For some dogs, accompanying their owners to work is quite normal - but unfortunately the reality is that many beloved pups have to stay at home. The compatibility of job and dog is therefore often not possible. However, studies now show that dogs at work have a positive influence on the working atmosphere. With the campaign "Dogs on Board- for dog-friendly workplaces", the animal welfare organization Vier Pfoten wants to encourage companies to become more dog-friendly and thus benefit from the numerous positive aspects.

Promote compatibility of work and dog ownership

Dogs enjoy great popularity, especially during the Corona season, many people have taken a new four-legged family member. However, due to work, many dog owners have to leave their beloved furry noses to be cared for by others or left alone at home for long periods of time. A dog should not be left alone for many hours, as dogs are very social animals with close bonds to humans. Therefore, accompanying them to the workplace would be a good solution for many dogs. However, the acceptance of dogs in the workplace is unfortunately still far from universal.

Dogs at the workplace: an asset for companies

It has long been proven that dogs have a positive effect on people and even their work. Yasmine Wenk, Campaign Coordinator Pets at Vier Pfoten Schweiz explains: "Dogs in the workplace are a triple benefit: The dogs, the dog owners and especially the companies benefit. Dogs not only improve the working atmosphere and convey a sense of community, they also bring relaxation into the working day and even ensure an attractive employer image."

Dogs on Board Campaign

Regardless of whether the employee or employer side - Vier Pfoten advises as part of its "Dogs on Board" campaign to address the issue and work together to make the working world more dog-friendly. To this end, the animal welfare organization provides a set of arguments for dogs in the workplace on its website, as well as a sample dog policy that could regulate such an undertaking. For people and dogs to feel comfortable, rules that promote peaceful coexistence must be defined. To help them do this, Four Paws also offers companies advice.

Because dog-friendly employers have a positive image: they are considered modern, attractive, communicative and social. After all, if dog care is also secured during working hours, more and more people can realize the dream of having their own dog. Dogs at work also increase the animal welfare aspects, because if dog care is also secured during working hours, this means fewer lonely hours at home for the dog.

Source: Four Paws Switzerland

The Millennial (1983-1994) and Gen Z (1995-2004) generations are less likely to define themselves through their work in Switzerland than in the rest of Europe. Only a quarter of Gen Z (26%) and a third of Millennials (33%) feel that their work creates their identity. The situation is quite different in the 16 EU countries surveyed: 43 percent of Millennials and 57 percent of Gen Z there identify themselves through their work. However, friends and family play by far the most important role for identity awareness in both Switzerland and the EU (details: see chart 1). In contrast to the European comparison groups, however, two other aspects play a much more important role for identity awareness in Switzerland: Fashion and music.

For the study "Swiss Gen Z and Millennial Survey 2023", 1,000 Millennials and 700 representatives of Generation Z were surveyed throughout Switzerland at the beginning of March 2023. The data for the EU was taken from Deloitte's "2023 Gen Z and Millennial Survey".

"Then I'll just look for a new job".

Even if the relevance of work as an identity-forming element varies, Gen Z and Millennials in both Switzerland and the EU want meaningful work, to develop themselves further and to be paid decently for it - although pay plays an even greater role for respondents in the EU, where salaries are lower than in Switzerland. If this does not happen, Gen Z in particular has no problem looking for a new job (see chart 2).

This requires a fundamental rethink on the part of employers and calls for organizational and cultural adjustments: "Companies need to pick up their young employees, take them along on this development journey and show them what they are achieving with their work - not just for their own company, but for society. To create this awareness of the company's purpose, understandable goals, a transparent feedback culture, as well as recognition and clear prospects for the future are essential," says Matthias Thalmann, Head of Human Capital Consulting at Deloitte Switzerland. But other aspects - such as the design of work, flexibility, the place of work and working hours - also play an important role.

Work full time? No thanks.

Suddenly back to working full-time at the company? Unthinkable for many respondents. Around 40 percent of respondents in Switzerland would look for a new job in this case. Even though many companies have already introduced home office models in recent years, the task now is to develop these hybrid work models further for the future and make them more attractive. Consistency and reliability as well as individual balance between home office and office presence play an important role here. For production companies, but also for the catering and healthcare sectors, where home office is only possible to a limited extent or not at all, it is essential to introduce more flexible shift systems in order to improve working conditions and employee satisfaction in the long term.
But physical presence also remains important to maintain and promote social contacts among employees: 18 percent of Gen Z respondents in Switzerland feel excluded if they have to work from home too often. "In the battle for the best talent, companies must be flexible in responding to individual wishes regarding work location, working hours and form(s) of collaboration. Mere declarations of intent are counterproductive; what is needed are lived values and positive role models," analyzes Matthias Thalmann.

