of drinking water safety.

Pioneering role of the water supply Würenlos

Felix Zürcher, well master of Würenlos (AG), emphasizes the importance of reliable protection of drinking water: "The municipality of Würenlos is proud to have realized the first reference project with the new technology in Switzerland. This reliable and permanent protection of drinking water will set an example at home and abroad," he is convinced. Jürg Brand, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the vonRoll hydro Group, comments: "Water has become the fundamental strategic issue par excellence. With the mission statement ZEROWATERLOSS, we are directing our commitment towards the Water and water supply safety. The new STOPR performs an important function in this regard and, after Switzerland, will also be delivered in Europe and worldwide."

Source and further information: FromRoll hydro / Community Würenlos

This article originally appeared on m-q.ch - https://www.m-q.ch/de/trinkwassersicherheit-gemeinde-wuerenlos-als-vorreiter/

71% of Swiss people use at least one platform specializing in music streaming. This is the result of the latest streaming study by Moneyland.ch, which was conducted in the form of a representative survey of 1,538 people. This means that the proportion of people who use at least one music streaming service has remained roughly stable compared to the 2022 study.

All music streaming services are beaten by the video platform YouTube, which 73 percent of Swiss people use to listen to music. However, only 22 percent use the Youtube Music Premium service, which specializes in music streaming. This puts the service in third place in a comparison of music streaming platforms. 52 percent use Spotify in this country. This makes the Swedish platform the most-used service that specializes exclusively in music streaming.

Apple Music, which is used by 25 percent of the Swiss, ranks second among music streaming services by a wide margin. This is followed by the smaller offerings Soundcloud 20 percent), Amazon Music 17 percent), Deezer 16 percent), Tidal 13 percent) and Napster 13 percent).

Of the 1538 respondents, only 39 percent said they paid to use music streaming platforms. 25 percent of all respondents said they pay for Spotify. However, only just under half of all users of the Swedish streaming platform spend money on their service. The rest either switch to a free version or use someone else's login. Other platforms have an even lower proportion of paying customers.

By comparison, the proportion of paying users at Netflix is over 65 percent.

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The Streaming Study 2023 is based on a representative survey conducted by the market research institute Ipsos on behalf of Moneyland.ch in April 2023.

This year's Street Parade around the Zurich lake basin has a new main partner for its 30th anniversary: the music platform Sunrise Starzone. At the parade, the Sunrise Starzone Lounge is centrally located at Bürkliplatz and is a meeting point for the visitors. It offers its own bar and catering, a direct view of the Center Stage and its own sanitary facilities.

Ticketcorner as the initiator of Starzone is convinced of the partnership: "With Sunrise starzone and the Street Parade come together,
what belongs together. The new home of the Swiss music scene meets the biggest techno party in the world," says CEO Oliver Niedermann. André Krause, CEO of Sunrise, adds: "Starzone is a key cornerstone of our loyalty offer Sunrise Moments. We are pleased
We are delighted to be able to offer our customers an exclusive experience with the lounge at the Street Parade and thus thank them for their loyalty."

The initiative supports the cultivation of existing or fostering of new friendships and personal relationships and includes numerous sub-projects. To coincide with the publication of the major Swiss friendship study conducted by the Gottlieb Duttweiler Institute on behalf of the Migros Culture Percentage, a prize draw for 1000 x CHF 250 Migros vouchers for experiences among friends will be launched on August 7.

In the fall of 2023, a creative ideas competition will follow, supporting larger friendship projects. Social commitment is close to Migros' heart: the retailer has been committed to social cohesion since 1957 with the Migros Culture Percentage. Friendships play a central role in this. Because our social network not only provides support and serves our well-being - it also promotes tolerance, understanding and diversity.

Even before the pandemic, the figures for loneliness in Switzerland were rising, and "social distancing" is on the rise even without a circulating infectious disease. For this reason, the Migros Culture Percentage commissioned the Gottlieb Duttweiler Institute GDI to conduct the survey. And the study results reinforce the feeling that is spreading throughout society: There is a need for action when it comes to friendships. After all, friendships - whether close or more distant - ensure that we can continue to hold together and be content as a society.

