In the wake of the digital transformation of the economy, the demands on employees are also changing - among other things, because modern information and communications technology not only enables new solutions to problems, but also new forms of work organization. That's why many companies are currently asking themselves under the buzzword New Work: How can we use not only the technical possibilities of digitization, but also the modern forms of collaboration for our success that many start-ups and innovative niche providers practice, for example?

As a rule, these forms of work aim to,

• Increase employee and team ownership,
• Improve cross-divisional and cross-functional collaboration; and
• Increase creativity and speed in developing and implementing new solutions to problems.

Be flexible, creative and productive

In achieving these goals, technical innovations are both the key and the driver. For example, digital collaboration tools increase the possibilities for cooperation in teams whose members work at different locations. They also open up new possibilities for integrating external service providers, business partners or customers into projects.

Companies that provide complex services for their customers or design solutions to problems are particularly keen to exploit this potential. However, as with any change, projects to establish new forms of work organization and collaboration are also subject to the following: In addition to supporters and opponents among the employees, there is usually an undecided mass. So the question arises: How can the number of supporters necessary for the success of the project be won? An effective transmission belt can be a new working environment.

Create a new working environment

New forms of (collaborative) work that, for example.

• a high degree of automation,
• cross-departmental and cross-functional teamwork, and
• short decision paths

usually also require different working environments. So it's important to create workspaces that support these goals - because they match (future) work processes and requirements and make teams creative and productive. Therefore, before redesigning existing and creating new workspaces, it is advisable to analyze factors such as:

• How much time will team members spend on common tasks in the future?
• How often is concentrated individual work necessary?
• Which technical processes and tools need to be integrated?
• How often are conferences and phone calls held - with colleagues, service providers, customers, etc.?

From the results, companies can derive the appropriate space concept. In addition, such an analysis offers the opportunity to identify and eliminate work processes that waste resources.

Success factor: Involvement of those affected

If companies give their employees a great deal of opportunity to participate in the planning phase, many of those affected can be won over as supporters at an early stage of the project. It is then easier to break down outdated structures and patterns of thought and behavior and implement more targeted processes.

Every move gives you the chance to move with your head - in other words, to set a new mental course. After all, every move is preceded by a lengthy planning process, during which the cards are sometimes reshuffled. The employees know this. Accordingly, they look forward to the change with curiosity, excitement and (sometimes) uncertainty. Therefore, from a change management perspective, a move should be used as an organizational "unfreeze" moment in the sense of Kurt Lewin: Employees are taken out of their comfort zone and put into motion. This is less about introducing new tools than developing a changed mindset, because: Organizations will only become faster and more flexible, more willing to learn and more customer-oriented if employees understand their role differently - and their managers allow them to act more independently and responsibly.

Goal: "Happy working people

In the digital age, only tasks are increasingly left for human employees due to advancing digitalization and automation,

• which are difficult to decide and
• where you also have to rely on your intuition resulting from your expertise.

So companies need employees who are willing and able to make such risky decisions because they can, want to and are allowed to do so.

The "can" and "may" require new structural framework conditions. In order to use these effectively, employees usually need to be trained. The "want", on the other hand, is already present in many employees. The positive response that the buzzword "New Work" has met with, for example, shows that many people long for meaningful (collaborative) work that is also oriented toward parameters other than top-down defined processes and structures. Companies will need such employees in the future: "Happy working people" are a prerequisite for entrepreneurial success in the digital age.

To the author:
Dr. Georg Kraus is managing partner of the management consultancy Dr. Kraus & Partner, Bruchsal (www.kraus-und-partner.de). Among others, he is a lecturer at the University of Karlsruhe, the IAE in Aix-en-provence, the St. Gallen Business School and the Technical University of Clausthal.

The world's 250 largest retailers generated total sales of USD 4.74 trillion in fiscal 2018, representing year-on-year growth of 4.1%. This was revealed by Deloitte's Global Powers of Retailing 2020 study.