Causes for concern: money, climate change and psyche

Concerns about the future are again about money: 24 percent of Swiss Gen Z and 29 percent of Millennials are worried about the increased cost of living - in the EU, the figure is as high as 36 percent (Gen Z) and 46 percent (Millennials). 28 percent of Gen Z and 24 percent of Millennials in Switzerland have a sense of financial insecurity. In the EU, these figures are 36 percent (Gen Z) and 38 percent (Millennials).

Around 25 percent of respondents in Switzerland and the EU (Millennials and Gen Z) are concerned about the consequences of climate change. In contrast, more Gen Z representatives (CH: 18%, EU: 20%) than Millennials surveyed (CH: 14%, EU: 15%) say they are concerned about the mental health of their generation. "Our crisis-ridden times appear to be both financially and mentally challenging for younger workers. The rising cost of living and climate change are concerns for many. This suggests that both an attractive salary and a corporate purpose that is relevant to society and the environment are crucial factors in recruiting young employees and retaining them in the long term," says Matthias Thalmann.

Development opportunities and further training

To attract and retain young talent, employees must be able to develop. Young people in particular have the right to make a visible impact on their work. They want to be listened to and taken seriously and make a measurable contribution to the company's success. This is where internal feedback platforms make an important contribution to the integration and further development of employees. Managers are also well advised to continue their training in empathy and emotional intelligence in order to improve the proactive exchange with their employees.

A lack of career development and training opportunities are also frequent reasons for quitting. Companies should communicate career opportunities proactively and transparently and also keep their promises. A good third of respondents in Switzerland are dissatisfied with the career prospects in their company. These are alarm signals: "Only those who offer their talents further training and open up career opportunities will be able to retain the best people," says Reto Savoia, CEO of Deloitte Switzerland, and warns: "Executives and HR departments need to think fundamentally now - already half of the workforce belongs to Generation Z and the Millennials. If companies fail to retain these young people in the long term, this can have strong negative consequences for the growth prospects and competitiveness of these companies."

Source: Deloitte

There is currently a boom in demand for information on the subject of communication etiquette. In the course of changing infrastructures, many behaviors have emerged rather creepily that have produced certain excesses - and it is precisely these that now need to be recaptured. The big question here is how we can (once again) succeed in showing appreciation to our counterparts with style and class.

Anyone who looks into a meeting, a workshop, or any other kind of event today will be familiar with this example: Many participants have adopted an annoying behavior that is not at all like etiquette. Right at the beginning, the laptop is routinely placed on the table and immediately opened. Opening the technology is one thing. Even if it looks a bit bulky from the front or from the point of view of the manager: Man focuses on machine. It's like IT training, but it has the relational charm of a prefabricated garage.

Even during the start and the greeting, but especially during the further course of the event, this scene is continued: The eyes remain on the screen, even though people are speaking in front or even in the round or a presentation is being held. The fingers write in unison with the events - an unmistakable sign that the participants are not taking lecture notes as in the university auditorium, but are simply working through e-mails and other tasks. The whole thing is often garnished with the noise of typing. This acoustic disturbance increases when hard plastic keyboards are used and is squared again when long fingernails are involved...

Typing noise as a normal case?

At times, this seems to have become a matter of course and the norm. Is that the way it is? Is this merely the view of a supposedly stagnant mid-fifties person who, in the eyes of many, has missed the boat on digitization? No. Here, relevant forums, essays and exchange rounds of (also digital) experts speak a clear language: this is indecent per se and tends toward disrespect.

You may want to put up with such behavior, but you have to be aware that this is what you radiate and (due to feedback) it is also increasingly perceived that way. Just as indecent as making any human sounds or wearing an unwashed shirt. In principle, this has no serious consequences, but in our latitudes, especially in a business context, it triggers reactions that are not necessarily always expressed - but are perceived, thought about and noticed.

