A sustainably minded vintner in the Rhine Valley. An innovative recycling center near Winterthur. And a mechanical engineering company that supplies the whole world from Burgdorf. Three companies of different sizes in different industries - all of them using leasing in their own way. The reasons why they rely on leasing are described by the companies in the following video or in a detailed article in the ORGANISATOR print edition 1-2/2021.

Leasing in the MEM industry

Around 40 percent of companies in the MEM industries use the financing instrument, according to a study by the Zurich University of Applied Sciences ZHAW. The growing importance for industry is also reflected in the Swiss leasing market: in 2019, new business in industrial machinery and production equipment again grew strongly. The Corona crisis provided a further boost in 2020, as the liquidity situation in many companies is tight.

Steep demands

The sun shines so generously on the Buchberg that Roman Rutishauser doesn't even wear a jacket when he prunes the vines on the seven hectares of his vineyard. It is precisely this mild climate in the Rhine Valley that has provided the winegrowing family with expressive grapes for three generations. The extremely steep slope on the poor, clayey soil provides the right character, but demands just as much sweat from the 36-year-old as it did from his father and grandfather before him. A four-wheel drive vehicle specially developed for vineyards on slopes, which makes cultivation safer and plant protection more efficient, was on the wish list for 2020. Even under normal circumstances, 80,000 Swiss francs would not be an easy budget item to manage. But then Corona came along: precisely in the low-turnover months from January to March, the purchase of the bottles, packaging, labeling, and marketing cost 35,000 francs. In view of the lack of liquidity, the purchase of the vineyard vehicle became a distant prospect. Unfortunately, because the Federal Office for Agriculture had held out the prospect of an incentive contribution for investments in environmentally friendly technology - but only for 2020.

Progressive leasing structure

An encounter got the ball rolling again. Marc Hintermeister, Head of Leasing at Raiffeisen Switzerland, had attended a tasting session and presented a customized leasing solution in the current Covid environment. It was possible to negotiate with the South Tyrolean supplier to trigger the order before the end of the year by making a down payment. Thanks to the progressive leasing structure, the winemaker pays a low installment for the time being - which will be increased as soon as the wine business returns to normal. The Raiffeisen expert takes the long view: "This ensured the further development of the business." And thus also the prospects of success for the next wine year. The purchase also allows Rutishauser to plan with certainty - according to a study by the University of Applied Sciences Northwestern Switzerland (FHNW), one of the main reasons why Swiss SMEs use leasing to optimize their cash management. As a rule, the contracts are designed for two-thirds of the economic useful life.

High proportion of commercial vehicles

Corona also made itself felt at the recycling plant of Hs. Mühle Recycling AG in Riet near Winterthur, although the pandemic also provided balance. In this uncertain year of all years, extraordinary investments were on the agenda. A five-million construction project with a comprehensive waste disposal road tied up liquid funds. At the same time, however, the fleet of vehicles was to be renewed: three trucks, an excavator, two forklifts. In the process, owner Armin Mühle is counting on the electrification of his fleet to reduce the emissions of his operation.

His customer advisor at the Raiffeisen branch in Winterthur put him in touch with the leasing experts. For Armin Mühle, the first approach to the "pay as you earn" method. Commercial vehicles and construction machinery are among the most important categories in the Swiss leasing market, as the statistics of the Swiss Leasing Association (SLV) show: one-third of capital equipment consists of trucks and vans, excavators, and other construction machinery. Mühle's package was quickly put together: The bank approved the installation of an outline limit of 1.5 million Swiss francs for the acquisition. Thus, Armin Mühle expanded the vehicle fleet in the year of the new building without having to tap equity capital.

Global and local

The bestseller of the traditional Aebi brand has just rolled out of the factory in Burgdorf: the Terratrac. The red slope implement carrier looks robust and effortlessly overcomes an obstacle on the test course. "World class on steep slopes," it is said of him, and apparently the Swiss farming community agrees. After all, agriculture remains the most important customer for the machinery and equipment brand, whose products can be used all year round thanks to a wide range of attachments. However, farmers' earnings are on shaky ground due to the collapse in prices. Cost pressure and dependence on expensive machinery are increasing. That's why more and more farmers are leasing. The rates can be adjusted to the cycles of direct payments or crop yields.

