New technologies, globalization, demographic change and geopolitical changes will change the way we work in the future, underlines Dr. Markus Sulzberger, Swiss Society for Organization and Management SGO.

The Swiss Society for Organization and Management (SGO) looks back on a tradition of more than 49 years in the field of management and organization. Established in 2000, the SGO Foundation promotes young talent and supports research and development in the fields of organization, business administration and leadership at universities and colleges in Europe.

At the 40th SGO Conference, the results of a survey conducted by the Research Institute for Work and Working Environments at the University of St. Gallen in collaboration with SGO among some 21 top executives in Switzerland were presented for the first time. According to this, the executives are convinced that change requires new competencies. Investments are needed in technologies, in the corporate structure and especially in the corporate culture.

CEOs still use little thought to change their own roles, but describe courage, agility and empathy as important qualities for the future of work.

New disciplines in demand

As the leading Swiss provider of organizational and management knowledge, SGO works on organizational topics and offers a variety of networking vessels (communities of practice) in which the exchange of experience among experts from the private sector and public administration is cultivated and thematic content is further developed.

For Marianne Janik, Country General Manager Microsoft Switzerland, using new technologies in a way that enhances people's strengths seemed central at the 40th meeting. Artificial intelligence, speech recognition and holographic computing are just a few examples that are being researched to enable a seamless connection between humans and machines, Janik said.

In the future, social and interpersonal skills will play an even more decisive role, also emphasized Peter Grünenfelder, Director of Avenir Suisse. Certain job profiles will become obsolete due to technological developments, overall job growth can be expected and the fear of widespread unemployment is therefore misplaced. Thanks to broad-based vocational training, Switzerland is well positioned for the future of work.

For the future, however, creativity, teamwork skills and leadership must be given greater consideration in training. Changes are also needed in labor law so that structural change is not slowed down.

For more details (all presentations) of the 40th SGO Fall Meeting, please visit this Link

"Only digital fiduciaries will survive."

Digitalization is shaking up the fiduciary industry. This is shown by the study conducted by TREUHAND|SUISSE and bexio, a leading provider of web-based business software. For the joint study, 2100 individual and corporate members of the fiduciary association were contacted throughout Switzerland, with around 80 fiduciary firms with approximately 560 employees taking part. The study shows that today 60% of the trustees spend a large part of their working time on administrative work for their clients. One third even need more than half of their time, for example, to enter receipts or post business transactions.

50,000 jobs affected in Switzerland

Such simple administrative tasks will be eliminated in the future, according to a study by Oxford University: The professions of accountant and trustee will be 94% automated. This will affect almost 50,000 people in Switzerland alone.

Trustees are aware of these changes: respondents know that their daily work routine will change in the coming years and therefore indicate that they will spend less time on administrative tasks in 2025 (41% in 2025 vs. 60% today). Also, because of less time spent on administrative work for clients, fiduciaries will have more time to spend advising them in 2025: 46% of fiduciaries plan to spend more than half of their work time advising their clients in just under 10 years. That is 5% more than today. New client acquisition and marketing will also be given more weight in the future compared to today.

Over 90% see big impact of digitalization on fiduciary industry

Addressing digitalization is therefore vital for the survival of fiduciaries. This is also reflected in the study: over 90% of the trustees are convinced that the digital transformation will have a major impact on their industry.

Trustee: Still the important person of trust for the small business owner in the future

This is also a consequence of the high time requirements of administrative work today: In 2016, fiduciaries lack the time to acquire new clients or provide advice: For example, today only just under 60% of respondents monitor their clients' liquidity on a quarterly basis or even less frequently. Yet staying liquid is essential for a healthy SME: 9 out of 10 bankruptcies are due to liquidity problems, as figures from the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs Seco show.

