Digitalization optimizes processes, makes them faster and cheaper - but also increases the risk of becoming a victim of cybercrime. According to police crime statistics, more than 30,000 digital crimes were reported in Switzerland in 2021 - 24 percent more than in 2020. However, as a representative study by AXA shows, Swiss SMEs still have very low risk awareness with regard to potential cyberattacks. This is demonstrated, for example, by a lack of password guidelines and a lack of employee awareness.

SMEs less affected by cybercrime? A fallacy!

Fifteen percent of the companies surveyed said they had been the victim of a cyberattack in recent years in which external persons attempted to access the company network to obtain company data (14 % of smaller SMEs, 29 % of large SMEs, one in ten even repeatedly). Despite this, Swiss firms hardly expect their company to be targeted by cybercriminals: A full 62 percent of the SMEs surveyed consider the risk of becoming the victim of an attack in the future to be low. Only 12 percent of the companies consider the risk to be high. A fallacy, as Andrea Rothenbühler, Head of AXA Cyber Insurance, explains: "Attacks on the IT systems of Swiss companies are increasing from year to year. SMEs in particular are increasingly targeted by cybercriminals, as they can invest fewer resources in their own IT security than large corporations."

As a result of unwanted access to the corporate network, companies may not only incur direct costs. Such attacks can also lead to a production stop or cause lasting damage to the company's reputation. However, the SMEs surveyed consider the probability that a cyber attack could cause significant material and immaterial damage to their company to be rather low. SMEs most frequently expect costs to be incurred to restore IT security, with as many as 36 percent of respondents expecting this. Twenty-nine percent expect their ability to operate to be severely impaired, and around one in five SMEs anticipate high financial losses because operations will be interrupted, or significant damage to their reputation.

With the exception of the high costs of restoring IT security, however, the predominant assessment is that these effects are rather to very unlikely. According to cyber expert Andrea Rothenbühler: "Just one week of business interruption can lead to a painful loss of sales for a medium-sized mechanical engineering company. In addition, high costs are incurred for data recovery, crisis management and support from IT service providers and cyber security specialists. In addition, data breaches can result in claims for damages from customers and fines for the SME."

Password policies only in about half of SMEs

As survey results show, 60 percent of SMEs feel adequately protected against access to their company data by firewalls and virus protection programs. As many as 17 percent of all respondents believe that their IT protection measures are not sufficient, and around a quarter of the SMEs surveyed were unable to assess whether they have taken sufficient protective measures. And there are also differences in the other technical protective measures: 73 percent of all SMEs surveyed make regular backups of their data, and just over two-thirds have installed virus software. 55 percent of the SMEs surveyed have installed a firewall to protect the corporate network, while only 46 percent have established password policies.

The focus on improving IT security is also less on the company's own employees; only two out of five SMEs sensitize their staff to existing cyber risks. There are clear differences in terms of company size: while 74 percent of large SMEs with 50 to 250 employees sensitize their workforce to potential IT risks, only 51 percent of medium-sized SMEs with 10 to 49 employees and only 38 percent of small SMEs with 2 to 9 employees do so. But this is precisely where SMEs should invest: "In around 70 percent of cyberattacks, employees open the gateway for malware. Accordingly, investments should be made above all in the training of the company's own staff. Not only must the software be regularly updated, but also the company's own people. This makes it more difficult for criminals to get in, and if an infection does occur, well-trained employees know how to react," explains Andrea Rothenbühler.

A good fifth of respondents do not feel affected by the new data protection law

The new data protection law is still barely on the radar of SMEs. The study results show that a good fifth of the SMEs surveyed do not feel affected at all by the total revision. And even among those companies that consider themselves to be within the scope of the DPA, only one in two has taken action to date. Just 16 percent have already obtained information on the subject, and concrete implementation measures have only been taken by around one in ten SMEs. Brigitte Imbach, lawyer and Data Privacy Officer at AXA-ARAG, warns against underestimating the impact of the new Data Protection Act: "With the total revision of the Swiss Data Protection Act, important provisions on the processing of personal data will change from September 2023, and small and medium-sized enterprises will also be affected."