Vendor partnership for the first time

In Burgdorf, not far from today's factory site, the history of Aebi began in 1883 with the first workshop. Further development is still a top priority here. Not only in the modification of the models - also in the payment modalities. For the first time, sales rely on a vendor partnership to pre-finance equipment at dealers. "The three-phase model is still new for everyone involved," explains Urs Ritter, CEO of Aebi Schmidt Switzerland, "but initial experience has been good." Dealers can use the model to add Aebi implements, which they will not sell until next year, to their inventory and showroom for demonstration purposes already. The agricultural machines, which retain their value, often have a high residual value at the end of their life. When a new purchase is made, this value can be incorporated into the new leasing contract.

 

Author: 
Roland Schäfli is Content Producer & Corporate Writer at Raiffeisen Switzerland.

This online leasing calculator can also be used to obtain an initial quote:
www.raiffeisen.ch/leasingrechner

 

The architecture firm has been awarded the "Friendly Work Space" label by Health Promotion Switzerland since August 2017. "We are the first architecture firm in the canton of Schwyz and currently the smallest company in Switzerland to receive this award," says owner Mathias Fröhlich. What was the trigger for this comprehensive BGM commitment?

Pragmatic start

In 2014, Mathias Fröhlich was confronted with the complete absence of a project manager and the executive assistant due to illness. A loss that was difficult to compensate for, with the risk of further absences due to a permanent overload of the remaining employees. For the entrepreneur it was clear that something had to be done preventively for the health of his team. He found the right support in his new management assistant and BGM manager Nadine Martig. Mathias Fröhlich on the beginnings: "We approached the topic very pragmatically with measures that were plausible for everyone involved. These included nutrition and ergonomics consulting as well as team workshops. These measures have proven so successful that they have since become an integral part of our occupational health management."

Measurable effect

Since 2014, Fröhlich Architektur has relied on the validated tools and expertise of Health Promotion Switzerland for the professional development of its systematic occupational health management. A partnership that has proven its worth. Linked to this was the decision to be certified as a "Friendly Work Space". Mathias Fröhlich thus sent a clear signal that, as an SME entrepreneur, the health of his employees is a priority for him.
employees is a sustainable concern. This also includes an annual BGM impact check using Friendly Work Space (FWS) Job Stress Analysis, the digital employee survey from Health Promotion Switzerland. "This is also a perfect initial orientation for getting started with BGM, which is why I recommend it to every SME," emphasizes Fröhlich.

Better through the crisis with BGM

In 2018, Fröhlich Architektur found itself in a serious economic crisis. "Thanks to our BGM measures, we were already very well sensitized at that time to pay attention to our own health and that of our colleagues in this extreme stress phase. Fears, concerns, criticism, etc. were and are openly addressed. The resulting strengthened team cohesion and the high level of loyalty of our employees have made a decisive contribution to overcoming this crisis. With these experiences under our belt, we were able to keep the Corona year 2020 well under control. That's why there's no question in my mind that systematic occupational health management is worthwhile - especially for SMEs," concludes Mathias Fröhlich.

 

Background: BGM in SMEs

The Fröhlich Architektur AG (www.froehlicharchitektur.ch) is based in Bäch (SZ) and Zurich. Owner Mathias Fröhlich and his highly qualified team of more than 20 people dedicate themselves with broad professional experience and enthusiasm to the design of valuable living space. Fröhlich Generalunternehmung AG, founded by Mathias Fröhlich in 2015, offers in addition to the architectural services also offers all GU/TU and real estate services.

Health Promotion Switzerland is a foundation under private law, supported by the cantons and insurers. With a legal mandate, it initiates, coordinates and evaluates measures to promote health. This also includes supporting companies in setting up an occupational health management system. Until March 31, 2021, Health Promotion Switzerland is offering SMEs that want to benefit from this support a simple and inexpensive way to get started with occupational health management.
> More details under www.friendlyworkspace.ch/anteilsfinanzierung

A real challenge - that's how many new employees and HR managers felt about the initial period when they started their jobs in recent months. Quite a few candidates already had to conduct their job interviews online and get to know their new colleagues virtually because of the pandemic. Sometimes it was not even possible to visit the workplace. At the same time, HR teams all over the world were forced to throw established procedures for onboarding and training new employees out the window.

Onboarding in Corona times: Everything is different

The first day in a new job: What used to involve filling out HR forms, orientation meetings, handshakes and lunch with the supervisor and the team, now happens differently. Many new hires start their jobs without meeting their colleagues in person or even setting foot in their offices. The home office has become permanent and may remain so in parts.