"Fiduciaries have to move with the times," Joël Ben Hamida, Head of Fiduciary at bexio, is convinced. He spoke with more than 500 fiduciaries last year. His conclusion: "The modern fiduciary is the external financial advisor and the sparring partner of the small entrepreneur. And no longer the 'voucher typist' as in the past." And: "Digitalization will be the biggest challenge for fiduciaries in the next ten years. What will remain unchanged is the high-quality consulting service," Beat Strasser, member of the TREUHAND|SUISSE Executive Board, is convinced.

Conclusion of the study by bexio and TREUHAND|SUISSE, summarized by Joël Ben Hamida of bexio: "Only digital fiduciaries will survive".

Source: Bexio

Writing minutes is an unpopular task. They should actually be understood by all meeting participants. But this only happens if they are well structured. That's why Sherpany (see her new homepage at this Link) a quintessential question: What does a successful protocol template look like?

Clear structure saves nerves

Clarity is important. Meetings often last several hours, the minutes become longer and longer and the risk of confusion in the document increases with the duration of the meeting. If you write it down without an outline, you will regret it later. For the minute taker, it is a good idea to follow the agenda chronologically and to set a title for each topic. These can of course be supplemented by further subtitles.

Furthermore, it should always be clear who is speaking. To do this, you can simply write the name in front of the respective meeting topic. Visually, you can also choose a color for each participant and color the font accordingly. This also simplifies the work with the minutes later.

To make the effort worthwhile

With a little work, the minutes will not be an arbitrary reproduction of keywords, but moreover what a protocol actually is: a reminder. The most important points are clarity, coherence and the distribution of tasks. If you take these into account, you will have a document in your hand after the meeting that reflects the meeting in the best possible way. So that even in the future it can be reliably reconstructed at any time what was said - and what was not. After all, the time-consuming work of the minute-taker should not have been in vain.

With SHERPANY as your partner, you can organize your management and board meetings more effectively, knowing that you are also protecting the environment.

For more information and PDF checklists on this topic, please go directly to this Link

Editor's note: This article was originally written by Michael Trommer.

Around 4,000 study participants from 16 countries expressed their opinion on the fourth industrial revolution in a survey conducted worldwide by Dell Technologies; in Switzerland, there were 200 respondents. According to the survey, 93 percent of all Swiss managers (78 percent worldwide) see digital startups as a threat to their own business. Worldwide, 45 percent of study participants worry that their current business models could be obsolete in competition against natively digital startups in five years at the latest - with a survey result of 60 percent, Switzerland is even significantly above this figure. In Switzerland in particular, many companies are already feeling the pressure to act: 71 percent of Swiss respondents report massive market changes in the past three years in connection with advancing digitization and new applications in the Internet of Things - here, too, a discrepancy with the global survey figures (52 percent) is visible.

Challenges of the Digital Transformation

Only a few companies have already largely completed the digital transformation in their own organization. Accordingly, most companies do not yet have a holistic solution approach with which they can tackle the digital challenge. In order to successfully drive forward digitization in this country in the future, 74 percent of the Swiss and 73 percent of the remaining study participants believe that digital transformation must be driven forward across the entire company on a broader front.

By their own admission, only 38 percent of Swiss companies (36 percent worldwide) are currently meeting key customer requirements in terms of improved security, round-the-clock services and faster access to information. 62 percent (64 percent worldwide) do not yet operate on the basis of real-time insights. According to the authors of the study, these are the key success factors in the digital era. If they are missed, this could be the beginning of a digital crisis.

According to 71 percent of Swiss business decision-makers, digital change is driven by competitors and startups; the pressure from board staff and management (46 percent) and from customers (33 percent) is somewhat less pronounced. This contrasts with the global results of the study: Worldwide, 56 percent stated that they are under significant pressure to change from their customers; competitors/start-ups (46 percent) and board staff/management (41 percent) were cited second and third most frequently as factors.

