Usually, the reason for a strategy workshop is that decision-makers in the top management of a company have the vague feeling: "We have to do something or change something so that we can achieve the desired success in the medium and long term." But it is still unclear what needs to be done. So a strategy workshop is scheduled.

Why should the workshop take place?

Whoever is entrusted with the preparation of a strategy workshop must know its occasion. For example, if the company does not yet have a strategy, one must be developed. If, on the other hand, the existing strategy is to be reviewed, the priority is to monitor its success. And does the company want to develop its strategy further? Then the focus is on assessments of market developments or technical developments.

Sometimes the strategy discussion is not about strategy at all. This is often the case, in particular, when operating results are declining or the decision-makers have the feeling: Something is fundamentally going wrong. People often talk about the need for a new strategy. But in fact, the players are looking for a quick solution to a problem that is only partially understood.

What do you need to consider?

Once the occasion for the strategy workshop is known, its planning can begin - by asking yourself the following questions, among others:

Aim of the workshop

• What is the result or goal to be achieved and is it achievable?
• Which target/interest groups need to be considered?
• What signal should be sent to them?

Workshop framework

• Which people should be invited?
• When should the strategy workshop take place?
• What data base should be available at the meeting?
• What data and information still needs to be obtained?
• How does it come to budgeting, release of activities and costs incurred due to the potential decisions?

Necessary reconciliations

• Who needs to be involved in the planning in advance?
• What are the expectations of the notified participants for the workshop?
• How is communication going to stakeholders who are not participating in the workshop? 

Open up the strategy process?

The viability of strategic decisions depends heavily on the quality of the underlying information and thought models. Therefore, workshop planners should - if possible - open the strategy development process to outside influences.

This starts in your own organization by not only involving people who need to be involved because of their function. Ask yourself: Which people should participate in the workshop so that the intended goals are achieved?

It is usually advisable to involve the following groups of people in the opinion-forming and decision-making process associated with strategy development:

• Decision maker - in other words, the people who ultimately call the shots in the organization qua function,
• Knowledge carrier - i.e., the people in the organization who have a sound technical and experiential knowledge of the issues involved in strategy development (e.g., related to the needs of the target customers, existing IT structure),
• Experts - i.e. external consultants who, for example, have in-depth know-how about (anticipated) future technological development and/or market development,
• Multipliers - in other words, the people in one's own organization who, once the strategic decisions have been made, have to communicate them to the employees in everyday operations, for example, and win them over as comrades-in-arms.

Companies often proceed according to the maxim of secrecy - especially when strategic decisions have to be made due to past failures. Consultants are then often commissioned to bring in missing know-how while maintaining confidentiality in order to remedy deficiencies. This makes sense! Under no circumstances, however, should decision-makers forget to involve representatives of their own organization in the strategy work, since they - unlike external experts or consultants - know the strengths and weaknesses of the company, for example in the areas of innovation, customer orientation and product development. In addition, knowledge carriers, for example, are more supportive of strategic decisions if representatives of them have been involved in the process.

Hire neutral workshop facilitators?

The participants in strategy workshops usually have a different view of the problem due to their professional biography and function in the organization. This means that they have different assessments of what is necessary, sensible and expedient, and thus reach different conclusions. Accordingly, it is important to have a neutral person who moderates the opinion-forming and decision-making process so that it ends with strategic decisions that are supported by all participants. 

To the author: Kevin Pfander works as a strategy and change consultant for the management consultancy Dr. Kraus & Partner, Bruchsal near Karlsruhe, which supports companies worldwide in developing and implementing their strategy (www.kraus-und-partner.de).

In April and May, the leading online B2B marketplace in Switzerland, Germany and Austria, "Wer liefert was", together with the Kloepfel Group, a service provider for purchasing for SMEs, surveyed 1,413 purchasing managers from the DACH region. Half of those surveyed believe that digitization is leading to a variety of roles, tasks and responsibilities in purchasing at companies. Just under a quarter (24%) still see people as the central factor in purchasing in the future. However, as many as 10 percent believe that the advancing development of technologies will ensure that procurement processes are fully automated and that purchasing in its current form will no longer occur. A full 87 percent believe that advances in digitization will improve purchasing.

