SwiSS workerSGoinG Where Life is Good

Most Swiss people would be willing to take a job in another country. But

it’s not because they expect to find a better career opportunity or standard of living elsewhere. That would be a lot to hope for, given how well the Swiss economy is doing.

Instead, the Swiss who say they would be willing to work in another country cite the ability to broaden their personal experi-ence or live in a different culture as their biggest motivations. In this, they are a lot like Germans, for whom experiential fac-tors trump economic factors when it comes to the willingness to work abroad.

Altogether, more than three-quarters of Swiss would be willing to move to another country for work, according to a survey of current and recent Swiss job seekers by BCG and JobCloud, an employment web-site that is part of The Network. That is substantially above the world average of 64 percent and puts the Swiss at the high end of potential international job mobility among Western Europeans. (See Exhibit 1.)

Switzerland’s status as a multilingual na-tion partly explains its workers’ positive at-titude toward mobility. German is the most widely spoken language, followed by French, so it’s not surprising that both Ger-many and France are popular destinations among the Swiss. But German and French are not the only languages heard in offices around the country; there’s plenty of Eng-lish, too. Indeed, the top three preferred work destinations—starting with the U.S.—are all English-speaking. (See Exhibit 2.)

In addition to a larger economy, the U.S. generally has a warmer climate than Swit-zerland—a factor for about a quarter of those Swiss who say they would consider working in another country. (See Exhibit 3.)

Globally, Switzerland is the fifth most pop-ular work destination in the world, cited by 29 percent of respondents. Only the U.S., the UK, Canada, and Germany rank higher. Yet Switzerland has nowhere near the pop-ulation of any of those countries. To people who have decided to spend a part of their

The Boston Consulting Group • The Network | Swiss Workers 2

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

Bosnia and Herzegovina

France

Tunisia

Serbia

Portugal

Italy

Poland

Israel

Romania

Croatia

United States

Canada

UK

Germany

Australia

France

Austria

New Zealand

Norway

Sweden

60% 50%

59% 44%

57% 44%

57% 39%

51% 39%

48% 31%

46% 30%

44% 29%

44% 28%

42% 26%

Countries in which the largest number of people would move to Switzerland for work

Countries to which the largest number of Swiss would move for work

Source: 2014 BCG/The Network proprietary web survey and analysis.Note: Total sample size was 203,756; the number of respondents in Switzerland was 4,414.

Exhibit 2 | Who Would Work in Switzerland and Where the Swiss Would Work

World-wide203,756

62%5%

1%

26%

4%0%

2%Unemployed

Self-employed/freelance

StudentIntern/apprentice

Employed

RetiredNot working

for other reasons

60%40%

Male

Single without children

Single with dependent children

Single with independent

children

Couple without children

Couple with dependent

children

Couple with independent

children

34%

4% 5%

26%22%

9%

Female

21%

79%NoYes

Switzerland is home country

None/other

Secondary qualifications

Further educational qualifications

Bachelor’s degree

Master’s/other postgraduate qualification

Doctorate/other advanced degree

Manualworker

5%

Skilledworker

15%

Officeworker

36%

Lowermanagement

20%

Middle management

18%

Owner/senior management

8%

60 705040302010

Not looking for a new job at the moment

Not actively looking for a job, but open to opportunities

Actively looking for a new job

GenderSample size

Marital status

Position in the job hierarchy

Employment statusAge distribution

Current living situation

Education

Willingness to work abroad

Job-seeking status

17%

11%

30%18%

19%5%

38%

5%

57%

Switzer-land4,414

21%

28%

13%

28%

4%

Impartial/not sure

Strong yesAlready living abroad

Strong noNo

Yes5%

Source: 2014 BCG/The Network proprietary web survey and analysis.Note: Because of rounding, not all percentages add up to 100.

Exhibit 1 | Breakdown of Swiss Survey Participants by Demographic Factors

The Boston Consulting Group • The Network | Swiss Workers 3

careers there, Switzerland has positive at-tributes other than size.

One of those is the country’s sparkling cit-ies. The financial center of Zurich, which received a large number of spontaneous mentions from respondents as a work des-tination (more than Montréal, Copenhagen, and Milan, for example), routinely ranks in the top dozen cities in livability studies us-ing criteria such as health care, tolerance, public transportation, safety, and access to nature. Geneva and Bern also appear on these lists.