Digital rescue plan

The fact that there are still some obstacles on the road to digital success is confirmed by the other results of the Dell-EMC study. Only 16 percent of the Swiss study participants have already established a digital profit and loss statement. This means that Swiss companies are clearly lagging behind in the global environment (36 percent worldwide). Only 32 percent (46 percent worldwide) have now established their digitization goals in all departmental and staff policies. On the other hand, every second company (35 percent worldwide) cooperates with startups and adapts their open innovation model. 54 percent of Swiss companies (38 percent worldwide) have even appointed a management committee to evaluate digital progress.

In light of changing market requirements, Swiss companies have begun to increase the pace of their transformation: 72 percent (73 percent globally) agree that they need to give higher priority to a centralized technology strategy within the company. 70 percent (66 percent globally) plan to invest in infrastructure and increase digital skills development. In addition, 65 percent (72 percent globally) plan to expand their software development capabilities. IT investments are planned in Switzerland in the following four areas, in order of priority: Internet-of-Things technologies, converged infrastructures, ultra-high-performance solutions and Big Data analytics.

What "digitization status" are companies at?

The study results are rounded off by a Digital Transformation Index, which is based on the self-assessment of the participants and reflects the digital maturity level of the companies surveyed. According to this, worldwide:

• 5 percent (none of the companies surveyed in Switzerland) are digital leaders: for this group, digital transformation is anchored in the corporate DNA, as it were.
• 14 percent (4 percent in Switzerland) are digital adopters who already have a mature transformation plan and corresponding investment funds.
• 34 percent (54 percent in Switzerland) belong to the group of digital evaluators who are cautiously approaching transformation and planning related initiatives and investments for the future.
• 32 percent (29 percent in Switzerland) are digital followers. There has hardly been any digitization investment among this group so far; corresponding future plans are currently still very preliminary in nature.
• 15 percent (13 percent in Switzerland) belong to the digital laggards, the latecomers without a dedicated digitization plan who have allocated virtually no corresponding investment funds.

Source: Dell EMC

As part of the CNO Panel 2016 event, two studies commissioned by ICTswitzerland were presented in Bern on November 1, 2016. The new ICT Foreign Trade Study and the Software Industry Survey (SSIS) illustrate the increasing economic power of ICT.

Services export as growth driver

The ICT foreign trade study conducted by IWSB AG reveals several key findings for 2015. Firstly: The continuously growing ICT services sector remains Switzerland's fifth most important services export group with export sales of CHF 13.1 billion. Trade in computer services (CHF 9.0 billion) remains of substantial importance. Telecommunication services (CHF 2.4 billion) and information services (CHF 1.7 billion) are also very important. Exports of ICT goods have been declining for years (2010: CHF 7.3 billion; 2015: CHF 6.4 billion). Overall, Switzerland exported ICT goods and services worth CHF 19.5 billion. This means that ICT service exports are the real growth driver.

On the other hand, net exports of ICT services are now virtually balanced (2010: CHF -2.1 billion; 2012: CHF -1.1 billion; 2015: CHF -0.2 billion). With the exception of the Americas, exports of Swiss ICT services to all country groups are higher than imports, which underscores the quality and competitiveness of Swiss ICT. With regard to ICT goods, however, net exports have hardly changed (2014: -5.8; 2015: -5.7 billion Swiss francs), resulting in a trade deficit for the ICT economy as a whole.

EU remains most important main destination

Europe remains Switzerland's most important trading partner with a services export share of 62%, followed by America with 24% and Asia with 10% export share. Within Europe, the United Kingdom (CHF 1.5 billion) and the Netherlands (CHF 0.5 billion) are important alongside neighbors Germany (CHF 2.6 billion) and France (CHF 0.9 billion).

Focus on internationalization

The Swiss Software Industry Survey SSIS, conducted annually by the University of Bern, provides information on developments in the Swiss software industry. In 2015, the survey focused on internationalization. The latest results show: The Swiss software industry remains profitable with an average EBIT margin of 7.5%, despite a decrease compared to the previous year (2014: 8.5%). The growth prospects for 2016 are also viewed positively - albeit somewhat subdued: On average, software companies expect revenue growth of 5% (2015: 12%). This picture is also reflected in spending on research and development and in expected employee growth: On average, Swiss software companies spend 12% of their revenue on future-oriented investments (2014: 14%). If the workforce was expanded by 12% in the previous year, companies in the software industry are planning to expand their workforce by 8.5% in 2016.

