Annual Report 2022 | The Year in Review
Dear reader
Even in January 2022, teaching was still taking place remotely due to the pandemic. However, the spring semester was able to be held on site in full and the certificate requirement and mask obligation were also lifted. Thanks to the great commitment of all lecturers, who were able to draw on their experience from previous years, we have successfully managed the transition to teaching.
An inspiring learning environment can be created through interactive teaching and learning environments and high-quality asynchronous online units in the classroom setting. At HWZ, therefore, face-to-face teaching is supported and continuously developed through electronic learning controls and e-learning content. In doing so, we place particular emphasis on the continuous improvement of our digital didactic concepts.
It is important that continuing education programs are not perceived as boring and dry, but are fun, in order to promote the motivation and learning performance of students. For this reason, only lecturers are employed at HWZ who, in addition to their theoretical expertise, also have many years of practical experience.
In 2022, HWZ continued to consciously maintain and expand its relationships with external partners. For example, HWZ Academy was able to run a joint certificate course (CAS Real Estate Accounting) with the companies Livit and Wincasa. The partnership with Swissmem has opened up a new target group for HWZ in the field of technicians and engineers. We will continue to intensify these and other relationships in the strategic “Partner Management” project. We are looking forward to it!
Kind regards
Prof. Matthias Rüegg, Rector
The half-life in numbers
3391 Students in the training and further education
209 Studies -106 CAS,27 MAS,69 Seminars,3EMBA,3BSc &1MSc
1439 Degrees -225 Training and 1214 Continuing education degrees
71 Full-time employees at HWZ
876 external lecturers
3875 Alumni Members
17 Institutes, Centers & Specialized Departments
HWZ Education
Looking back on the past year 2022, the HWZ Department of Education has taken important steps to further increase the quality and attractiveness of the study programs offered. In addition to new content, the teaching and learning models have been further developed, thus further improving the compatibility of work and study.
We consistently implement the Student-Centered-Learning approach for face-to-face teaching. A project that we will also be working on with great passion in 2023.
Dr. Urs Jäckli, Co-Head of the Department of Education
Rückblick Bereich Ausbildung 2022
193 Bachelor’s and 17 MSc degrees
In October 2022, we were able to present 193 graduates of the Bachelor programs in Business Administration, Business Informatics and Business Communications with their well-deserved diplomas.
Also in October 2022, 17 graduates of the HWZ Master of Science in Business Administration celebrated their successful graduation.
Auszeichnung der besten Bachelorarbeit und des besten Gesamtabschlusses 2022
Seline Aldridge, graduate of the Bachelor Business Communications program at the HWZ, not only received the award for one of the best Bachelor theses, but also for the best overall degree in her class. In an interview, she told us more about her studies at the HWZ and her plans for the future.
Students develop ideas for the relaunch of Radio SRF Virus
At the end of May, Radio SRF Virus was relaunched with a new focus. As part of the project management seminar, students from the HWZ Bachelor of Business Communications program developed various communication concepts for this relaunch. Claudia Zellerhoff, Head of Marketing at SRF, and Julia Kehl, a student from the BBC-F18 study group, told us more about the relaunch in an interview.
What our students say about studying at HWZ
HWZ Continuing Education
The year 2022 was a year of challenges for continuing education at HWZ. We were able to record numerous positive developments that helped to improve the quality of our continuing education programs and meet the needs of students and the business community.
An important event was the introduction of new study programs that are tailored to current and future requirements of the labor market:
CAS Digital Compliance Officer HWZ
CAS Media Planning HWZ
CAS Platform & Ecosystems HWZ
CAS New Work HWZ
CAS Innovation Masterclass HWZ
The practical relevance of our degree programs also played a central role last year and will continue to be a key feature of continuing education at HWZ in the future. We have intensified our collaboration with companies and industry experts to integrate practical teaching content and real projects into our degree programs. This enables our students to apply the knowledge they have acquired directly in practice and thus gain valuable professional experience.
What else has kept us busy in the area of further training in 2022 – we have summarized it here:
Geschichten aus der Weiterbildung 2022
Summer series on the topic of “Compatibility”
In our 2022 summer series on the topic of “Work-Life Balance,” we profiled extraordinary people who manage to balance work, study and leisure time. To enable our students to focus on their job in addition to their studies, we ensure that study times are compatible with employers’ needs. Nevertheless, planning is essential for achieving the best possible balance between studies, work and private life.
Natasa Kovacevic first completed the Bachelor’s degree in Business Communications at HWZ and then the MAS in Business Communications at HWZ. However, this was not enough for her. In addition to her job as Head of Marketing & Communication at a large IT service provider, the mother of three is currently pursuing a doctorate in London.
ChatGPT | Here to stay
The biggest hype of the last year will continue to have a major impact on our lives in the future. At the start of ChatGPT in December 2022, our AI experts Afke Schouten and Tony Kümin explained what the trend is about, how the program works and what impact it can have on the work of all of us.
Ladies Drive and HWZ promote Female Leadership
Ladies Drive and the HWZ awarded an exclusive scholarship for an Executive MBA Digital Leadership HWZ worth CHF 58,000. The search was for women who want to actively drive the digital transformation in their own company and in our society.
