Conextrade, a Swisscom company, supports its customers in the entire digital process chain and thus helps them to optimize their digitalization. We spoke to Eros Merlini, Head of Conextrade at Swisscom, about current developments.

Mr. Merlini, as you know, many companies had to adapt their processes in the course of the pandemic measures. How strongly did this affect the demand for Conextrade's services? Was there something like a boom?
Eros Merlini: The work in the home office has shown many companies how difficult and time-consuming the processing of accounts payable invoices in the home office can be. Forced by the pandemic measures, a rethinking has taken place in large companies as well as in SMEs. This is because invoice acceptance, processing, forwarding, verification and archiving is a logistical tour de force in the home office. Accordingly, there has been increased interest not only in Conextrade services, but also in other Swisscom services such as Swiss TrustRoom.

To whom are the solutions of Conextrade available: Swisscom customers only?
Conextrade's services are available to all companies in Switzerland, regardless of the industry.

How much time is actually saved by switching to e-invoicing or e-procurement? Can this be quantified?
Various studies (e.g. from Billentis, Computerworld or the FHNW) put the savings potential digital vs. paper at CHF 3.- to CHF 6.- for invoicing and at CHF 20.- to CHF 30.- per invoice on the invoice receipt side.

And how high is the implementation effort for digital invoice processing?
This is not so easy to say, as it depends on whether the company has its own IT department or whether it wants to implement the solution itself.

What about interfaces to third-party accounting software and ERP systems? Which ones are supported there?
Conextrade is an ERP independent platform for digital processes and connects companies with different ERP systems. Our customers use e.g. SAP, Navision, Abacus, Sage, Sesam etc.

In addition to the whole "digitization wave," there are also changes in payment transactions elsewhere. For example, the familiar orange payment slip will soon be a thing of the past. To what extent would this be an ideal occasion to completely to e-invoicing?
The payment slip will be replaced by the QR code or the QR invoice. The changeover is not in itself a special reason to switch to e-invoicing. The real motivation for e-invoicing when sending invoices is the great savings potential as well as the environmental friendliness, since printing, paper, envelopes and, above all, postage are eliminated - this for e-invoicing in the B2B area and also now with eBill (digital invoice into the eBanking portal) for the B2C area.

Where do you see further potential for the digitization of business processes?
In addition to the invoice, there is great potential in combining it with the other processes in the Procure2Pay/Order2Cash chain, such as the purchase order, order confirmation and delivery bill. Digitizing these processes brings further efficiency and cost-saving opportunities, such as automatic invoice posting (order matching).

More information: www.conextrade.com

Institutional investors in Europe and the UK are increasingly focusing on environmental and social (ESG) issues. Meanwhile, 76 percent are looking at ESG issues and associated risks. While the environment remains the focus of institutional investors, some investors are beginning to broaden their focus to include social factors (27 percent) such as human capital and labor rights. These are some of the findings of Mercer's European Asset Allocation Insights 2021, which shed light on various investment allocation issues facing European pension institutions. The survey examined investment strategies in the U.K. and European pension industry with some 850 institutional investors in eleven countries, representing total assets of about one trillion euros. About half of the institutions surveyed manage less than $100 million.

Sustainable investing is not yet a trend in Switzerland

In a European comparison, Switzerland is a clear exception: According to the study, only 14 percent of pension funds have already taken ESG risks into account. Moreover, they focus almost exclusively on environmental factors. It should be noted that the majority of participants in the Mercer study were smaller funds (75 percent have less than USD 500 million in assets), which are often slower to act on strategic issues.

"The study makes it clear that there is still room for improvement in terms of sustainable investments, especially at smaller institutions. It is not only from a moral, social and political perspective that ESG should become an issue: It also shows that sustainable and impact investments can also be good for portfolio risk hedging and ultimately returns," comments Tobias Wolf, Head Advisory at Mercer Switzerland. "However, smaller funds often have insufficient resources for such strategic issues. It is then important to obtain external support, e.g. for setting up a holistic ESG strategy and accompanying its implementation up to the selection of suitable investments."

The number of European investors using low-carbon or climate-related indexing has risen sharply compared to last year (26 percent versus 6 percent). The survey shows that a large majority of investors integrate ESG into all aspects of their operations, including investment manager selection (83 percent), investment manager monitoring (88 percent), reporting (79 percent) and asset allocation (64 percent). The survey also shows that investors are moving from a more reactive to a proactive stance, with regulatory factors as a motivator for the
Consideration of ESG risks to become less important (67 percent cited this as the main reason, up from 85 percent the previous year). "During the pandemic period, which was a major challenge for many investors, there was a sharp increase in investment in sustainable investment funds across Europe," said Joanne Holden, Global Head of Investment Research at Mercer. "While environmental issues remain front and center, it is encouraging to see that many investors are beginning to consider the social impact of their investments. Investors are becoming aware of how the elements within the ESG complex are interrelated, and how people and the planet are connected. And with corporate responsibility at the top of boards' agendas, more companies are looking to do their part to support issues like human rights, fair pay and social justice."