With its reputation for good working condi-tions and its good system of education, Switzerland exerts a pull on workers in many nearby European countries. It is the

number one foreign work destination for people in Germany, with which it shares a border, and is also high on the list of peo-ple in France, another neighboring country. In addition, the enclaves of expatriates al-ready in Switzerland from Eastern Europe attract workers in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, and Croatia.

Switzerland’s famous geopolitical neutral-ity—its desire to coexist peacefully with oth-er nations—has a corollary in the workplace; the Swiss rank good relationships with col-leagues and good relationships with superi-ors as the first and second most important determinants of job satisfaction. They are also more apt than others to say that inter-esting job content and challenging job as-signments are priorities. (See Exhibit 4.)

Swiss workers All workers

24%

27%

29%

37%

45%

47%

57%

63%

64%

65%

55%

18%

59%

58%

47%

45%

53%

65%

54%

65%1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

Broaden personal experience

Ability to live in a different culture

Acquire work experience

Meet people/build new networks

Learn a new language

An overall attractive job offer

Better career opportunities

For the challenge

Better climate

Better standard of living

Source: 2014 BCG/The Network proprietary web survey and analysis.Note: The number of respondents in Switzerland was 4,414; multiple answers were allowed.

Exhibit 3 | Reasons Why the Swiss Would Work Abroad

The Boston Consulting Group • The Network | Swiss Workers 4

By contrast, the Swiss don’t seem to spend much time thinking about the financial sta-bility of their employers or about their own job security, but that may be because these factors generally aren’t question marks to the extent that they are in other countries. The financial stability of one’s employer is the tenth most important factor in Switzer-land, whereas worldwide, this factor ranks fifth. The Swiss care less about job security than people in any other G20 country ex-cept labor-friendly France. Combined with its high wages, Switzerland’s low unem-ployment rate (among EU members, only Norway’s is lower) makes it a place where people can worry a little bit less than peo-ple do elsewhere about where their next paycheck is coming from.

Work environmentCompensation package

Rank in Switzerland

Rank worldwide

Company reputation and imageJob content and opportunities

1

2

3

4

Company’s financial stability

5

Learning and career development

Leading and taking responsibility

6

7Attractive fixed salary

8

Interesting job content

9

Challenging job assignments

10

2

4

1

3

9

12

8

11

6

5

Good relationships with colleagues

Good work-life balance

Good relationships with superiors

Appreciation for your work

Source: 2014 BCG/The Network proprietary web survey and analysis.Note: Total sample size was 203,756; the number of respondents in Switzerland was 4,414.

Exhibit 4 | Workplace Factors That Matter Most to the Swiss

For Further Information If you would like to discuss the results of this research or obtain further insights about the Switzerland results, please contact Rainer Strack (strack.rainer@bcg.com), Carsten von der Linden (vonderlinden.carsten@bcg.com), or Adrian Hofer (hofer.adrian@bcg.com) of BCG, or Mark Sandmeier (mark.sandmeier@jobs.ch) or Frédéric Gaiani (media@jobup.ch) of JobCloud.

The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) is a global management consulting firm and the world’s leading advisor on business strategy. We partner with clients from the private, public, and not-for-profit sectors in all regions to identify their highest-value opportunities, address their most critical challenges, and transform their enterprises. Our customized approach combines deep in sight into the dynamics of companies and markets with close collaboration at all levels of the client organization. This ensures that our clients achieve sustainable compet itive advantage, build more capable organizations, and secure lasting results. Founded in 1963, BCG is a private company with 81 offices in 45 countries. For more information, please visit bcg.com.

The Network is a global alliance of more than 50 leading recruitment websites, committed to finding the best talent in over 130 countries. Founded in 2002, The Network has become the global leader in online recruitment, serving more than 2,000 global corporations. We offer these corporations a single point of contact in their home countries, and allow them to work in a single currency and with a single contract—while giving them access to a global workforce. The recruitment websites in The Network attract almost 200 million unique visitors each month. For more information, please visit www.the-network.com

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