Even though there has been a trend towards the virtual in HR processes in recent years, a large proportion of companies with a traditional working model have had to change their processes on an ad hoc basis. This is because Corona forced HR departments to reinvent their onboarding processes and train their employees remotely. This situation presents a whole new set of challenges for you as an HR manager. With no change in sight for the time being, you must learn to adapt to the current circumstances. But this situation also presents opportunities for integrative, individualized and future-oriented onboarding. Find out here how you can make remote onboarding successful from day one - even for completely inexperienced employees:

Tip 1: Assess personality type of new employees

Proven induction processes cannot be changed overnight. Sure, many things go smoothly, but there are also obstacles and initial difficulties. As so often in this case, early, regular communication is helpful in identifying problems and getting them out of the way.

A virtual work environment is not for everyone. Extroverts often miss the opportunity to exchange ideas with their colleagues. Introverts, on the other hand (who, according to Surveys who make up 48 percent of the workforce) may be intimidated by video calls in larger groups. The same applies to the differences between occupational groups, some of which are very differently versed in digital onboarding.

If you get to know your employees quickly, you can adjust to their preferences in terms of learning, communication and social behavior at an early stage. But even though the newcomers will certainly benefit from the many virtual meetings that are scheduled especially for them - everyone needs a screen break now and then. That's why some downtime should be factored in when planning virtual training sessions to prevent video conference fatigue. It is equally important to ensure that the new employees are well networked. For this purpose, 1:1 meetings spread over the first few weeks are a good way of doing this, which would otherwise have taken place in the coffee kitchen.

Tip 2: Accept longer training period and learning curve

Since new employees do not meet colleagues in the office, they can hardly get to know them spontaneously. This means they need more organized help and a longer settling-in period. This includes letting them look over their shoulder virtually. It is important to accept this longer learning curve and to explicitly generate such opportunities to support the newcomers during the familiarization process.

In addition, there is the feeling of isolation and loneliness in the pandemic. Even if the new job is exciting, many employees struggle with additional private challenges during the inherently intense orientation phase. Supervisors and HR departments should show understanding during these times.

Tip 3: Communicate corporate culture

Shared goals, values and perceptions - all this shapes the corporate culture. It influences how decisions are made, how measures are prioritized, and how results are achieved. It also determines the working environment, even if the workplace is not physically located in the company.

So don't just provide your new teammates with the usual guides and company presentations in advance, but make this culture as directly tangible as possible, for example through small virtual events at which experienced employees inspire the new ones. This not only helps them understand their employer's corporate culture. It also gives them a sense of where their place is in this fabric and how they can contribute.

Tip 4: Build team affiliation

Building a relationship with colleagues is important for job performance and satisfaction, but also for the employee experience overall. To make the new hire feel welcome in the home office, hold one-on-one or group calls with teammates and other key employees.

Getting used to the job involves more than just working through the daily tasks and duties. Therefore, make an effort to give new employees an authentic impression of their new working environment. You have a number of ways to do this: Each team member can impart important tips for everyday work, which doesn't happen in formal training sessions. One helps with accessing important data sources, the other simulates a real situation. A virtual tour of the future office can also help for the first impression.

In addition, there is the conveyance of cordiality: Whether it is a welcome card with the signatures of all colleagues, a voucher or a coffee mug with the company logo - a small gift ensures that people feel they belong, even at a distance.

Tip 5: Make employees "IT fit

Technology is particularly important at the moment. Therefore, provide your freshly arrived colleagues in the home office with suitable tools from the very beginning. Show them that they are a priority: Get them all the devices they need to start their jobs: Cell phone, laptop or basic accessories like mouse, keyboard or monitor and good headphones.

It's also critical to provide access to all relevant systems, portals and programs that employees need to work effectively: for example, a corporate email account, group messaging platforms and video conferencing software. Put them in touch with the IT department in case questions arise or training is needed. That way, your new employees will feel supported and valued.

Tip 6: Obtain feedback continuously

It's never too early to lend an ear to your employees. Share with them about onboarding and get to know if they have everything they need. Actively ask them at specific times how they're doing. Did the latest training answer all their questions? Did they meet all of their key colleagues at their round of introductions and know who to contact for what concerns? Periodically look at how your new colleagues' opinions are evolving on various aspects of the initial phase. All of this will provide you with important information about what works in the onboarding process, what has the greatest impact, and where the biggest "experience gaps" exist. In other words, where employees have had a completely different experience than the one you wanted to provide them. Through continuous feedback, HR can understand how new employees are doing in the home office - and develop concrete levers for improvement.