Allocations to alternative investments increase

More generally, the Mercer study shows that the allocation to alternative investments is now almost equal to that to equities, and in some cases (UK and Germany) even higher. The shift away from equities continues among UK and European investors (from 22 to 21 percent average allocation in the
overall portfolios) as they seek to diversify their return drivers, protect against market volatility, and tap inflation-protected return streams. Many defined benefit investors are increasingly seeking diversification across alternative asset classes (from 18 to 20 percent), such as fixed income
growth investments, private equity and real assets. In Switzerland, the picture is different: the typical allocation to alternatives is only 7 percent, while bonds, equities and real estate continue to dominate portfolios with 33, 31 and 23 percent, respectively. "We continue to see enormous potential for Swiss investors to take advantage of the many benefits of a higher allocation to Alternatives: Better diversification, optimized risks and higher long-term return opportunities, especially when taking advantage of illiquidity premiums in private markets," said Matthieu Mougeot, Investment Solutions Leader at Mercer Switzerland. "Working with an expert and delegating resource-intensive parts of the investment process can make all the difference for investors here. Not only in identifying the right strategies from a global pool, but also in accessing attractive opportunities and executing the strategy at a high level."

Looking ahead, the majority of investors (53 percent) plan to learn lessons from the pandemic by revising their investment strategy, manager mandates or plan governance. However, a sizable minority (38 percent) do not intend to make changes to their plan's governance as a direct result of last year's events. Sustainable investing thus remains a hesitant practice in Switzerland.

Source: Mercer

For once, Health Minister Alain Berset has good news to report: For the first time since 2008, health insurance premiums will fall in 2022, by an average of 0.2 percent. In addition, some health insurers will reduce their reserves. This will ultimately lead to a premium reduction of 1.3 percent, as announced by the FOPH on September 28, 2021.

Massively higher premiums for daily sickness benefit insurances

Private households can therefore look forward to budget relief. Not so companies that have taken out daily sickness benefits insurance: As a survey by the offer portal Gryps.ch revealed, almost one in three SMEs will have to pay higher KTG premiums from 2022. Small companies with 1 to 10 employees seem to be particularly affected. Moreover, the premiums for daily sickness benefits insurance will not increase in a homeopathic dose, but massively: There is talk of premiums increasing by up to 44 percent, and even increases of 100 percent are possible, as Gryps.ch knows from some cases.

No clear reasons for premium increases

The reasons for these premium increases are difficult to determine because they do not follow a clear pattern. Typically, premiums for daily sickness benefits insurance increase when a company has a higher number of claims. According to the survey mentioned above, one-fifth of the companies will not have to pay higher premiums next year despite claims. In turn, 17 percent of the companies surveyed will receive a higher premium bill even though they had no claims in 2021. And citing the Covid 19 pandemic as a "premium driver" also falls short: only 4 percent of the SMEs surveyed had a Covid claim - and can look forward to unchanged premiums.

Voluntary but useful

Although daily sickness benefits insurance is voluntary, it is now also widespread among many SMEs. If an employee is absent due to illness, the daily sickness benefits insurance takes over the employer's obligation to continue paying wages.

Sources: Daily Gazette and Gryps.ch

Let's not kid ourselves: Your success is largely determined by the extent to which you can understand and influence other people. And that's just not possible without psychology.

Much can be learned

By the way, I know from my own experience that you can learn all this. Because for me, as an engineer, people skills, influencing and leadership were by no means components of my studies. What it essentially takes is interest and application, whether through coaching or leading others.

Insights from psychology

Here are three extremely important insights from psychology, from my experience, that most leaders pay far too little attention to:

1. Emotion beats logic - every time. How many of our decisions are made purely rationally, i.e. logically? The answer: not a single one. In the end, there is always some emotion involved. The same applies to taking action: Only emotions make people act and move (which is why the very word "emotion" includes "motion"). Anyone who has ever wanted to change the culture or cooperation in a team can confirm this.
2. Their reality is distorted. There is no neutral reality that is the same for two people. Yes, there are facts, but they are interpreted differently by everyone. A fitting saying from psychology sums up this realization: we don't see the world as it is, but as WE are. Our self-image acts like a prism that distorts "reality" - and it does so differently for each person. Remember this the next time you wonder why others just don't understand what seems to be quite clear to you.
3. Mental exhaustion is real. If you wonder why you yourself or others sometimes fail to accomplish anything reasonable during certain periods of time, make poor decisions, or are unproductive, you are probably dealing with mental exhaustion. Like physical energy in the body, mental energy is limited. While you can regenerate it (or preferably not over-consume it in the first place), that first requires awareness of the problem. Managing your mental energy is often an important part of my coaching programs - for good reason.

