“Not all students have to launch a start-up”

It has been an intense and great time. I have focussed mainly on visiting all of the Schools and getting to know as many people as possible. This provides a good basis for gaining an impression of the institution as a whole. I feel very welcome and have learned a great deal.  

Nothing came as a total surprise to me, but I did become even more aware of the enormous range of subject areas covered by the ZHAW. I was very impressed by just how much expertise there is at this university.  

I am very much a team player, as I am convinced that several heads are better than one when it comes to generating better ideas. Developing and pursuing goals together is essential for me, as is celebrating successes. I work on the assumption that everyone takes responsibility for their work, so I gladly give employees as much freedom as possible. I would like to promote a working atmosphere in which people communicate openly with one another and can also address difficulties. At the same time, I’d like to count on support for the decisions that I make. 

It goes without saying that I won't be able to speak personally with every member of staff. However, it is important to me to have enough room for dialogue with those individuals who report to me directly. Also, by attending events, I want to indicate that people can approach me.

I could have vetoed it, if I had had any objections. However, I am very much in favour of the three strategic approaches: to be transformative, entrepreneurial and European. As a university, we have to be transformative anyway, constantly evolving and training specialists for a labour market that is continuously making new demands. For me, “entrepreneurial” means a basic mindset of staying flexible and constantly thinking about where we want to go, what new topics are emerging and how you can approach, implement and connect them in a meaningful way. It does not mean that all students have to launch a start-up – although a few start-ups are, of course, great. What is much more important, however, is that we adopt an entrepreneurial mindset that sees us critically scrutinise the status quo, explore opportunities for improvements and remain agile. And, to me, being “European” means that we take responsibility for preparing our students and our participants in advanced education for the international labour market. Our international relations should not just be limited to Europe, but I do think that it is right to place our focus here.

I would not ban air travel altogether. That would neither be helpful nor appropriate. International networking is important for us as a university. However, we should also increase awareness of how we can use resources responsibly. Once projects have been set up and personal contacts established, a great deal can be done online. I see adopting and encouraging this type of cooperation as the right way forward for us. 

It is key that we teach students how to use AI tools and, at the same time, that they should also critically reflect on them. AI does not change the fact that in every field, students still need to acquire a solid foundation of specialised knowledge, and that they have to do so themselves. They need to be aware of where AI can be used meaningfully and how it will change the way they work.

Basically, the realisation that things are likely not to continue as lavishly as before. However, I am not worried about the ZHAW. It demonstrated both resilience and flexibility during the pandemic. Nevertheless, the question of how to deal with changing funding is something we have to ask ourselves continuously – we will just have to do so more intensively now. And just to make it clear, we have never had endless resources at our disposal.

That is not a question I can answer in general terms. I would not set the same priorities for every School because they differ too much. We would have to decide on a case-by-case basis which specific measures are needed in each area in order to maintain quality. 

I think there is a lot going on. However, there is always more to be gained. I am thinking, for example, of our membership of the European university alliance EELISA, which is still very young. We can also certainly exploit even more synergies between our strategic focus areas, such as digitalisation and sustainability. It is worthwhile to focus on one topic for a while and then to apply the insights to other areas and set new priorities.

My priority is getting to know the ZHAW well and that we manage to grow together as a team and to form a shared vision of where we want to go. If I can look back and see that we have already made a difference and achieved something, that would signify success for me.