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Study: Switzerland is world leader in attracting and retaining top talent

Switzerland remains the best country in the world at attracting, recruiting and retaining top talent, according to a study.

Published: 21 November 2017 10:29 CET
Study: Switzerland is world leader in attracting and retaining top talent
sborisov/Depositphotos
The alpine country once again tops the list of 63 competitive economies in the annual World Talent Ranking by the Institute for Management Development (IMD), which assesses the methods countries use to attract and retain talent.
 
Switzerland is followed by Denmark and Belgium in second and third, with 11 out of the top 15 being European countries.
 
 
The 2017 ranking by the Lausanne-based IMD draws on extensive data and a survey of thousands of executives from 63 different economies to judge countries’ performance in three main categories: ‘investment and development’, relating to the nurturing of homegrown talent; ‘appeal’, meaning the ability of the country to tap into the overseas talent pool; and ‘readiness’, judging the availability of skills and competencies in the talent pool. 
 
The three categories assess how countries perform in areas including education, apprenticeships, workplace training, language skills, cost of living, quality of life, remuneration and tax rates.  
 
European economies performed well in all three categories, with their outstanding education systems setting them apart from the rest, according to the IMD.
 
As well as topping the ranking overall, Switzerland led the pack in the ‘appeal’ and ‘readiness’ categories. Its performance in the former was largely due to the quality of life and salaries that Switzerland offers, allowing it to remain attractive to highly-skilled staff despite its high cost of living. The country’s high level of university education and management education contributed to its pole position in ‘readiness’.
 
 
The IMD also praised Switzerland’s apprenticeship schemes and health infrastructure, but pointed out that the public expenditure and quality of primary and secondary education was relatively low. 
 
Austria and Finland both moved up one place on last year to complete the top five. 
 
Other countries that performed well included Ireland, up three places to 14th, and The Netherlands, Germany and Singapore, all up two places on last year.
 
Sweden fell five spots to place ninth, the US dropped three to 16th and Australia also fell by three places to 19th. The UK dropped one spot to 21st.
 
The study chimes with another report earlier this year which also placed Switzerland top for attracting and developing talent. 
 
The Global Talent Competitiveness Index by international graduate university Insead put Switzerland top of the country ranking and Zurich second behind only Copenhagen in a ranking of the best cities for attracting talent. 
 

ECONOMY

Geneva watch show opens in throes of Swiss banking turmoil

The Geneva watch fair opened this week buoyed by booming growth in the watchmaking industry, but insiders warily eyed the banking sector turmoil, evoking painful memories of the 2008 financial crisis.

Published: 28 March 2023 09:28 CEST
Geneva watch show opens in throes of Swiss banking turmoil

Industry professionals were upbeat on the first day of the Watches and Wonders annual fair, where 48 prestigious brands including Rolex, Patek Philippe and Cartier were showing off their new creations.

The fair, which runs until Sunday with the weekend open to the public, kicked off after two years of record gains for Swiss watchmakers.

Exports soared by 31.2 percent in 2021, after a strong rebound in sales in the United States and the Middle East.

And the return of luxury tourism to Europe in 2022 after two years of Covid disruptions pushed exports up a further 11.4 percent to 24.8 billion Swiss francs ($27.1 billion).

The growth has also continued so far this year, with exports up by another 10.6 percent during the first two months of 2023, according to statistics from the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry.

But optimism at the Geneva fair was somewhat dampened by the angst surrounding the turbulence currently lashing the banking sector.

Switzerland – whose vibrant banking scene is a key part of the country’s economy and culture – has been rocked to the core after the government strong-armed the nation’s biggest bank UBS into swallowing up its troubled competitor Credit Suisse, in a bid to ward off a larger global banking crisis.

READ ALSO: ‘A dark day’: How Switzerland reacted to shock UBS buyout of Credit Suisse

‘Global repercussions’

The upheaval has brought back difficult memories for Swiss watchmakers.

After the 2008 round of bank failures sparked a global financial crisis, Swiss watch exports plunged 22.3 percent in 2009 – more even than during Covid-dominated 2020.

“I am unable to say what the global repercussions will be,” Thierry Stern, the boss of Patek Philippe, told AFP.

“But I still think it should be easier than in 2008-2009.”

Participants are seen next to a giant watch by German manufacturer of luxury and prestige watches at the luxury watch fair in Geneva', on March 27, 2023 in Geneva.

Participants are seen next to a giant watch by German manufacturer of luxury and prestige watches at the luxury watch fair in Geneva’, on March 27, 2023 in Geneva. (Photo by Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP)

For the moment the difficulties remain “very localised” as Patek Philippe “sells all over the world”, said Stern, who is counting in particular on Asia to ensure growth in 2023.

Jerome Lambert, managing director of the luxury giant Richemont – owner of the Cartier, Piaget and IWC brands – acknowledged that the turnaround in
demand in 2009 had been “very rapid” and very “severe”.

“But it was a big lesson for us,” he said, explaining that the group had since taken distribution in hand.

Edouard Meylan, owner of the Hautlence brand, nevertheless believes that “lights are turning red”.

“If there is a financial crisis, it will have a very big impact on our sector,” he told AFP, especially since with supply difficulties some watchmakers have gone from “very large orders from their suppliers” and risk finding themselves with large stocks if the market turns.

Other analysts believe there is little reason to panic just yet.

“For now, I would expect the impact to be muted,” Jon Cox, an industry analyst with the Kepler Cheuvreux financial services company, told AFP, adding that he is still expecting to see growth this year of around 10 percent in exports.

READ ALSO: Swiss sweat over size of new superbank

Full steam ahead for China?

However, the Credit Suisse debacle, which threatens tens of thousands of jobs in the financial sector, could take its toll.

“The financial community is an important part of the buying public for the watch industry and there could be impact in local markets, such as Switzerland, on domestic business,” Cox warned, adding though that “this is likely to be offset by tourism”.

For now, Swiss watchmakers are looking to the Chinese market to pick up pace and ensure their 2023 export growth.

When demand was exploding in other markets as they rolled back pandemic protection measures, the watch market in China remained subdued as the country ploughed on with its zero-Covid rules, and then saw infection numbers explode when it abruptly ended that policy late last year.

But watchmakers and experts are expecting that to change with the reopening of the Chinese economy.

Jean-Philippe Bertschy, an analyst with Swiss investment managers Vontobel, warned however that “a return to normalcy” for Chinese watch sales – traditionally Swiss watchmakers’ largest market – will take time.

On the positive side, he told AFP he was confident, given “the level of savings the Chinese had set aside during the health restrictions”.

As for tourism, he cautioned that while Chinese travellers may quickly flock to Asian destinations, “it will take more time before they return to Europe,” due to the continued limited air transport capacity and visa backlogs.

By Nathalie OLOF-ORS

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