If you apply these three insights, your effectiveness and success as a leader will increase significantly. Good luck with it!

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

Observers and those involved in succession projects find that they rarely go smoothly. Although well planned, the succession often falls through at the last moment. This is despite a perceived agreement between the retiring owner and serious candidates. X attempts, countless discussions, many efforts and perhaps even disappointments - but justified hope remained until the end.

From possibility to reality

However, a successful succession is not a matter of chance. Especially not if well-designed, emotional communication prepares and accompanies it. The art of this is to pick up interested parties as people with feelings. Why? Because ultimately, even in succession processes, emotions always trigger the decision. With serious mutual interest and communicatively fanned embers, the spark is much more likely to jump from possibility to reality. Then the successors will catch fire for the business idea, for the uniqueness. Then it is no longer primarily about price and return discussions, but about the entrepreneurial value that they recognize in it for their own entrepreneurship and their life plan.

Heart or head - the crucial question

Whoever is intended for the company succession: employees, third parties or family members - for them, legally secured hard facts are the indispensable basis for their binding decision. So it's no surprise that the hard facts are almost exclusively the focus of all succession negotiations. People talk, argue and discuss about money, deadlines, rights, obligations and responsibility.

In contrast, there is the heart and the gut. Intuitively, all people rely on their gut feeling in their rational deliberations. Hand on heart: gut feeling plays the famous role of tipping the scales in every decision-making process. In the case of a negative decision, one simply puts forward the facts as the decisive factor. Succession as a complex and emotional matter is not exempt from feelings. And fortunately, these can be influenced through communication.

Emotionally enhance the acquisition opportunity

Right from the start, it is therefore worthwhile to explore and consistently include the emotional soft facts surrounding succession communication. They are in part closely linked to the hard facts. It is a challenge to let the owner's passion spark jump over to the succession. Storytelling and clear messages have the power to do this. With all messages combined in a statement system, expectations can be managed and people can be inspired. This communication enhances the company. Well-equipped, you express your ideas better in negotiations; you feel out areas of conflict more easily and can work toward a common denominator step by step.

Yes - I do!

The last crucial question asked by those interested is, "Do I regret it if I don't do it?" The answer must be a resounding yes. This yes requires a great deal of trust on both sides. A trust that the company owner willing to sell creates with targeted communication. Only if he himself is passionately convinced of his company idea will he receive an unconditional yes from candidates.

To achieve this, the transparent, emotionally comprehensible "company history" is the optimal form. Its contents are collected with a questionnaire and compiled into a systematically arranged succession statement system. On the basis of this, the discussions with those interested in succession take place. The same messages are used for the consistent use of media channels such as the web, social media and succession platforms. The messages are the content of a designed analog succession documentation. They also serve to prepare a letter of intent LOI or a preliminary contract.

Statements that make takeover seekers hot under the collar

The succession statement system fulfills two important functions: First, it creates clarity on both sides; second, it motivates interested parties to succeed. Basis of the questionnaire for the succession statement system:

1. What is the company uniquely good at, effectively better? (USP)
2. What constitutes the soul of this unique life's work? What is its passion, what aspects convey meaning beyond the return on investment?
3. Which entrepreneurial characteristics and personalities are addressed?
4. What are ideal entrepreneurial skills for succession?
5. Beyond the money, what will be the buyers' reward?
6. What added value or risks do assessable market prospects point to?
7. What are the handover steps?

Higher chance of desired succession

Effective succession communication requires emotional explosiveness in all parts. The authors of this article work these out specifically in their work with clients, with experience and success and in the knowledge of trigger moments in the potential succession as flesh and blood people. In the demanding and usually lengthy process, company owners can use the individual building blocks of the statement system again and again in a targeted manner. By including soft facts in preliminary contracts, they quickly sense what someone is willing to do and where difficulties are foreseeable. On the igniting basis of emotional statements, the chance of securing the desired succession for the company increases considerably.

