The format of this year's WorldSkills Championships is unique: Spread over 15 countries, the 62 competitions of the WorldSkills Competition 2022 have been held since September. Switzerland is taking part in a total of 34 competitions with 37 young professionals at the participant. This alternative format was developed, among others, on the initiative of the SwissSkills Foundation. It was only at the end of May that the WorldSkills 2022 planned for Shanghai were cancelled due to a pandemic. Switzerland then not only contributed the idea and concept of the decentralized world championships, but also made itself available as an organizer in 14 competitions - no other country took on the organization of so many WorldSkills disciplines.

Positive Swiss interim balance as organizer...

"The great effort was worth it. It was a huge challenge to set up and successfully stage 14 WorldSkills competitions at 9 locations within just a few weeks. Thanks to the great effort of the participating professional associations and many other organizations and people involved, we can draw a thoroughly positive conclusion from the WorldSkills Competition in Switzerland," says André Burri, Managing Director of SwissSkills. All over the world, more than 1000 young professionals were looking forward to WorldSkills 2022 and had prepared intensively. "In the meantime, the dream of WorldSkills participation seemed to vanish into thin air for them. The decentralized format has succeeded in giving young, ambitious professionals the opportunity to take part in the WorldSkills after all and to exchange ideas among the best professionals in their field."

...and as a participating nation

In addition to the positive conclusion from the perspective of the co-organizer, the Swiss results balance is also positive even before the last competitions in Salzburg. In the 30 competitions with Swiss participation so far, the SwissSkills National Team won 15 medals and an additional 12 diplomas, so-called Medallion for Excellence. The four Swiss world championship titles so far were celebrated by Juliana Thöny (confectioner-confectioner/Oberlunkhofen, AG), Florent Lacilla (automotive mechatronics/Cottens, FR) and the two duos Silvan Wiedmer (Winterthur, ZH) and Yunus Ruff (Winterthur, ZH) in the "Industry 4.0" competition, as well as Fabian Baumann (Oberdiessbach, BE) and Marc Baumberger (Koppigen, BE) in the landscaping competition.

Impressive medal haul

The yield of the young Swiss professionals, who all successfully started their careers with an apprenticeship and an EFZ qualification, is thus comparable to previous WorldSkills events. Only China and South Korea have won more medals in relation to their number of participants. However, these WorldSkills also confirm that the competition at the absolute top is getting tougher. Other Asian nations as well as France, the organizer of the next WorldSkills in 2024, made further gains compared to the last WorldSkills in Kazan in 2019.

Salzburg as the last stop of WorldSkills 2022

Whether Switzerland or France will be the European nation with the largest medal haul will be decided this week in Salzburg. From Thursday, the last four Swiss participants will be in action: bricklayer Ben Zaugg (Bärau, BE), electrician Patrik Siegenthaler (Linden, BE), plant electrician Yannick Flepp (Sedrun, GR) and agricultural machinery mechanic Pascal Hofstetter (Wildhaus, SG) will do their utmost to continue the Swiss success story at the WorldSkills Competition 2022.

Source: SwissSkills Foundation

Overview of the Swiss results at the WorldSkills 2022 so far

Gold medal (4)

• Confectionery: Juliana Thöny (Oberlunkhofen/AG)
• Automotive mechatronics technician: Florent Lacilla (Cottens/FR)
• Gardening and landscaping: Marc Baumberger (Koppigen/BE) and Fabian Baumann (Oberdiessbach/BE)
• Industry 4.0: Silvan Wiedmer (Winterthur/ZH) and Yunus Ruff (Winterthur/ZH)

Silver medal (5)

• Print technologist: Nina Manser (Kesswil/TG)
• Florist: Jasmin Wüthrich (Gossau/SG)
• Car body mechanic: Dominik Bartlome (Schwarzenburg/BE)
• Hotel Reception: Tim Oberli (Wiesendangen/ZH)
• Electronics technician: Mario Liechti (Windisch/AG)

Bronze medal (6)

• Bakery: Vera Stocker (Gunzwil/LU)
• Restaurant Service: Shania Colombo (Münchwilen/TG)
• Automation technicians: Dario Flükiger (Lützelflüh/BE) and Adrian Matthys (Möhlin/AG)
• Building carpenter: Romain Mingard (Couvet/NE)
• Plasterer drywall: Adrian Büttler (Grund near Gstaad/BE)
• Polymechanic Automation: Gil Beutler (Linden/BE)

Update November 28, 2022:

At the end of the decentralized "WorldSkills Competition 2022" in Salzburg, bricklayer Ben Zaugg (Bärau/BE) secured the fifth world championship title for Switzerland. Electrician Patrik Siegenthaler (Linden/BE), agricultural machinery mechanic Pascal Hofstetter (Wildhaus/SG) and plant electrician Yannick Flepp (Sedrun/GR) each won bronze. With 19 medals in 34 starts, the Swiss national vocational team is the best European nation at this year's World Vocational Championships.