Deliberate violations of the new data protection law, such as breaches of obligations to provide information, to provide information, to cooperate or to exercise due diligence, can be sanctioned with fines of up to CHF 250,000. In principle, the natural person responsible is fined. However, the company itself can now also be fined up to 50,000 Swiss francs if identifying the culprit within the company would involve disproportionate investigation costs. "SMEs would therefore do well to implement the new legal data protection requirements in their company in good time and to review their data protection declarations and guidelines and adapt them accordingly. Anyone who does not have the necessary expertise within the company should seek external support and advice," advises the expert.

Source: AXA

The EcoVadis Rating 2022 considered over 90,000 companies from 200 industries in 160 countries in assessing the four areas of environment, labor and human rights, ethics, and "sustainable procurement." The latest EcoVadis report highlights that Canon performed very well in all areas, ranking among the top 5% companies, and among the top 4% in its industry. In the area of "Sustainable Procurement" in particular, he says, the company's proactive and sustainable approach to working with suppliers was ranked among the top 2% - and recognized accordingly with the Gold certificate. Carina Berchtold, Strategic Business Developer, Canon Switzerland AG, comments: "More and more customers, NGOs and regulators are demanding measurable sustainability. We are proud that our efforts have been taken into account and rewarded with the Gold rating from EcoVadis for the seventh time in a row. This shows that we are a trusted partner when it comes to achieving sustainability goals."

As a global company, corporate activities will continue to be dedicated to helping strengthen a sustainable society, the company writes. To this end, Canon is working to reduce CO2 emissions throughout the product lifecycle, including the supply chain, with the goal of achieving net-zero emissions by 2050. This improvement is supported by various environmental activities. These include developing smaller, lighter and more energy-efficient products, streamlining logistics operations, energy-saving initiatives at manufacturing sites, and recycling products and consumables. In addition, Canon is committed to strengthening its initiatives to protect the dignity and rights of people and to fulfill its social responsibilities within the supply chain. As a member of the Responsible Business Alliance (RBA), an industry coalition dedicated to ensuring socially responsible global supply chains, Canon complies with its RBA Code of Conduct1.

More information: Canon

The post Canon receives gold certificate for sustainability appeared first on Organizer.

FernUni Switzerland can already look back on several highlights this year 2022. The Anniversary celebrations for 30 years of existence was followed last weekend by the inauguration of the Briger university campus. And this week, the top management of FernUni Switzerland has been reappointed: With Stefan Bumann, Dipl. Ing. ETHZ, a personality takes over who is characterized by a rich experience in the private sector and a long-standing leadership position in the public service. Stefan Bumann is also very familiar with both the Valais and the Swiss educational landscape. Since joining FernUni Switzerland's governing bodies, he has played a key role in shaping the institution's new university development plan and has been a strong advocate for the expansion of research at FernUni Switzerland.

The further expansion of FernUni Switzerland will be shaped by

On his election, the new president said: "I am, of course, very pleased with the election. I accept this task with respect and humility. The word humility also contains the word courage. With courage, I want to tackle the challenges of the coming years with the committees of our institution and with all employees. The development of further educational offerings, the increase in the number of our own professorships, the strengthening of research in all faculties, as well as continuing education and service offerings are among them. First and foremost comes the 2027 accreditation as a university."

Merits of the departing management members

In his closing remarks, outgoing President Wilhelm Schnyder expressed his sincere thanks to all employees, to the members of the Directorate headed by Rector Prof. Dr. Marc Bors, and to all members of the governing bodies of FernUni Switzerland. Also to the address of the local communities, the canton of Valais and the canton of Schwyz, as well as the federal government. In a brief review, he paid tribute to the extremely successful path taken by FernUni Switzerland over the past ten years. As a highlight, he highlighted the accreditation as a
university institute as well as the recognition of the eligibility for contributions by the federal government.