The various sub-projects are played out and made available to the general public throughout Switzerland - via social media and displays, store announcements and cash register sampling.

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Responsible at Migros Culture Percentage: Hedy Graber, Kerstin Klauser, Esther Unternährer, Barbara Salm. Conception, creation and realization: Rod Communication. Production Company: Navada. Photographer: Horatiu Sovaiala.

ChatGPT has been making headlines regularly since November 2022. Never before has an AI been able to understand and follow user instructions so precisely. ChatGPT can provide information on almost any topic, summarize books, write programming lines, formulate poems and much more. The tool represents the beginning of a new generation of AIs. It is foreseeable that this technology will be ubiquitous in the coming years.

But which provider will prevail? While OpenAI - the makers of ChatGPT - currently still enjoys a technical lead, the competition is not far behind. Giants like Google have also jumped on the bandwagon. And to win in the market in the long term, as always, not only technology but also emotions are decisive. So the question is, does ChatGPT trigger the right emotions in users? A question that Neuromarketing-Berartung Zutt & Partner got to the bottom of.

ChatGPT: Emotionally a powerful tool, but not a friendly helper

For this purpose, Zutt & Partner's Emocompass was used - a neuromarketing research tool that can break down emotions. On the one hand, it was used to measure the emotional user desire for AI tools and, on the other hand, to determine which emotions ChatGPT triggers in users. The results show: ChatGPT only meets one of two desired emotions - and also triggers an emotion that is not desired at all.

As a novel, promising technology, ChatGPT triggers inspiration and innovation. But ChatGPT does not succeed in meeting the second and actually more important desired emotion. Here, friendliness and closeness would be required above all.

Instead, ChatGPT primarily triggers emotions associated with power, strength, and self-confidence. ChatGPT is therefore perceived on an emotional level as a powerful and innovative tool - while users want a friendly and inspiring helper.

The Gold Standard consists of the emotion dimensions friendliness and inspiration. So customers want an AI chatbot that is friendly, approachable, and personable. But also inspiring, innovative and creative. ChatGPT evokes emotions of inspiration but not friendliness. Instead, the emotion dimension of power dominates with him. So emotions like power, strength and self-confidence.

The path to emotionally perfect AI

Based on these study results, initial recommendations for action can be derived that bring AI tools closer to the user's wishes. To make these recommendations as tangible as possible, Zutt & Partner has collected and structured practical examples.

Naming: What name should the AI have?

To trigger inspiration and friendliness, the AI should have a short, sweet-sounding name with a refreshing touch. "Real" names thereby bring an extra portion of closeness through the familiar sound pattern, while fantasy namings and creative variations of real names provide more inspiration.

A good example is Alexa - the name of Amazon's AI. Other ideas for emotionally apt namings would be Aria, Amaia, Siana, Lian or Milo, for example.

Hard-sounding, technical names like Microsoft's Cortana or ChatGPT should be avoided. The technical impression makes the naming seem futuristic and powerful, while closeness and friendliness come up short.

Appearance: What does AI need to look like?

In addition to a high recognition value, an emotionally coherent AI in terms of appearance should be a mix of soft as well as surprising design elements. This includes, for example, a round design language, friendly facial features, exciting / lively accents or materializations etc.

Moreover, an avatar contributes a lot to making a tool not only more emotional, but also more approachable and likeable (see Wysa Penguin). The designs of Google Assistant and Apple's Siri, for example, go in the right direction emotionally in terms of their formal language, but they do not trigger enough emotion due to their high degree of abstraction.

Communication style: How should the AI perform?

ChatGPT communicates politely, formally, and very controlled, but it is still completely lacking in humanity and freshness. Other AIs like Alexa, Siri, etc. maintain an even cooler and more "technical" style of conversation - no trace of empathy and closeness.

A friendly and relaxed communication style would be perfect. As if you were talking to a good friend. A good example of this is the therapy AI Wysa. This chatbot responds emphatically to users' feelings and has its own personality.

Voice: What must the AI sound like?