Authors
Nic Baschung and Cornelia Aschmann form the copywriting duo frischtext.ch. They serve the SME world with target-oriented texts. Their focus is on SME succession, SEO web texts and easy-to-understand language. www.frischtext.ch

The results of the EuroSkills 2021 in Graz are once again the best proof of what excellent and, in international comparison, outstanding skilled workers the Swiss vocational training system produces. The foundation for their successes was laid by the 17 Swiss nationals competing in Graz with their EFZ training as part of their vocational apprenticeship. This was the basis for the intensive preparation that the members of the Swiss national vocational team put in together with their experts and the support of their employers to achieve success. The six European champion titles were won by Leandra Schweizer (meat specialist from Rafz/ZH), Sandro Weber (agricultural machinery mechanic from Zuzwil/SG), Simon Koch (electrician from Boswil/AG), Michael Schranz (plant electrician from Adelboden/BE), Damian Schmid (automotive mechatronics specialist for commercial vehicles from Nesslau/SG) and the duo Yunus Ruff and Silvan Wiedmer (automation technicians from Winterthur/ZH, victorious in the Industry 4.0 competition). With another top result, the SwissSkills National Team once again underlined its supremacy among the top European nations at international vocational championships.

Previous record clearly surpassed

Due to the Corona pandemic, the young professionals were doubly challenged in their preparations. Originally scheduled for September 2020, the EuroSkills had to be postponed twice. "Our team and the environment of each individual went the necessary extra mile so that we could celebrate these successes tonight," Martin Erlacher, the technical delegate of SwissSkills, was pleased to say after the award ceremony in Graz. "We can all be very proud and have clearly exceeded the already high expectations."

Switzerland was at the start of the 7th EuroSkills with the largest team in history. The previous record in terms of medals won was 8 medals from 2012. The declared goal in the run-up was to improve this record. In total, more than 400 young professionals from 19 nations took part in the EuroSkills in Graz.

The Swiss results of EuroSkills 2021

Gold:

• Leandra Schweizer (EFZ meat specialist), Rafz/ZH, employer: Metzgerei Sigrist, Rafz/ZH. Expert: Sascha Fliri, Spiez/BE.
• Damian Schmid (automotive mechatronics EFZ specializing in commercial vehicles), Nesslau/SG, employer: Altherr Nutzfahrzeuge AG, Nesslau/SG. Expert: Jean Trotti, Noréaz/FR.
• Simon Koch (electrician EFZ), Boswil/AG, employer: Bütler Elektro, Muri/AG. Expert: Adrian Sommer, Langnau am Albis/ZH.
• Sandro Weber (agricultural and construction machinery mechanic), Zuzwil/SG, employer: Traber Landmaschinenbetrieb, Algetshausen/SG. Expert: Martin Schär, Lütisburg SG.
• Michael Schranz (plant electrician) Adelboden/BE, employer: Licht- und Wasserwerk Adelboden AG, Adelboden/BE. Expert: Christoph Meier, Felsberg/GR.
• Silvan Wiedmer and Yunus Ruff (Industry 4.0, trained as EFZ automation technicians), Winterthur/ZH, employer: Mechatronik Schule Winterthur, Winterthur/ZH. Expert: Timon Steeb, Wil/AG.

Silver:

• Sandro Hagmann (Spengler EFZ), Lostorf/SO, Employer: R.Voney GmbH, Däniken/SO. Expert: Roger Gabler, Lostdorf/SO.
• Mario Liechti (electronics technician EFZ), Windisch/AG, employer: Paul Scherrer Institute, Villigen. Expert: Markus Lempen, Bern.
• Gil Beutler (polymechanic EFZ/automation), Linden/BE, employer: Fritz Studer AG, Steffisburg/BE. Expert: Andreas Allenbach, Frutigen/BE.

Bronze:

• Susan Wildermuth (decorative painter), Jonschwil/SG, employer: bickelmaler AG, Wangen-Dübendorf/ZH. Expert: Viola Stillhard Krasniqi, La Neuveville/BE.
• Julian Ferrante (Hotel Reception, trained as Hotel-Gastro-Tourism Businessman EFZ), Kriens/LU, employer: Pilatus Kulm Hotels, Pilatus/LU. Expert: Egidio Marcato, Glion/VD.
• Christoph Galli (Boden- Parkettleger EFZ), Rohrbachgraben/BE, employer: Lustenberger Galli Parkett + Bodenbeläge GmbH, Madiswil/BE. Expert: Ivan Fankhauser, Bubendorf/BL.
• Adrian Büttler (Gipser-Trockenbauer EFZ), Mümliswil/SO, Employer: R. Büttler Maler AG, Mümliswil/SO. Expert: Michael Hess, Bern.
• Luca Roma (glazier EFZ), Pollegio/TI, employer: Vetrimarghi SA, Biasca/TI. Expert: Maurizio Peluso, Arbedo/TI.

