December 2021 / Switzerland

Switzerland has topped the IMD World Talent Ranking in Lausanne for the sixth consecutive year for 2021, earning top marks for its support of the domestic workforce. It is also highly attractive to international talent.

Switzerland is once again the country with the greatest ability to develop both homegrown talent and to attract talent from abroad, according to the IMD World Talent Ranking 2021 published by the International Institute for Management Development (IMD) in Lausanne. Switzerland has come in first place for the sixth consecutive year in the annual ranking. And this year again, the gap between Switzerland and the other countries is noticeable. While the IMD analysts gave Switzerland a full 100 points, second-placed Sweden received 90.611 points, and Luxemburg received 88.344 points in third place.

Switzerland is a talent incubator

Switzerland is a top performer both in terms of total investment in the education system and talent development, as well as in the quality of talent itself. It has the best apprenticeship training in the world and is the global number two in terms of public expenditure per student. The international experience of its managers is top-notch, and the education of its students and managers meets the needs of companies like no other country in the world.

International talent attracted to Switzerland

Switzerland is also highly appealing to international talent, and highly skilled professionals are attracted to it like to no other country. Specialists in Switzerland benefit from a high purchasing power in addition to the world’s best healthcare system. Although the cost of living is comparatively high, Switzerland offers the second-highest quality of life overall.

This year, 64 countries were represented in the ranking. Among Switzerland’s neighbors, Austria made it to seventh place, Germany to tenth place, France came in 25th, and Italy in 35th. The analysts at the IMD World Competitiveness Center and their colleagues from partnering institutes surveyed thousands of managerial staff to compile the ranking.

Source: Switzerland - Global Enterprise

On 3 December 2021, the Italian Council of Ministers approved a draft law ratifying the amending protocol and exchange of letters, both signed on 23 December 2020, to the Italy - Switzerland Income and Capital Tax Treaty (1976), as amended by the 1978 and 2015 protocols.

fDi Intelligence has awarded Greater Zurich Area AG a prize for the promotion of advanced manufacturing technologies. The jury saw signs that an attractive center for high-tech manufacturing was emerging in the form of the region’s clusters for robotics and intelligent systems.

Greater Zurich Area AG (GZA) was awarded the specialist prize for advanced manufacturing at the fDi Strategy Awards 2021. Strategy prizes are awarded to global business and location promotion agencies that have distinguished themselves in certain areas during the current year. fDi intelligence is the department for foreign direct investment (FDI) at the Financial Times, the London-based business newspaper.

For this year’s edition, a four-strong fDi jury reviewed 34 locations and agencies that stood out across various fDi Intelligence rankings in 2021. The main prizes were awarded in the four core categories of Global Cities of the Future, African Tech Ecosystems, American Cities of the Future and Tech Cities of the Future

The New York City Economic Development Corporation was named as best investment promotion agency (IPA) and also claimed the prize for the highest degree of sustainability. The award for best aftercare services went to Berlin Partner for Business and Technology.

In addition, the jury awarded prizes for outstanding achievements in specific sectors. It noted that the Greater Zurich Area, as Switzerland's financial metropolis, has a strong concentration of companies that use cutting-edge manufacturing processes. As the jury stated in comments explaining its decision in favor of GZA, this “in combination with the city’s clusters for robotics and intelligent systems” indicates “that the location will be an attractive center for high-tech manufacturing”.

Source: Switzerland - Global Enterprise

On 3 December 2021, the Italian Council of Ministers approved a draft law ratifying the agreement on taxation of frontier workers and exchange of letters, both signed on 23 December 2020, under the Italy - Switzerland Income and Capital Tax Treaty (1976), as amended by the 1978 and 2015 protocols. Once in force and effective, the new agreement will replace the agreement on taxation of frontier workers between Italy and Switzerland, signed on 3 October 1974. Further developments will be reported as they occur.