Text communication always seems somewhat distant. For an AI to appear truly approachable, it needs voice communication. The current AI tools use well-developed computer voices - which speak fluently, but sometimes seem emotionless. The missing "intermediate sounds", which are strongly represented in natural conversation (e.g. "Um", ...), also contribute to this.

One exception is Google's Call Assistant with its very natural and pleasant voice. In the best case, the AI would have a natural voice that also fits the region or the local dialect of the user. The voice should be fluent, use intermediate sounds and, depending on the context of the conversation, allow the appropriate emotions to resonate in the speech sound. In this way, it could respond to the user's feelings and thus act more like a friendly, empathetic helper.

Future Outlook: From chatbot to personal assistant

The new generation of chatbots is still in the start-up phase. Future developments will take the technology much further, according to Zutt & Partner. It is conceivable that chatbots will soon be intelligent enough to serve as personal assistants. Bill Gates assumes that in a few years everyone will be supported by a personal AI assistant. This assistant will then take over routine tasks in our private and working lives, such as sorting out emails, coordinating appointments or brainstorming initial ideas.

According to Zutt & Partner, it is highly likely that the new generation of AI will be ubiquitous in the future. It remains to be seen who will succeed in triggering the right emotions to profit optimally from it.

In particular, the two Swiss health insurance companies Helsana and CSS launched comprehensive image campaigns specifically around the topic of mental health in May 2023. While the Helsana advice for mental well-being is at the center, the campaign of the CSS under the motto "Lifetime" and is intended to provoke reflection with explicitly posed questions. For the Link market and social research institute, this was reason enough to investigate whether and how the perception of the two brands has changed as a result from the consumer's point of view. Also examined was the perception of the Vaudoisewhich also launched an image campaign in May, but not explicitly on the topic of mental health, but with a focus on the distribution of profits to customers.

The results are based on Link's continuous brand tracking, which has been monitoring 200 of the most important brands on a weekly basis since fall 2021 and measuring them from a consumer perspective representative of the population.

CSS ahead of Helsana and Vaudoise in media perception

When looking at the consolidated media perception (perception of the respective brand via advertising or media reports), it becomes clear that the campaigns, in addition to their advertising, have also been well received by the media and that the health insurance companies have thus become more widely known among consumers. CSS enjoys a slight lead here over Helsana and Vaudoise.

The question therefore arises as to whether messages with thought-provoking questions, such as those chosen by CSS, are more likely to stick than simple statements such as those used by Helsana. The so-called "generation effect" states, for example, that messages in which certain information has to be actively filled in by the viewer himself are more likely to be remembered than those that are already fully perceived. The stronger involvement of the viewers in the CSS campaign could therefore explain the stronger media perception.

Helsana leads in buzz - but negatively

While the brand trust of Helsana and CSS is similar in strength, an examination of the positive and negative buzz (positive and negative conversations, respectively) reveals that Helsana is perceived significantly more negatively than CSS as of May/June 2023. A few weeks earlier Helsana disclosed its salariesHowever, this did not result in any significant positive swings in buzz - whether it had an impact on negative buzz remains an open question.

A look at the consideration, however, shows: The campaigns of all three health insurers failed to produce any significant increase. Thus, even after their early summer campaigns, consumers do not consider Helsana, CSS and Vaudoise more strongly than before.

Challenges for the fall of 2023

After the Swiss health insurers already spent more money than usual on advertising last fallto counter the effects of the premium increase, there is likely to be a battle for customers in the fall of 2023 as well, as another such battle is expected. Parallel developments such as the increase in the reference interest rate and the associated rise in many rents are also likely to have a further impact on customers' willingness to switch. Whether the health insurers under discussion will be able to benefit from their campaigns remains to be seen.

