Information checkedInformation unaudited Information geprüft Information ungeprüft Setting sail with a clear goal

A compass – the image being used to symbolise our strategy update for the Swiss market. And there couldn’t be a more fitting image, as “implementing it certainly requires a sense of adventure,” says Stephan Rüegger, Strategy Team Leader.

By Cornelia Zeh

On 2 May, the LLB Group announced the strategy for the Swiss market together with Bank Linth. Bank Linth is playing a pivotal role in it, as the services in the private and corporate clients, private banking and EAM business in Switzerland will be expanded based on its strengths. A Strategy Team has been formed to implement the strategy and is being led by Stephan Rüegger. We caught up with Stephan to find out more.

Stephan, first of all, congratulations on your additional role as Strategy Team Leader. An exciting job, for sure. What do you think the biggest challenges will be?

Bank Linth makes a substantial contribution to the LLB Group’s result. We want to increase this contribution -  and that is our starting position.

We need to distinguish between two aspects: “run the bank” (i.e. our current day-to-day operations) and “change the bank” (i.e. where we are heading in the future). I believe that balancing these two is undoubtedly one of the biggest challenges, alongside the time factor. Some issues also require a certain amount of preparation time and thorough clarification before we can even start to look for solutions, let alone communicate them. Here, too, I ask for the patience of all our employees.

In terms of our day-to-day operations and existing clientele: How exactly do we achieve this balance that you mentioned?

There are, of course, some issues that are difficult to define or for which an immediate solution has to be found. As before, operational matters will still need to be coordinated with the line managers or the Board of Management. But if an issue is relevant to the future, it must be coordinated in the Strategy Team.

Of course, a practical solution sometimes needs to be found right away, even if we know it might have to be changed again in the course of implementing the strategy. This calls for flexibility from all of us.

It is important that employees talk to someone from the Strategy Team if they have any doubts or are unsure about anything. We will look into these issues individually and prioritise accordingly.

Strategy for the Swiss market – the key points:

The private banking and corporate clients business and the business with external asset managers will be expanded, building upon Bank Linth’s strengths. The private clients business will remain a central pillar. Bank Linth’s market area is being expanded with two new locations in Zurich and St.Gallen. As part of the rebranding, the LLB Group will operate under the umbrella brand “LLB”.

Can you give us some examples of issues that you’re currently working on as a priority?

The top priority was to establish and coordinate the basic structure of the Strategy Team. This was necessary before we could start the implementation process. Some of the things we’re planning will take a long time to prepare.

We are working intensively on infrastructure and recruitment issues. For example, we have already received some applications after the strategy communication. And we’ve also started planning the two new locations in Zurich and St.Gallen, of course. It sounds simple: we’re opening two new sites. But it’s more complicated than most people might think. We need to think about how these locations will be integrated into the current operations in a legally compliant way. Thus, you can see that there are a lot of issues and requirements for which we first need to do all the groundwork. Just as the world continues to turn, the project will continue to evolve and will therefore keep influencing the implementation of our strategy as we go along.

Do any of the issues overlap with ongoing Group projects?

Absolutely. One of these is the LLB.ONE programme, as it will influence how we work in the future.

There are also some overlaps in the client streams. Here, it is important that we develop a clear target operating model (TOM) that regulates the work between the individual segments on the one hand, and between Bank Linth and the LLB in Liechtenstein on the other.

There are also some overlaps related to rebranding. And for Bank Linth, the name change also has to be coordinated with the rebranding efforts. These are just some examples of crossovers between different areas.

Let’s talk about the Strategy Team. How is it composed?

The project is currently divided into ten streams. Four of these are dedicated to the four client segments “Direct Clients”, “Private Banking”, “Corporate Clients” and “External Asset Managers”.

Two other streams are “Recruitment” and “People and Change Management”. In the latter, the aspects of runing the bank and changing the bank converge. In this stream, we actively address uncertainties, resolve open questions raised by employees, and also consider their professional development aspirations.

In the “Marketing & Communication” stream, the marketing strategy for the Swiss market is being developed in line with the rebranding of the LLB Group and the umbrella brand “LLB”. The new LLB (Schweiz) AG will obviously be positioned differently in Switzerland than LLB in Liechtenstein. This needs to be taken into account. The “Renaming” stream specifically deals with the name change of Bank Linth LLB AG to LLB (Schweiz) AG.

The “CFO” stream relates to the overall bank management. But other questions are also clarified here, such as how we can grow our corporate clients business and finance it.

In the “Locations and Infrastructure” stream, the focus is not just on the existing locations but also on the launch of the two new sites in Zurich and St.Gallen.

The Steering Committee consists of representatives from the Group Board of Management and the Bank Linth Board of Management, who approve important decisions and set the direction.

These individual streams will not work in isolation – many issues will be dealt with across different streams. And depending on the issue, different employees will be involved in the individual streams.

What do you think are the most important changes for Bank Linth?

The biggest change for Bank Linth is the transition from a local / regional bank to a larger institution with locations in Zurich and St.Gallen. For us, this means that we are not only expanding geographically, but that we will also be addressing a client base with different needs in the future.

We have to rethink our entire positioning – including the client segments that are new to us – but without neglecting our existing and most important segments.

We are about to embark on a journey together. Is there anything else you’d like to share with us?

We are venturing into unknown territory together. I find that exciting. I can sense a lot of energy – that’s encouraging. Of course, there are also moments of frustration, I understand that. Ultimately, we all want to get ahead. But things don’t always progress at the desired or expected speed, or it sometimes requires an unplanned change of course. You have to be able to deal with these setbacks, or learn how to deal with them. It really is a journey. Columbus also set sail with a goal but without knowing exactly where he’d end up or what he would find there. Nevertheless, he set sail and was convinced that there was something to discover there and that the voyage would be successful.

Unlike Columbus, we have a clear goal in mind, and we work out the way to get there in the Strategy Team. I am convinced that if we all pull together, we will be successful. And every single employee is important. Because only with all of them will the implementation of the strategy be a success.