Brother customers around the world can send their empty toner cartridges to one of four remanufacturing facilities in Wales, Slovakia, the USA or Asia. Each cartridge goes through a rigorous inspection process where components are either reused or replaced. This ensures that each remanufactured cartridge is of the same quality as a new one. Thanks to this process, Brother says most cartridges can be remanufactured and returned to the cycle. Parts that cannot be reused are recycled, so there is no waste.

86 percent remanufactured toner cartridges

Craig McCubbin, Managing Director of Brother Industries UK and Brother Industries Slovakia explains, "To say we are proud of this achievement is an understatement. Of the 40 million cartridges returned by our customers, 86% have been remanufactured using our market-leading process. This is an impressive number that is unparalleled in the printing industry. Our waste hierarchy is simple. We want to reuse as much as possible. In 2021, our remanufactured toner cartridges had an environmental footprint 33 % lower than new cartridges. With our way of remanufacturing, Brother saves 5,300 tons of CO₂. That's as much as taking 1,150 cars off the road."

Brother's European remanufacturing facilities were recently certified as carbon neutral, and the take-back system has been certified as Zero Waste to Landfill since 2013. Brother believes that by reducing waste at all stages of the lifecycle, the company can help its customers achieve their own sustainability goals.

"Ambitious plans"

Craig adds, "Our promise is simple: when a customer returns an empty cartridge to us, we will arrange for all parts to be remanufactured or recycled so none of it ends up in landfills. By returning used genuine Brother toner cartridges, the average business can save up to 40 kg of CO₂ saving, thus reducing its ecological footprint and impact on the environment."

The Brother recycling program was launched in 2004 with the remanufacturing of a handful of cartridges. Since then, the number of remanufactured toner cartridges has grown to around 3 million per year. But the manufacturer is not yet satisfied with this figure: Over the next three years, it wants to remanufacture even more cartridges. "We are also looking at our ink cartridge and hardware returns and have ambitious plans to ensure that our customers can return all Brother products," Craig says.

More information on www.brother.ch/recycling

The New Work Experience (NWX) 2023 starts into the sixth round. Under the motto: "Work Forward", New Work SE will be presenting the Festival for Work and the Future in Hamburg for the first time on June 14, 2023, together with experts from its own company, the XING job network, the recruiting professionals from onlyfy by XING, and those responsible for the employer rating platform kununu. The venue for the New Work Festival will once again be the Elbphilharmonie concert hall. For the first time, individual event formats will be held simultaneously at other locations in the Hanseatic city, such as the "New Work Harbour", which is one of the most modern offices in Germany, as well as at special side locations in Hamburg's HafenCity, in order to underline the new festival character of the event.

Bringing together designers and thought leaders of the world of work

The economy and, as a consequence, the world of work are facing major challenges and historic upheavals. At the intersection of energy and climate, talent and technology, perspectives and sustainability lies the working world of tomorrow. How can companies be successfully guided through these challenging times? What options are there for counteracting the shortage of skilled workers? And where can talented individuals find personal guidance in their working lives? With NWX23, New Work SE, together with its brands XING, onlyfy by XING and kununu, is bringing together talents, designers and thought leaders in a unique festival with a conference format in Hamburg in June 2023.

NWX23 becomes the meeting place for the New Work community

Regardless of whether they are managers and thought leaders, strategists and talents, professionals and rookies, from companies and politics, HR and innovation, consulting and opinion forming - NWX23 will be the meeting place of the New Work community, with the goal of improving the working world of tomorrow, making employees more satisfied and thus making companies more successful. To this end, visitors to NWX23 can expect a diverse program consisting of varied master classes, exciting sessions and inspiring workshops by and with renowned speakers. Musical live acts round off the new event concept.

Early Bird tickets for NWX23 are available now

The presale for the NWX23 starts now on www.nwx.new-work.se/events/nwx23/tickets. For an event experience that is even more individually tailored to the needs of different visitor target groups, different ticket categories are available for the first time. Whether for C-levels, recruiters, job seekers or students, with the new ticket passes everyone will find the right festival package. For a short time, tickets can now be purchased at the Early Bird price.

On the evening of November 17, 2022, the 22nd Swiss Employer Awards took place at Lake Side in Zurich. This award for the best Swiss employers always marks the end of the annual benchmarking study, which was designed by icommit GmbH from Küsnacht ZH. The participating companies conduct an anonymous survey among their employees. The results are then evaluated and show where the company is doing well as an employer and where there may be "construction sites". The companies can also measure themselves against the best employers in their industry and use the tool for the development of their company as well as for personnel marketing. The Swiss Employer Award is supported by the Swiss Employers' Association and HR Swiss.