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Method profile

• Population: Swiss resident population aged 15 to 79 years
• Around 250 interviews per brand per calendar week and brand segment
• Research method: online interviews
• Quotation/weighting: interlocked by age, gender and region
• Random samples from the Link Online Panel actively recruited at 100% through representative telephone surveys, reaching more than 97% of the relevant population; survey participants are excluded from follow-up surveys for at least three months at a time
• Survey period: 19.12.2022 to 18.06.2023
• Project Management Link Zurich: Stefan Reiser (Managing Director Marketing Research)

The Cornèrcard card brand, part of the Swiss family-owned Cornèr Bank, stands for customer-oriented service and innovative strength. The aim of the revised brand identity was to communicate these qualities in a contemporary way and in a way that is relevant to its stakeholders.

A task that requires a fundamental examination of the brand - but also a careful handling of the existing identity. Therefore, a value proposition was developed in strategy workshops and the brand characteristics were sharpened. Building on the strategic foundation created, the visual identity of the brand could thus be further developed.

Custom headline font and subtle integration of main colors

Derived from the typography of the established logo, a brand-owned headline font creates coherent communication and turns messages visually into distinctive brand properties. The brand's new colors take their cue from the brand's familiar Ticino red and blue to give it added radiance. The graphic elements are developed from the shape of the credit card.

The newly created visual world is also based on the brand values: close to the needs and wishes of the customers - flexible and at eye level. Photographer Astrid Grosser translated these values into the visual storytelling. Uncomplicated and self-confident, it shows a "slice of life" of the target groups, again with a touch of red and blue. Cornèrcard's main colors are subtly integrated to ensure recognition.

The result is a stringent and distinctive brand image that allows Cornèrcard to position itself as a personal, customer-oriented and inspiring brand. The extensive measures can be seen from August onwards in Cornèrcard's online presence, its new credit cards and in its future campaigns.

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Responsible at Cornèr Bank: Alessandro Seralvo (Head of Cornèrcard), Carsten Jochem (Head of Marketing & Distribution), Nicole Knecht (Coordination Rebranding). Responsible at Wunderman Thompson: Sonja Gross, Alisa Lomovceva, Andrei Vid, Maaike Fortuijn, Nathan Bastino, Jael Abderhalden, Aurora Wilde (Art Direction & Graphic Design), Berni Brungs, David Trüb (Text), Dany Boletas, Noah Nachtrab, Pablo Blumer (UX Design), Felicia Aepli (Motion Design), Benjamin Franken (Creative Direction), Nadine Treier, Corina Carabelli, Nick-Patrick Herrmann, Kira Vaterlaus, Franziska Saxer (Consulting), Galina Helbling, Saskia Kathmann, Joëlle Seiler (Strategy), Curdin Montalta, Kim Prinzing, Kathrina Seiler (Desktop Publishing), Swen Morath, Giselle Vaugne (Chief Executive Officers). Production: Peter Machat (illustrations), Kai Sinzinger, Bernd Volmer (font design), DS Photographers & First Productions (production coordination imagery), Astrid Grosser (photography), Marckus Klapper (digital support), Claudia Scholtan (styling).

Media Center in Corporate Communications

How to build, establish and sustain a professional digital content platform.

• Author: Christine Siepe, Andreas Kohne and Marc J. Friedrich
• Publisher: Springer Gabler, 2021
• Pages: 284
• ISBN: 9783658344887

Digitization offers companies more and more opportunities to inform the press, investors, customers and other stakeholders about their products and to conduct marketing. A media center is the central hub of modern, multimedia-based corporate communications. The authors show what options are available for designing such a media center. They provide comprehensive tips for implementing a media center and also present the necessary hardware and software in detail.

Visible women

How to use LinkedIn & Co. as a career booster.

• Author: Christina Richter
• Publisher: Campus Verlag, 2023
• Pages: 260
• ISBN: 9783593516837

Women often hide their light under a bushel. In addition, they often have less confidence in themselves than their male colleagues. As a result, they miss out on important contacts and projects. Christina Richter explains in detail and in an easy-to-understand way what women can do about it. Many concrete tips for her own social media profile, numerous interviews with successful, visible women, and concise overview pages with the most important content make her book a helpful companion on the way out of invisibility.

The future of customer service is green!

This is how the balancing act between customer demands and sustainability is achieved.