Solid studies (for example by a large insurance company) have even converted inattention into lost hours: Those who don't pay attention have to ask for more. Those who don't pay enough attention have to spend more time asking. Or didn't hear important tasks. A live test over several events showed: In a short survey on the content of discussion topics (so it's not just about possible, boring presentations), the laptop typists perform massively worse, they achieve less than 50 percent of the result of the others. The fact is: multitasking doesn't work even if you live in the digital age. Because the human brain still works identically as it once did. And you can practically always tell by looking at the person typing whether they are writing notes on live events (there is actually a small percentage of people who have this discipline) or are busy answering emails. Distinguishing one from the other is a sensorium that we now have infallibly, and even more so than many participants realize.

The closed laptop as a statement

In the meantime, there are also more and more reports from people who are bothered by this. That's why, in my roles as a speaker, trainer, or simply communicator, I've started to ban open laptops from my events and meetings unless it's absolutely necessary in terms of content or methodology. Real digital freaks use a tablet with a digital pen anyway - they stay in touch with the action, work psychomotively, and still have everything stored digitally or in the cloud.

In return, there are "office times" within a day. This means that, if the group so wishes, there is a specific 30-minute period over the lunch break or in an afternoon lull, for example, to devote to compelling business. If that is necessary. Some, however, see an opportunity to organize a day in such a way that, for once, they are not available all the time.

A closed laptop or one that remains in the bag can also be a statement. I myself experienced a meeting of an exclusive club with top-class participants. There, it is a point of honor not to check e-mails on the open laptop. It is clear to everyone in this group that this is both disrespectful and a sign of poor organization.

Don't miss a thing - especially indoors

And finally this: For some months now, the aforementioned well-known insurance company, which is by no means a small one, has simply issued a ban on laptops in meetings and similar events. On the other hand, it is also and even more important that anyone who leads a meeting or, for example, a workshop, should be so well prepared that the participants' inner urge to miss out on something outside is kept to a minimum. The quality demand in return must be high. But you could also exchange feedback about this within a setting, as long as you have closed the laptops...

Conclusion: Four business etiquette tips 

Here are concrete tips that will help you communicate successfully within the framework of Business Knigge 4.0:

1. Laptops should remain closed, everything else restricts the attention too much (reasons: Decency, multitasking is not possible, efficiency or avoidance of lost hours, disturbance by noise and mental absence).
2. Tablets (or, of course, paper and, increasingly, so-called notebooks) make more sense for actual meeting and course notes.
3. Alternatively, "office hours" can be offered on off-peak hours so that any tasks that cannot be rescheduled can be worked on.
4. Speakers should also be aware that a lively meeting that is well prepared lays the groundwork for maintaining attention.

To the author:
Stefan Häseli is an expert in credible communication, keynote speaker, moderator and author of several books. He runs a training company in Switzerland. Currently, he is also writing a book under the title "Hannes managt". regular column in the print edition of the ORGANISATOR. 

https://stefan-haeseli.com/

Ralph P. Siegl was elected as the new President of SwissBoardForum at the 2023 Association Meeting. As a political scientist and economist, partner of the company Experts for Leaders AG, multiple member of the Board of Directors and CEO as well as delegate of the Board of Directors of Hochdorf Swiss Nutrition AG, he brings an extremely broad and profound experience to continue the SwissBoardForum as a Swiss-wide platform for the practical exchange among members of the Board of Directors, it says in a statement to the media.

15-year era ends

Ralph P. Siegl replaces Silvan Felder, who after many years on the Board (since 2008, President since 2017) did not stand for another term of office. Silvan Felder, founder and owner of Verwaltungsrat Management AG in Lucerne, has played a decisive role in shaping the positive development of SwissBoardForum over the past 15 years and, together with the respective board team, has made important decisions. He and his company will continue to be associated with SwissBoardForum as associate partners.

Continuity and a castling in the Executive Board

With Dr. Stephan Hostettler, Managing Partner of HCM International AG in Zurich and board member since 2009, another personality was not available for a further term of office. According to the statement, Stephan Hostettler had also decisively shaped the SwissBoardForum and enriched it in particular with his profound expertise on compensation topics. He and his company will also remain associated with SwissBoardForum as associate partners.

Prof. Dr. oec. Michèle Sutter Rüdisser, an experienced and highly qualified person who is firmly anchored in board practice, has been recruited as a new member of the board. Michèle Sutter Rüdisser is a titular professor of Organizational Control and Corporate Governance at the University of St. Gallen and, among other things, Director of the Network for Innovative Corporate Governance (NICG) at the IFF-HSG Institute there. She is also active as an independent member of supervisory boards, banks and boards of directors.