US companies dominate...

The first ranks are occupied by the US companies Wal-Mart, Costco and Amazon; the e-commerce giant has moved up to third place. The ten largest companies accounted for nearly one-third (32.2%) of the total sales of the top 250 in fiscal 2018 (31.6% in the previous year). The average growth of the top 10 was higher than the average of the top 250: 6.3% versus 4.1%. The net profit margin of the top 10 also increased (by 0.5 percentage points), despite the pressures faced by retailers in the face of intense competition, rising labor costs, price wars and investment in online retailing.

The majority (136) of companies in the top 250 are from the FMCG (Fast-Moving Consumer Goods) sector, accounting for nearly two-thirds (66.5%) of retail sales in fiscal 2018. FMCG retailers generated the largest average sales (USD 23.2 billion). However, it is a low-margin sector: its net profit margin of 2.0% was the lowest of all sectors.

...but largest share of the top 250 comes from Europe

The largest share of the Top 250 companies comes from Europe. 88 companies (35.2%) originate from the region and contribute 34.4% to total sales. Lidl and Aldi are the largest European retailers, ranking 4th and 8th respectively. With average sales of USD 27.6 billion, the largest companies are from the USA (for comparison, the average of the top 250 is USD 19.0 billion).

"If you look at the performance of the world's largest retailers over a five-year period, the top 250 as a whole show astonishing stability. The outlook for 2020 for the global economy and the retail industry is uncertain. Economic growth is expected to be subdued but positive, consumer spending growth will be lower, and inflation will remain low in most countries," says Karine Szegedi, a member of Deloitte Switzerland's Executive Board and a retail expert.

She adds: "In 2019, sales in the Swiss retail sector stagnated. In our opinion, this will remain the case in 2020. On the one hand, geopolitical challenges and the strong Swiss franc will probably slow down dynamic growth. On the other hand, however, the ongoing positive development of online sales should give retailers a boost. The outbreak of the corona virus could also have an impact on some Swiss retailers. In the luxury goods and watch sectors, the first effects are already being felt, as consumption in Asia is declining sharply."

Swiss retailers in the top 250: Migros, Coop, Richemont and Dufry

Migros and Coop defended their places in the top 50: Migros remains in 39th place with sales of USD 25.13 billion in fiscal 2018, while Coop dropped two ranks to 46th place with sales of USD 23.47 billion. Geneva-based luxury goods company Richemont broke into the top 100 for the first time; its new online retail segment in particular had a positive impact on performance. The travel retailer Dufry continues to develop excellently. With an impressive annual growth rate of 19.5% over the last five years (2013-2018), Dufry (ranked 120) is one of the fastest growing retailers worldwide.

"2020 is unlikely to be a particularly dynamic year for the Swiss retail market. However, we are cautiously optimistic and believe that Swiss retailers will be able to keep pace with the other major players. Online retailing should continue to grow next year, especially in the food and beverage sector, where the share of sales in Switzerland is far below that of other countries," explains Karine Szegedi.

Source: Deloitte

The quarterly survey by Swissmechanic, the leading association of Swiss SME-MEM, shows that the business situation of the companies surveyed deteriorated significantly between April and October 2019. While the optimists still predominated in the spring, the pessimists did so in the fall. At the beginning of 2020, the situation is also assessed as negative by the majority, albeit to a slightly lesser extent than in October, according to the current economic barometer.

Weak order intake for the MEM sector

"In addition to the strong franc, the weak order intake is currently the biggest challenge," says Jürg Marti, Director of Swissmechanic. As a result, 62 percent of companies are reporting a decline in orders in the fourth quarter of 2019 and only 15 percent an increase. This development is reflected in falling sales and margins. In addition, workforce adjustments are increasingly being considered. For the first quarter of 2020, more companies still expect a deterioration than an improvement in the order situation, but the discrepancy is no longer equally pronounced.

