Schillingreport: Management bodies of the Swiss economy in transition

The Swiss economy is facing far-reaching challenges: Digitalization, technological disruption, decarbonization and demographic shifts are increasing the pressure on management structures. In the 21st edition of the Schilling Report, the question arises as to whether the changes to the board of directors and management of the 100 largest employers are sustainable enough to meet these challenges in the long term.

Age structure of the Executive Board is changing

The average age of MB members has risen steadily since 2011 from 50 years to the current 53 years, and that of CEOs from 52 years to 55 years. It is striking that the new MB members are also older: Whereas they were 46 years old when they joined the MB in 2006, their entry age is now 50 - although the length of stay of the MB members who left remained unchanged at 6 years.

"The world today is much more complex than it was 20 years ago, and the cadence of external events is increasing. These demanding challenges call for proven leadership and life experience," concludes the editor of the Schilling Report, Guido Schilling, "so it is hardly surprising that management board members are older when they join the board than they were 20 years ago and therefore also older when they leave."

However, it is not enough to explain the development of age solely in terms of changing demographics. A closer look at the data shows clear shifts in the age structure of the GL: the proportion of GL members aged 50 or over rose from 49 % in 2006 to 72 % today; the group of over-60s alone increased from 5 % to 9 %. This means that the 55 to 60-year-olds currently make up the largest group with 35 %, whereas in 2006 it was the 45 to 49-year-olds with 28 %. The latter now only account for 19 %. It is also striking that in 2006, 23 % of GL members were under 45 years of age, compared to only 9 % at present.

Overall, there is a clear concentration on older age groups, whereas the age structure used to be more even. "Older members of the Executive Board contribute important experience, but a lack of generational diversity can create strategic blind spots. For the next ten years, the nomination committees must take an active and forward-looking approach to succession planning for the Executive Board in order to involve talented individuals in good time and show them prospects within the company," says Schilling.

Competence before nationality

The proportion of GL members without a Swiss passport is 48 %. For a long time, this figure oscillated around 45 % and is currently at its second-highest level since the survey began in 2006. However, it is important to note that 71 % of foreign MB members are so-called "nationals". "Nationals" are people without a Swiss passport but who have already gained professional experience in Swiss companies before being promoted to the top management body.

The 20 globally active SMI companies have a proportion of foreign board members of 74 % - here too, "Swiss nationals" make up the majority at 75 %. "Swiss companies traditionally recruit some of their specialists abroad and know how to develop them in a targeted manner and retain them in the Swiss economy in the long term. This strengthens competitiveness and innovative capacity," concludes Schilling. "At the same time, I am concerned that increasing regulation is restricting access to global specialists to such an extent that this could become a disadvantage for the Swiss economy in the medium term."

If we look at the sample excluding the 20 SMI companies, the proportion of MB members without a Swiss passport is 42 %. At the same time, around one-fifth of the companies (19 %) have a purely Swiss MB, while 15 % have no Swiss members on their MB.

Stagnation after reaching the gender benchmarks

The proportion of women is currently stagnating in all samples. In the BoD, this increased only slightly: in the overall sample from 33 % to 34 % and in the SMI from 35 % to 36 %. With the end of the transitional period for achieving the gender benchmark in the BoD on January 1, 2026, the focus is shifting to the responsibility of companies. Although 71 % of the companies reach the benchmark of 30 % women on the BoD, just under a third (29 %) still fall short of it, with 4 % of the companies having no women on the BoD.

"16 listed companies from our sample do not currently meet the benchmark for the Board of Directors. These companies are particularly challenged, as from the 2026 remuneration report they will have to state the reasons for not reaching the benchmark and explain measures to promote the underrepresented gender," says Schilling.

The proportion of women in the MB has stagnated at 22 %. The proportion of women among newly appointed MB members is 21 %, the lowest level since 2020. At 28, the number of women leaving the MB is at its second-highest level since the survey began. This flattening trend is also evident in the 20 SMI companies: the proportion of female MB members is actually declining here, falling from 28 % in 2025 to 27 % currently. 25 % of vacancies in the SMI were filled by women.

In order to better understand the current dynamics, it is worth taking a look at the 2025 survey results on the gender diversity pipeline, which examines the proportion of women below GL. Between 2016 and 2025, the proportion of women in middle management rose from 22 % to 28 % and in top management from 14 % to 21 %. Meanwhile, the proportion of women in executive management grew particularly strongly from 6 % to 22 %.

"In recent years, companies have focused on meeting the benchmark at the expense of sustainably building up female managers across all levels," says Schilling. "Is the Swiss economy really aware of the long-term added value of gender-diverse management teams at all levels - or is gender diversity still primarily seen as a regulatory obligation rather than a strategic success factor?"

In the public sector, too, the trend in the proportion of women in top management is leveling off and has stagnated at 27 %. The public sector was long regarded as a pioneer in terms of gender diversity, but the private sector has now caught up to 22 %. At the federal level, the proportion of women in top management has leveled off at 38 % and is at the level of 2022-2024.

Changing profiles on the Board of Directors: more market and technology

After the 2008 economic crisis, the focus of the Board of Directors was on governance, regulation and risk control - lawyers played a central role. Today, however, companies are facing different challenges. "Global markets, technological disruption, digitalization and the use of artificial intelligence require a deeper understanding of business models, markets and technologies. Geopolitical uncertainties and fragmented markets further increase the pressure on internationally oriented companies. Personalities with a business and STEM profile are coming into focus with their approach to these issues," says Schilling.

This is also reflected in the work of the board of directors: 12 companies already have a dedicated digitalization/technology committee, the majority of whose chairpersons have a STEM background. In particular, the requirements profile of board chairmen is evolving substantially away from primarily legal control towards strategic market and technology expertise.

As recently as 2006, 27 % of the chairmen had a law degree, 33 % an economics degree and 22 % a STEM degree. Today, the picture is different: the proportion of lawyers has fallen to 17 %, while 42 % have an economics background and 34 % have a STEM background.

The full report will be available online in German, French and English from May 2026 at www.schillingreport.ch/de be obtained.