Digitization influences all areas of the company

"Digitalization is becoming more and more prevalent in all areas of the company, or is already firmly anchored in some areas. It is also advancing in purchasing, which means that this area is taking on a key role," explains Doreen Schlicht, CMO & Human Resources at Wer liefert was. "However, the human factor remains the driver of development. Therefore, further training in purchasing remains enormously important for purchasing success, both in terms of digitalization know-how and negotiation skills," warns Heidrun Meder, Head of Group Recruiting & Employer Branding Kloepfel Group.

New technologies change the job profile of the buyer

More than half of the purchasing managers surveyed (53%) think that supply chain automation will have the greatest impact on changing the job description of buyers. Coming in second at 14 percent is the use of artificial intelligence. Augmented and virtual reality are perceived by only two percent as noteworthy technologies for purchasing. In contrast, almost no one believes that chatbots will play an important role in purchasing in the future (0.78%). "In times of digital networking, increasing pressure to innovate and an extremely high development speed, buyers have to open up and adapt to new technologies in order to keep up," says Doreen Schlicht. "It is therefore quite positive that the survey participants are increasingly understanding the increasing requirements and growing complexity," says Schlicht.

Source and further information: "Who supplies what"

First, there was a bit of a wait at the Paul Klee Center in Bern, where this year's Swiss Employer Awards ceremony was to take place. After a delay of about 45 minutes - some of the speakers at the HR congress that had taken place earlier must have overrun their speaking time - the award ceremony was able to begin. And in "unbernian" speed this was then also pulled through.

Smaller companies have more satisfied employees

Beforehand, Sven Bühler explained some of the findings of this year's employee surveys. He is the managing director of the survey and consulting institute icommit GmbH, which is responsible for conducting and designing the survey. "The digitalization and globalization tsunami has arrived in more and more companies," is Sven Bühler's first comprehensive conclusion. And one consequence of this, he says, is that more and more is being fundamentally questioned in companies. However: The Swiss Employer Award study clearly shows that employees still want clear leadership. However, this leadership must be able to communicate credibly, appreciatively and transparently to the workforce, as the survey results also show. "Strategy is the most important topic in connection with commitment," explained Sven Bühler. Looking at the individual questions, the answer "The management exemplifies the company values" makes the biggest difference in the rating between the best and the most critically rated employers. "Management has sufficient contact with employees" and "There is a good spirit in this company" follow directly behind. Only one economic aspect, namely "The company can look to the future with confidence," is equally important to the respondents. Another conclusion of the survey: Employees in smaller companies tend to be more satisfied than in large ones.

Increase resilience

On the other hand, the employees surveyed were less optimistic about future prospects, job security and the responsiveness of their employers to external changes. Accordingly, the promotion of resilience in companies is becoming more important. VUCA, an acronym for Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity and Ambiguity, also means there is no longer 100 percent certainty, he said. "Management can only prepare for as many eventualities as possible. Correspondingly, companies and also employees must be resilient today. This is why resilience and its promotion are playing an increasingly important role," says Bühler. Resilience in the company can be strengthened in a targeted manner. This is shown by the change in the behavior of the management of many companies. Management communicates much more openly, promotes a culture of trust, active ideas, and personal responsibility. In addition, there are fewer and fewer ready-made recipes and solutions. "Today, leadership means setting guidelines or setting an example of clear values, thus creating a framework within which employees can move more freely. This also goes hand in hand with a change in incentives that promotes the "we" instead of the "I. All of this strengthens the company's resilience," Bühler believes.