To the author:
Dr. Roland Abel is Head of Growth & Strategy - Employee Experience (EX) DACH of Qualtrics and assists Qualtrics clients with experience data collection. He has over twelve years of experience in the field of employee experience.

We were pleasantly surprised in April 2020 that we had consensus as a family and among the shareholders right from the start: Covid-19 is not Armageddon for our company and therefore not for our entrepreneurial family assets. This positive basic attitude has made it easier for us to learn from other family businesses.

Crisis used as an opportunity

We took a very close look at operational measures to combat and prevent crises, such as the switch to respiratory equipment at Viessmann, a heating manufacturer with a long tradition. Here, the handwriting of the generation taking over was clearly visible. Many Next Generation members were able to use the crisis as an opportunity to take on more entrepreneurial responsibility.

As far as long-term crisis strategies are concerned, we have looked to family businesses that have had to weather global crises several times in their long history and have also seized entrepreneurial opportunities in the process. Nurturing this optimistic attitude and conviction remains one of our most important management tasks among the shareholders, the Supervisory Board and the Executive Board.

We have learned that the more the team shares our values and convictions, the easier and better it is to overcome difficult times. Our leadership image has also shifted in this direction: Away from the stationary on-site helmsman to a flexible "Jedi" who is also committed to our corporate culture in a positive way in virtual collaboration.

Equity ratio and responsibility

Our equity ratio, which our principal bank had always chalked up to us being "far too high" over many years, made it easier for us to renegotiate our financial and liquidity requirements on good terms with this very bank last year. This also encouraged us to always go our own way. In the end, no one but us can say what is right for us and our company. And we are happy to bear this responsibility. At the AGM in the summer of 2020, we as shareholders unanimously approved a dividend waiver for the next seven years, approved a substantial shareholder loan and "froze" the shareholder accounts for the next three years.

I wasn't the only one surprised that, in view of the pandemic, a constructive dialog about the advantages and disadvantages of outside capital participation became possible. Today, we discuss participation models with other entrepreneurial families much more openly than in the past. It is very gratifying that we as shareholders are thus coming closer to our goal of taking more assets out of entrepreneurial risk and at the same time being able to contribute actively to the positive further development of our family business.

Financial professionalism

Today, financial risk-bearing capacity and the associated key figures have a whole new relevance and quality for the shareholders, the corporate supervisors and the Board of Management. We also see financial professionalism as one of the main advantages of external involvement. This increase in knowledge would, among other things, strengthen a very critical point in the survivability of our family business through better liquidity and cash flow management - a thought unthinkable before the crisis.

In retrospect, we benefited greatly in crisis management from our arrangement in the family constitution, because as shareholders we were already relatively independent of the "fiduciary" family assets in our asset accumulation.

Here it goes to Part 1

Click here for part 3

Click here for part 4

Click here for part 5

Authors:

Christian Schiede has been advising and assisting entrepreneurial families and family businesses to strengthen cohesion, increase competitiveness and secure value since 2003. Contact: www.schiede.com; schiede@shpadvisors.com

Bastian Schneider has been helping entrepreneurs and management teams strengthen their brands from within and lead their organizations and businesses into the future from this perspective since 2000. In more than 30 industries. In Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Contact: www.brandleadership.ch; bastian.schneider@brandleadership.ch

The latest edition of JobCloud Market Insights shows that the share of job ads mentioning a home office option on jobs.ch, which claims to be the most popular job portal in German-speaking Switzerland, increased by 190% between March 2019 and December 2020. The analysis on jobup.ch, the largest online job portal in French-speaking Switzerland, shows that the share there has even almost quadrupled. "Even if the possibility of home office is currently only mentioned in two to three percent of all job advertisements, the Corona crisis has nevertheless given home office a powerful boost. The importance of home office and other flexible forms of work will continue to grow in the future," says Davide Villa, CEO of JobCloud. Dr. Nicoline Scheidegger from the ZHAW, who provided scientific support for the job survey, adds: "The pandemic has helped companies leap into the digital future. Instead of months of change processes, they succeeded virtually overnight in enabling home offices and even managing job interviews digitally. In many places, these achievements are becoming the new normal, even after the pandemic."

Jobs in information technology and media lead the way in home offices

Naturally, home offices are mainly offered in industries where working from home is easily feasible. Home office is mentioned particularly frequently in job advertisements in the IT (7%) and media (4%) sectors in German-speaking Switzerland and in associations (4%), education (3%) and IT (2%) in French-speaking Switzerland. It is worth noting, however, that the growth in home office mentions in Corona Year 2020 was significantly higher in the other industries. "The increases show that home office is also evolving in more traditionally managed industries, such as finance or insurance," Villa added.

