Federal Councillor Karin Keller-Sutter at Wifo: "Sometimes you have to choose between two evils".

All good things come in threes: The 27th Rhine Valley Economic Forum should actually have been held last year. And it also had to be postponed again at the beginning of 2022. Now, on June 2, 2022, it could finally take place - and with a full program, because all speakers were able to appear on the postponed date as planned. Federal Councillor Karin Keller-Sutter also agreed to attend despite the ongoing session in the Federal Parliament.

Full house and top-class speakers

So everything was ready for the more than 700 visitors. And the topic "Risk, responsibility, leadership - how we remain fit for the future in and after crises" had even gained in topicality. At the last Rhine Valley Economic Forum in January 2020, the focus was still on the climate crisis, then came the Corona pandemic, followed in February 2022 by Russia's attack on Ukraine. The geopolitical and economic situation of the past months and years provided ample illustrative material and dominated the tenor of the presentations. In addition to Federal Councillor Karin Keller-Sutter, Nestlé CEO Mark Schneider, risk researcher Gerd Gigerenzer, Ursula Nold, President of the Federation of Migros Cooperatives, and surprise guest Matthias Hüppi, the panel of the Economic Forum was once again made up of top-class speakers.

Karin Keller-Sutter: "Federal Council is not infallible".

"We have to live with the fact that we don't live in a perfect system," said FDJP head Karin Keller-Sutter. There are tensions there sometimes, she said, and not every actual or perceived contradiction can always be resolved. "Only ideologies can accomplish this feat." Especially during the Corona crisis, she said, the Federal Council repeatedly had to decide "between two evils." Karin Keller-Sutter conceded that the Federal Council was certainly not infallible, but it was nevertheless a good institution that needed to be defended. In conversation with moderator Sonja Hasler, Karin Keller-Sutter also showed her personal side from time to time. Asked about the mood that sometimes prevailed in the Federal Council, she admitted that it had sometimes been "tedious" to have to deal with many details of ordinances. She also regretted that during the Corona crisis, many other important matters, such as the reform of social services, had taken a back seat. And the war in Ukraine is a completely different category of crisis for her: the brutality of this war and the fact that human rights are being violated in the process affect her emotionally.

But how can you make the right decisions in crisis situations? Gerd Gigerenzer, a risk researcher from Berlin, gave some input on this. Decisions need to be both data-based and intuitive. However, he believes that many boards lack the fundamental ability to deal with statistical data. Gigerenzer's sympathy, however, ultimately belongs to the "decision from the gut. He pointed out that around 50 percent of decisions in companies are made on the basis of gut instinct. He noted that "we are moving further and further away from a performance culture to a hedging culture. However, a "positive error culture instead of defensive hedging" is the way to go.

Many risks that remain

Ursula Nold, President of the Administration of the Federation of Migros Cooperatives, traced how Migros behaves sustainably in times of crisis. There are neither secret nor patent recipes for success, but it is important to always get up again after failure. This is entirely in the spirit of Migros founder Gottlieb Duttweiler, who himself was a "master of failure. When previous recipes for success no longer work, one must show flexibility. The prerequisite for this - and Ursula Nold sees this as an essential part of the Migros culture - is an appropriate awareness and a constant willingness to innovate.

Matthias Hüppi can also sing a song about the topic of "failure. As a surprise guest, the former sports presenter and current president of FC St.Gallen gave an insight into the everyday life of a football club, where risk and uncertainty are permanent companions.

Nestlé, the world's largest food company, also has to play out crisis scenarios again and again, as its CEO Mark Schneider described. Schneider's view of the next few years was pessimistic: "The 2020s will resemble the 1970s in a ghostly way." This in a different form with inflation, stagflation, constraints in supply chains and the energy industry. "Only by adapting to it," Schneider said, "will you be able to deal with it." That's because crises have no defined end, he said, and the state of affairs before them will never return. "Nostalgia won't help," Schneider said. He appealed to the entrepreneurs in the room not to forget their social responsibility, especially in crisis situations. And it is also important to avoid showing oneself as a profiteer of a crisis, he said. "The world does not like crisis winners".

The next Rheintal Economic Forum will take place again in Widnau on January 20, 2023. Registration is now open at www.wifo.ch possible.

Gustav Spiess AG receives Rheintaler Wirtschaft award

The Bernecker family business Gustav Spiess has been honored with the "Rheintaler Wirtschaft 2022 Prize" at the Economic Forum. From the hands of jury president Brigitte Lüchinger, Jürg Spiess of the third Spiess generation was able to accept the sculpture "Kreislauf" ("Cycle") by Rhine Valley artist Karin Thür. The jury recognized the award winner for the high quality of its products and its organic growth, as well as for sustainable construction and its commitment to Berneck as a business location. Gustav Spiess AG has been in business for 61 years and produces sausage and meat products as well as ham and bacon products. It employs around 160 people. The "Prize of the Rhine Valley Economy" was awarded for the 28th time on Thursday.

www.spiessberneck.ch