Recognize own construction sites

Award winners and all the other companies that took part agree: A neutral employee survey can tell a lot about the state of the corporate culture. "We can now see better how we compare with other companies," says a representative of a medium-sized service company that took part for the first time this year. They can also see where they still need to catch up and where there are "construction sites". Thomas Ulrich from CASCADA Hotel & BOLERO Restaurante, the winner among the small companies, says: "The main ingredient in our recipe for success is our in-house Kaskade values. We cherish these among ourselves, which leads to a great atmosphere across departments." Petra Tscharner from the Baumann Koelliker Group, the winner among the large companies with over 1,000 employees, adds: "We live a family-like, helpful as well as positive corporate culture - a traditional down-to-earth company with pizzazz and heart."

The winners of the Swiss Employer Awards 2018

Category 1000+ employees:

1. Baumann Koelliker Group
2. Luzerner Kantonalbank AG
3. SFS Group AG

Category 250-999 employees:

1. Ergon Informatik AG
2. Liechtenstein Old Age and Sickness Assistance (LAK)
3. Bossard AG

Category 100-249 employees:

1. Hotel Hof Weissbad AG
2. Vocational School Chur
3. Enz Group AG

Category 50-99 employees:

1. CASCADA Hotel & BOLERO Restaurante
2. Chestonag Automation AG
3. Casino Bad Ragaz AG

More information: www.swissarbeitgeberaward.ch

Since last April, Valiant has been working with the Lucerne-based company KLARA (klara.ch), offering its SME clients a link between their accounts in eBanking and this solution developed specifically for SMEs. Now it is taking another step in simplifying financial life for SMEs. Companies can now also link their eBanking accounts with Bexio. More than 15,000 customers make Bexio one of the market leaders in cloud-based business software for Swiss SMEs.

More than the standard

Valiant offers its customers more than a standard connection to Bexio. Thanks to an innovative "Open Authorization" process, SMEs only need to link their eBanking accounts to Bexio once. Subsequently, bank account transactions are automatically loaded into Bexio on a daily basis, where they are synchronized with the accounting items. Payments are transferred to eBanking with just a few clicks and finally only need to be approved. With this user-friendly connection, the normally large reconciliation effort is reduced to a minimum and the entrepreneur has an up-to-date overview of his company's finances at all times.

First steps in Open Banking

At the same time as Bexio, the connection to KLARA is also being improved with the above-mentioned benefits. The bank is thus delivering further digitized processes that create added value for the SME and support it in its digitization. With the improved link with Bexio and KLARA, the financial services provider is taking further steps in the direction of open banking - always with the aim of simplifying the financial lives of its customers.

More information: valiant.ch/businessnet

On September 19, the winner of the Family Business Award 2018 was selected at the festive awards ceremony in the Kursaal in Bern. The award was established by AMAG in honor of its founder and patron Walter Haefner. Haefner had always been committed to a genuine, lived and sustainable corporate culture. The purpose of the Family Business Award is to draw attention to the great economic importance of family businesses in Switzerland. This year, the following three family businesses were in the running as finalists: 1a hunkeler fenster AG & 1a hunkeler holzbau AG from Ebikon, Balance Familie AG from Meisterschwanden, and Bühler Electricté SA from Monthey. The winning company was selected by a ten-member jury made up of renowned personalities. This year, the jury was chaired by Dr. Karin Lenzlinger Diedenhofen, delegate to the Board of Directors and owner of Lenzlinger Söhne AG.

Over 200 years of company history

In the presence of more than 260 guests from politics and business, the Hunkeler family was finally able to enjoy the award. The traditional Lucerne company - its history began in 1774 with a small carpentry shop - is now run by the eighth generation; the ninth is already in the starting blocks. With currently more than 60 employees and apprentices, 1a hunkeler achieves top performance in wood and window construction, according to the company. In addition to prestigious projects such as the total renovation of the Chapel Bridge, which burned down in 1993, the company is also involved in product developments. One of these is the TOP-WIN window, which, thanks to sophisticated bonding technology and filigree profiles, allows a significantly higher incidence of light. Also clear for the Hunkeler family is the topic of energy saving. The operation of the wood heating system with chips, LED lighting throughout the company and the photovoltaic system on the company roof enable sustainable production. The Lucerne-based family business also conscientiously fulfills its social responsibility in society and towards employees, apprentices and disadvantaged people.