More home office opportunity increases readiness for a longer commute

The commute is a decisive criterion when looking for a job. However, if employees are given more flexibility, the commute becomes less important and other criteria become decisive. This is evident in employees' willingness to commute. The JobCloud survey found that 65% of employees in German-speaking Switzerland and even 70% of those in French-speaking Switzerland would accept a longer commute if, in contrast, they were given more flexibility regarding working from home. "This leads to an increase in the labor market for candidates, as job offers for a larger area become eligible. If companies offer the possibility to work from home, they can expect a larger number of suitable applications," concludes Davide Villa.

Source: JobCloud AG

The more than 20-year-old IT system house Spektra Netcom AG from Obfelden succeeds in corporate succession in the form of an MBO: The two long-time senior employees Michel Wipf and Patrick Eberle take over all business shares from the founders Joseph Voser and Gerhard Weinmann in equal shares within the framework of a management buyout (MBO).

Joseph Voser and Gerhard Weinmann jointly founded Spektra in 1998 and have subsequently successfully built and managed the company. True to its motto "Leading in SME IT", the company has specialized in consulting and support for SMEs in all industries and has established itself as a leading provider of ERP, cloud and VoIP solutions.

Careful transition

Joseph Voser will continue to be available as a member of the management team, as a member of the Board of Directors and as a SelectLine consultant, providing advice and support to the new owners. His partner Gerhard Weinmann will also continue to work for the company, ensuring that his many years of expertise in the field of IT infrastructures are transferred to the new management.

The business unit "Business Software" with the core products Selectline, Vertec and Cobra CRM will in future be the responsibility of the new co-owner Michel Wipf. He counts on a team of 9 specialists who will provide customers with professional advice and support during software selection, implementation and operation. The business area "IT Infrastructure" is the responsibility of the new co-owner Patrick Eberle. With his team of 7 system engineers and VoIP specialists, he takes care of all components of a modern IT infrastructure for SMEs, the Spektra Cloud and IT security, which is becoming increasingly important.

Spektra Netcom AG to continue in the spirit of its founders

Joseph Voser and Gerhard Weinmann are delighted: "We are happy and proud to be able to hand over our company to two young, highly motivated employees. Michel Wipf and Patrick Eberle have already been working at Spektra for years, know our product and service portfolio inside out and have built up a trusting relationship with our customers and partners. As members of the Executive Board, they have also played a key role in our success in recent years. We are convinced that they will continue to lead Spektra in our spirit and will prove to be the ideal successors for our employees, customers and business partners."

Full of motivation and zest for action into the future

Michel Wipf and Patrick Eberle are full of drive: "We are grateful and full of verve that we have been given the opportunity to take over an excellently established and extremely successful IT system house as its new owners and thus to continue writing Spektra's success story with our team in Obfelden. For us, continuity and reliability are our top priorities. We will continue the current very successful strategy and develop it further on an ongoing basis. To do this, we are counting on our great professional and human team, on our leading partners and on all our SME customers, whom we have been able to accompany for years with great pleasure and motivation on their way into the digital world."

More information

Even as a landlocked country, Switzerland has (had) an ocean-going fleet, operated by shipping companies and secured by federal guarantees. However, these have had little success in the recent past and new solutions have had to be found. In this context, several Swiss-based investors have taken a direct stake in two multipurpose ships and their value creation. After the redemption of the federal guarantees and the associated financial restructuring, the two ships "Trudy" and "Helvetia" are on a solid economic footing and will generate sustainable earnings.

Disappearing from the negative headlines

Philipp Leibundgut, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Briese Schiffahrt (Schweiz) AG, explains why investments in multi-purpose ships are worthwhile: "The Swiss ocean-going fleet has attracted negative headlines in recent years. This was not due to the Confederation's ocean-going vessels, but to the fact that small shipping companies operated them. With the integration of the ships into the ocean-going fleet of the market-leading Briese Schiffahrt, significant economies of scale are achieved in terms of revenues and costs. In addition, "Trudy" and "Helvetia" are young ships that excel at transporting wind turbines, a rapidly growing market. Thus, they are already making a direct contribution to the New Green Deal."