The previous vice president Maria-Pia Tschopp and foundation board member Bruno Attinger have also stepped down. Maria-Pia Tschopp and Bruno Attinger have been on board for many years. Vice-President Maria-Pia Tschopp was one of the driving forces behind the foundation of the Centre romand d'enseignement à distance in Sierre, the former Study Center Sierre, and Bruno Attinger was involved in the establishment of the Study Center in Pfäffikon/SZ from the very beginning and was responsible for the construction of the university campus at FernUni Switzerland as President of the Building Commission.

Appointments to the Political Strategic Advisory Board and the Scientific Advisory Board

Both the political-strategic advisory board, which is jointly elected by FernUni Switzerland and FernUni Switzerland, and the scientific advisory board of FernUni Switzerland play an extremely important role in advising the foundation board and the management. The political-strategic advisory board is chaired by former National Councillor Felix Müri, former President of the Education Commission of the National Council. The former Vice President of ETHZ, Prof. Dr. Gerhard Schmitt, chairs the scientific advisory board of the Fern-
Uni Switzerland.

Dr. Mauro Dell'Ambrogio, who headed the State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation for many years, joins the aforementioned bodies as a new member. Mauro Dell'Ambrogio built up the University and the University of Applied Sciences in the Canton of Ticino and has an international network in the field of education and research. Serge Gaudin, Director of Novelis, has been appointed to the political-strategic advisory board and the scientific advisory board as a representative of French-speaking Switzerland. He has successfully implemented the principles of the circular economy in the private sector. President Stefan Bumann as well as Mauro Dell'Ambrogio and Serge Gaudin will take up their duties next September 1, 2022.

Source and further information

With 1118 new students (2021/22: 1145), the KV Zurich business school is starting the new school year. Of the prospective business people who began their training at Switzerland's largest commercial vocational school at the start of the school year, 116 students (2021/22: 117) chose the basic basic training (B profile). 711 (2021/22: 698) opted for the extended basic training (E profile). In addition, 291 young people (2021/22: 330) will complete the commercial apprenticeship with vocational baccalaureate (M profile) in the next three years.

Success story "BILI" continues

For the first time in the canton of Zurich, a bilingual course of study for the vocational baccalaureate for adults (BM2-BILI) in the business type will start at KV Zurich in the new school year 2022/23. As in the already successfully launched BILI courses for the vocational baccalaureate (BM1) and the E profile, the subject matter will be taught not only in German but also in English. The students also take the vocational baccalaureate examinations bilingually. For Rector Christian Wölfle, the new course offers several advantages: "BM2-BILI generally improves future opportunities thanks to the expanded general education. In addition, it opens up interesting prospects for linguistically gifted students who, after completing BM2, will find themselves in an increasingly multilingual professional environment or who later aim to study at a technical college or university".

Founded in 1887 as the KV Zurich Commercial School, it appeared under the name KV Zurich Business School from 1998 and became the KV Zurich Business School in 2018 after the decoupling of the basic and continuing education departments. Today, the educational institution is the largest commercial vocational school in Switzerland with around 4,200 learners. It is one of the largest educational enterprises in the German-speaking world. At this year's graduation ceremony in Zurich's Hallenstadion, 1248 successful KV graduates received their final diploma.

More information: www.kvz-schule.ch

A virus, inflation, war in Ukraine - a "new normal" has dawned. At the 28th Rheintaler Wirtschaftsforum (Wifo), leading figures from business, politics and the army set out what they expect from this new "age" and how they are responding to it.