Pressured from two sides

The economic situation in the Swiss MEM sector is primarily clouded by political uncertainties abroad. The situation is exacerbated by the weakness of the main sales market, the EU, and the strong Swiss franc. Swissmechanic is calling on the Swiss National Bank (SNB) to stick to its chosen course and to continue to ensure consistently and vehemently that the Swiss franc does not become any stronger, but on the contrary weakens. In this way, the SNB is making a significant contribution to strengthening the Swiss economy. This is imperative because companies in the MEM sector are under pressure from two sides, as it were, due to the strong franc and weak order intake.

Relaxation tendencies

BAK Economics expects the recent easing of the trade conflict between the USA and China and Brexit to continue in the course of the year. The MEM sector can therefore expect foreign demand to pick up by 2021 at the latest. In Switzerland, a recovery in equipment investment can be expected as early as 2020 because the adoption of the tax reform and AHV funding (STAF) has removed a major uncertainty factor. As a result, BAK Economics expects the Swiss MEM sector to accelerate increasingly in 2020/2021.

Source and further information: www.swissmechanic.ch

According to their own statements, just under 41 percent of participants are achieving good to very good digitization successes, including primarily IT service providers and companies from the automotive, retail and consumer goods industries, as well as the public sector. This means that the number of successful companies has risen slightly, but the overall balance has hardly changed. Only around 37 percent of users rate the use of smart technologies as successful or very successful, with executives from the business departments rating it much more positively than CIOs. "Digitization and smart technologies have great benefits for the business departments in their day-to-day work - the business clearly benefits. IT, on the other hand, has to manage increasing complexity and has less and less time to do so," explains Guido Kamann, Head of Capgemini in Switzerland.

Targeted change management ensures good results when using intelligent technologies

The successful use of intelligent technologies correlates with the intensity with which employees are informed, mobilized and qualified. Other success factors include defining a strategy, changing processes, restructuring and active technology management. Successful companies also operate their intelligent systems themselves more frequently than others. They generally perform significantly better than other companies in digitization and specifically in opening up new business areas in other industries.

Companies partly open to regulation of intelligent systems

The majority of study participants find it useful to give themselves ethical frameworks, to document the decisions of intelligent systems and to retain algorithms, which is already mandatory in some fields of application. The majority also agree with external verification of security measures against the manipulation of learning systems and the verification of training data with regard to discrimination. The latter could be carried out by external parties or an independent body within the company, as is common practice for other compliance issues.

Disclosure obligations for algorithms and the restriction of the operation of intelligent systems to European cloud providers meet with a divided response. In contrast, the majority rejects the disclosure of training data and the restriction of areas of use by legislators. "Companies that use smart technologies assume that they will lead to greater competitive pressure worldwide. They therefore see too many restrictions as a risk of falling behind internationally," explains Guido Kamann.

Technology trends 2020

The most important topic among the IT trends for 2020 is security automation, because security tasks are becoming more diverse and more extensive in the context of digitization and not least because of the DSGVO. In second to fifth place are the management of digital identities, the development of new platforms for sales, customer contact, ERP or the Internet of Things (IoT), protection against threats from IoT-enabled devices and the use of DevOps. Digital wallets, virtual or augmented reality solutions, and the digital twin have gained strongly in importance. The most significant increase in importance was in the topics of security automation and cognitive security, which are closely related.

Further results on IT trends 2020

• The use of intelligent technologies such as machine learning, predictive analytics or image recognition is making only slow progress. Problem number one is still the lack of suitable employees. However, the situation has eased slightly compared to last year.
• The use of cloud services has risen steadily over the past eight years. More than 70 percent of all IT services now come from a cloud.
• Service users currently rate their dependence on cloud providers as neither negligibly low nor worryingly high. However, more than three quarters expect it to increase in the future.
• Almost 61 percent of companies exchange data along their supply chain. However, they are very reluctant to share data with third parties - for example, partners outside the supply chain or competitors.
• In contrast to last year, this year's project list largely coincides with the priority list. Work is being done primarily on implementing the technologies that are currently the most important or have gained strongly in importance.