Miscellaneous composition

At the same time, the following individuals from the corporate world were re-elected to the Board for a further term of office: Anne Bobillier, Gian-Luca Lardi, Karin Perraudin, Prof. Dr. Edgar Philippin, Rolf Schmid and Ralph P. Siegl. The Board of SwissBoardForum thus continues to be very diversely positioned and sees itself well equipped to continuously develop the platform for professional board activity.

The SwissBoardForum was founded in 2007 as the Swiss Institute for Boards of Directors (sivg). As a Switzerland-wide platform for board of directors topics and corporate governance, it promotes professional board of directors and foundation board activities with a clear focus on SMEs and is economically and politically independent.

Source and further information

Anina Lesmann and Adrian Bossart - these are the names of the two new board members of the Suissedigital trade association. The two were unanimously elected by the members at the General Meeting on June 14, 2023 in Bern.

New board members with a regional connection

Anina Lesmann has been Managing Director of the multimedia network operator R. Geissmann AG in Oberdorf (BL) since September 2013. Through her work in various functions at this regional family business, the lawyer has been closely associated with the communications network industry for 20 years.

Adrian Bossart has been CEO of Elektrizitäts- und Wasserwerk Buchs (EWB), which also operates its own communications networks and one of the largest regional providers, "Rii Seez Net", since 2022. Before joining EWB, he held various management positions at Swisscom and UPC, among others.

Farewell to long-standing members of the Board of Management

The two new board members replace Dr. Christa Köppel and Beat Ambühl, who served on the Suissedigital board for 12 and 14 years respectively. The two outgoing board members were bid farewell with applause. President Pierre Kohler: "On behalf of the entire board, I would like to sincerely thank Christa Köppel and Beat Ambühl for their many years of commitment to Suissedigital and the communications network industry, and wish them all the best for the future."

Source and further information

In Switzerland, June 14, 2023, was Women's Strike Day - in Hamburg, with the NWX23 probably the largest HR festival in the German-speaking world. What do the two events have to do with each other? More than one might expect. Because gender issues, the equal treatment of generations and cultures are now part of a challenging mix of factors that occupy the world of work. Gazelle Vollhase, Recruiting, Diversity & Inclusion Partner at online price comparison portal idealo and, as a transwoman herself, part of the LGBTQ community, put her finger on some sore spots in recruiting. "Modern recruiting is inclusive recruiting," she said in her keynote. And that's not simply about quotas for women, she said, because even there, people think primarily only of the "white woman" type. If there are to be quotas, then they should be for "underrepresented groups," she demanded. Generation Z also pays attention to inclusive language, starting with consistent gendering on company websites. Companies can benefit from diverse and inclusive recruiting, but they will have to rethink many of their dusty parameters for hiring.

Promote dialogue between generations

Gazelle Vollhase was just one of a total of over 150 well-known and lesser-known voices from politics, business, human resources, science and culture. Speakers included Sascha Lobo and John Bercow (former Speaker of the House of Commons) as well as German soccer celebrities in the person of Steffi Jones, Neven Subotic and Manuel Gräfe. Under the title "Welcome to New Challenges," Petra von Strombeck, CEO of New Work SE, and Marc-Sven Kopka, Vice President External Affairs at the same company, addressed NWX23 on generational conflicts, skills shortages and artificial intelligence as three of the biggest challenges facing the labor market. "The upheaval of the labor market also stands for a new dawn - and this is exactly where we are starting with NWX23," explained von Strombeck at the opening of the event. "To remain fit for the future, we need to take advantage of opportunities offered by digitalization, promote dialog between generations and focus on the needs of skilled workers."

Labor shortage, not "only" shortage of skilled workers...

With numerous masterclasses, panels, workshops and keynotes, the diverse program continued throughout the day. Also tying into the theme of cross-age collaboration was the keynote by generational researcher Dr. Eliza Filby, who explained how the diversity of perspectives of different age groups can be managed under one roof. Her conclusion: it works, but you have to work at it.

Cawa Younosi, Head of Human Resources and Member of the Executive Board at SAP, Kerstin Wagner, Head of Recruitment at Deutsche Bahn, Katharina Herrmann, Chief Human Resources and Compliance Officer at Hubert Burda Media, and Katrin Schwerdtner, Head of People & Culture at Tomorrow, discussed the topic of "New Talent: Are we getting the skills shortage right?" in one of the most well-attended panels. The speakers agreed that the core problem is not the skills shortage, but the workforce shortage. And what we are experiencing today is just the beginning of an impending tsunami, as Prof. Dr. Heike Bruch from the University of St.Gallen, also a keynote speaker in Hamburg, warned in an interview with our medium. If we do not tackle the effects of demographic change today, it would become "really difficult" to find enough workers by 2025 at the latest.