• Author: Peter Weidling
• Publisher: Campus Verlag, 2023
• Pages: 222
• ISBN: 9783593516653

Sustainability is more than a necessary evil. On the contrary: environmental orientation can become a success factor. The greatest leverage lies in customer service: With precise customer knowledge and a clear focus on sustainability goals, companies can create competitive advantages. Peter Weidling provides many suggestions for this in his book. He shows how companies can position themselves sustainably in terms of ecology, social issues, and compliance, how they can assess their customers, and how they can tailor their business model entirely to their wishes.

If you ask, ask right

Become an attractive employer through targeted employee surveys.

• Author: Gerd Beidernikl
• Publisher: Wiley-VCH, 2023
• Pages: 304
• ISBN: 9783527511457

In times of a shortage of skilled workers, employers simply can no longer afford haughty behavior along the lines of "You should be happy to work here. The demands of job seekers have changed drastically. It's all about attractiveness and meaningfulness of work. Author Gerd Beidernikl recommends interviewing employees to find out what makes an employer attractive. Eloquently and with memorable practical examples, he shows how employee surveys can be conducted successfully and how the feedback can be used to improve the employer brand.

The reputation of the 20 SMI companies in Switzerland shows strong dynamics in the first half of 2023. Holcim leads the ranking and improved by 6 places, followed by ABB in second place. Kuehne+Nagel, as a newcomer, surprised everyone and immediately secured third place. Partners Group and Nestlé had a difficult media semester, while UBS ranked 17th with a high presence but problematic coverage.

The ranking shows that a good reputation has to be worked hard for, as illustrated by the jumps made by Holcim, ABB, Richemont and Lonza. Nestlé and Partners Group, on the other hand, slipped down the rankings due to problems. The analysis was based on over 120,000 statements with AI-supported text analysis.

Media presence alone does not necessarily lead to a strong reputation. UBS had a high level of media coverage, but predominantly negative headlines. Kühne+Nagel, on the other hand, achieved third place despite a lower media presence because they were perceived positively in relevant topics.

Sustainability is an important driver for a strong reputation. Swisscom retained its top position in this area despite a slight loss. Competition in sustainability issues has increased, with eight companies receiving a high rating. Sonova secured the top score in the "Management" category.

A strong media reputation is a sign of successful communication. Companies in the SMI must regularly report on their business performance and respond to external events. Optimal communication of relevant topics leads to a positive media reputation and influences the perception of the company by various stakeholder groups.

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This is how it was measured: The SWISS REPUTATION TOP 20 is based on all German- and French-language articles about SMI companies in public Swiss online sources (journalistic online media, news portals, websites, blogs, YouTube, Twitter, Facebook and others). A sophisticated, AI-supported text analysis is used to calculate the reputation. This specially trained algorithm evaluates - after pre-filtering all media contributions of the selected companies - the statements semantically and assigns them to the five thematic reputation dimensions: products & innovation, profitability, sustainability, management and employer. A company has a strong reputation if it combines media presence with a positive tone in all areas. The best company in each dimension receives an index value of 100, on which the results of the other companies are based. The performance in the individual dimensions is shown with a star score.

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About swissreputation.group and IMWF: The swissreputation.group, based in Zurich, is a consulting firm specializing in AI media analysis, stakeholder analysis and reputation measurement. The measurement programs form the basis for companies to better understand their stakeholders, focus on the strategically right topics, effectively manage their communication and thus achieve impact. With its multi-method offering, swissreputation.group is the leading specialist for data-driven communication and reputation. Since 2013, the IMWF Institute has been working on analyses of extremely large amounts of data from online news and social media using artificial intelligence (AI). AI is the game changer in corporate communications and marketing - and IMWF is one of Europe's leading specialists in this field. The company is based in Hamburg and has analyst teams in Leipzig, Vienna and, since 2022, Zurich.