Tradition of the Family Business Award

For the Hunkeler family, the focus is not on short-term results, but on long-term success. For them, the spirit of innovation and a sense of tradition are not contradictory - they are symbols of the company's development. As an exemplary company, 1a hunkeler fenster AG & 1a hunkeler holzbau AG joins the ranks of previous award winners: Jucker Farm AG (2017), Fraisa SA (2016), Wyon AG (2015), Entreprises et Domaines Rouvinez (2014), SIGA Holding (2013) and Trisa AG (2012). All three of this year's finalists received a Family Business Award certificate attesting to their particularly sustainable entrepreneurial activities. In addition, the companies received a new VW Arteon R-Line, which will accompany the finalists for one year. As this year's winning company, 1a hunkeler fenster AG & 1a hunkeler holzbau AG also get to keep the vehicle.

Despite the challenges of digital transformation, companies are focusing on expanding their core business. It is disproportionately more important to them to develop this core business further (52 %) than to tackle new business areas (26 %). Instead of promoting the self-organization of teams (17 %), companies therefore tend to optimize their existing processes (64 %). Increasing efficiency is also higher on the agenda as a result (62 %) than expanding agility (48 %).

Tensions despite integration

Nevertheless, more and more employees are involved in digital projects in addition to their operational tasks. This creates tensions: 86 percent of those surveyed noted conflicts in prioritization between project and line tasks, and 80 percent complained about unclear responsibilities in management. This is revealed by the current empirical study by Hays and PAC on the areas of tension in the digital transformation. In the view of the respondents, three points in particular are hindering digital transformation. First, managers find it difficult to change their leadership style (61 %). Second, core business still takes up too much time (60 %) and third, departments are still characterized by insular thinking (59 %).

Inflexible organizational structures

"Many companies have tackled digitization and established projects to this end. But the existing organizational structures are proving too inflexible to drive the new topics forward. This balancing act of dealing with innovative topics in conventional structures is a burden on companies. What is needed here is more courage to take new paths," says Klaus Breitschopf, CEO of Hays AG, commenting on the results of the study.

For the study "Between efficiency and agility. Under Tension: Business Units in Digitalization" by Hays and PAC, 226 executives from IT, Finance and Research & Development departments from companies of various sizes and from different industries were interviewed by telephone.

Source: www.hays.de

If you want to succeed as an influencer in social media, "you have to be able to identify trends quickly and implement them at lightning speed," keynote speaker Julia Graf told the illustrious audience at the Tonhalle St.Gallen. Julia Graf should know: After all, she is Switzerland's most successful influencer. Her YouTube videos with beauty and lifestyle tips have been clicked 184 million times so far.

Quickly recognizing what is at stake and applying the right tools in practice from the pool of learned theory at lightning speed: This is what the 52 teams who qualified for the WTT Young Leader Award 2018 with practical projects in market research and management conception had to do. As a rule, they put in at least 800 working hours in one semester to do so. Six student teams were ennobled with the nomination for the award, and two have now been crowned.

Concrete recommendations for action

The victory in the market research category went to the team that conducted a multi-stage survey for its client Rhomberg Schmuck from Marbach to find out how the customers of one of the largest Swiss jewelry manufacturers shop today. The result: highly diverse. While the Rhomberg catalog is still important for older customers, younger customers inform themselves via social media channels. But one thing is the same for all age groups, as FHS student Bernhard Oberholzer noted: "Trying on jewelry and getting individual advice is high on everyone's list." The recommended action of combining the advantages of online presence with the strengths of the branch network with "click and collect" is therefore already being implemented.