"Reverse Recruiting" at XING Job World

Of course, NWX23 was essentially a PR event for New Work SE with its three brands XING, onlyfy by XING and kununu. The fact that the company offers helpful recruiting tools was repeatedly emphasized. For example, the XING Job World was also on the agenda for the first time, with around 20 companies offering direct on-site applications to more than 800 young talents. According to New Work SE, the offer, which was free of charge for students, met with an above-average positive response and had proven its worth as a new format. The well-attended and top-class master classes and workshops with renowned career and application coaches such as Dr. Bernd Slaghuis or Nane Nebel had also contributed to this.

Inclusive recruiting, positioning an employer brand and putting people at the center and not just their manpower: These were much-heard recipes in Hamburg. Best practice examples were also mentioned: Heike Wenzel, managing partner of WENZEL Group GmbH & Co. KG, was able to report on positive experiences with the 4-day week in her family business. This is not only a way to score points with Generation Z, which is said to want to earn money but work less - or rather: differently.

Review NWX23: Still a lot to do - so "Word Forward".

In summary: NWX23 presented a panorama of the current challenges in the world of work. Although the individual challenges are not new, they are now occurring in concentrated form and at high speed. The tools of the past are no longer suitable for overcoming them. And many companies are being forced to adopt new approaches to solving these problems, which can sometimes trigger resistance. And it has to be said that there is still a lot to be done and many existing mindsets have to be changed. Against this background, protest movements such as the women's strike in Switzerland are likely to remain necessary for some time, as long as employers, for example. want to make believe on the basis of a few statisticsthat there is nothing wrong with equal pay...

Flexible working models and health promotion are advertised more strongly by companies. One third of the companies communicate the purpose for applicants. And mobile applications are too time-consuming, communication is too slow.
generally less personal and appreciative. These are - in brief - the most important findings of the tenth Best Recruiters study, which annually examines the recruiting quality of companies in Switzerland and Liechtenstein.

1.     Graubündner Cantonal Bank

2.     University Children's Hospital Zurich

3.     KPMG AG

4.     Migros Bank AG

5.     Vebego AG

6.     Helsana Group

7.     Federation of Migros Cooperatives

8.     thyssenkrupp Presta AG

9.     CSS Insurance

10.  Hays (Switzerland) AG

The success of the overall winner is based, among other things, on the individual view of target groups: "Reflection and feedback sessions as well as exchanges of experience help us to design our candidate journey in line with needs and to continuously optimize it. For example, we actively involved our target groups in order to derive suitable measures for the continuous and consistent design of the candidate journey," describes Samira Amanda Luzi, HR consultant at Graubündner Kantonalbank.

One day before the so-called "Feminist Strike 2023", which is to draw attention to a still existing gender inequality with nationwide actions on June 14, the current equal pay survey shows that, at least with regard to salaries, one can no longer speak of discrimination against women across the board. Indeed, the Competence Centre for Diversity and Inclusion (CCDI) at the University of St. Gallen conducted a survey of companies with 100 or more employees on behalf of the Swiss Employers' Association (SAV). This made it possible to compile the results of company pay equity analyses from a total of 615 companies with around 550,000 employees. The survey covers about 10 percent of the companies that had to conduct a pay equity analysis. The CCDI's evaluation focused on those companies using Logib, the federal government's pay equity tool. This method was used by 461 of the companies surveyed. However, even among those companies that do not use Logib for wage equality analysis, the CCDI found that the federal requirements were largely met. According to the evaluation, 89 percent of the companies that did not use Logib showed no gender effect.

Unexplained wage gap of 3.3 percent

Taking into account occupation-specific and personal characteristics, the data collection shows an average unexplained wage difference of 3.3 percent. Of those 461 companies that used Logib, 458 complied with the requirements of the Gender Equality Act - this corresponds to a value of 99.3 percent. Only 3 companies exceeded the tolerance threshold of 5 percent set by the federal government.

The survey thus shows that the federal requirements are complied with in the vast majority of cases, both across the sectors and across the regions. Although there are differences, they are within a very narrow band and within the tolerance threshold. However, it is important to put this into perspective: The survey covers only a fraction of all companies and does not include employees in public administration, i.e. at the federal, cantonal and municipal levels.