Almost two-thirds of export sales are generated in Germany: In 2015, the Swiss software industry generated only 12% of its sales abroad. 62% of these exports are to Germany. Standard software manufacturers are more satisfied with their internationalization plans than manufacturers of individual software, which can be attributed to differences in internationalization strategies and the type of market entry.

The complete studies are available for download at:
www.ictswitzerland.ch/publikationen/studien-ict-aussenhandel-und-ssis-2016/

So some startups criticized the state regulations in Zurich. Many entrepreneurs threatened to move out of the region if the tax burden for young companies increased. What was unsatisfactory from the point of view of the young entrepreneurs was that the property taxes for the shares could possibly exceed the basic income of the young entrepreneurs.

As a result, the Financial Directorate decided last March to tax young companies only at the significantly lower net asset value in the first three to five years. Only in the second phase would it be possible to assess how much investor money would have to be taxed. Now the regulations are being changed even more in favor of young entrepreneurs:

The first mentioned grace period will be extended. Young companies will now be taxed more favorably until they can show representative business results. Investor prices will only be taken into account in the share valuation after this start-up phase.

New startup definition

Until now, moreover, it was unclear which companies are considered startups at all. A definition is also lacking at the national level. The new directive describes these companies as "corporations (AG or GmbH) with an innovative, usually technology-driven business model that is in the process of being established and is scalable".

Specifically, this means: Companies that develop innovative technological products or services that have not yet established themselves on the market, but are geared toward becoming marketable. With this clarification and the change in practice, owners of startup investments in the canton of Zurich will enjoy "at least as good conditions as in other cantons," according to a recent statement by the Finance Directorate.

More details about the directive of the Financial Directorate of the Canton of Zurich can be found under this Link

LCY has introduced Feedback Now consoles (see picture) and posted them throughout the airport. These allow passengers to express their satisfaction regarding various services. This voluntary feedback is based on three "emoji" buttons that represent different levels of satisfaction. Passenger ratings are recorded and shared in real time, helping the airport team to allocate resources effectively.

Melanie Burnley, Director of Customer Experience at LCY, says: "At London City Airport we are registering record breaking numbers of passengers. The real-time Feedback Now system helps our team focus their efforts correctly to realize the best possible customer service. At most other airports, feedbacks arrive with a 24-hour delay. We are the first UK airport to receive this feedback in real time. This means we can now use this technology to respond quickly and ensure a great customer experience, efficient check-in and fast security screening."

Terminal management creates overview

The innovative system is very valuable for terminal managers who oversee daily operations at the airport. Real-time feedback allows them to identify which areas of the airport are overloaded and where additional resources are needed. For example, the cleaning team receives an alert via SMS as soon as the "Dissatisfied" button at a location is pressed three times within 15 minutes, and can immediately respond in a targeted manner.

Furthermore, patterns or trends identified thanks to the data obtained can also be used to improve the customer experience. The system can also be merged with other data.

More information about this is available at www.londoncityairport.com retrievable

"It's not yet possible to say exactly why women's job satisfaction drops with a female boss," Artz and Taengnoi say.

In Switzerland, too, women's quotas are being discussed in parliament and in business. If a new study is to be believed, however, this harbors new potential for conflict. Science has now also shown that the relationship between superiors and subordinates influences motivation, commitment and satisfaction.

When employees appreciate their boss, absenteeism and turnover drop, while productivity and performance rise. But does the gender of the supervisor also play a role in this - and if so, which? This question has now been investigated by the two economists Benjamin Artz and Sarinda Taengnoi from the University of Wisconsin.

"Changing Workforce."

For their study, which will soon be published in the journal "Labor Economics," they analyzed two US longitudinal studies. The National Longitudinal Study of Youth and the National Study of the Changing Workforce have tracked the lives of 12,000 Americans since 1979 and 2008, respectively.

