Business Insights / Document
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“Game over” for a mandate
Between administrative tasks, lifting reservations and submitting documents, the final phase of a project requires rigour and perseverance. But beyond the technical tasks, there is an essential human dimension: allowing the team to close the project on a positive note, reflecting on the challenges they overcame and the successes they shared.
After nearly five years working for a major private bank in Geneva, I am left with a strong conviction: it is women and men of good will — competent, resilient and caring — who make all the difference.
Closing a project also means knowing how to pass on knowledge, prepare the next generation and leave the ship to continue on its course. Above all, it means accepting that an ending always paves the way for a new beginning.
Drawing on the past to bounce back stronger – that is undoubtedly the secret to any great professional adventure.
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Workplace – A place of development and excellence…
The professional environment is not just a functional space: it is a real catalyst for development, motivation and pride.
A well-designed, bright and engaging work environment, combined with supportive management, promotes both performance and well-being. Contrary to popular belief, it is not necessary to invest heavily to create an attractive workplace: involving employees, paying attention to communication and making the most of existing spaces can already profoundly transform a team’s dynamics.
Companies that place as much importance on their workspaces as on their products or services develop a true culture of excellence. Because an employee who is proud of their environment naturally becomes an ambassador for their company.
By rethinking our spaces, we are not only improving comfort : we are helping people and the organisation to grow in the same way.
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Revitalizing apprenticeships: a challenge for Switzerland
What if apprenticeships became a choice for the future again?
In Switzerland, the dual education system is a real national asset. However, it is losing ground to academic courses that are perceived – sometimes wrongly – as more rewarding or promising.
There are many reasons for this, including a lack of institutional recognition, recruitment bias, social pressure, and cultural influences. But these reasons should not obscure the reality that apprenticeships are a path to excellence that is enriching, progressive, and perfectly suited to the job market. I know this from experience. Having completed an apprenticeship and supplemented it with continuing education, I have been able to build a career that is exciting, fulfilling, and well-paid.
It is time to give apprenticeships back the place they deserve in our society and to remind ourselves that success does not always come from a lecture hall.
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Acting specifically, thinking globally …
The phrase “Think globally, act locally” makes sense in many circumstances…
Except for very specific products (the technology and junk food sectors spring to mind), believing that you can apply the same formulas throughout the world, or even in one part of the world without changing a comma, is a tall order, not to say irresponsible entrepreneurship.
It is often necessary to apply “local” versions to match economic realities and consumer needs as closely as possible. Of course, e-commerce is disrupting certain practices by reducing the world to the level of a “global village”, but it is also introducing a form of impoverishment through “one-track thinking”.
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FM and workspaces: ‘Welcome’ to the metaverse
The time when a piece of fruit was still just a piece of fruit and a company was still a real company seems to be slipping away: thanks to - or because of - the metaverse, all this will soon be a thing of the past: we will all be living in a parallel world.
What luck some would say, as their real worlds are so sad, poor, or desolate, but many of us will still prefer the real world, despite all the constraints and challenges, because it is so captivating and beautiful!
The idea here is not to confront the two worlds: it is simply to assess the advantages and constraints of a more “virtual” approach. This “new world” will perhaps allow us to study certain paths, certain behaviours, certain solutions without having to “play them for real” with all the consequences that this may have.