Source: Cap Gemini

Speaking to computers is the most natural human-machine interface - this is a key finding of the "Spitch Report: Speech Systems" study. This was recently presented by Spitch AG, one of the technologically leading developers and providers of speech systems for companies and public authorities. The systems of this Swiss company are already in use today in all major industries in which the use of speech technologies is particularly suitable. The report is based on a survey of 100 computer experts. 65 percent of them rated speech as by far the most natural way of dealing with modern computers. On the other hand, 37 percent (multiple answers were allowed) consider the touchscreen, as we know it from the smartphone, to be superior. 28 percent place their trust in the computer mouse, which was invented a good 35 years ago, and 26 percent clearly rely on the keyboard, whose roots go back to the 19th century.

Talking to computers: The most natural thing in the world

Bernd Martin from Spitch explains: "There is a good reason why we humans mostly communicate with each other via speech - because it is the easiest. Nevertheless, we also often write messages to each other. Similarly, when it comes to human-machine interfaces, what's best depends on the application. A smartphone screen is fine for reading, viewing pictures and videos, but for typing, speaking is a hundred times more comfortable than typing on the small screen, even for nimble fingers. It's also easy to replace a PC keyboard with good speech recognition; habit plays more of a role here."

Better understanding of the context

Crucial to the acceptance of speech input is - unsurprisingly - speech recognition. Thus, 85 percent of the experts surveyed by Spitch express confidence that the difficulties of correctly recognizing speech, even from difficult speakers, will gradually be solved through further development of the technology. After all, 55 percent of the experts are firmly convinced that in the future it will likewise be possible for systems to understand the context of dialog better and better and to react accordingly. Bernd Martin explains: "We humans start sentences, break them off, don't finish them at all or finish them completely differently. We speak in half-sentences, key words and usually refer directly or indirectly to what has already been said. The challenge is for the machine to recognize the meaning of more or less stammered half-sentences and to classify them correctly, or to find out what is meant and what needs to be done by asking appropriate questions. It will still be years before it is possible to converse with computer systems as casually as with a human being. But until then, there are a number of areas of application in which speech systems already function with a very high satisfaction rate. These include all kinds of directory assistance and ordering systems, customer service and, of course, call centers."

Touchscreen with two-part rating

The touchscreen, as we find it today not only in every smartphone but also in more and more cars and on vending machines, receives a split rating in the Spitch survey. 48 percent think that the touch-sensitive screen is definitely a good human-machine interface. But only 37 percent rate it as natural as spoken language, which is approved by 65 percent.

Source: Spitch Inc.

Natural events that prevent a transport, but also unavoidable events such as a strike, piracy or, most recently, the Corona virus, are subsumed under the term force majeure. However, the collapse of the Morandi Bridge in Genoa and the sinking of the rail bed near Raststatt would not a priori fall under this term, explained German specialist lawyer Frank Wilting and Genoa lawyer Enrico Modiglia. They were based on human errors, lack of maintenance, incorrect calculations, etc.

Force majeure does not always prevail in court

"Lawyers like to argue force majeure, but the courts have high standards," added Giovanna Montanaro of the Zurich law firm Wartmann Merker. A lively panel discussion on "Legal bases and contractual management of liability risks in force majeure" was moderated by Barbara Klett, an attorney in insurance and transport law and an active member of Ladies in Logistics Switzerland. The problem is often not solved with an exclusion of liability, as commercial considerations play a major role in the transport sector, she explained. In addition to liability steering measures, operational measures could also have a preventive effect.

The exciting practical examples and instructive seminars on the subject of "Force Majeure - where are the risks for the shipper?" provided many aha experiences, especially for non-legal specialists and managers. The different entrepreneurial backgrounds of the forum participants allowed a very diverse view of the problems and inspired the exchange of experiences.