Kaspar Villiger as keynote speaker

Keynote speaker Kaspar Villiger will address the Rheintal Economic Forum on "Crises as the new normal? Democracies in the headwind" and illuminate the topic with his decades of political experience. After graduating from the ETH with a degree in engineering, Villiger was president and CEO of the family-owned cigar factory Villiger and Sons. His political career began when he was elected to the Grand Council of the Canton of Lucerne in 1972. From 1982 to 1989, Villiger served five years in the National Council and then in the Council of States. In 1989, he was elected to the Federal Council and served first as defense minister, then finance minister. Twice he was president of the Swiss Confederation. In 2003, he resigned from the Federal Council and joined the boards of directors of Nestlé, Swiss Re and the Neue Zürcher Zeitung. From 2009 to 2012, Villiger was chairman of the board of directors at UBS. In 2004, he received an honorary doctorate from the University of Lucerne. Since 2009, he has been Chairman of the UBS Foundation of Economics in Society.

High-profile panel with Gutmann, Walser and Thoma

Another speaker will be Johannes Gutmann, who will tell how he was able to use the crisis for his Sonnentor Kräuterhandels GmbH with 370 employees and 1000 organic contract farmers thanks to sustainability and environmental justice. Furthermore, Corps Commander Hans-Peter Walser, member of the army leadership and Deputy Chief of the Armed Forces, will speak from a military perspective on "Security policy after a geopolitical turning point". And finally, Suzanne Thoma, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Sulzer AG since April 2022, will explore the question: Does the new normal demand a new kind of corporate governance? Thoma started her career at Ciba Specialty Chemicals Ltd after completing her doctorate at the ETH. She was still CEO of the BKW Group until the end of June 2022.

Abacus new as main sponsor

Furthermore, the organizers of the Economic Forum announce a significant change in sponsors: Abacus has moved up from co-sponsor to main sponsor. This means that Wifo is now supported by the five main sponsors Abacus, Alpha Rheintal Bank AG, BDO AG, Helvetia Versicherungen and RLC AG.

Registrations for the event are already possible today via the new website www.wifo.ch possible.

Grass & Partner, a company established in outplacement, career consulting and filling board of directors mandates, has arranged its succession: Jan Böggering, Stefan Hernandez and Martin Küppers are the new owners. However, the two long-time owners Paul Beerli and André Schläppi will remain associated with the company.

The three entrepreneurial personalities bring great experience in the strategic development and management of companies and individuals. Martin Küppers is a mechanical engineer and holds an EMBA IMD. For more than 20 years, he gained operational experience in well-known internationally active mechanical engineering groups with board positions in international markets. For example, Küppers was Managing Director at Saurer AG from 2016 to 2020. Jan Böggering, in turn, has 20 years of experience in management consulting in the areas of operational excellence and value enhancement strategies. Among other things, he was responsible for the Performance Improvement unit at Volkswagen Consulting. Finally, Stefan Hernandez has been Managing Director at Grass & Partner since 2018 and previously served as President of FC St. Gallen, among other positions.

The three entrepreneurs are taking over one hundred percent of the shares from long-time owners Paul Beerli and André Schläppi and will now form the Board of Directors. The previous owners will remain associated with the company. Paul Beerli, former Chairman of the Board of Directors, will continue to provide his expertise as a freelance consultant, while André Schläppi will act as a senior executive coach for C-level clients. Stefan Hernandez can be quoted as follows: "We are looking forward to continuing and further developing the established company together with our employees. The strength of Grass & Partner is that we specifically address the specific needs of our clients. We will continue to expand this tailored approach." Paul Beerli: "It makes us proud to hand over Grass & Partner into such experienced hands. Grass & Partner is excellently positioned throughout Switzerland. The change of ownership ensures continuity and at the same time opens up new perspectives."

Source: www.grassgroup.ch

Despite higher demand, with the increasing digitization of recent years, and contrary to common expectations, salaries in the ICT industry remain largely stable for 2022. This is confirmed by the annual salary study published by SwissICT. Taking inflation into account (as of May 01, '22), salaries are actually declining slightly, the study finds. Possible explanations for this development are, on the one hand, the recruitment of talents who still need promotion and, on the other hand, the shift in competence levels within the agile job profiles. For SMEs and micro-enterprises, this ensures continued access to ICT specialists. Salaries remain stable across all industries.