In a market environment characterized by constant change, agility turns out to be an important tool for many: regular feedback, short iterations, early detection and correction of errors, and autonomy lead to top results. What sounds tempting in theory, more and more companies are putting into practice - and failing miserably. With the following key factors, agility can be better mastered:

1. understanding as a foundation

First understand, then act. Those who take it upon themselves to integrate agile methods must first and foremost recognize that they are not one-size-fits-all: They depend on the industry, the corporate culture, the employees and individual Challenges. What works for competitors is not automatically groundbreaking for one's own success. Edgar Ehlers, founder of the ee factor agile consulting GmbH, knows what it's all about: "Agility means adaptability, flexibility and direct response to change - above all, implementation is not a short-lived trend, but a continuous process." Companies use agile methods as a tool and learn to continue them in the long term as well as independently in order to cope with today's fast pace.

2. analyze situation and set goals

Verbalize strengths, identify weaknesses and formulate goals - anyone who wants to lead a company to agility cannot avoid a rigorous analysis of the current situation. A thorough examination of corporate cultures, hierarchies, communication structures and work processes strengthens the foundation for restructuring. "Whether it's increasing efficiency, boosting innovation, or increasing employee engagement, companies need to pre-define the goals they're pursuing with agile methods and consider what needs or challenges they'll face along the way," says Ehlers.

3. communication and transparency

Why does a company decide to restructure towards agility? The answer to this question must be communicated openly and transparently, especially internally. "All teams learn about the reasons and benefits at the outset, as well as about decision-making processes and project progress on an ongoing basis - this strengthens employees' trust and commitment with regard to implementation," explains the managing director of the agile strategy consultancy ee factor. The introduction of more efficient communication channels and tools supports fast and collaborative exchange within the working community. Regular stand-up meetings as well as check-ins promote collaboration. The introduction of agile methods also affects customers, business partners, and the public - so communication of upcoming or occurring turnarounds must also take place externally.

4. corporate culture and value change

Prevailing norms and attitudes set the tone and significantly shape the working and corporate culture. CEOs often wonder why change is slow or has not yet taken root. The reason: In a company, there are often several Change curves and each employee is at an individual point on his or her own curve. While the management is already acting in line with the new corporate culture, some employees are only at the beginning of the curve. This results in differences, which are the result of non-transparent communication. In order to loosen up behaviors and processes, it is advisable to introduce trial phases. These periods serve as a test run for new methods or processes before companies finally implement them. In this way, management gently weans employees off old patterns. Pilot projects help to gain initial experience and achieve success through innovative methods.

5. involvement of the management

Agile processes make a good impression on the outside. It often happens that the company management adorns itself with agility, but puts little energy into the implementation itself. Pure hubris and a lack of commitment often stand in the way of moving away from long-outdated hierarchical models and organizational structures. The management level sets the pace in transformation processes - only then does the entire company follow suit. In order to break through hierarchies and distribute responsibility equally among all, managers move from the passive to the active role: In addition to participating in training courses, they lead agile projects themselves and hand over decision-making power to employees.

6. empowerment of employees

Comfortable routines characterize everyday working life in German offices. Forced to abandon this rhythm is met with rejection by many employees - but they have a lot of responsibility, especially in agile companies. Leaving one's own comfort zone triggers insecurities, especially if there is no solid feedback or error culture in the company. Edgar Ehlers speaks from experience: "The fear of doing something wrong inhibits the potential of employees. Only the promotion of a Culture of continuous improvement releases rigidity: employees learn here that mistakes are part of the learning process and change their working attitude without fear. From Errorculture develops Learnculture and failures give rise to new learnings and motivation, which in turn increases engagement."

7. regular further training

Stagnation and lack of know-how are the biggest factors for agile methods to fail. On average, a manager receives 1-3 days of training per year. This is by far not enough. Employees and management should therefore participate in preparatory and accompanying training courses and workshops in order to build up the necessary knowledge and understanding. For objective expertise and interdisciplinary experience, it is advisable to involve external consultants or trainers who take on a supporting role until the company is in a position to do so autonomously. For this purpose, the management level appoints so-called change agents who act internally as ambassadors for the agile transformation. They provide advice and support to other employees in order to continuously expand the knowledge and skills of all.