To do this, the participants regularly provide information about their private and professional lives - in which industry they work, how much they earn and whether they are satisfied overall with their boss and job, ranging from one (very unhappy) to 4 (very happy). The researchers limited themselves to all those employees who work in the private sector and report to a supervisor. And in doing so, they discovered a curious correlation.

Bosses do not meet expectations

Of all people, those women who had a woman as their boss were the unhappiest with their job. Artz and Taengnoi even believe they can quantify this effect. "The number of women who proclaim the highest job satisfaction drops by up to seven percentage points when led by a woman," the researchers say.

"This is roughly equivalent to the loss of well-being that one suffers when one is not paid appropriately for one's performance." Surprisingly, they did not find this effect for men; for them, having a female boss did not affect job satisfaction. Were the affected women's chances of advancement lower? Not at all. Did they have worse positions than the men? Not at all.

"It is not yet possible to say exactly why women's job satisfaction drops with a female boss," say Artz and Taengnoi. But the researchers think there are three main reasons:

Firstly, it is possible that female employees have a certain idea of what qualities a boss should ideally have - but that the respective female superiors do not have those very qualities. And this discrepancy between desire and reality possibly reduces satisfaction.

Secondly, it could be that female bosses exist mainly in those industries where employees are unhappy anyway because they are poorly paid.

And thirdly, those who are already unhappy may look for jobs in industries with many female managers. This mechanism could also play a role in the upcoming US presidential election. The study suggests that Hillary Clinton could have a hard time with many women - because they don't trust her in the role of commander in chief.

This text was originally published by Wiwo.de

The autumn fog began to lift as the first guests arrived at Olma Hall 9 in St.Gallen. After a few detours, the premises of the various workshops, offered and conducted by the main sponsors, were found and the conference could begin. ORGANISATOR, one of the main media partners of the event for years, also held its own workshop. In it, management consultant Beatrice Erb showed the change of perspective in the world of work: Demographic change as well as the shortage of skilled workers are forcing companies to pay special attention to the 50+ generation. Because they have more in common with the Rolling Stones than a view of the rollator...

Between self-perception and perception by others

As usual, Prof. Dr. Urs Fueglistaller, Director of KMU-HSG, opened the presentations. He referred to the latest figures from the Swiss Federal Statistical Office, which already showed that many things are a question of perspective: the vast majority of SMEs, i.e. 92.4 percent, are micro-enterprises with 0 to 9 employees. Or in absolute figures: The total of 1273 large companies is compared to 576,848 SMEs, i.e. a ratio of 1:453. Urs Fueglistaller went on to explain some of the results of the SME Day study, which was also carried out this year. This showed that SMEs are very good at oscillating between self-perception and external perception - as well as the constant interplay between strategic thinking and operational action.

Economic and entrepreneurial perspectives

The economist's perspective was then taken by Prof. Dr. Martin Kolmar from the University of St.Gallen. He explained that SMEs are confronted with various challenges, economic, political, ecological and social. Digitalization is just one of them, but one that will permanently change labor markets and the organization of companies. In this context, he coined the unwieldy term "serviceization" - for example, when a car is no longer just offered as a product, but as a service. A core element of perspective changes is empathy, as Kolmar went on to explain. He appealed to the ethical behavior of companies, which makes them more profitable in the long term.

The entrepreneurial perspective was presented by Thomas Binggeli, founder and CEO of Thömus Veloshop. He is one of those people who have the entrepreneurial gene in their blood, as he sold the sheep on his parents' farm at the age of 17 in order to raise the start-up capital for his own bicycle business. Persistent and convinced of his ideas, he accepted various setbacks to finally turn his idea of an electric bike "that works like an iPhone" into reality. The latest generation of the "Stromer," as his brand is called, is a thoroughly digitalized bicycle with tracking options, sharing models and other functionalities. As he explained in the subsequent discussion - led by moderator Christa Rigozzi - the direct feedback and needs of customers are particularly important to him when developing his products. "Most new business models are created during shared bike rides in the great outdoors," said Thomas Binggeli, describing one of his recipes for success.