Ocean-going vessels now with new flag and new names

Local investor support is provided by Briese Schiffahrt (Schweiz) AG, Zurich. Investors already have direct stakes in multi-purpose ships with a newbuilding value of over EUR 150 million. Further investment projects are being prepared for the current year. Briese Schiffahrts GmbH & Co. KG, a second-generation family-owned company headquartered in Leer, Germany, is the market leader with around 150 ocean-going vessels in the multipurpose and project cargo business. Worldwide, Briese Schiffahrt has 31 branches and employs more than 3,000 people.

The ships are no longer allowed to sail under the neutral Swiss flag, as the legal framework does not currently permit this. Registered in the German maritime register, the ships now operate under the names "BBC Rhônetal" and "BBC Rheiderland". The abbreviation "BBC" stands for the subsidiary BBC Chartering. According to its own information, this is the world market leader in the transport business for maritime heavy-lift cargo and a competence partner in the transport of wind turbines.

Source and further information: www.briese.ch

The attitude of their employees toward cyberattacks makes small and medium-sized enterprises in Switzerland vulnerable: It is true that they are aware of the general risks of cybercrime and the great damage potential of an attack. However, they do not consider their own company and themselves important enough to be a worthwhile target. This attitude can lead employees to be insufficiently vigilant. These are the findings of a study conducted by the ZHAW School of Management and Law in collaboration with Allianz Suisse. The researchers conducted in-depth interviews with employees from selected SMEs to understand their attitudes and the drivers of decisions made regarding cyber risks.

Current widespread home office increases risks

"Cyber criminals usually target people and try to use them to inject malware into the corporate system or obtain passwords. The attitude and behavior of employees are therefore crucial in defending against attacks," explains Carlos Casián, co-author of the study and underwriter Property / Cyber Risk at Allianz Suisse. "Especially in today's world, where many employees work from home, the risks are increasing: on the one hand, technical aspects such as external access to the corporate network play a role. On the other hand, ad hoc exchanges with colleagues about suspicious e-mails are more difficult, which makes employees more vulnerable to manipulation attempts." According to the study, SME employees primarily associate cyberattacks with geopolitical confrontations, terrorism or organized crime. They see Switzerland, on the other hand, as a sphere that is significantly safer by comparison. "However, this is a fallacy. In this country, too, around a third of SMEs have already been exposed to attacks," says study leader Carlo Pugnetti, a lecturer at the ZHAW School of Management and Law.

Cyberattacks only perceived as a problem for specialists

The SME employees surveyed feel relatively helpless when it comes to recognizing a specific attack on their own company and reacting to it. In such a case, however, they assume that specialists would help. This assumption can encourage a certain passivity and lead employees to underestimate their own role in minimizing cyber risks. At the same time, the study results show that SMEs have a corporate culture with a strong solution orientation. Accordingly, employees usually act proactively and would want to help deal with a specific case of damage.

Strategies for more cyber security in SMEs

In order to reduce the risks and impact of a cyberattack, the authors of the study make a number of recommendations for greater cybersecurity in SMEs: These include information measures within SMEs that sensitize employees to the objective threat and show them how they can contribute to its defense. Furthermore, companies should develop strategies to cope with possible attacks and associated IT system failures and train for these scenarios. In developing appropriate solution strategies, companies should actively involve their employees and take advantage of their dedicated working attitude.

Special methodology

The study "Cyber Risks and Swiss SMEs - An Investigation of Employee Attitudes and Behavioral Vulnerabilities" was conducted by the Institute of Risk & Insurance at the ZHAW School of Management and Law in collaboration with Allianz Suisse and with the support of various partners. The researchers conducted in-depth interviews with 17 employees from various functions in three selected SMEs from the heating and manufacturing sector. To do so, they used the so-called "deep metaphor interview technique," in which interviewees selected images that expressed their perceptions and attitudes toward various aspects of cybercrime. "Thanks to this methodology, we were also able to identify personal patterns of attitudes that the interviewees themselves were not immediately aware of," explains Carlo Pugnetti. "The focus was accordingly on bringing hidden insights to the surface and thereby developing more effective measures." The interviews took place in September 2020.

Sources: zhaw and Allianz Suisse

Cybersecurity affects us all - more than ever. Because digitization is advancing, fueled by the consequences of the Corona pandemic even faster than before. However, IT security is not the best everywhere, especially among SMEs - often the necessary know-how and risk awareness are lacking. And with even more home offices, the attack surface for cybercriminals is even growing exponentially. So it's all the more important that SMEs upgrade when it comes to cybersecurity. A new book addresses this concern and provides practical support.