What makes the best Swiss employers

Speaking of "building sites": In a keynote speech, Sven Bühler, initiator of the study and strategic head at icommit, drew a picture of a "typical" corporate building. It has four floors: At the bottom is the "floor of resignation," one floor higher is the floor for the dissatisfied. Then comes the floor of the satisfied, and at the top the floor for commitment. This is determined by a motivating corporate strategy, by purpose and customer orientation, which employees can fully support. Satisfied employees, in turn, value the work content, the work-life balance and the collaboration. Those who are dissatisfied are usually dissatisfied because the general conditions are not right, explains Sven Bühler. In the worst case, this then leads to resignation: people disconnect and withdraw "into the basement," as it were. All in all, a very vivid picture, although the question might arise for the outsider observer: Is every corporate building ultimately built on resignation? For without the lowest floors, there would probably be no upper floors; probably incentive enough for companies to bring the lowest floors up to "commitment level" as quickly as possible... According to Sven Bühler, it was the following three dimensions of the work situation that had the greatest influence on employee commitment in all participating companies:

1. Corporate strategy, i.e. employees want to know where the company is headed
2. Work content, i.e. employees want to be able to use their knowledge and skills
3. Involvement of employees, i.e. employees want to be involved and have sufficient freedom to make decisions

Award-winning companies in Switzerland and Liechtenstein

This year's survey is the largest Swiss employee survey, with a response of over 42,390 employees from 145 companies in Switzerland and the Principality of Liechtenstein. The scientifically developed questionnaire consists of around 60 questions and is completed on average by 75% of all employees in a company. As a result, the assessments are extremely representative and provide a differentiated picture of the working environment. A total of 48 companies were awarded prizes, and a further 38 companies received a quality seal. The latter companies outperformed the Swiss benchmark in at least one of the target variables - overall satisfaction with the work situation, commitment or resignation - but are not among the best employers in Switzerland and therefore did not receive a ranking.

This year's best Swiss employers (and those of Liechtenstein) in their respective size categories are: Camion Transport AG, Soudronic AG, Lenzburg Vocational School and Breitenmoser Fleischspezialitäten AG. New this year, the Swiss Employer Award awarded a fourth attractive chance to win. icommit, in collaboration with its long-standing partner HR Swiss, honored innovative work environment projects that have a positive impact on commitment within the company. The winner of the first innovation award for a modern working world 2022 is Thomann Nutzfahrzeuge AG with their forward-looking project: New Work - holistically understood, consistently lived. This project convinces with target-oriented measures in the areas of working time model, vacation model, additional benefit as well as proactive personnel development tool with artificial intelligence. Thomann Nutzfahrzeuge achieves high employee ratings in terms of key commitment drivers such as corporate strategy, dealing with change and work content. The second special award in the category Rising Star of the Year goes to Swissgrid AG this year.

The winners of the Swiss Employer Award 2022

Large companies category (more than 1000 employees)

1. Camion Transport Ltd
2. CONCORDIA
3. Bern University of Applied Sciences

Medium-sized company category (250-999 employees)

1. Soudronic AG
2. Foundation Lebenshilfe
3. Liechtenstein Old Age and Sickness Assistance (LAK)

Medium-sized company category (100-249 employees)

1. Vocational school Lenzburg
2. BitHawk AG
3. Careum AG Education Center for Health Professions

Category Small companies (50-99 employees)

1. Breitenmoser Meat Specialities AG
2. Heim AG Heating Systems
3. Vision-Inside AG

The complete ranking list and the presentations of the award winners are compiled here.

The downturn seems to have reached the industry: According to the umbrella organization Swissmem, incoming orders in the MEM industries fell by -12.4 percent in the third quarter of 2022 compared with the same quarter of the previous year. In the third quarter, orders from abroad in particular really collapsed compared to the second quarter of 2022, with a drop of -21.1 percent. Thanks to a good first half, orders received over the entire first nine months increased by +2.3 percent compared to the same period of the previous year. The growth momentum is also slowing in terms of sales development. In the third quarter of 2022, sales were still up +4.6 percent on the prior-year quarter. For the entire period from January to September 2022, the year-on-year increase is +9.6 percent. This development affects SMEs and large companies to a similar extent. Capacity utilization in companies peaked in the first quarter of 2022 at 91.9 percent. By the third quarter, it had fallen to 89.5%, although this is still above the long-term average of 86.2%.

(Still) good export figures

According to figures from the Federal Customs Administration, exports of goods by the MEM industries rose by +7.0 percent year-on-year in the first nine months of 2022, reaching a goods value of CHF 54 billion. All major sales markets developed positively. Exports to Asia increased by +13.3 percent, to the USA by +7.8 percent and to the EU by +5.6 percent. All product groups recorded export growth. Exports of metals grew by +11.0 percent, electrical engineering/electronics by +7.5 percent, mechanical engineering by +6.1 percent and precision instruments by +5.3 percent. However, there are also signs of a trend reversal in exports. This is exemplified by exports of goods to Germany, where almost a quarter of all MEM sector exports go. In the third quarter, these fell by -1.0 percent year-on-year. Overall, export growth in the third quarter of 2022 was still +2.7 percent.