Diverse range of topics

Other topics were also discussed at the SSC Forum, such as "Security in the Supply Chain", "Waiting Times in Container Terminals", "Shortage of Chauffeurs in Switzerland and Europe", "New Silk Road - Risk for the West?", "Documents Digitalization - Who is Responsible in the Company?", "Powder Keg Persian Gulf".

The event showed once again that many women have not yet recognized the value of such trade events for knowledge enhancement and networking. Female participation was - as usual in the logistics world - weak. However, this should not be accepted as a given, explained Susanne Biemer of the "Ladies in Logistics Switzerland" (LiLS). She used the platform to present the network and call on the logistics professionals present to motivate their female employees more to make themselves more visible. "The industry needs to become even more attractive to women. This would also help to alleviate the shortage of skilled workers," said Susanne Biemer.

The next Ladies in Logistics, Switzerland Lounge will take place on March 26 at the Verkehrsdrehscheibe Schweiz in Basel.

Click here to register

At this year's KMU Swiss Forum on March 19, 2020, successful personalities from various sectors and industries will once again speak about their experiences in a practical and timely manner. They will shed light on and discuss this year's theme of "upheaval in business and society" from various perspectives on keywords such as industry, trade, money, security, law, personnel, associations and sports. This year, 500 participants are expected, including various guests of honor and personalities from business and politics. "Our guests appreciate the high practical relevance of the presentations," says Armin Baumann, initiator and owner of KMU Swiss.

Diverse panel of speakers from business and society

We can assume that there will be an upheaval in the economy and society. What will be the challenges we will encounter in the private and social environment? "There will certainly be losers and winners. For me, it is certain that those who participate will be among the winners," says Armin Baumann. The aforementioned upheaval will be illuminated in different ways by the following speakers:

• Werner van Gent (Co-Founder Treffpunkt Orient and Reporter SRF)
• Ivano Somaini (Regional Manager Zurich Compass Security Schweiz AG)
• Atilla Vuran (Founder PONTEA AG)
• Rolf Härdi (CTIO DB Group Management)
• Daniel Fiechter (CIO STOBAG AG, Lecturer MAS Industry 4.0, FFHS)
• Beni Huggel (young entrepreneur and former Swiss football player)
• Britta Pukall (founder milani design & consulting AG) and Dirk Hoffmann (head of strategic projects Metall Zug Group)
• Rafael Waber (Managing Director SwissShrimp AG)

Public event following the meeting

Once again, the conference will be moderated by communications expert and journalist Dr. Hugo Bigi. During the breaks, there will be plenty of time for networking and discussions. Up to 40 company exhibitors will present themselves. Afterwards, the city of Baden invites all forum guests to the "Baden Marketplace". This year, the internationally sought-after pastor Corinne Dobler has been invited as a talk guest.

More information and tickets at: www.kmuswiss.ch/forum

With its second edition, the Swiss Cyber Security Days have established themselves as the reference platform for cyber security in Switzerland. "Apart from the international participants, the origin of the visitors - 50 % from German-speaking Switzerland, 40 % from French-speaking Switzerland and 10 % from Italian-speaking Switzerland - reflects the national character of our event," says Béat Kunz, CEO of SCSD. "Once again, we have succeeded in building bridges across the cyber-Rösti divide."

Cyber threats lurk everywhere

In almost all studies that ask about the greatest risks to society and the economy, cyber threats rank in the top three, alongside climate change and geopolitical threats. Alongside many new welcome achievements, the rapid digital transformation has also led to an enormous variety of threat scenarios. In a world where more and more objects are interconnected, information technology is becoming a critical infrastructure. The SCSD want to contribute to the controlled and secure development of digitalization, according to the organizers' goal. During the presentations of the forum program, nationally and internationally renowned experts spoke about a wide range of topics such as hyperconnectivity, 5G, the train of the future and the Internet of Things.