Employers comply with their obligations

Even though the survey only takes into account companies from the private sector, the employers see themselves confirmed by these positive results in several respects. According to the Swiss Employers' Association, the survey proves that the figures on the unexplained wage gap used by the trade unions in the political debate are exaggerated. At the same time, it shows that the company reality in terms of equal pay looks much more positive than the figures of the Swiss Wage Structure Survey LSE of the Federal Statistical Office would suggest. The SAV expects that these positive figures from the operational reality will also flow into the political debate. "Companies have made great efforts in recent years to prevent wage discrimination based on gender," explains SAV President Valentin Vogt.

Continue to work on equal pay

At the same time, employers also concede that further efforts are needed to further reduce the wage gap between the sexes. According to the SAV in its statement on the results of the evaluation, the causes must be addressed. These essentially include the fact that women have significantly more frequent interruptions in their working lives than men. In view of this, it is important to create framework conditions that enable women to participate in working life in the same way as men - the reconciliation of private and professional life is important here. "If, in addition, women increasingly enter professions previously dominated by men in order to pursue a professional career, the wage gap will continue to narrow in the coming years," explains Daniella Lützelschwab, Head of the Labor Market Department at the SAV.

Source and further information: Swiss Employers' Association

Explainable and unexplainable wage difference
If there are wage differences between the sexes, this does not mean that there is discrimination. Thus, occupation-specific and personal characteristics lead to a difference in wages. This so-called explainable wage difference takes into account characteristics such as hierarchical level, education or potential professional experience. If a wage difference remains after deduction of these admitted, explainable criteria, one speaks of the unexplainable wage difference. An unexplained wage difference does not automatically indicate wage discrimination because there are other wage-relevant criteria that are not taken into account.

Swiss Wage Structure Survey (LSE) and Company Wage Analyses
The LSE of the Swiss Federal Statistical Office is maintained as a national analysis of wage differences between women and men. Here, employees with similar characteristics are compared across all companies. In contrast, in the company wage equality analysis, employees are only compared with employees in the same company and with similar characteristics. As a result, the within-firm analysis is not affected by any differences in wage levels across firms. The differences in methodology lead to different results that are not directly comparable. The company-internal wage equality analyses thus provide a significantly better reflection of operational reality.

Purpose Driven Leadership is a leadership method that is based on a clear vision and has a higher purpose in focus. Business decisions are aligned with fundamental principles and human values. It is about motivating and inspiring employees so that they can develop their full potential. Through the teaching of disruptive thinking approaches, such as those derived from Daoism, participants gain new perspectives and tools to enrich their current leadership and work culture and make them fit for the future. Intensive self-reflection and the expansion of one's own horizons through guided meditations, shamanism and coaching create the foundations for Purpose Driven Leadership.

"I want to inspire participants to include their intrinsic motivation in important decisions and to allow for questions of meaning. This is about an experiential broadening of horizons that combines spiritual with scientific parts and in the process opens up new perspectives for thinking and acting," says program director Nadine Zasadzin. "The new CAS Purpose Driven Leadership at the HWZ, which I supervise as program director, is an in-depth continuation of the CAS Next Generation Leadership HWZ, in which one's own values and individual motivators are to flow into practice-oriented action at the leadership level. More clarity, resilience and authenticity, especially in times of crisis, are the goal here," says Peter Statz.

In a rapidly changing business world, it is critical that leaders have a strong understanding of leadership and can lead themselves as well as their teams in inspiring and meaningful ways. This CAS empowers leaders to embrace new ways of thinking and realize their full leadership potential. The program offers a unique opportunity to learn about new and unfamiliar approaches in a practical way and to integrate them into one's own leadership work.

Nadine Zasadzin and Peter Statz, experts in the field of leadership and personnel development at the HWZ, are jointly managing this CAS in five modules.

Interested parties can now register for the CAS Purpose Driven Leadership HWZ, which starts in November 2023. More information

Bruno Marroni (57) will be the new Managing Director of Gemini Collective Foundation. He is a federally certified pension fund manager and a federally certified social insurance expert. He has been working in the field of occupational pensions since 1989, mainly in the collective foundation sector. From 2004 to 2008 he was already in charge of the sales activities of Gemini Sammelstiftung. Subsequently, he successfully took over the management and development of a new collective foundation. "Bruno Marroni is a proven expert and has a profound knowledge of the Swiss pension landscape," says Foundation Board President Vital G. Stutz. "We are very pleased to have been able to recruit Mr. Marroni for the management of the Gemini Collective Foundation."