However, a more differentiated analysis reveals an increase in the number of mentions and also an increase in the salary level, particularly for lower salaries. This could indicate that the shortage of skilled workers has led to an increase in the number of entry-level employees, who could benefit from a higher salary than before. It remains to be seen what the 2023 figures will tell us about further developments.

Growth in agile professional profiles

As in previous surveys, there was also an increase in agile job profiles this year. The Product Manager and Release Train Engineer profiles were also surveyed for the first time. There were 97 responses to the Product Manager profile and as many as 136 responses to the Release Train Engineer salary. This is very promising for the first survey of these professional profiles and shows that the establishment of agile professions is progressing continuously.

Further innovations this year were made with regard to age grouping. The additional, expanded age grading makes it possible to better view social changes and draw clearer conclusions from salary trends and mentions. Similarly, an industry adjustment was made. The consolidation of industries was made based on input from the past five years. The change increases the informative value and robustness of the figures collected many times over.

Salaries for ICT trainees higher than expected

For the first time, a salary survey was conducted on the wages of apprentices. The survey was carried out in the basic vocational training programs for computer scientists, ICT specialists and mediamaticians. 122 Swiss companies entered their data on apprentices. Interesting: The median is at the upper limit of the recommendations (partly also above) of the responsible association ICT-Berufsbildung Schweiz. The results of the salary survey show that the salaries of ICT apprentices are highest at banks and insurance companies. They are followed by public administrations and other industries. An exciting finding: the lowest wages are found in IT companies.

Source: SwissICT

What is it about? Most of the leaders I meet have fun in their job. They love the technical work. But for the vast majority, the fun of leading people is much less.

When fun is missing in leadership...

Many associate leadership with a burden rather than the opportunity to achieve great things together with others. Thoughts turn to difficult "appraisal interviews," salary negotiations, conflict resolution, remembering deadlines and tasks, and so on. These are all topics that are, of course, less fun. And that's also management rather than leadership.

Here's the thing: The journey to fun leadership starts in the mind, with what I associate with leadership and how I see myself as a leader. So what can you do to significantly and sustainably increase your fun in leadership? Here are three concrete ideas:

Idea #1: Have a vision

It's a classic: If you lead people (and yourself), you need to know where to go. Leadership always means changing the status quo, it means development, it means achieving significant goals. Optimizing the current state, on the other hand, is "management". That is something different.

Developing strong visions and advocating them to others is an exercise I do over and over again with my clients. That's why I know that for many it is anything but easy.

My tip: Answer the question where exactly you want to be with your team in 3 years - and ideally. What do you dream of? What will you have achieved then?

Idea #2: Learning to love human challenges

Yes, you can learn to love the problems that inevitably arise from working with others. Of course, this requires changing beliefs if you've been more introverted and rational in nature. In fact, this is what you learn as a leader needif you want to be successful. In many cases, it is very difficult for you to do this alone, but you need one or more sparring partners.

Idea No. 3: Continuous development

Most of the things we don't like to do, we're not very good at either. In other words, a lack of competence usually leads to a lack of fun. Therefore: make sure that you are constantly developing. Practice dealing with people until you get real enjoyment out of it. Develop your vision repeatedly until it comes naturally to you. And keep educating yourself on all the other leadership topics.

So here are three ideas on how you can massively increase your fun in leadership - and incidentally your success. Now all you have to do is apply them. Have fun with it!

To the author:
Volkmar Völzke is a success maximizer. Book author. Consultant. Coach. Speaker. www.volkmarvoelzke.ch

Founded in 2006, baeriswyl tschanz & partner ag (BTPAG), headquartered in Ittigen/Bern, supports its customers in the development of sustainable strategies, concepts and in the performance of analyses in the areas of information technology, telecommunications and organization. Effective immediately, the company will be acquired by msg, an internationally active group of companies based in Ismaning near Munich with over 9,000 employees worldwide. It is represented in 28 countries and also supports its customers in the digital transformation. msg board member Dr. Jürgen Zehetmaier welcomes the acquisition: "In addition to the fact that the comprehensive portfolios of msg as well as BTPAG complement each other excellently, this step fits perfectly with our strategic orientation." msg is already represented in Switzerland with group members such as msg systems, Finnova and Optravis, among others. There, msg is transferring its existing business with the Public Sector to BTPAG in order to bundle its strengths in the Swiss market even more strongly as the msg Group.