Bleak prospects

The situation in most companies in the Swiss MEM industries is still good at present. However, Stefan Brupbacher, Director of Swissmem, puts this into perspective: "The downturn has clearly reached Swiss industry. The sharp decline in incoming orders, particularly from abroad, clearly shows this." In addition, the outlook is becoming increasingly gloomy. The industrial purchasing managers' index (PMI) has been pointing increasingly clearly to a downturn in most markets for two months. Business leaders from Swissmem's membership are also more pessimistic than they were at the beginning of the year. According to the latest Swissmem survey, one third expect lower incoming orders from abroad in the coming twelve months. At the end of 2021, only 13 percent gave this assessment. Forty percent of respondents expect orders to remain unchanged. Only 27 percent expect orders to increase. At most, growth impetus is expected from the USA and India.

Many risks could intensify downturn

In addition to this rather gloomy outlook, there are a large number of risks which could significantly intensify the negative trend. Despite some easing in the supply of electricity and gas, the risk of a shortage has not yet been averted. Unplanned power plant outages could immediately exacerbate the situation. Supply interruptions or quotas for electricity and gas would have massive negative consequences for industry. The geopolitical situation is also creating uncertainties that are impacting investment behavior. In addition, high inflation in the main markets of the MEM sector could lead to further interest rate hikes, which could further cool the economy. Furthermore, there is upward pressure on the Swiss franc against the euro and the US dollar, which could worsen the international competitiveness of Swiss industry. And last but not least, it cannot be ruled out that a highly contagious Covid 19 variant could paralyze individual markets again. "There are currently hardly any indicators pointing to a positive development. We have to prepare for a difficult phase. We hope that politicians will recognize the signs of the times and secure us good framework conditions. This includes keeping our word on the abolition of industrial tariffs by 2024, which will relieve the burden on the economy and consumers by a total of CHF 500 million. We also need a rapid unblocking of our relationship with Europe," demands Stefan Brupbacher.

Source: Swissmem

Stefan Wermelskirchen and Andreas Galliker from Hünenberg (ZG) wanted to convince outdoor enthusiasts Tobias Reichmuth and Roland Brack in particular to invest in conversion ideas for offroaders. Under the "Offroad4u" brand, the two have developed cabs that can be used to convert common pickup trucks for off-road tours. Stefan Wermelskirchen created the design himself. Various sizes of these bodies are currently on offer. 250,000 Swiss francs against a 25 percent share in the company - that was the capital requirement with which the two entered the lion's den. And there the usual critical questions awaited them: Is the market for pickups big enough? What are the sales expectations? And how does marketing the product go together with running a garage business and offering tours? Tobias Reichmuths recommended, "Make one company for your bodies," but dropped out as an investor. The other lionesses and lions also dropped out. The two took the verdict sportingly and are convinced to continue on their chosen path. "Then we'll just focus on organic growth instead of rapid growth," they conclude.

Double investment for children's fashion

Pascal Arnold and Adriana Blasi from Büron (LU) entered the race with Kidis, Secondhand Kinder- und Frauenmode. On their online platform, well-preserved children's and women's fashion can be bought and sold. The two wanted to invest 100,000 Swiss francs against 10 percent company shares. The potential is great - too many children's clothes are only worn for a short time and then end up somewhere in the basement - and the annual growth of 1.5 percent of the total second-hand market also seemed a convincing argument. Two of the lions were enthusiastic about the sustainable thinking of the start-up, while Lukas Speiser had doubts about the scalability and therefore did not want to invest. Anja Graf and Jürg Schwarzenbach also dropped out. Roland Brack made an offer of 100,000 Swiss francs, but in exchange for 15 percent of the company. Tobias Reichmuth was prepared to add another 50,000 francs. In total, an investment of 150,000 francs was involved. Even though Pascal Arnold and Adriana Blasi had to give up a higher share of their company, they did not turn down the offer. Once again, the link between sustainability and fashion seemed to catch on. In the third season, Adretto, a rental platform for men's suits, received an investment from Jürg Schwarzenbach, who expressed his satisfaction with the further development of this company in an interview.

Well sold, but without investment

Verreaux Swiss, that's the name of Soresh Mauludi's company from Zug. He has developed an innovative kitchen strainer, and it came about like this: He was so nervous on a date that he neatly burned his fingers while draining spaghetti. The idea for the S One kitchen strainer was born, for which Soresh Mauludi now asked for an investment of 100,000 Swiss francs in exchange for a 10 percent stake. The product is made of high-quality chrome steel and should fit on any pan, as he also demonstrated to the lionesses and lions. However, the mechanism seemed somewhat cumbersome to TV viewers, and Lukas Speiser also remarked that, after all, pasta could simply be poured off together with the boiling water into a conventional kitchen strainer placed in the sink. Proud is also the price: 49 francs. But the founder turned a deaf ear to all the investors' warnings about price elasticity when the product is scaled up. And even with the company's valuation of 1 million francs with just 200 products sold, he did not create good conditions for an investment by one of the lions or lionesses. The inevitable happened: Soresh Mauludi had to leave the lions' den empty-handed.