Decisive human factor

How well are Swiss companies armed against cyberattacks? Daniel Nussbaumer, head of the cybercrime department of the Zurich cantonal police, does not give companies a fundamentally bad report card. Nevertheless, he says, companies are still too often surprised by cyber incidents. "If attackers want to get into a company, they usually succeed," Nussbaumer said. Nicolas Mayencourt of Dreamlab Technologies points out that when it comes to increasingly perfect forgeries, such as of e-mails, all sensitization is no longer of any use. Common sense is increasingly called for. So: If an e-mail from your boss - even though it seems very real - doesn't seem quite "kosher," it's better to ask too many questions...

When you look at possible threat scenarios of the future, you might start to get scared. AI-controlled facial recognition coupled with automated decisions about "good" and "evil" with corresponding consequences: It's unthinkable if a machine could suddenly give a kill order. Ideally, a human being would still have to remain as the final moral authority, so the demand goes.

Swiss Cyber Security Days for exchange of experience

An exciting aspect for SCSD visitors was the exchange of experiences with companies that have already experienced major cyber attacks themselves. One of these was the global logistics service provider Maersk, which was hit by the "notpety" malware in 2017. For days and weeks, it took painstaking manual work to find out again where which shipping container was at any given time and what it contained. Worldwide - around 25 percent of the global flow of goods is connected in some way with Maersk - the movement of goods was affected by this attack. Or the example of Wetzikon Hospital, which was affected by the "emotet" malware, showed how cyberattacks can no longer simply damage IT infrastructure, but can become a direct threat to life and limb. The exchange of such information between companies, emergency services, the armed forces and political authorities was the main focus of this year's SCSD.

Training the cyber specialists of tomorrow

As the most important innovation of the 2020 edition, the SCSD placed a special focus on training and innovation. Switzerland currently has a shortage of around 40,000 cybersecurity experts. "Creating adequate training courses is crucial," explains Doris Fiala, president of the SCSD. "Cybercrime has already caused financial damage of 5 billion francs in Switzerland, and the risk is increasing every day." Béat Kunz adds, "This year we offered a special Education and Innovation Pavilion. By bringing young people and universities together, we hope to contribute to the education of young Swiss talent." The examples mentioned showed that the problems created by cyberattacks could only be solved with a high level of human resources. As part of the free program for students, 300 people now took the opportunity to discover the various Swiss universities and universities of applied sciences at the Cyber Education Stage and to meet innovative start-ups at the Swiss Pavilion for Cyber Innovation, which was organized in collaboration with innosuisse.

Combating cyber risks is international

A look at the international perspective concluded the SCSD. A high-level international panel in collaboration with the World Economic Forum's Centre for Cybersecurity (C4C) brought together Sir Rob Wainwright, Senior Partner at Deloitte and former Director of Europol; Andy Powell, CISO at MAERSK; Alois Zwinggi, Managing Director of the World Economic Forum and Head of the Centre for Cybersecurity (C4C); Monique J. Morrow, President of The Humanized Internet and the VETRI Foundation; and SCSD President Doris Fiala. The speakers discussed opportunities for global cybersecurity cooperation and the opportunities and risks of international digital connectivity.

The next Swiss Cyber Security Days will take place on March 10 and 11, 2021, again at the Forum Fribourg.

More information

ELO Digital Office CH AG in Wallisellen is one of the oldest and largest locations of the globally active manufacturer for enterprise content management (ECM) from Stuttgart. Now there is a change in the branch management: Samuel Schweizer succeeds Helmar Steinmann.

Samuel Schweizer wants to carry success into the future

Samuel Schweizer joined ELO Digital Office CH AG back in 2018 as Head of Sales. In this role, he was responsible for sales activities and the support of ELO Business Partners. Since then, he has already been able to win two new Business Partners as sales partners for ELO solutions. At the beginning of the year, he has now taken on the role of branch manager. "I am convinced that I have found a worthy successor in Samuel Schweizer, who will carry the previous successful course into the future," emphasizes predecessor Helmar Steinmann.