Second place went to a team that clarified the market potential of a new drug for Bioforce, a Roggwil-based manufacturer of herbal medicines. Third place went to a market research project for Thyssenkrupp Materials Switzerland, which wants to supply metals to medical technology companies.

International exchange

Many of the practical projects vying for the WTT Young Leader Award are international collaborations, and the project teams are made up of students from different countries. This is also the case with the winning project in the management concept category. Together with colleagues from Shanghai University, FHS students investigated the flow of medicines in Chinese hospitals for Swisslog Shanghai, a company that specializes in automating the supply of medicines. FHS student Ferdinand Gross, as project leader, spoke of "countless hurdles" that had to be overcome in this intercultural project. The team invested a good 2,000 working hours in their project, the fillet piece of which was probably the difficult field study in a hospital in Shanghai. "The problem was that the interviewees didn't want to give any information at all," said project coach Andreas Löhrer, adding that the students therefore had to work their way to the desired information using indirect questions.

In the second-place project, a measuring instrument was created that the Romanshorn-based integration company Brüggli can use to document its impact. Third place went to the team that developed a bonus system for managers at M&M Militzer & Münch International Holding in St.Gallen that integrates different incentives in different cultures.

Get-together of current and future leaders

The head of the FHS Knowledge Transfer Office and host of the event, Prof. Peter Müller, welcomed around 650 participants, including many invited guests from business, science and politics. After the ceremony, these cultivated an intensive exchange at the aperitif. The special thing about one of the most important networking events in eastern Switzerland: The focus is not on the present leaders of today, but on the students of the FHS who are preparing to be the leaders of tomorrow.

Information about the winners and their projects is available at here.

Under the motto "Running instead of golfing", the Swiss Management Run offers an exclusive annual platform for sports and for exchanging ideas with executives and business contacts. The Arosa area offers participants the opportunity for individual business meetings and incentives.

Making decisions as a team

This year's edition took place on September 14. "Successful leadership is a group marathon and we must not forget that in management," said Bernhard Heusler, Honorary President of FC Basel and Partner at HWH. He made clear how important it is to make joint decisions as a team and to bear the consequences. A joint decision on a strict reform course was also made by SRG SSR. Bakel Walden, Director of Development and Offerings, describes the "No-Billag" vote as a "near-death experience" despite the positive outcome. In the marathon of change, he sees SRG currently still at the start of the race: "We have just reached kilometer 4.5." Both Heusler and Walden independently emphasized the importance of keeping a healthy distance from negative external criticism. One should not try to please all "complainers," they said. "If we at SRG could walk on water, our critics would say: They can't even swim," said Walden.

Dealing openly with critical issues

Wolfgang Walter Wulle, Akilas Werte AG and SKO career consultant, believes that successful relationships with oneself, in one's private and professional environment, are the key to a successful life. Exerting pressure is the worst way for managers to bring employees to high performance. The core of all motivation is to receive or give recognition, appreciation and attention. In many companies, people work alongside each other instead of with each other and for each other, according to Wulle. An open approach to critical issues, appreciative communication and a feedback culture are essential for a healthy and productive way of working.

More information: Swiss Management Run

Will everything be different for the "Generation next"? Around 300 participants eagerly awaited the answer at the anniversary edition of the KMU SWISS Podium on September 13, 2018 in the Campus Hall in Brugg-Windisch. From the perspective of Pascal Scherrer, Head of Journalism at Radio SRF3, Generation Y functions differently than all other generations. This requires an adjustment of the leadership style. "Generation Y is self-confident and impatient. It is important to find the right mix of encouraging and challenging," says Pascal Scherrer.