No moving away from high company valuations

With Hegias, represented by Tuan Nguyen and Patrik Marty from Zurich, it is possible to load a 3D building project intuitively into virtual reality at the touch of a button. The planned project can thus be viewed and experienced from all perspectives. 500,000 Swiss francs at 2.5 percent company shares, that was the capital requirement of the two. The live demo of the gadget met with much goodwill, especially from Bettina Hein. Indeed, the idea seemed captivating. In particular, non-professional builders can use it to get an idea of the building much more easily than from conventional building plans. But what about the professionals? Tuan Nguyen and Patrik Marty were already able to name well-known construction and real estate companies with which they work. Nevertheless, the criticism from Anja Graf, who realizes many construction projects with her company Visionapartments, was scathing. "Any CAD program can visualize better," was her impression. Moreover, she has very good experience with conventional planning tools. "Why do we need VR for that?" was her heretical question. The two company founders had to concede that there was certainly still potential for development. But there was something else that bothered the lionesses and lions: the high company valuation. The company was valued at 20 million Swiss francs, yet it had only generated sales of 300,000 francs. Nevertheless, Bettina Hein offered 500,000 francs, albeit in exchange for a 5 percent stake, because she thought the product was cool, as she said. And Roland Brack also wanted to join with half a million against a 5 percent share in the company. But the two entrepreneurs declined because - as they said - their hands were tied when it came to valuing the company. As an outsider, one could only assume: Was there possibly already another investor involved?

When a lioness allows herself to be "viganized"....

The vegan online store vigan, launched by Patrick Embacher and Pia Sommer from Chur, already seems to be successful: Hundreds of vegan products are already sold via this platform, including 30 of their own. The start-up has already won over 13,000 customers, as the two founders revealed in the broadcast. Now it is to go however further forwards: 250'000 francs against 5 per cent company participation they need for it. Still more customer circles are to be "viganisiert". Of course, they also offered a tasting round, the investors were allowed to taste - and were amazed by the Lyoner. But they still had a few question marks about the business model: What exactly was the situation with own and third-party products on the platform? What role should white label products play? And how much competition is there already? For Tobias Reichmuth, who is otherwise very fond of vegan and vegetarian products, the concept was still not tight enough; he therefore did not want to invest. The other lions also agreed with him. Only Anja Graf allowed herself to be "viganized": she made an offer of 250,000 francs, but wanted a 10 percent share in the company in return. Pia Sommer and Patrick Embacher did not hesitate for long and jumped into the deal.

Company valuations too high for the second

The start-up maison (Schweiz) GmbH from Zurich wants to tackle the problem of unused workstations in offices: Companies with vacant workstations can rent them out via the maison.work platform. With an investment of 400,000 Swiss francs against a 10 percent company share, the three founders Marc Schwery, Dominic Frei and Remo Stahl from Zurich wanted to take off. After all, their idea is actually clever: Not only can vacant workspaces be used via their service, but in this way office communities can also be formed that can mutually enrich each other. But all this sounded a bit half-baked to Roland Brack: Somewhere between classic real estate platforms and coworking spaces - with a dash of Airbnb and dating platform. And the high company valuation also caused some frowning. Because only 319 workstations in 19 locations could be rented out - transactions totaling 140,000 francs, roughly, the three calculated. Anja Graf thought that the idea itself could work, because she had also started out in a similar way. But the high company valuation kept her from investing, as did Lukas Speiser. Roland Brack and Jürg Schwarzenbach also refrained from investing. Patrick Mollet hesitated the longest. But his problem was: he is already invested in the coworking platform tadaa and would have a conflict of interest. So in the end, no deal materialized. But this did not diminish the self-confidence of the three company founders, they want to continue to do their thing. But in the end - and this is also a conclusion to the entire season - one had to ask oneself again and again: How on earth do such high company valuations come about?

More information on upcoming shows: https://www.oneplus.ch/detail/1000604

At the 28th Abacus Partner Conference, which took place last week, strategic developments and central innovations in the Abacus Business Software took center stage. Claudio Hintermann, CEO of Abacus Research AG, focused on the new Deep technologies. With these technologies, processes are largely digitized, enabling completely paperless accounting. Claudio Hintermann commented: "We have created a universal, web-based platform through which document exchange can be handled globally and integrated into an overall process."