baeriswyl tschanz & partner continues to operate independently on the market

BTPAG will remain on the market as an independent company and will gain great growth potential through the sale of the share package to msg as a strong international and strategic partner, according to a statement to the media. Marc Baeriswyl, CFO of BTPAG, is pleased with the successful succession plan. "Through today's takeover of the shares by msg, we were able to ensure the continuity of the company, in particular the safeguarding of jobs, as well as the preservation of the name. This in particular is something we attached the greatest importance to in all our deliberations."

Changes in the Board of Directors

Oskar Zodel, CEO of msg Switzerland, will take over as Chairman of the Board of Directors of BTPAG in the future. Bernhard Emch and Remo Tschanz will continue to serve as members of the Board of Directors. Operationally, the company will continue to be managed by Remo Tschanz as CEO. Remo Tschanz will in future sit on the Public D-A-CH Board. Marc Baeriswyl will remain in his role as CFO until his retirement at the end of 2024. The entire management team remains unchanged. The employees of BTPAG will be taken over, and BTPAG will also be strengthened by msg employees from the Public business in Switzerland. With these measures, msg is focusing on continuity. Existing customers will not experience any changes, the company says. In the future, both companies will be represented with co-working offices at the Ittigen/Bern, Zurich and Basel locations, which will bring immediate benefits for customers and employees.

Source and further information: www.msg.group

Many areas in and around our lives are changing as a result of digitization. This includes the public sector such as the federal government, cities and municipalities. Therefore, it is not surprising that more and more smart city projects with unique solutions are emerging. Some examples are street lights that analyze the current traffic situation, apps that display available parking spaces and digital outdoor kiosks that provide city information in real time.

However, what must ALWAYS be at the center of these projects are the people. The ultimate goal of a smart city is to improve the lives of its citizens. To do this, it is important to put yourself in the people's shoes. How do citizens want to be entertained, informed and protected? How do THEY want to be entertained, informed and protected?

With our FORIS® Outdoor Kiosk, a local government is present with its residents around the clock. Citizens are informed daily about important information such as postponements of e.g. waste paper collections, events, education, urban developments, housing and leisure.

Now, you are probably thinking that such information can be found on the municipal website; but let's face it - important information needs to get to citizens quickly and easily.

If your municipality uses digital outdoor ads, it can reach a large audience. By using digital displays, municipalities and cities can inform their residents in real time with effective notifications.

Moreover, important information such as opening hours, further procedure and hygiene rules etc. can be highlighted. And this in all possible languages. Thus, a higher number of people is reached.

Do you know of a municipality that uses digital signage to communicate with its residents?

Learn more about why digital outdoor info boards make sense for communities in our blog.

As the Swiss market leader, we have successfully implemented countless digital projects over the past 30 years. Inputech AG accompany customers on their way to use the opportunities of digitalization for the benefit of the population, the trade and the city administration.

To order further references and information or to arrange a non-binding meeting to get to know us, please call: +41 44 879 20 24 or info@inputech.ch.

The Investor and Business Development Roadshows for Swiss startups are specifically designed to help them achieve their goal of becoming a global player. Thus, once again ten selected entrepreneurs receive an accelerated learning curve and a solid network through exchange with their teammates, contact with the market, feedback from investors and experts, and hands-on business development.