IT security for SMEs: How does it work?

For over 20 years, the Swiss IT security company Dreamlab Technologies has been developing IT security concepts and solutions for customers on four continents. Its founder and CEO Nicolas Mayencourt has now co-authored a book with Marc K. Peter from the University of Applied Sciences Northwestern Switzerland entitled "IT Security for SMEs". In this guidebook, the authors share valuable insights from their many years of practice in the IT security and digitalization field. They raise awareness of dangers and risks and provide concrete measures to effectively counter them. The book is intended to help KM owners take important precautions to sensitize themselves, their employees and partners and to plan further security precautions with IT specialists.

Support for IT security concepts suitable for SMEs

The authors clearly explain which strategies have proven effective in protecting against threats from attackers and also provide checklists and step-by-step instructions. Based on the most important topics - infrastructure and technology, communication, organization and legal matters, and access management - an IT security concept is created that makes companies fit for the future. Readers learn which strategies have proven effective in protecting against threats and risks posed by technology, the Internet and digitization. The book (ISBN 978-3-03875-343-8) is available in the Observer Publishing published and also available there.

The Digital Leadership Barometer was founded in 2018 and will be conducted for the second time in 2020. It is supported by various partners. These include the Swiss Association of Master Builders (SBV), Raiffeisen Enterprise Center (RUZ), SUPSI's Dipartimento tecnologie innovative (DPI) or HWZ Alumni. 205 people completed the 2020 questionnaire in full. Almost 70% of the participants belonged to middle or upper management. Study authors are Dr. Urs Jäckli and Dr. Claude Meier (picture).

Gap between theory and practice

"The respondents rate the strategic importance of digitization as very high, with 81 out of a possible 100 points. However, companies see themselves as less advanced in the implementation of digitization," says Dr. Claude Meier, co-author of the study and Head of the Business Methodology Unit at the HWZ. His co-author, Dr. Urs Jäckli, study and project manager at the HWZ adds: "The current study shows a positive influence of digital training of employees on the progress of digitization in the companies."

The Digital Leadership Barometer rises...

As far as the structures for managing digital activities in Swiss companies are concerned, a marked increase with a focus on digital projects was observed in all areas. As recently as 2018, around 33% of the participating companies had no such structures at all, compared with around 22% today. 55% are now working on digital projects, an increase of 8 percentage points compared to 2018. Other structures for managing digital activity mentioned more frequently in the 2020 results include exchange groups across departments and committees.

The strategic importance of digitization in companies increased slightly from 2018 to 2020. This also applies to digital progress in companies. However, there is still a discrepancy between the perceived progress of digitization in one's own company and the strategic relevance attributed to the topic of digitization, although this gap is narrowing.

Progress thanks to digital education

The HWZ study on digital leadership found a statistically significant correlation between a company's progress in digitization and digital literacy. In particular, those companies that provide their employees with resources and further training, familiarize them with digital applications and working methods, and thus significantly increase their own level of digitization, develop positively.

Source: HWZ

At ams.erp Solution AG, Giordano Di Fronzo will take over from the previous Managing Director Richard Dörig, who retired from the company at the end of 2020. Di Fronzo will be supported at management level by long-time ams employee Guido Tobler, who will continue to be in charge of consulting, and by Thomas Frehsonke, who has been responsible for new customer sales and presales since the beginning of January 2021. The common ambitious goal of the new management is to further increase the satisfaction of existing customers and thus to establish the product more deeply in the Swiss market.

By expanding the management to three members, who hold an equal share in the company as partial shareholders, Giordano Di Fronzo sees the Swiss ams site as more secure and better positioned: "The new starting position offers both existing and all future new customers a higher degree of security. Thanks to additional staff capacity in technical consulting, we are now much more flexible, enabling us to implement the demanding requirements of the target market more sensitively."

ams.erp Solution AG focuses on existing customers

The new management trio, which previously gained extensive experience in the target market's midmarket, will use this expertise to guarantee existing customers greater added value with the use of ams.erp in practice. Ongoing product innovations and enhancements will pave the way for digitization in line with the needs of medium-sized businesses.

As a result of the new starting position, Thomas Frehsonke wants to use this decisive factor for new customer sales business: "We want to use satisfied reference customers to create the impetus we need to increase awareness of the ams.erp brand in Switzerland. The aim is to generate as many synergy effects as possible," affirms the head of sales, who comes from a plant engineering background and had introduced the ERP solution himself in the past as project manager of an existing ams customer and thus knows the customer role from practical experience.