New communication platform for companies

Various innovations in the standard software, including in the area of human resources, met with great interest among the more than 800 participants at the conference. A newly developed corporate communication platform enables news to be communicated directly to employees or information to be exchanged between employees themselves, which promotes corporate culture.

Proven forces complement the Abacus management team

The course for the future is also being set within the company. The focus is on continuity. As of June 1, 2023, Claudio Hintermann and Christian Huber will share the role of CEO. Christian Huber will remain CFO (Chief Financial Officer), while Claudio Hintermann will also assume the role of CRO (Chief Research Officer). The Executive Board will also be supplemented with long-standing Abacus employees and will present itself as follows from 2023: Claudio Hintermann (Co-CEO, CRO), Christian Huber (Co-CEO, CFO), Alexander Vetter (CTO, Chief Technology Officer), Raffaelle Grillo (COO, Chief Operating Officer) and Yvonne Seitz (CHRO, Chief HR Officer). A change is also on the horizon in the Board of Directors: Daniel Senn, currently COO, is to succeed Rainer Kaczmarczyk, who will step down as Chairman of the Board of Directors on May 24, 2023.

Source and further information

The award ceremony and the presentation of the finalists of this 10th edition of the Prix SVC Suisse Romande took place on November 15, 2022 at the SwissTech Convention Center of EPFL in front of about 1000 guests from business, politics, culture and media.

Mecaplast SA triumphs at the anniversary edition

Founded in 1971 in Botterens, Mecaplast SA is convinced that plastics technology can provide environmentally friendly solutions in the medical field by offering innovative technical advantages over current processes. Thanks to its great flexibility, it can respond to customized production requirements ranging from a few pieces to several million. In addition to its growing production of surgical instruments, Mecaplast is also active in watchmaking and various technical parts. As the president of the jury, Isabelle Harsch, was pleased to point out, "Mecaplast's strength lies in the fact that it has internalized most of its processes, which gives it great flexibility and thus the ability to offer its customers personalized products according to their requirements, in quantities ranging from a few pieces to several million."

Crevoisier SA and Baccinex SA also on the winners' podium

The second prize went to Crevoisier SA. Founded in 1966 and based in Les Genevez, the company originally manufactured clamping levers. Since 1974, the company has been designing and manufacturing machine tools specialized in machining, grinding hard materials, polishing and automation. Each Crevoisier machine is a unique work, marked by an inimitable character, according to the company.

The third awardee is Baccinex, a pharmaceutical supply laboratory specializing in the development and manufacture of injectable, liquid or freeze-dried (bio)pharmaceutical products. The Jura-based company is a critical link in the development of breakthrough treatments such as five drugs to combat Covid-19.

Diplomas for E.M.S. Electro Medical System S.A., La Fabrique Cornu SA and Planair SA

Three other nominees received fourth prize ex aequo: EMS was founded in 1981 in the Vallée de Joux and is now a world leader in its three business areas - development of state-of-the-art solutions and equipment for dental prophylaxis, treatment of kidney stones and shock wave treatment of musculoskeletal disorders. The Vaud-based company Cornu SA specializes in the production of fine bakery products, processing the equivalent of over 1,000 hectares of wheat each year, and its butter consumption is equivalent to the milk production of around 16,000 cows. And finally, Planair SA, which since its creation has been a committed promoter of energy conservation and energy efficiency, which increase competitiveness for companies and financial health for public bodies and individuals.

Source and further information: Swiss Venture Club

Switzerland is increasingly taking a special path in Europe with its vocational education and training system and is also increasingly differentiating itself from its neighboring countries Germany and Austria. Nowhere else has dual vocational education remained so strong and the division between vocational and academic education so clear, as the new trend report by the Swiss Observatory for Vocational Education and Training OBS SFIVET shows. This offers advantages, but also brings challenges.

General education gains in importance

To this day, the strengths of Swiss vocational education and training include its high level of practical relevance and labor market relevance, as well as low youth unemployment. Around 60 percent of young people complete a dual vocational education and training program - more than in any other European country. In addition, 91 percent of young people in Switzerland have completed upper secondary education by the age of 25, a very high proportion by international standards.

Nevertheless, it is necessary to respond to technological, economic and social changes. At the heart of this is the question of the ideal relationship between vocational and general education. It arises when the decision is made between a high school/general education path or a vocational path. And it also arises within vocational education, where some vocational apprenticeships provide twice as much schooling as others. In addition, the vocational baccalaureate (BM) varies widely by occupation and canton.

The requirements increase

Structural change in the world of work means that lifelong learning in school and company contexts is becoming even more important. The ability to adapt to new professional circumstances is gaining in importance. The change is also reflected in the fact that there are more learners in dual vocational apprenticeships with a higher proportion of schooling. However, increasing vocational school shares in dual basic education also lead to a conflict of objectives: If learners go to school more, they are absent from companies, which worsens the company's cost-benefit ratio.