Total 90 applications

Venture Leaders Cleantech is what it describes as a unique business development program in Munich to explore the international market and the potential of high-growth Swiss startups. The cleantech industry is now presenting its own Swiss Startup National Team: A jury of professional investors and cleantech experts reviewed nearly 90 applications and selected the ten Venture Leaders Cleantech 2022. These selected startups reduce man-made negative environmental impacts by increasing energy efficiency, developing sustainable resource production systems or strengthening environmental protection. "The interest in this program and the quality of the applications were tremendous," said Stefan Steiner, co-managing director of Venturelab. "We have been supporting cleantech startups for many years and are excited to expand on this with the first Venture Leaders focused entirely on the cleantech sector. From energy generation to materials recycling, each startup brings an important solution to our world."

The ten cleantech startups at a glance

This year's Venture Leaders Cleantech will present themselves and their startups at the September 9, 2022 in a virtual pitch session. present. The event is open to the public and serves as a showcase for the ten innovations that the Swiss Startup National Team will present in Munich in 2022. The companies and solutions in question are as follows:

• Clemap from Zurich offers a platform for system integrators and metering service providers to manage and control energy flows, improve self-consumption and support the power grid infrastructure.
• CompPair Technologies SA based in Lausanne, has developed the first curable and sustainable composite, a breakthrough innovation in the field of self-healing composites that will bring critical changes to manufacturers, end users and the planet.
• dhp technology AG from Zizers in the canton of Grisons, Switzerland, develops, produces and builds a unique and patented solar folding roof that enables the dual use of industrial space for solar power production.
• Enerdrape Sàrl from Lausanne helps building owners and energy professionals to transform the energy use of their facilities. The start-up is developing the world's first thermal panel for underground environments, transforming them into renewable heat sources for building heating and cooling needs.
• Exnaton AG based in Zurich, helps utilities prepare for tomorrow's energy market with a SaaS platform that enables utilities to offer their customers a range of new renewable energy products.
• FenX AG from Turgi produces sustainable and high-performance insulation materials from mineral waste for the construction industry. These handy, high-performance insulation boards are safe, non-combustible and have a minimal carbon footprint, so there is no need to compromise on price, combustibility or environmental impact.
• INERGIO Technologies SA, Lausanne, is presenting an autonomous lightweight energy system based on innovative fuel cell technology as an environmentally friendly alternative to diesel engines.
• Regli Energy Systems AG based in Glattbrugg, Switzerland, develops and produces uncompromising, highly efficient heat pumps to drive the heat transition and support the Net Zero 2050 goal.
• SoHHytec SA based in Lausanne, develops, builds and operates artificial gardens and forests that provide green hydrogen and electricity as a service. The start-up's "Arb" product is a versatile and flexible system that uses sunlight and water to achieve over 70 % efficiency with minimal space requirements.
• Trea-Tech, also based in Lausanne, transforms waste from a burden into a resource by offering a sustainable and circular solution, producing methane-rich renewable gas, clean water and fertilizer from liquid waste streams.

Source: Venture Leaders

As a rule, the regulation of company succession does not take place without external support. Many trustees, coaches, management consultants or even lawyers and tax consultants offer their services in this regard. However, depending on the situation, important aspects are not given enough consideration in the handling of a succession process, which can have a detrimental effect under certain circumstances. Therefore, experts now agree that a holistic view of succession planning is needed, a so-called "big picture". This is the claim of the recently founded Swiss Umbrella Association for Corporate Succession (CHDU). It propagates an approach that looks at company succession from the perspectives of "family," "company" and "capital" and, building on this, has developed a seven-step process - for example, for the sale of a company to a successor.

Reconciling the aspects of family, business and money

Hans Jürg Domenig from ANSATZ AG - Firmen-Nachfolge-Verkauf in Thayngen also knows about common stumbling blocks in the sale of a company for the purpose of succession planning. He is also an advocate of the three perspectives mentioned above. He always starts with the family of an entrepreneur: "How can the company provide a livelihood for the family?" is a crucial question, says Domenig. Then, of course, there are questions about inheritance, shareholdings of family members and who from the family works in the business. Against this background, it is important to develop the right strategy for reconciling family and business. Only then does the company perspective come into play with vision, mission and strategy. The third factor, "money," is primarily a technical issue that can be represented in mathematical terms. According to Hans Jürg Domenig, this topic should only be addressed after the family and corporate strategy has been clarified.

