Female entrepreneurs in succession - successful, motivating and underrepresented

Best practices from an internal and external family perspective were the focus of this year's CHDU members' meeting. With Anita and Svenja Stebler, Kehrer Stebler AG (s: stebler), as well as Carmen Alvarez and Nadine Zdych, Alemania Deutschschule AG, the Swiss umbrella organization for corporate succession presented successful female entrepreneurs from both succession scenarios. The panel was complemented by Andreas Camenzind, Investment Director of the Renaissance Investment Foundation, which ensures the succession of Swiss SMEs with a unique investment model. The conclusion of the interviews and panel moderated by CHDU Vice President Carla Kaufmann was clear: succession solutions are an attractive alternative to founding a company - as various female entrepreneurs have recognized and successfully implemented. Their stories are still too little known. This makes it all the more important to further strengthen their role model function and appeal in the Swiss succession market, which is what the CHDU is committed to.

Never "have to"

"Absolute voluntariness was the decisive basis of our succession process right from the start. It was important to us that our daughter Svenja was able to choose her career path free of expectations," emphasizes Anita Stebler, CIO & CFO of Kehrer Stebler AG. After gaining experience in other companies, Svenja Stebler made a conscious decision to become a successor. Today, she is responsible for digitalization projects and is a board delegate at Kehrer Stebler AG. "Succession is not only an entrepreneurial task, but also a macroeconomic one. If we act wisely today, we will secure jobs, innovation and the quality of the location tomorrow. So it's all the better that Svenja is involved in this context as a co-creator," says Anita Stebler.

Better to follow than to found

In view of the fact that nine out of ten start-ups fail, former investors Carmen Alvarez and Nadine Zdych made a conscious decision to take the path of company succession. "The offer to take over Alemania Deutschschule AG came unexpectedly - but it quickly became clear that this was an opportunity to expand an existing business model for the future and make it commercially successful again. So why start from scratch when you can build on what already exists," is how Co-CEO Nadine Zdych sums it up. Today, Alemania Deutschschule AG is one of the leading providers of German lessons in Switzerland.

When female entrepreneurs write the future

For the Renaissance Investment Foundation, corporate culture, innovative strength and continuity are among the key success factors in the succession process. "From our many years of supporting family and external successions, we know numerous examples of female entrepreneurs who have made a decisive impact on companies - one of the most impressive is Solo Swiss SA, where the daughter implemented a successful turnaround after taking over from her father, before we were allowed to take over the company in a sustainable state," says Investment Director Andreas Camenzind. Renaissance is also specifically committed to equal career opportunities - for example through training initiatives with apprenticeships in technical professions, projects such as Women in the industry at Condis SA or the financial support for childcare. "This underlines the fact that our long-term ESG strategy is not a nice-to-have but is an integral part of what we do," says Camenzind.

Succession situations in particular show how fresh impetus and new ideas inspire the innovative strength and resilience of Swiss SMEs and make them unique. All the more reason to motivate entrepreneurs for succession, says the CHDU.

Source: CHDU