The SFIVET researchers advocate an open debate about the future and the optimization potential of the Swiss education system. In particular, they would like to discuss its actual permeability, which could be increased, as a look at neighboring countries shows. In this context, it is also important to think about additional educational opportunities at the upper secondary level that offer young people an alternative if they have not been successful in basic vocational training.

The trend report "Fields of tension in vocational education and training internationally and in Switzerland - developments, challenges, potentials" is available at: www.ehb.swiss/forschung/obs/themen-und-trends/spannungsfelder-der-berufsbildung-international-schweiz

Everyday sales. The salesperson intensively courts the new customer. He does everything for the "dear customer. But as soon as the contract is signed and sealed, his interest wanes. Suddenly, everything is "not so easy" and "costs extra. The customer also notices this. That's why he inwardly distances himself from the seller and his company. And he is correspondingly quick to switch suppliers if another provider makes him an attractive offer - even if he is satisfied with the (core) product.

One reason for this is that many salespeople are not sufficiently aware that complex (technical) capital goods can no longer be sold today without a certain level of service before and after the sale; moreover, customers always have expectations that go beyond the core product when they make their purchase. After all, what good is the best machine or computer system if the manufacturer's service technicians are unreachable for days in the event of a defect? Not much. That's why (after-sales) service is part of the purchased product for most customers. So they naturally expect it to be provided as requested.

The free service does not exist

How much service the promised service package contains from the customer's point of view depends, among other things, on whether the provider presents itself as a "box pusher" or a "full-service provider"; furthermore, on whether it is located in the low or high price range. Consequently, each company must decide for itself how much service it offers its customers. However, if a service promise has been made, then the corresponding services must be provided. So they must also be taken into account in the price calculation, because contrary to what some customers expect, there is no such thing as free service. Either it is already included in the price of the core product or it will be charged at a later date.

Many salespeople are also not sufficiently aware that when their company sells them a computer or machine system, for example, it is entering into a partnership, so to speak, with its customers for the life of the system. They consider their job to be over when the order is delivered. For the customer, however, the partnership is just beginning. For only when the system meets his expectations in day-to-day operation will he be satisfied with his investment. And only then does he gradually develop an emotional bond with the supplier in addition to the technical one. Customer loyalty therefore turns into customer loyalty. This means that the customer's employees try to maintain the relationship with the supplier even if another supplier makes them an apparently more favorable offer, because they know: Many services provided by our current supplier cannot be taken for granted. Therefore, a change of supplier would be associated with uncertainty and additional work.

Sales and service must cooperate

For such customer loyalty to develop, sales and service must cooperate closely. This is a weak point for many companies. For example, salespeople often make (service) promises to customers that the technicians cannot fulfill. Conversely, service technicians often unsettle customers in their purchasing decisions rather than confirming them. For example, by saying to the customer during the installation of the machine: "Who sold you that? Didn't anyone tell you that....". To avoid such mishaps, service and sales should cooperate as early as the sales phase - for example, by agreeing on what is possible when the customer's requirements are available. Both sides learn from such cooperation. It also creates the conditions for reliably meeting customer expectations.

In day-to-day sales, it also proves useful time and again for experienced service technicians to accompany the sales staff to the final sales meetings. After all, they iron out the glitches and problems in everyday work. So it is easier for the customer to decide to buy if he knows the service technicians and has a competent impression of them. Good contact between sales and service is also necessary because the service technicians are usually the first to register where the customer might have problems in the foreseeable future, as well as where the customer might have further needs. If this information reaches the salesperson, he can distinguish himself as a partner who thinks along with the customer and generate follow-up orders.

However, this presupposes that the areas value each other's work. Such a relationship between service and sales should be specifically promoted by the company or sales management - for example, through regular joint meetings. They should also define rules for cooperation - for example, that all major offers from Sales are checked again by Service.

Author

Peter Schreiber is the owner of the training and consulting company Peter Schreiber & Partner in Ilsfeld, Germany, which specializes in the sale of industrial goods and services. www.schreiber-training.de

Switzerland occupies top positions everywhere: In terms of innovative strength, tax burden, competitiveness, etc. By contrast, our country's ranking in terms of climate protection is rather inglorious: Within a year, Switzerland has lost seven places in the Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI). The EU and countries such as Egypt and Malta now rank higher. The Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI), published by the environmental organization Germanwatch, the NewClimate Institute and the Climate Action Network, evaluates the climate protection efforts of 59 countries and the entire European Union. They are all among the largest emitters worldwide. A current ranking is presented each year at the time of the UN Climate Change Conference. This year, Denmark, Sweden and Chile occupy the top ranks 4, 5 and 6. The first three places are not awarded because none of the countries considered is making the necessary efforts to limit global warming to a maximum of 1.5 degrees.