With Bruno Marroni taking over the management of the company, all other services such as sales, policyholder management, accounting, etc. will remain unchanged with the long-standing provider, Avadis Vorsorge AG in Zurich. With this step, the Board of Trustees wishes to further strengthen the Gemini Collective Foundation. Since its establishment in 1977, the foundation has developed into one of the leading independent pension funds in Switzerland. Today, it insures around 33,000 beneficiaries with an investment volume of CHF 5.9 billion. The new CEO is quoted as saying: "Due to my previous activities at Gemini and its competitors, I know the market and the 'DNA' of Gemini very well. I am hugely looking forward to being part of their continued successful development."

Source: Gemini Collective Foundation / Avadis Vorsorge AG

On June 8 and 9, the 25th Swiss Economic Forum (SEF) was successfully held in Interlaken with around 70 speakers from Switzerland and abroad and 1350 participants. Corine Blesi, Managing Director of the SEF, expressed her satisfaction with the anniversary edition of the SEF: "Companies have the ability to constantly adapt to new circumstances as a business and the values of self-responsibility, entrepreneurship, leadership principle and modesty are factors that make the Swiss economy one of the world leaders today. The SEF always set itself the goal of raising awareness of these values."

Politics and artificial intelligence at the Swiss Economic Forum 2023

The anniversary SERF was opened by President Alain Berset. In his opening speech, he pleaded for the trust and confidence of the people.
between business, politics and society in Switzerland absolutely had to be consolidated again. Cooperation is the greatest strength of our country. It produces stable institutions that promote our core values such as fairness, exchange and freedom and make Switzerland a highly successful country.

In addition to politics, the conference also focused on artificial intelligence. Garry Kasparov, who in 1997 was the first reigning chess world champion to be defeated by the IBM supercomputer Deep Blue, said that AI can and will support us in many areas. But ultimately, every problem is still solved by humans. Machines can simply do it faster and with fewer errors if you show them how. Urs Hölzle, a computer scientist from Basel, Switzerland, who was only the eighth employee of Google at the time and is now senior vice president for technical infrastructure there, warned against too much euphoria. The current state of artificial intelligence, especially with regard to supposedly revolutionary speech software such as ChatGPT, is overrated, he said at the SEF. He compared it to a pocket calculator, which can solve difficult tasks in seconds, but had not revolutionized mathematics.

About the economy and the Swiss financial center

The Swiss economy is still doing comparatively well, summarized National Bank President Thomas Jordan and Pierre-Olivier Gourinchas of the International Monetary Fund (IMF). on the first day of the event summarized the situation. Inflation in Switzerland should definitely be kept below two percent and price stability ensured. It was important to protect the Swiss market from international inflation.

Sergio P. Ermotti, CEO of the major bank UBS, also made an appearance. He spoke about the future of the bank and that of the Swiss financial center. 61 % of the SEF participants think that the takeover of Credit Suisse by UBS is the right solution under the current circumstances. This visibly pleased Sergio P. Ermotti, and he added that the takeover was a very important moment for UBS, but also for the Swiss financial center and for Switzerland itself. Management felt this responsibility and the next few months would be bumpy, but they were very focused. He said that the reorganization should not be guided by nostalgia and feelings, but should be based on the facts.

The challenge of family business

Family businesses in Switzerland also have to contend with the shortage of skilled workers. This was underlined by Rudi Bindella senior and Rudi Bindella junior during their joint appearance. Professional pride is central and they are sure that they are practicing the most beautiful profession in the world. Rudi sr. takes a critical view of the fundamental trend toward part-time work. When asked how succession is well regulated in the family business, the two agree: professional competence is important when selecting a successor, but humanity and passion are even more important.

Startups still have little to do with succession. For them, it's more a question of how to become a unicorn. Young Sohn, Managing Partner at Walden Catalyst and former President and CSO of Samsung Electronics, considers a close connection between the startup scene and the best universities to be crucial for good companies to emerge. Further, the Silicon Valley investor said, one has to be careful in which countries one still invests; in China, for example, one should be very cautious. Chips have become a kind of new currency for intellectual power - and this market is currently absolutely dominated by Southeast Asia.