Generation Y

Born in the 80s to early 2000s, Generation Y is one of the first to grow up in the digital world, the so-called "digital natives". The letter Y ("Why") refers to. "This generation questions many things and wants to leave a footprint on the world," Pascal Scherrer explains further. For Armin Baumann, initiator of KMU SWISS, one thing is certain: "We cannot change the past, but we can act in the present and influence the future. The mentality of the next generation and also the resources will change. I see it as our duty to adapt our management style and business models accordingly."

Influence of Generation Y on cultural events

Nadja Hauser, founder and director of the largest circus festival in Switzerland, the "Interna-tional Circus Festival YOUNG STAGE Basel", predicts in her presentation: "Serious and entertaining culture will merge more and more. Generation Y has started to collaborate with other genres such as ballet, modern dance or opera. New formats are emerging. Content is becoming more substantial."

Innovation

Much innovation is also needed in the health insurance industry, as a presentation by Dr. Thomas J. Grichting, secretary general of Groupe Mutuel, shows. "We need innovative solutions because health insurance premiums are forecast to double by 2030." With their new innovation strategy, they are looking for new, fresh ideas and want to achieve one thing above all: a good, affordable healthcare system, regulated competition and no state medicine.

Artificial intelligence: What are humans capable of?

"The patient of the future wants to manage his or her own health and be involved in treatment decisions. Artificial intelligence (AI) could save our healthcare system," Grichting reported. Christian Fehrlin, CEO Deep Impact, illustrated how artificial intelligence will change the world in his presentation. "Many processes are being digitized and replaced by AI. Repetitive work in particular is affected. So the future is already a reality. But it will still take about four years until the computing power of AI reaches the performance of a brain." Eduardo Strauch Urioste showed in his impressive and emotionally charged presentation what a human being is capable of. He was one of the survivors of the 1972 plane crash in the Andes. "We survived 72 days at an altitude of 4,000 meters. During that time we had to make important and difficult decisions, stick together as a team and never lose hope. It's incredible what the human brain and body are capable of in such a situation."

Successful conclusion

The various presentations and also the panel discussion with Franz Grüter, National Councillor and VRP green.ch, Ronald Christen, CEO Loeb AG, Pascal Scherrer and Armin Baumann stimulated interesting discussions at the concluding flying dinner. The program was moderated by Tamara Sedmak. For the first time, the event was broadcast live on the KMU SWISS TV channel. However, the broadcast did not replace the numerous valuable discussions during the breaks and dinner as well as at the numerous booths.

Source and further information: SME Swiss

AI is leading to an evolution in the job market that will be positive with the right preparation. Based on its research and experience, staffing firm Michael Page recommends four key ways for candidates to take advantage of this long-term trend and future-proof their careers.

1. create your virtual resume

The days of the CV as we know it are numbered. The CV of the future will be a personalized, interactive space powered by AI. It outlines a cloud-based but private, data-protected space that provides access to candidates' professional references, project reports, publications, and video data. The material is secured with a blockchain as immutable evidence of past experiences and successes. It is designed to be scanned by AI to assess the suitability of the profile for a job description (and vice versa).

2. follow the money: mathematics, computer science, natural science and technology (MINT)

Jérôme Bouin, Managing Director, PageGroup, explains: "We are seeing an increasing shortage of talent and corresponding competition for this talent, particularly in the fields of engineering, technology, mathematics and IT. For example, the Michael Page Swiss Job Index showed year-over-year growth of 29 % for engineers and 39 % for IT professionals in August 2017-2018. With few exceptions, this will only continue to increase over the next 10 years."

3. Commit to lifelong learning and sustainable development.

As people get older and stay in the workforce longer, it is impossible for a single educational qualification acquired in childhood and early adulthood to be sufficient for a long-term, 60-year professional career. Employees of all ages must be prepared to continually upgrade their skills as jobs in most fields become more complex - a trend that is unlikely to change. Companies that don't support continuing education run the risk of being left behind, as employees favor those who do.