Top8:

• 4th place: Jan Meier (EFZ design engineer), Andwil/SG. Employer: Bühler AG, Uzwil/SG. Expert: Heinz Gisi, Rothenburg/LU.
• 7th place: Maurizio Tschirky (stonemason EFZ), Einsiedeln/SZ, employer: J. & A. Kuster Steinbrüche AG, Freienbach/SZ. Expert: August Kuster, Schmerikon/SG.

More info: www.swiss-skills.ch/nationalteam

At the beginning of July 2021, SIX Group Ltd, which is taking over responsibility for receipt-based payment transactions from Swiss Post, published a study conducted on its behalf by the gfs.bern research institute. The survey of over 1,000 companies found that almost a year after the introduction of the QR bill, and just over a year before the end of red and orange payment slips, only just under half of companies are even aware that they are really going to disappear. Only 15 percent of the companies surveyed have so far switched to the QR bill, while the proportion of those with no plan at all is still very high, the SIX Group Ltd. study adds.

Many SMEs risk a whack-and-jerk exercise for QR billing

"Very many tradespeople, SMEs, associations and owners of stores or online stores ignore the fact that there is a need for action and that they need a solution for creating QR invoices - regardless of whether they issue many or few invoices. At the same time, most of them also overlook the fact that they could already reduce their administrative workload quite considerably by making the changeover quickly," states Beni Schwarzenbach. He is the managing director of Schwarzenbach KMU Services AG, a Zurich-based company that developed the QR Module solution. "Apparently, many think that the QR invoice is merely an add-on and that the previous payment slips can simply continue to be used. This is clearly not the case: as of October 1, 2022, Swiss Post will reject them at the counter," Schwarzenbach continues.

Solutions are already available

Basically, billers can be divided into four categories:

1. Large billers with high volumes such as telecom companies or health insurance companies with their own IT solution;
2. medium-sized companies and organizations that use ERP software;
3. SMEs, self-employed persons, associations and donation organizations with rather small volumes, for which the purchase of ERP software hardly pays off, and
4. Online stores that use QR Invoice as a payment option.

The first two categories are served by their software vendors, although there are ERP vendors that will not make the switch. "If a user of a particular ERP software has not yet heard anything about QR invoicing from their manufacturer, they should ask and, if necessary, think about a replacement solution," says Schwarzenbach, continuing, "For the other two groups, there are offers on the Internet. Those who belong to the third group can generate QR invoices directly online (SaaS solution). Online stores install a plugin in the CMS on which you run your website (e.g. WordPress or Zoho Marketplace). QR Module, for example, offers a simple solution for both groups."

QR module covers a wide field

QR module enables register users to generate simple QR payment parts with QR code as well as complete QR invoices quickly and easily. The validation function guarantees that they can be paid easily in online and mobile banking as well as at the post office counter. Customizable invoice templates allow billers to adhere to their corporate design. Invoice items are managed online in the accounts receivable list or uploaded from an Excel list. This fulfills the prerequisite for generating entire invoice series with just a few clicks. For those who do not want to do without postal dispatch, QR Modul also offers the option of ordering postal dispatch directly from the system. Printing on perforated paper, packaging, franking and dispatch are handled by Schneider Druck AG in Zurich. Finally, the "e-mail" dispatch option will also be added in the 4th quarter of 2021. "This dispatch option is an extremely cost-effective way to go, because the costs for printing and dispatch are eliminated. It will therefore probably gain in importance in the future. But beware: experience shows that payment morale is poor with this channel, because mails in the inbox quickly disappear from the bill recipient's field of vision among all the other messages. This, in turn, increases the workload in the dunning process," Schwarzenbach points out.

Source and further information: QR module

Despite the Corona pandemic, only a few job seekers are currently fearing for their jobs: only 17% of the respondents in the latest JobCloud (jobs.ch / jobup.ch) labor market survey are looking for a new job out of fear for their professional future - that's even 2% less than in the last survey in 2019. Respondents are looking for a new job primarily because they want more pay or a career change and opportunities for further development. Thus, the job search results more from a comfortable situation and less from a need.

SMEs keep up with large companies in terms of attractiveness

It is not the large, international companies that are at the top of job seekers' wish lists: The most attractive employers are small companies with 10 to 49 employees - especially among the younger generation - and medium-sized companies with 50 to 249 employees, across all age groups. "Of course, working for a well-known large company has great appeal for many. These often score with higher salaries and benefits. SMEs, on the other hand, usually impress with flatter hierarchies, the opportunity to take on responsibility and, not least, a more family-like atmosphere," explains Davide Villa, CEO of JobCloud. For some, however, it doesn't matter how big the company is - that's what a quarter of the respondents said.