In the application simple ECM systems

The new branch manager is very familiar with the Swiss ECM market and is well connected in the industry. He sees great potential for ELO CH: "Due to legal regulators, especially in data protection, many companies are forced to adapt their working methods and processes. Here, ELO offers excellent business solutions such as the digital personnel file, digital contract management and a solution for digital invoice processing, which are quickly introduced and, above all, easy to use," explains Schweizer. The aim, he says, is to establish these with senior decision-makers in a wide range of business contexts. In addition, he wants to further expand and - where necessary - optimize support in operations, projects, and sales.

More information at: www.elo.swiss

Things seem to be pretty impersonal in companies in Germany: More than a quarter of all employees in companies in our northern neighbor have never met their CEO in person. This was the result of a recent survey conducted by the software provider Unit4 among German companies with up to 1000 employees. In the survey, 27 percent of the employees questioned said they had never had any kind of contact with their managing director. In addition, less than half of the survey participants, 46 percent, have met their managing director in a one-to-one situation. The most important management personality in the company is thus not tangible for a large proportion of employees.

If the boss communicates only by circular....

The study suggests that the CEO of a company appears to many employees as an aloof and isolated personality. Sometimes employees even perceive him or her only as a shadowy and elusive figure who cannot be associated with any concrete ideas or corporate values. For example, only 34 percent of respondents said they had ever received an e-mail from management - and in these cases, the e-mails were merely impersonal e-mail circulars sent throughout the company. E-mails from their managing director addressed personally to them or to a manageable group were even received by only 28 percent of the participants surveyed.

Faceless boss acts as a deterrent

The results are based on the study "Decision Making for the Future Business Report; Who Calls the Shots in the Business of Tomorrow?" by Unit4 and Opinium. For this survey, employees from around the world were asked about the leadership culture in their company. The survey was conducted in the UK, USA, Germany, Sweden, Norway, Canada and the Netherlands. The figures given here refer to the information provided by survey participants from Germany.

Particularly with regard to the modern working world, the study results cast a rather critical light on many CEOs: For young employees of generations Y and Z, who value flat hierarchies and identification with the company, an inaccessible and faceless CEO often has a deterrent effect.

Rethinking old role models

Today, transparency and a direct line to the employees are much more in demand. The CEO must inspire the workforce, promote team spirit and pursue the company's goals together with colleagues at eye level. Old role models, according to which tasks were rigidly distributed from above, are obsolete. The results of the survey show: It is becoming increasingly important for managing directors to involve employees in decision-making in order to exploit their potential.

Mike Ettling, CEO of Unit4: "The elusive CEO is found in companies all over the world. Hardly anyone has ever seen him, heard of him or had anything to do with him. But when the CEO loses touch with employees, so does their connection to the company. Important goals remain vague due to a lack of communication. This situation should change as soon as possible."

Focus on employees

Mike Ettling continues: "The gap between management and employees also leads to employees displaying lower motivation. Productivity and ultimately business success suffer as a result. A rigid, strictly hierarchical corporate structure is simply no longer in keeping with the times. New approaches are needed for productive cooperation and future innovations." Companies should therefore abandon traditional management methods. Today, the focus should be on the employees and supporting them in their development. This can uncover enormous potential for the business. Technology can play a part in changing the corporate culture so that employees are motivated and confident in taking on responsibility, the CEO of Unit4 continues.

Source and further information

The founders of Chainwork want to further strengthen Switzerland as a business location as a global hub in the technology world. "Chainwork supports the digital transformation of companies and offers the Swiss economy unique access to forward-looking and disruptive technologies. We focus on cooperation and knowledge transfer between startups, investors, technology companies, and Swiss SMEs and corporations," says Alex von Mühlenen, CEO and founder of Chainwork.