See and be seen

In his presentation, philosopher Wilhelm Schmidt made direct reference to cycling and vividly demonstrated the importance of changing perspectives: Car drivers get annoyed with cyclists, but when they themselves want to complete a few training laps on their bikes after work, they in turn get annoyed with the car drivers - or with pedestrians, who in turn get annoyed with the cyclists and car drivers. From these everyday examples, he moved on to four reasons why we see some things but not others: either because things escape our gaze, or because they are hidden behind a corner, do not correspond to our ideas, or simply do not correspond to our interests. The converse conclusion must therefore be: "We have no perspective, we are perspective."

The subsequent presentation by Bea Knecht, founder of Zattoo, Europe's largest live web TV provider, was also about watching. Even during her computer science studies in Berkeley, California, she recognized the future prospects of television: As HDTV evolves, the TV becomes the computer - but also: the computer becomes the TV. Based on a few anecdotes from the genesis of Zattoo - a transcribed Japanese word for "crowd," by the way - she also gave the audience a few practical tips for their own business development: Don't spend too long looking for new brands, and deliberately set only one priority per year.

Perceiving people and oneself

Luciano Marinello also had an exciting company story to tell. His grandfather actually wanted to emigrate from northern Italy to America, but "stranded" in Zurich, where he met his wife, with whom he then built up a well-known vegetable trading company. Luciano Marinello then took over the business in 2002 after his own years of apprenticeship and travel. As a patron, people were particularly important to him; as an entrepreneur, he was decisive on his own, but always in the midst of the employees. At the same time, however, taking on the role of the perfect family father also brought him to his limits time and again. Finally, Luciano Marinello had to make a momentous decision and sold his business to a major distributor - but with the condition that no employees lose their jobs. He clearly pointed out that even today, all entrepreneurs have a social responsibility.

Anitra Eggler then brought the presentations to a close. The self-proclaimed "digital therapist" showed the excesses of constant accessibility thanks to smartphones and the pitfalls of the Internet that await us every day at work. A person with a life expectancy of 75 years will have spent 12 years of his life on the Internet, 8 years on his cell phone - but will only have kissed for 14 weeks - that is Anitra Eggler's not unrealistic assessment. She advises people to consciously switch off, to limit themselves when emptying their mailboxes, and generally to have the courage to be slower. Perhaps one or two SME entrepreneurs have been prompted to make a long-overdue change of perspective in this regard.

Text: Thomas Berner

More information: www.kmu-tag.ch

Further impressions of the SME Day: ORGANISATOR workshop, speakers Luciano Marinello, Anitra Eggler. (Pictures: Rolf Gubelmann, Thomas Berner)

There is no doubt that security threats are becoming more extensive and sophisticated, F5 Network underscores.

The current attack on the DNS provider Dyn has once again shown that companies must expect ever greater threats. According to media reports, the latest attack was based on around 300,000 unsecured IoT (Internet of Things) devices as a botnet, through which a DDoS attack with a data volume of 1.2 terabits per second was generated.

This was the biggest attack of its kind so far. Thus, numerous websites were paralyzed in the current attack on Dyn, such as those of Twitter, Spotify, Netflix and Amazon. Swiss customers were also affected when they were blocked from searching and resolving web addresses. How can customers now ensure that they have a defense strategy against DDoS attacks - or have a clear plan in place in case they were the victim of an attack?

Threats increase

There is no doubt that security threats are becoming ever more extensive and sophisticated. Unfortunately, it is becoming increasingly likely that Swiss companies will be the target of an attack. Security specialist F5 has summarized the five most important trends that companies should keep an eye on in the coming months so that they are sufficiently prepared.