“The car is becoming acceptable – even for the Bahnhofstrasse”
Genesis, the luxury brand of Hyundai, has a showroom on Bahnhofstrasse in Zurich. But how did it come about that car manufacturers are now setting up shop on high-traffic shopping streets? We wanted to find out more about Genesis’ marketing strategy and the future of the automotive industry from Piergiorgio Cecco, Operations Manager at Genesis and a graduate of the HWZ EMBA Marketing program.
HWZ Research
Just in time for the 20th anniversary of the Institute for Strategic Management: Stakeholder View under the direction of Sybille Sachs, the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNF) project “Crisis-Proven Stakeholder Management (Stakeholder Distrust)” was completed, in the context of which Tiziana Gaito is writing her dissertation. A new four-year SNF project on the topic of “Green Transformational Leadership” in the context of the circular economy was also approved, in which Silvan Oberholzer will also be writing his dissertation.
Under the persistent and focused leadership of Sybille Sachs, the research activities at HWZ have been successfully developed and expanded over the years. From March 2023, this work will be continued by Stefan Joller (Head of Research & University Development) and the newly created Center for Research & Methods under the leadership of Claude Meier.
Highlights aus der Forschung 2022
Innosuisse funding and artificial intelligence for innovation
To help implement a new and innovative business idea in the real estate industry, the HWZ Science Methodology Center is supporting the real estate start-up AUKZIA in the field of artificial intelligence. The collaboration is made possible, among other things, by an Innocheque grant application submitted by the HWZ to Innosuisse for support of the preliminary study.
How CSR affects individual well-being
In her dissertation, our research assistant Ramona Demasi has dedicated herself to the topic of CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) and its impact on individual well-being. The actions of companies affect not only customers and employees, but also society as a whole. Companies are becoming increasingly aware of this responsibility.
E-Commerce Stimmungsbarometer 2022
The E-commerce Sentiment Barometer, which we have developed together with the Swiss Post, examines the habits and preferences of over 12,000 Swiss consumers in the field of online trade. E-commerce continues to grow steadily in 2022. However, it is increasingly struggling with a gap between expectations and reality. Nine out of ten consumers cite a lack of fulfillment of their expectations as the reason for returning a product. This leads to an increased number of returned shipments, which in turn results in high costs for online retailers.
HWZ Academy
The HWZ Academy is a one-stop provider for all levels of management. The HWZ training program consists of short, freely selectable and cumulative seminars. The focus is on maximum transfer value for participants with over 60 courses on offer. Participants can earn ECTS credits with HWZ seminars, as the Academy is part of HWZ University.
HWZ Events
In 2022, we also regularly organized events on current, interesting and relevant topics from the business world. Most events, such as specialist conferences, talks and panel discussions, were open to the public. There were also specific events exclusively for HWZ employees, students, lecturers and alumni.
Event Highlights 2022
Summer Dayparty 2022: Grill, Games & Gifs
In June 2022, the HWZ Summer Day Party took place for the third time on Bauschänzli. The weather gods were kind to us and the sun shone brightly. On this beautiful summer day, 260 students, lecturers and staff enjoyed the drinks, the grilled food and, above all, the lively conversations. Watch the video to relive the day.
HWZ Empowers – Successful through Positive Beliefs
The most personal and perhaps most important HWZ podcast for you from 2022: In the HWZ Empowers podcast, we spoke with Laura Adagazza, Talent & Strategy Manager Sales at Allianz Suisse, about how our thoughts influence our emotions and our actions. Often, certain thought patterns run automatically and we are not even aware of where they come from. These are sometimes so deeply ingrained that we are no longer consciously aware of them and therefore find it difficult to change them.
INSPIRE! 5 Things You Need to Know About Brand Management
On 28 September 2022, around 40 participants attended the 2nd INSPIRE! HWZ Brand Management Talk, where they heard from Nicole Blum, founder of the sustainable cosmetics brand “No Bullsh!t,” and André Hefti, CMO of Switzerland Tourism.
Strategy Hackathon – 7 Steps to Strategy
Developing an innovative and future-proof strategy in just two days: that is the goal of the Strategy Hackathon. In just seven steps, Sybille Sachs and Matthias Mölleney manage to address the important questions and set the course for a change of strategy. In the podcast, they answer the most important questions on the topic.
In our own interest
HWZ with new website
In November 2022, the HWZ got a new online presence. This makes it easier for interested parties to get started with the educational offers and provides easy access to the relevant topics related to the university.
Best Teacher Award
The Award for Best Teaching at HWZ went to Dr. Urs Jäckli in 2022, who is the program director of the Master of Science in Business Administration HWZ and a lecturer in various programs.
New “Training” department
The HWZ aims to better meet the new economic requirements and the needs of its students. This is why the new “Education” department was created in 2022. In the future, this department will focus on the three Bachelor programs, HWZ Business Administration, HWZ Business Communications and HWZ Business Information Systems, as well as the Master of Science in Business Administration HWZ.
New program director for the Bachelor’s program in Business Informatics
Also decided and initiated in 2022: The Bachelor program in Business Information Technology HWZ will now be co-led by Rahel Sulzberger and Prof. Dr. Evangelos Xevelonakis. Rahel Sulzberger is responsible for the operational management of the program, while Evangelos Xevelonakis is responsible for the academic management.