Greenpeace: Switzerland shirks climate protection

Switzerland's less than stellar performance is grist to the mill of environmental organizations. "Switzerland's crash comes as no surprise to me," says Georg Klingler, a climate and energy expert at Greenpeace Switzerland. "Switzerland is not meeting the commitments it made under the Paris Agreement and is not doing enough to reduce its emissions at home and abroad. Our country is on a path that leads to global warming of 3 degrees. This has serious consequences, as global warming of more than 1.5 degrees already threatens the basic rights of everyone in the country. I hope that this is a wake-up call for the Federal Council to quickly step up efforts to protect the climate in all aspects. The Federal Law on Climate Protection Targets, Innovation and Strengthening Energy Security (indirect counter-proposal to the Glacier Initiative) must allow us to immediately reduce our dependence on fossil fuels."

Politics engages in greenwashing

Greenpeace has little good to say about Switzerland's environmental and climate policy at the moment, as already directly communicated in the run-up to the ongoing COP27 conference in Sharm El-Sheik was. Greenpeace said the Federal Council's logic of whitewashing climate protection efforts in Switzerland with measures implemented abroad was particularly shocking. "Switzerland has already emitted a lot of greenhouse gases in the past. Our country has very high per capita emissions due to our consumption habits, and our financial center continues to invest globally in coal, oil and gas. We must therefore clearly ensure that emissions abroad are reduced. However, these reductions must in no way replace the measures needed in Switzerland. The current policy is nothing more than greenwashing."

So far disappointing COP27

If you put the ranking in relation to the COP27 climate conference, Switzerland's performance fits well into the overall picture. So far, the conference has produced few tangible results. The industrialized nations are also repeatedly proving to be the brakes. According to the UN Emissions Gap Report, global emissions are expected to reach a new record level in 2022, after briefly falling in 2021 due to the pandemic. The Climate Action Tracker report highlights that the increase in LPG consumption due to the energy crisis, exacerbated by the Ukraine war, is likely to have a negative impact on the transition to climate neutrality. In addition, in the absence of more stringent regulations and formal carbon pricing, public and private actors are increasingly relying on offset measures and voluntary carbon trading initiatives. A number of African countries, for example, launched the African Carbon Markets Initiative, which aims to produce 300 million carbon credits worth $6 billion annually by 2030. And with great fanfare, Vella announced the one billionth carbon credit at COP27. These initiatives may show a lot of goodwill, but they distract from actual decarbonization.

Sources: Greenpeace / Voxia Communication

The HR consulting firm Egon Zehnder has published the results of the Global Board Diversity Tracker 2022. The study has been analyzing how diverse boards of directors are in terms of gender, age and internationality on a global level since 2004. The results show that the proportion of diverse boards is only increasing very slowly. Switzerland in particular is still lagging behind in terms of diverse appointments to management positions. For example, since the first study 18 years ago, the proportion of women on Swiss boards is only 29.1 percent. This is below the Western European average of 35.5 percent. France has increased its share of women from six percent to a total of 45.3 percent since 2004 and thus leads the Western European countries.

Increase the proportion of women: The pace in Switzerland is too slow

All of the Swiss companies analyzed have at least one woman on their board of directors: 100 percent of the Swiss companies analyzed now have at least one female board member. In 2020, the figure was still 97.6 percent. While this would be pleasing, "The results should be a wake-up call for male and female managers in Switzerland. There needs to be a rethink when it comes to filling top positions," says Dominik Schaller, Managing Partner of Egon Zehnder Switzerland. "Because change must start at the top of the company. Only then can leaders from diverse backgrounds act as role models for the entire organization and shape an inclusive culture."

Looking at Western Europe as a whole, the proportion of women on boards of directors has increased more rapidly in the past two years than in the previous ten. Today, significantly more women are part of a board of directors than the global average. This is also true in Switzerland, but it should also be noted that of the total 10.6 percent of new board seats, 6.8 percent were held by men and only 3.8 percent by women. The average board size in Switzerland comprises 9.7 seats.

Internationalization of boards of directors globally sluggish

Regardless of gender, the average proportion of board members with an international background is around a quarter at global level - and has been falling in almost all world regions since 2012. Western Europe, with an average of almost 39 percent, is the only region to record a continuous, albeit rather slow, upward trend. Switzerland is an exception here, with a share of 63.5 percent, well above the Western European average. Of note here is the very high proportion of female board members with an international background, which in Switzerland is as high as 75.8 percent.

"The fact that the talent pool for female board members in Switzerland is mainly abroad is food for thought," says Simone Stebler, consultant and Head of Diversity & Inclusion at Egon Zehnder Switzerland. "Diverse talent pipelines need to be built, especially for CFO and CEO roles. Diverse teams are not only more successful economically, but also more innovative in product development, more resilient in crises and more creative in problem situations. Building an inclusive corporate culture is essential to attract and develop these diverse talents - all the way to the highest levels of management."

Source: Egon Zehnder