8. patience and realistic time planning

Faster, higher, further - those who strive for change would ideally like to achieve results as soon as possible. "To establish agility as part of the organizational structure and culture, companies need to be patient and have realistic expectations," knows Edgar Ehlers. "Introducing agile methods takes time for them to have their full effect - only then will companies really succeed in implementing and benefiting from ways of working in the long term." To measure progress, it is important to regularly reflect on and review agile methods. This allows potential gaps in the tailored strategy to be identified and possible adjustments or further developments to be made.

 Source: ee factor

This article originally appeared on m-q.ch - https://www.m-q.ch/de/lean-agile-transformation-acht-schluesselfaktoren/

The global spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus in 2020 led to a 3.5 percent decline in global economic output compared with the previous year. In the wake of varying resilience of sectors, there has been increased discussion of the opportunities of digitization for the economy, for example through home office and automation, and calls for more digitization. However, according to the team of authors of the new study at RIFS in Potsdam, this raises the question of whether the degree of digitization can actually be linked to the economic performance of economic sectors during the crisis. This is because there is little evidence of a correlation between the socioeconomic performance of sectors and their degree of digitization, they say. Although the study refers to the situation in Germany, it certainly allows conclusions to be drawn about the Swiss economy, which had to contend with similar conditions during the pandemic.

Government support may have increased resilience

The researchers used stock market performance, gross value added (GVA) and employment data to analyze resilience and compare it to the degree of digitization of economic sectors in Germany in the pandemic year 2020. Their question: What differences can be identified in socioeconomic resilience between more and less digitized economic sectors in the Covid 19 crisis in Germany?

The study results cannot confirm that highly digitalized sectors were consistently more resilient during the Covid-19 crisis than less digitalized sectors, according to the RIFS team. Sectors with high and medium-high digital intensity showed better stock market performance than those with low and medium digitalization intensity. However, the high fluctuation and uncertainty on the stock market is detrimental to the resilience of the economy. By contrast, sectors with low digital intensity performed better in terms of gross value added and employment than those with high and medium digital intensity, with the exception of the information and communication sector. In particular, the data showed that sectors with low and medium digital intensity - such as public administration, education, defense, health, social work and construction - were the only ones where employment increased during the pandemic, with the exception of the information and communication sector.

"The observations ultimately led to the thesis that digitalization may not be a panacea for achieving the social and economic resilience of the economy in times of crisis," says lead author Stefanie Kunkel. A positive correlation between digitalization and stock market values is relevant for investors. However, 'people-oriented' public sectors such as healthcare and education - with lower levels of digitalization - appeared to make a more stable contribution to value creation and employment during the crisis. However, the authors around Kunkel pointed out in the study that it was not an analysis of causal relationships. One of their conclusions: Government support plays a significant role in the resilience of sectors during the crisis - some studies go further and conclude that government support is possibly the main reason for resilience during the crisis.

Recommendations for the economy

A policy that focuses only on promoting digitization in order to mitigate future crises could prove misguided. Digitization not only leads to changing occupational profiles, potentially favoring better qualified workers and leading to greater wage inequality, but also poses ecological risks such as increased energy and resource consumption. Instead, resilience policies and financial support programs in times of crisis should focus on strengthening social and environmental resilience by targeting sectors that promote stability and support a broader socio-ecological transformation in line with international sustainability goals, such as the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

Recommendations for companies

For companies, the team recommends that managers create work environments in which remote and on-site tasks are evenly distributed among employees to avoid widening the digital divide among the workforce in times of crisis. In terms of environmental goals, digital technologies should be used to measure environmental parameters, reduce energy and material consumption along the supply chain, and identify greener business models, for example in the context of the circular economy. In this way, employees in future crises could benefit more evenly from digitization, improve their digital skills, and reconcile social, economic, and ecological goals.

With this analysis, the question for future crises could already be asked today: What factors enable the digitization of industries to support the achievement of goals such as well-being and environmental protection? Now and in the future, a change to higher ecological standards should ultimately be initiated, because the past crisis alone did not lead to this.

Source: RIFS

This article originally appeared on m-q.ch - https://www.m-q.ch/de/digitalisierte-branchen-nicht-immer-widerstandsfaehiger-als-nicht-digitalisierte/