Corona shifts job search even more to the Internet

In their search for the next job, job seekers have been applying online more and more for years: The use of all digital channels has increased. Over 70% of respondents use job portals for their search, with the two best-known Swiss portals jobs.ch and jobup.ch also the most popular in German and French-speaking Switzerland respectively. Job searches via social networks have also increased (36% in 2021 versus 32% in 2019), with office workers more likely to browse social media for new jobs (40%). Markedly less relevant this year was in-person - probably due in part to the Corona pandemic, which made networking events and business lunches impossible. In 2019, almost half (48%) used personal contacts, in 2021 it is just under 10% less (41%). In French-speaking Switzerland, however, personal contacts are still important: Here, 47% of all respondents rely on their personal network when looking for a job, compared with only 40% in German-speaking Switzerland. On the other hand, the French are much less likely to look for jobs directly on the company website of their preferred employer (45% vs. 54%). Respondents from German-speaking Switzerland thus seem to search more for jobs at specific companies, while the French use a broader search spectrum.

Source: JobCloud

Peter Geiger, Chairman of FEP Freie Erfa-Gruppe Personal Ostschweiz, welcomed the 180 participants as well as 20 people who followed the event from home via live stream. Six HR experts illuminated the topic "HR in turbulent times - balancing act between innovation and constancy" from different perspectives. The event was moderated for the first time by Sabine Bianchi.

Promote cross-divisional collaboration

The first speaker was Alex Villiger, economist with a doctorate from the HSG and Head of Human Resources at Graubündner Kantonalbank. There, he has initiated and implemented a fundamental realignment of HR work. This is based on the fact that the digital transformation, the demographic slump and the change in values have fundamentally and sustainably changed the world of work. Within 20 years, for example, 150,000 office jobs had disappeared because of digitalization. The complementary effect creates more jobs than the substitution effect destroys, says Alex Villiger. The complementary effect is driven by the search for innovation: "If you only optimize the Walkman, you'll never invent an iPod," says Villiger, quoting Heiko Fischer. A fundamental reorientation of human resources work is becoming inevitable. He presented the new leadership model for the working world 4.0. Leadership must awaken the potential of employees, align teams with customers, and promote network-like cross-divisional collaboration, he said.

Pizza delivery on onboarding day: part of the future of work?

Liza Follert, Head of People Attraction at Helvetia Insurance, spoke about constant change in the midst of constant change. Important aspects of this, she said, are personal experiences and accompanying people through important steps in their career paths. "Whether virtually or in person, in our interviews we are at eye level," said Liza Follert. In the interviews, the "you" culture is carried out consistently and at all times, all questions are answered. Taster days to get to know the team and learn more about the job are also part of the process. Participants were able to see for themselves on the spot how an application to Helvetia works. Funny, personalized videos accompanied the applicants from the application, to the invitation to the personal interview, to the employment. Welcome boxes before the start, gummy bears and pizza delivered to the applicants' homes on their first day of work are designed to whet their appetites and make onboarding so cool that they can hardly wait to get started.

Well-being in the future of work 

In the wake of the Corona pandemic, most companies inevitably had to address the issue of home offices. While working at home was a relief for some, others felt more stressed. This was also a finding that Adrian Brunner of Cisco, an international IT company, addressed in his presentation, "Workforce of the Future: home office and mental health - new mindset for HR." He talked about how managers found it difficult to perceive their teams emotionally because of the physical distance. This meant that it was sometimes almost impossible to find out what the well-being of employees was like. But once the pandemic is over, many companies will not return to the "old" way of doing things. "The future of work is becoming hybrid, work at home, work in the office, work everywhere," says Adrian Brunner. Therefore, a proactive approach to employees is necessary to get a picture of their mental health. To make employees feel comfortable in new work environments, he advises: focusing on teams, building trust, stepping up when it becomes relevant, making mental health an issue, creating healthy workplaces. Work, he says, is first and foremost not a place, but an activity.

Culture change: leadership as a key element

Corporate cultures must change in order to be prepared for the future of work. This was demonstrated by Karin Schmidt, Group Head of HR & Communication and member of the Executive Board at Mibelle Group (Migros Industrie). Migros Industrie used to be a conglomerate of more than 20 different companies. The task now is to merge these companies in such a way that synergies can be better exploited, overarching processes streamlined and cost items optimized. HRM plays a key role in this major change process. Six goals are to be achieved in this transformation. A key element of this is a leadership initiative to address issues such as employee engagement, talent management, work-life balance and inclusion. Much of this is currently still in its infancy, the speaker said, and there is still a lot of work to be done. But with a pioneering spirit, community and responsibility, Migros wants to build the future together.