Support tech movement

The well-connected young entrepreneur created the basis for a platform with Chainwork about a year ago, which is intended to support the Swiss startup ecosystem with targeted consolidation. Von Mühlenen elaborates: "Switzerland is a hotspot for technological innovation and very well positioned in global competition. However, we see a problem in the current fragmentation of the individual economic players. We want to counteract this fragmentation with Chainwork."

Cooperation instead of competition

Located in Zurich's Seefeld district, the company's HUB covers over 1800 m2 with a large coworking space, a modern event venue and a living room with its own bar-café concept. Alex von Mühlenen emphasizes: "We want to offer technology-savvy creatives and like-minded people an exciting framework for networking and community building. Chainwork is to become a meeting point and cross-generational meeting place for the tech and corporate world." With its coworking space, various event series and a startup support program, Chainwork is its own interactive ecosystem, wherein the digital transformation of Swiss companies is to accelerate. "The synergies of our business units make us unique. At the same time, we also represent an open platform which is designed for cooperation and capable of integrating further ecosystems."

Recognize challenges of the market

With his company, Alex von Mühlenen relies on proven big names in Swiss business. Unlike other providers of startup support, Chainwork has explicitly commercial aspects. Von Mühlenen emphasizes: "It's not just 'good' ideas from startups that count. These must also be practical and meet the real needs of companies by anticipating commercial interests." Accordingly, Chainwork places great emphasis on careful curation and coordination of the companies that make up its pool of members: "Quality trumps quantity for us. We see ourselves as a boutique label for forward-looking collaborations between innovators and investors who see eye-to-eye," says Alex von Mühlenen.

Information: www.chainwork.com

Zizzz is a young Swiss textile company that has already conquered the market with sustainably produced, innovative baby sleeping bags. The mission: to provide customers with a more restful and healthy sleep with sustainably produced bedding. All products are therefore made from one hundred percent natural, renewable materials such as wool, down and organic cotton. Now the company has expanded its portfolio. The product family now includes comforters, sleeping bags, blankets and bedding made from the aforementioned materials. The products are sold directly online without intermediaries to offer the most attractive prices. The innovative concept of Zizzz includes the use of Swisswool. With the help of this patented filling material made of Swiss virgin wool, the company aims to provide its users with a better and healthier sleep.

A banker with a flair for natural products

It all started seven years ago with the idea for better baby sleeping bags. When former banker Roel van Gasselt first became a family man, he noticed that they mostly used polyester as a filling material. "It's totally unsuitable for healthy sleep," van Gasselt says. "Polyester is a plastic fiber that is used for clothing, but also just for Coke and ketchup bottles. It wasn't invented for a good night's sleep; it's used by designers because it's cheap." As an avid skier, on the other hand, he knew from his sportswear the good insulating properties of wool, a natural product. Because it is permeable to air and moisture, it keeps you warm in winter and cool in summer.

Wool for bedding

That's how the innovative filling material Swisswool came into the baby sleeping bags and is also today an important part of the entire Zizzz product family. It consists of 88 % Swiss virgin wool, reinforced with plant fibers. This unique blend makes the material as temperature and moisture regulating as the natural product, while also being washable. By buying Swisswool, Zizzz thus contributes to the care of the Swiss Alpine landscape, as controlled sheep grazing prevents erosion. In addition, the regular purchase at a fair price ensures the continuation of traditional Swiss sheep farming.

Sustainability throughout the value chain

"Local production, sustainability and environmental awareness are in all our products - so users can not only sleep more restfully and healthily, but also with a clear conscience," says the Swiss company founder with Dutch roots. For example, the down feathers come from Eastern Europe and have the Downpass label. This means they come neither from live plucking nor from stuffed fattening. In addition to ecological sustainability, Zizzz also focuses on social responsibility: The logistics partner for direct sales is the mail-order business of the Bürgerspital Basel, which offers adapted jobs to people with disabilities.

Information: www.zizzz.ch