4. work on your problem solving skills

The increasing use of AI means that some of the day-to-day tasks, such as answering emails and data entry, will be handled by intelligent assistants. Employees with soft skills and technology expertise to solve business problems are increasingly in demand. For this reason, IT companies are employing or rewarding hackers, for example, with so-called hacker bonuses to find vulnerabilities in their systems. Likewise, employers are increasingly interested in people with professional experience in different countries and cultures, which they can bring to bear in solving problems.

According to Michael Page's study, human skills will continue to be employers' greatest asset.

Source: Michael Page

The Swiss Venture Club (SVC) has been serving small and medium-sized enterprises for 18 years. Today, with over 3,000 members from all industries and regions, it offers one of the largest and most important networks for entrepreneurs in Switzerland. It brings together innovative personalities from business, science, politics, media and culture and enables them to establish high-quality contacts. In addition, by regularly awarding the Prix SVC entrepreneurial prize, it creates public awareness for their achievements and encourages the exchange of ideas. In this way, it promotes entrepreneurship and thus makes its contribution to a successful Switzerland.

Successful fiscal year 2017/2018

The Swiss Venture Club can look back on a successful business year 2017/2018. Together with the new board members, who were elected at the last general meeting, the SVC president, Andreas Gerber, is doing everything in his power to continue the success of the club and to develop it further in the future. Already at the beginning of the year, at a strategy day of the SVC board, it was decided to be able to offer a broader range of services to the members. In order to achieve this goal, the association was realigned: A more modern, fresh and dynamic image, which includes, among other things, a new website (from summer 2019) and active networking on social media channels, should contribute to the modernization of SVC and inspire existing and new members. Furthermore, women, young female entrepreneurs and entrepreneurs will be targeted. To achieve all this, in addition to the proven "Prix SVC", three new fields of activity; "SVC Inspiration", "SVC Impulse", "SVC Dialog" have been defined. In addition, the SVC is lowering its membership fees for corporate members.

Farewell and new elections

In the ordinary agenda item of the General Meeting, a long-serving member of the Board, Mr. Pierre-Olivier Chave, was bidden farewell. Heinrich Christen and Marc Werner were re-elected to the board by the assembly.

Information: www.swiss-venture-club.ch

Swiss foreign trade has undergone enormous shifts in the past three decades. Emerging markets such as China and India, which were still considered "distant neighbors" in the early 1990s, have overtaken important markets such as France, Italy and the United Kingdom. China is currently the third most important target country. Orders in the web store from these new, large markets have long since become the rule, no longer the exception. But what about the assessment of the creditworthiness of companies from China, for example?

Caution with higher sums

In principle, the same basic rule applies as in domestic business, irrespective of the provenance. The creditworthiness of the customer must be checked depending on the order volume. In the case of five-digit or higher sums, it is important to exercise particular caution and not to be blinded by the prospect of a good deal. On the online portal of Creditreform creditworthiness information for companies from almost all countries in the world is available in the shortest possible time. The database, which is maintained and continuously supplemented by a 50-strong team of the partner organization Creditreform International in cooperation with numerous country services, offers assessments on more than 30 million companies worldwide.

Require deposit as security

Especially for companies from emerging markets such as China, India, or Brazil with their volatile markets, creditworthiness information is absolutely essential, even for customers with whom one has been doing business for a long time. The payment terms are also very important. If there is a green light after the credit check, it is ensured that the customer is very likely to be able to pay the invoice. After that, it's a matter of setting the terms and conditions. Especially for new customers or when there is the slightest doubt, it makes sense to demand a down payment as security.

To the author:

Raoul Egeli has been President of the Swiss Creditreform Association since 2008 and President of Creditreform International since 2014, as well as a member of the Chamber of Commerce of the SGV. He is also Managing Director of the Creditreform Egeli companies in Basel, St. Gallen and Zurich. From 2009 to 2013, he was the central president of TREUHAND|SUISSE. Raoul Egeli is the author of several specialist books on the subject of credit and receivables management. www.creditreform.ch