Tools for successful SME succession

Together with EXPERTSuisse, the professional association for fiduciaries and auditors, CHDU is now offering a full-day seminar entitled "Big Picture of Successful SME Succession" on two dates. It is aimed at succession advisors, fiduciaries, auditors, tax consultants, management consultants, coaches, organizational consultants and other professionals and career changers in the field of business succession planning. This seminar is intended as a preliminary stage for a certificate course to become a succession consultant or succession expert.

More information: www.chdu.ch / www.expertsuisse.ch/nachfolge

Succession expert Hans Jürg Domenig in conversation

Hans Jürg Domenig has accompanied over 300 company sellers, successors, company founders, start-ups and franchise founders on their way to success for 25 years. He is a founding member and on the board of the Swiss umbrella organization for business succession CHDU.

Mr. Domenig, to what extent can business succession be "learned"? For entrepreneurs in particular, succession is a unique process.
Hans Jürg Domenig: Succession cannot be learned in the strict sense, but one can benefit a lot from the experiences of others. The idea that succession is a one-off process is only true to a limited extent: Often, a first succession fails and one has to make a second attempt by learning from the experiences made.

The seminar "Big Picture Successful According to the invitation to tender, "SME Succession" is primarily aimed at people who support companies in the succession process. Where is the greatest need for learning for this target group?
For them, it will have to be about being able to take different perspectives. This is because a company succession involves a large number of topics to which, for example, trustees, lawyers, coaches, etc. bring different know-how. This know-how must now be brought together in a holistic approach. Our seminar will therefore show how to start the succession process with a clear structure. We want to focus on the holistic nature of the succession issue and shed light on the process, which consists of seven steps. A planned certificate course will then deepen these individual steps in 15 training days.

I conclude from this: The topic of succession has been treated "wrongly" up to now?
It is indeed the case that many topics are not given enough weight or are even omitted altogether. For example, money is discussed too early, or only family or entrepreneurial aspects are discussed, but not enough is done to deal with the topic holistically.

What is your personal experience with your own succession consultations?
As a consultant, you must not go into the process too hastily. A cautious approach is important, and the conditions are different in every company: I have seen entrepreneurs who only said at the age of 80, "I should think about my succession". Especially important: It's always about emotions, on both sides, the buyer and the seller of a company. I can now predict quite accurately when an entrepreneur will have his first sleepless nights. Or a buyer suddenly becomes afraid of the risk. That's when you need to bring all your experience as a consultant to bear, but the seller can also make a big difference by sharing his experiences. Over time, you can sense the thoughts behind each statement. Then you can influence them accordingly.

In a succession process, you have to reveal a lot about yourself. Is this often a barrier for entrepreneurs or owners?
Yes, entrepreneurs want to keep a lot of things secret at first, so as not to cause irritation among customers and suppliers. Therefore, a maximum of discretion is necessary. This makes the need for succession consultants who can guarantee precisely this discretion all the greater. Because as you can see: Succession consulting enters very intimate and emotionally charged areas. And a great deal of trust must first be established between the entrepreneur and the consultant.

It is said that succession planning actually begins when the company is founded. What is your attitude to this?
It is certainly not wrong and not too early to start thinking about company succession at the age of 50. At this age, entrepreneurs should start thinking beyond mere consolidation and tax optimization. After all, there are many topics that can play a role from this point on: Spinning off divisions or real estate, setting up a pension fund solution, reducing non-essential parts of the company and assets, or even setting up a management structure that does not place the entire responsibility on the shoulders of the entrepreneur.

How is the interest in the new seminar program and what are the plans for the future?
Initially, we have announced two seminar dates, on December 1, 2022 and February 1, 2023. We expect 20 participants per seminar. Of course, we would like to motivate these participants to then also take part in the CAS, which is to start in 2023/2024.