Values: foundation in difficult times

Daniel Frei, co-founder and CEO of tibits AG, then gave the audience an impressive demonstration of what the pandemic can do to a company. "The last 20 months have been the most difficult in the entire history of the company," said Frei, who, together with his brothers, made meat-free system catering respectable 20 years ago. But thanks to a steady commitment to the company's values - joie de vivre, trust, progressiveness, time - and a consistent focus on people, tibits didn't let it get them down. On the contrary: the company used the time to accelerate innovations that had already been started and to put new projects into practice, such as the Biomedical Health Hotel Sonnenberg in Schwellbrunn.

Life Cosmos Engelberg Monastery

A very different kind of "enterprise" is the one that Abbot Christian runs: The Benedictine monastery of Engelberg. He showed how ancient rules of the order can be combined with modern business management. The audience was shown that it is also possible without profit maximization - indeed, that the greatest profit is not only to maintain the monastic community over the centuries, but also to constantly develop it further.

The next East Switzerland Staff Day will take place on September 15, 2022. Further information under www.personaltag.ch.

Four juries evaluated a total of 238 companies for the Swiss Annual Report Rating. On September 21, the winners received their certificates from jury president Hans-Peter Nehmer at SIX in Zurich. The Swiss Annual Report Rating is conducted annually by HarbourClub - Chief Communications Officers. Around 170 participants took part in the event. The rating was made possible by the organizing partner Linkgroup and the support of Antalis, Apostroph Group, PwC and SIX.

Annual reports of the largest Swiss companies

The Swiss Annual Report Rating includes the annual reports of all listed companies represented in the SPI. The list is completed with the companies of the 50 companies with the highest turnover, the 15 insurance companies with the highest premium volume and the 25 banks with the highest balance sheet total and comprises 238 companies in 2020.

This sample was evaluated successively by three juries. First, by the Value Reporting jury of the Institute for Banking and Finance at the University of Zurich, headed by Prof. Dr. Alexander F. Wagner; second, by a Design jury headed by Jonas Voegeli and Jiri Chmelik of the Zurich University of the Arts. Then, a final jury led by Hans-Peter Nehmer, President of HarbourClub and Head of Corporate Communications at Allianz Suisse, judged the twelve best annual reports - print and online - of the 2020 vintage selected by the preliminary juries.

Annual Report Rating 2020: "An exceptional vintage".

In the words of jury president Hans-Peter Nehmer, the 2020 vintage that was judged was certainly exceptional, even for annual reports, because of the pandemic. "How companies deal with and report on the challenges this poses says a lot about their willingness to communicate transparently. Especially in times of crisis, trust can be gained through open and authentic reporting. Some of the companies evaluated have handled this in an exemplary manner."

The rankings

Overall winner business reports of the final jury

Place 1: Geberit
2nd place: St. Galler Kantonalbank
Rank 3: VP Bank

Design category (online and print)

Place 1: Hiag Real Estate
Place 2: Zur Rose
3rd place: Bachem

Category Value Reporting (Online and Print)

Rank 1: UBS
2nd place: Clariant
3rd place: Swisscom

Rising star of the year

Design: Vaudoise
Value Reporting: Aluflexpack

Category text

Swiss Re

Source

The Swiss economy is recovering and will grow by 3.6 percent this year, according to forecasts by the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (Seco). But this positive outlook is not yet reflected in the mood of many businesses. In a non-representative survey conducted online by localsearch (Swisscom Directories AG) among more than 800 owners and managers of small businesses, one in five (19 percent) say they are "depressed, frustrated and fearful for the future because of the Corona pandemic". Another 23 percent don't put it so drastically, but can at least partially identify with that statement.

In the event of a further lockdown: one in five tradespeople would close their company for good

If there were to be another lockdown in Switzerland, this would have drastic consequences for a considerable number of entrepreneurs. For 19 percent of small businesses, this would mean the fairly certain end of their company. Another 12 percent would see their business severely endangered. However, a solid majority of 70 percent of owners and managing directors categorically rule out a closure of their company or at least consider such a move unlikely.

Not all negative: majority sees digitization push as opportunity

A majority (56 percent) can also take something positive from the crisis. These traders see the digitization push triggered by Corona with QR codes, e-commerce, digital marketing, delivery services and contactless payment as a great opportunity for their business. A quarter (24 percent) view digitization critically.

42 percent of all traders are positive about the future and do not expect their business to suffer for long from the consequences of the pandemic. And yet, many traders fear that the effects of the pandemic will have a negative impact on their business in the long term. 20 percent are firmly convinced of this, 12 percent are somewhat convinced and 26 percent cannot rule it out.