Customer potential in the batch size 1+ range

When asked about the industries and sectors in which the greatest potential for new ams customers could lie, Guido Tobler mentions companies from the batch size 1+ environment, in which ams.erp has its inherent strengths, as well as those in the ancillary construction sector, such as steel, metal and complete construction. Ruch Metallbau, a new customer, was recently acquired from this sector, which has recently been receiving a noticeable increase in inquiries. In addition to general automation and digitization strategies, Guido Tobler focuses on the integration of mobile processes with ams.mobile. The completely newly developed ams.project module gives the ERP solution an industry-specific, fully integrated project planning tool, which can optionally be combined with workforce scheduling from software partner Innosoft. "It is important to add here that with the spare parts management in ams.erp a lot of functionality has always been provided for the after sales area. With Innosoft, we now also have an excellently integrated product for scheduling fitters and service staff and for invoicing their services," says the consulting manager.

Demonstrate the benefits of project management software

Giordano Di Fronzo, Guido Tobler and Thomas Frehsonke agree that fiscal 2021 will present them with some challenges due to the development of the Corona pandemic, which could not be foreseen at the beginning of the year. However, they are confident that they will be able to meet these challenges. All three have many years of their own experience in medium-sized companies and therefore know their requirements very well from practical experience. "We are very confident, because although Switzerland is a smaller market, it offers an enormous amount of potential, as many companies are located in the high-tech segment. It is up to us to show the Swiss SMEs the benefits of our end-to-end project management software ams.erp", Giordano Di Fronzo concludes with an optimistic view into the future.

More information

The global supply chain study by Orange Business Services shows: The global pandemic reveals necessary changes for future-proof supply chains. Around 83 percent of the companies surveyed in this study stated that they are more aware of supply chain risks such as raw material shortages, production stoppages or transport blockages than they were a year ago. Accordingly, the pandemic is something of a wake-up call for companies. In particular, speed, agility and innovation are seen as essential for mastering future challenges. In addition, to ensure survival, building resilience and sustainability in supply chains through digitalization and real-time data insights is a priority within transformation strategies for many companies. In fact, 44 percent of companies plan to launch real-time data initiatives in the next two years.

Strengthening the supply chains

According to the survey, nearly eight out of ten companies have accelerated the digitization of their supply chain. In addition, nearly 50 percent of respondents are considering revising their risk management strategies in the next two years. Also gaining importance is automation to manage rapidly changing demand. In fact, 42 percent of companies say they are using automation to manage risk. The same number (42 percent) plan to do so in the next two years.

The extent to which the pandemic is affecting supply chains is also made clear by the following findings: two out of five study participants say that their supply chain was unable to keep up at the first peak of the pandemic. This is where technology enablers such as artificial intelligence (AI), cloud, 5G and Big Data analytics will play a big role in the future, as they improve supply chains through improved planning and execution. Collecting and sharing real-time data increases efficiency and transparency throughout the supply chain. At the same time, it supports relationships between suppliers and manufacturers to make smart decisions.

"The global health emergency has led organizations to accept the fragility of their ecosystems. Critical gaps must now be closed to ensure end-to-end transparency on a global scale and minimize risk to businesses and organizations. Digital technologies and capabilities are key to enabling companies and their partners to secure the supply chain. Digitization and data capture will also be key enablers to become more sustainable and save both costs and the planet's resources," says Kristof Symons, Executive Vice President, International, Orange Business Services.

New impetus for sustainability programs

Although the pandemic has pushed the issue of sustainability down the corporate agenda, 59 percent of respondents said that a company that is not run ethically and sustainably poses a significant business risk that impacts the bottom line. Smart factories, for example, are capable of saving around 30 percent on energy costs.

Looking ahead, 85 percent of the companies surveyed plan to make investments to become more sustainable. These include new data collection technologies to gain better insight into sustainability metrics, as well as management and control of factors such as energy consumption. 78 percent of companies see sustainability as an opportunity to drive product and service innovation - a key advantage in maintaining competitiveness.

"The pandemic will eventually and somehow come to an end. But climate change, sustainability - these developments and risks will remain for the next decades," explains Erwin Verstraelen, CDO and CIO at the Port of Antwerp. "For example, the European Green Deal will put more pressure on all stakeholders to identify the origin of emissions and minimize their environmental footprint. The supply chain is an important element in this." Should companies live up to their claim, digitally driven sustainable management programs are expected to be nearly universal in the next two years.

Source: Orange Business Services