Swiss Economic Award 2023

The Swiss Economic Award, which was presented during the conference, was won by:

• In the "Service" category: Neho, which is currently in the process of shaking up the real estate brokerage business by offering a revolutionary service for buying and selling real estate.
• Production/Commercial" category: Boostbar AG, operator of completely digitized snack vending machines. Boostbar's solution transforms each vending machine into a small e-commerce store, thanks to a single user interface for digitizing each point of sale.
• Deeptech/Life Science category: Daphne Technology SA, which focuses on solving the greenhouse gas problem in industries that are difficult to decarbonize.

The winners each receive prize money of 25,000 Swiss francs, sound expert feedback and simplified access to the growth initiative SEF.Growth. Certainly, you will meet some of the award winners again at a Swiss Economic Forum in the future. The next opportunity will be in 2024, namely from June 6 to 7, 2024, again in Interlaken.

Source and further information: www.swisseconomic.ch

On Wednesday, June 14, 2023, it's that time again: The Elbphilharmonie will open its doors for the New Work Experience (NWX23), which claims to be the largest event on the future of work in the German-speaking world. For the sixth time, the NWX will be held here and, for the first time, at other selected locations in Hamburg's HafenCity. NWX23 is organized by New Work SE together with its brands XING, onlyfy by XING and kununu. Under the motto "Work Forward," the festival for work and the future has a lot to offer: With around 9 hours of programming spread across 18 stages and more than 150 renowned national and international speakers and artists, the lineup is colorful, diverse and expert.

Bringing employers and employees together

How can successful cooperation between generations work? How can you attract talent despite a shortage of skilled workers? How will artificial intelligence affect the labor market of the future? NWX23 revolves around these and many other questions. The goal is to bring together career starters and experienced employees, doers and thought leaders as well as strategists and experts from business and politics, human resources, recruiting, consulting and opinion forming in Hamburg. A diverse mix of forward-looking impulses, opinionated debates, in-depth workshops and master classes will provide inspiration and information.

Among the speakers will be generation expert Dr. Eliza Filby, Germany's youngest philosophy professor Dr. Markus Gabriel, long-time Speaker of the House of Commons John Bercow, former professional soccer player and DFB coach Steffi Jones, digital expert and author Sascha Lobo, podcaster Matze Hielscher and AI expert Christian Piechnick, and many more. Additional music acts such as the Norwegian pop-rap duo Madcon will ensure a good mood.

The XING Job World: new job festival all about starting a career

For the first time, NWX23 will be expanded to include a job festival for students and graduates: the XING Job World, which will take place in the New Work Harbour in HafenCity, the headquarters of New Work SE. Here, students, graduates and recruiters can exchange ideas on job topics such as career orientation, job applications or salary negotiations and experience a job festival where companies such as Audi, Otto or Hapag-Lloyd compete for talent. The XING Job World will also feature top-class master classes and workshops with renowned career and application coaches such as Dr. Bernd Slaghuis and Nane Nebel. The diverse program will be supplemented by lectures and panel discussions, e.g. with the two former professional soccer players Neven Subotic and Marcell Jansen or GenZ expert Ronja Ebeling. In the "Grill den Personalchef" format, SAP HR director Cawa Younosi and Beiersdorf HR director Nicola Lafrentz will also be taking questions from the audience. For enrolled students, a visit to the XING Job World, including a job application photo shoot, is free of charge.

onlyfy by XING makes recruitment easier

Also new is the program content tailored for recruiters and HR managers, presented by the recruiting brand onlyfy by XING. Master classes, panel discussions and workshops are also on the agenda at the headquarters of New Work SE and on other stages in Hamburg's HafenCity. Among the renowned speakers are Professor Dr. Alexander Spermann, Professor Dr. Heike Bruch and Gazelle Vollhase, responsible for recruiting, diversity and inclusion at idealo. The speakers will not only take a look at the current job market, but also at the recruiting trends of tomorrow.

The NEW WORK Award 2023: Award ceremony on the evening of NWX23  

In addition, the NEW WORK Award, the leading prize for forward-looking work in the German-speaking world, will be presented for the 10th time at the NWX. Since 2013, NEW WORK SE has been honoring groundbreaking ideas and projects for the future of work with this award.The award ceremony will take place following NWX23, on the evening of June 14 in Hamburg. The top-class jury drew up a shortlist from the applications submitted. Public online voting has been closed since June 4.

The accompanying live streaming program of selected NWX content is now online and can be viewed at the Website can be viewed in the drop-down menu "XING Job World - the livestream at a glance".