André Batterman, who as entrepreneur, founder, owner and CEO of Batterman Consulting Basel AG, has been active in executive search for over 40 years, talks about current topics that concern him and our partners. He also gives us an insight into his hobby, which he pursues with passion.
Mr. Batterman, you are specialized in the areas of life science and industry for executives and professionals. What issues are you and your clients currently dealing with?
"To summarize, we see three interlinked themes that occur again and again.
All of this is framed by the challenges of the VUCA world. New technological possibilities are creating a sense of volatility and change, while political and economic challenges are causing additional uncertainty. The complexity of today's value chains has been brought home to us once again in the last two years. We, as well as our customers, are required to constantly adapt to the new circumstances in order to offer products and services with added value for the consumer."
You also offer VR Search and work with boards of directors, are these topics also dealt with in the board of directors?
"As a member of swissVR, I took part in the swissVR Monitor 2022. In this survey, it became clear that over 90% of board members are concerned with innovation processes in the company. At the same time, over 39% see talent management as the most important topic for the Board of Directors in the coming months. After all, successful innovations and the digitalization of services require qualified employees with the relevant expertise. These topics are therefore also of central importance for boards of directors."
How do you support your clients on the board of directors and at management level?
"Our aim is to connect people with companies and to help them develop. In the case of board and management functions, any changes to corporate governance and corporate strategy play a decisive role and are always included in the project work. For example, a CFO nowadays often has to deal with digitalization topics and artificial intelligence in order to be able to implement innovation strategies."
What topics are on Batterman Consulting's agenda for 2022?
"We have been a driver of innovation in personnel consulting for 40 years. We recognized very early on that recruitment was changing. Active sourcing, social media etc. were not yet so widespread at the time. Nevertheless, we recognized the changing times and developed new corresponding services and set up an in-house recruitment team for direct searches. Due to the growing demand for experts and management members, we will strengthen our team this year and explore new innovative ways to find and recruit the right people in the life science and industry sectors.
We are canceling our traditional Meat&Greet, which we would have liked to celebrate in style this year to mark our anniversary. Due to the geopolitical situation, we don't feel like celebrating, not wholeheartedly and with the light-heartedness we would like. It makes more sense for us to donate the money to those who really need it."
You are also a passionate photographer. Are there many parallels between photography and your work as an entrepreneur?
"As a photographer, as well as an entrepreneur, I always try to explore and create innovative, new paths. For me, photography is about working creatively with people to capture the perfect moment. It takes the right person, in the right place with the right mood. It's similar in executive search: with the right people in the right roles and with the right spirit, great things can happen. However, here it is less about the "now" and more about tomorrow. As an entrepreneur, it is important to me to constantly develop myself and the company and, as I mentioned at the beginning, to recognize the opportunities for innovation and implement them for the benefit of our customers."
We would like to express our sincere thanks to Mr. Batterman for his contribution to this article. This interview was conducted orally.
Editor: Batterman Consulting
Batterman Consulting Basel AG
Executive Search,
Byfangweg 1a, CH-4051 Basel
T +41 58 680 55 55
basel@batterman.ch