Although Corona has shaken things up, the customer structure of the businesses surveyed has not changed. 86 percent of all owners or managers say their customers are still the same today as they were before the pandemic. Only one in seven say they have different customers today than they did at the beginning of last year.

Consumers spend less today than before the crisis

Even if the customer structure has remained unchanged in most cases, customers seem to have partly adapted their buying behavior and demands to the new zeitgeist. More than one in two traders (56 percent) say their regular customers tend to spend less money with them today. And customers have become more demanding and are asking for more for their money - as 41 percent of all small businesses note.

Businesses in Western Switzerland clearly more pessimistic

While 56 percent of all Swiss businesses say that their company is at least partly worse off today than before the pandemic, the figure in French-speaking Switzerland is significantly higher at 63 percent. A similar difference can be seen in customers' perceived propensity to buy: Whereas 55 percent in Switzerland as a whole note a certain reluctance to buy on the part of their customers, the figure in French-speaking Switzerland is 68 percent. And the question of whether the company will suffer from the consequences of the pandemic in the long term is also answered much more negatively by the French, with 73 percent (Switzerland as a whole: 58 percent).

Source: localsearch

Which factors are decisive in order to survive in global competition? Productivity, speed and efficiency are the most frequently used buzzwords. The software manufacturer proALPHA shows how ERP deployment can become a success on the international stage with the help of eight adjusting screws.

1. Communication is everything: Use the cultural challenges as an opportunity for your business. Because decisions and planning are different in every country. It makes sense to take as much time as possible at the start of the project to agree on a uniform procedure with everyone involved. Draw up a plan in which project goals and processes are clearly defined and documented. This will protect you from misinterpretations right from the start. After all, functioning processes are an important basis for being as well networked and successful as possible abroad.
2. Skillfully overcoming language barriers: In the international environment, English is the established working and project language. But especially between native speakers and non-native speakers, subtleties in communication can quickly get lost - misunderstandings arise, and the success of the project falters. Therefore, when preparing your ERP rollout abroad, rely on internationally experienced project managers who are able to navigate linguistic pitfalls with confidence.
3. Identify local requirements: The legal regulations for companies differ from country to country - often even regionally. In order to be prepared for all eventualities here, you should already inform yourself about the respective framework conditions before establishing a foreign branch office. It also makes sense to be familiar with local business practices. A standardized questionnaire for the ERP roll-out is not helpful here, as it may not take into account essential success criteria. proALPHA relies on open workshops in these cases, in which users can openly address their hurdles and define individual requirements. Only then do targeted questions complete the picture.
4. Get IT on board from the start: The technical target architecture must be defined as early as possible for an international deployment of ERP software. After all, a few additional user accounts are usually not enough. Consider the back-end setup as an essential success factor for your project.
   In one possible scenario, you build your foreign branches as additional clients on an existing database. This saves licensing costs, reduces implementation time, and facilitates data exchange - although all countries are then dependent on one database server. In order to be able to act more flexibly with regard to maintenance and local requirements, a second scenario is possible: Each location receives its own database, but this is associated with additional licensing costs and greater effort when importing updates.
5. Standardization and its limits: Individual requirements for workflows and data structures quickly lead to deviations from the standard programming in the ERP system - especially at the company headquarters. However, since most foreign subsidiaries have a more compact set-up and require fewer special tools, adopting the complete architecture is rarely expedient. The solution: Develop a set-up with several country subsidiaries and modify the standard for your subsidiaries as little as possible. Adaptations per client or country can be implemented much more easily this way.
6. Introduce mandatory master data management: The master client concept is a useful tool in central master data management when processes are similar at all locations and the same data is used. Despite the high effort involved, you thus uncover the potential of a globally uniform ERP system - and make it usable for your company. Master data is stored and maintained centrally and can be replicated in local clients. However, it is important to differentiate between global and local master data in order to take regional and national differences into account, for example when parameterizing country-specific tax laws.
7. National language is trumps: The ERP application should be adaptable to the needs of the respective users - not least with regard to the language version. Even if user interfaces and menus in English are often the international standard, masks in the local language make work much easier. If your ERP provider does not have a ready-made language version for your requirements, he should at least provide a translation kit.
8. Is an on-site consultation necessary? On-site consultant days are a huge cost when it comes to rolling out an ERP system abroad. Therefore, limit these appointments to the most necessary. In consultation with the project management, define the tasks that must be completed at the respective location. Country-specific settings for the ERP software and other work that does not require customer knowledge can then be completed conveniently and cost-effectively via remote consulting.

With these eight tips, SMEs should be well prepared for the most common hurdles and can optimally configure their ERP deployment even before venturing into internationalization.

Source and further information: www.proalpha.com