1.) Locate any IoT hardware

IoT devices are currently on the rise - but security measures are not keeping pace. Vulnerabilities in smart networked devices make them easy prey for cybercriminals. They are hijacking more and more devices such as surveillance cameras, home routers and baby monitors and using them for their own purposes. With just a few clicks, they can generate massive DDoS attacks.

There needs to be a growing awareness in the enterprise of the vulnerabilities of any IoT devices, which offer many benefits but also provide another attack vector for cybercriminals.

2.) Basic Data Protection Regulation GDPR

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) will not apply until May 2018, but since most companies will probably need several years to implement it, they should address this issue now. In view of the threat of sanctions, such as a fine of four percent of annual global sales, they need to adapt their IT infrastructure quickly.

Parts of the GDPR, such as the right to be forgotten and data portability, can cause problems. That's because many companies don't even know exactly what customer data they store and where. The biggest challenge is determining how much data they are responsible for. But data breaches or claims by their customers can cause painful losses to company profits and damage customer relationships.

3. ) Optimal cloud usage

Companies are increasingly migrating their infrastructure to the cloud. However, many security concerns remain unresolved. Do companies know how to work securely in the cloud and who holds the key to their data? Current technologies enable a secure transition to the cloud.

For example, cloud access security broker (CASB) solutions apply strict security policies across multiple cloud services. This gives IT teams control over who can access cloud services and ensures that corporate data is encrypted securely enough.

4.) App security

There is a wide range of mobile apps available today that allow users to access corporate data from a variety of devices in different locations. Any vulnerability in this network, such as a cell phone infected with malware, can open up access to the company for cybercriminals. If they manage to obtain an employee's login data, they gain access to all the data accessible to the employee.

Therefore, to better protect themselves, companies need to optimize security at the app level as well as place more emphasis on educating employees and not rely solely on the good old firewall approach.

5.) Identity and access control

Today, employees can access various online portals - from financial services to expense reporting - with just one user account (aingle sign-on). If an employee leaves the company, he or she can continue to access critical data using his or her login data, unless his or her user accounts have been deactivated in good time.

Therefore, it is imperative to use federated services technology that supports a single sign-on approach. Here, authentication takes place at the employer and employees are redirected to the cloud service when accessing applications. This gives companies control over their employees' credentials and better protection against fraud.

For further information please visit www.f5.com

The two previously independently operating office specialists Lista Office Vertriebs AG and Denz Office AG will be merged to form Lista Office LO on November 1, 2016. The new Lista Office LO furnishes offices from A to Z. Whether tables, storage space, seating and lounge furniture, room furniture for retreats, lighting, acoustic solutions or accessories as little helpers for everyday work:

The range gives customers all the options for an office design that is as integrated as it is individual. On the one hand, this includes the company's own furniture systems and accessories with the LO brand, and on the other hand, the products of first-class partner brands that complete the range and make it even more versatile.

Continuity and innovation

Steel or wooden furniture? With the joining of forces of LO and Denz, this question is not an either-or at Lista Office LO, but a both-and. The LO range is being expanded with the tried-and-tested Denz D3 and D1 cabinet systems and the D11 conference system. Customers also benefit from sustainable production in Switzerland.

New umbrella brand

The Lienhard Office Group will become the Lista Office Group as of January 1, 2017. Accordingly, the whole group will adopt the familiar Lista Office LO brand identity.

www.lienhard-office.com

Candrian studied economics at the University of Zurich and subsequently completed a Master of Management in Hospitality in the USA. He started his career at PwC, later worked for a consulting firm for restaurant chains in the US and then joined Candrian Catering AG as a member of the Executive Board for several years.

Most recently, he was Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) at Flughafen Zürich AG. The previous holder of the position, Stefan Siebenhaar, will take on a new function within the SV Group.

"We are very pleased to have Patrick Candrian as the new Managing Director of SV Switzerland. He knows the catering industry well, both at home and abroad, and his knowledge and experience are an excellent addition to the SV Group management team," says Patrick Camele, CEO of the Group.

http://www.sv-group.ch