Switzerland is home to numerous professional associations and several of its cities are well prepared for meetings, education and meaningful community connections
A look through Switzerland’s Federal Council website will uncover a vital strength of the country – it is home to more than 100,000 professional associations, making it fertile grounds for meetings that connect powerful minds.
These associations are spread across cities. According to Barbra Albrecht, head of meetings and incentives worldwide and member of the Management Board with the Switzerland Convention & Incentive Bureau (SCIB), Geneva is home to over 200 international organisations, including the United Nations European headquarters, while Lausanne is home to more than 50 international sports federations and the headquarters of the International Olympic Committee.
“Numerous other international associations in all kind of professional fields are based in Switzerland,” added Albrecht.
Elaborating on what this means for professional association executives planning their next big meeting, Albrecht said the country offers the “perfect setting” for all sizes of international gatherings.
Swiss cities are ready for such meetings due to the availability of conference centres, unique venues, and hotels equipped with function spaces. Furthermore, groups can easily access one or more cities throughout their programme with the help of a well-oiled public transport network served by buses, trams, trains and ferries. The efficient transport network also enables organisations to minimise their travel carbon impact.
Albrecht pointed out that being able to commute delegates to various locations across the country on a single programme allows meeting organisers to deliver a variety of formal and informal experiences. She added that it did not matter where groups stayed, as “Switzerland is quite small” and “you can be on a mountaintop in an hour, and explore a top attraction in another city in the next”.
Besides solemn keynotes, elaborate presentations and eye-opening study trips to local institutions and organisations, association professionals can also weave uniquely Swiss experiences into their time in Switzerland.
In Zurich, for example, delegates can visit the Lindt Home of Chocolate to learn about chocolate evolution and production while sampling chocolate products; Mühlerama, an ancient industrial mill and a museum of food culture, where they can bake bread; and Kunsthaus Zürich, renowned as the largest museum of fine arts in the country.
In Geneva, CERN Science Gateway is a new draw. The education and outreach centre opened in October 2023 to bring visitors closer to particle physics. It offers multimedia exhibits, workshops, science shows and events that blend science and culture, and guided tours of CERN facilities. Association groups may consider private gatherings at the Science Gateway Auditorium and Globe of Science and Innovation.
In Lausanne, the destination’s strong sports history can be appreciated through activities at the Olympic Museum, where exclusive social events with private tours of the permanent exhibits can be hosted.
“Such varieties of experiences are what organisers and delegates appreciate the most when meeting in Switzerland,” said Albrecht.
SCIB’s MICE manager, South-east Asia, Dominique Oi, added that Switzerland’s diverse sights and experiences lead to memorable and successful networking outcomes.
SCIB aids associations from the get-go, with neutral advice for the bidding process, connections to relevant local suppliers and related organisations so that meeting objectives can be met, promotional materials, and arrangements for site inspections.
“Association meeting organisers often focus on the conference content and experiences during the conference. So, SCIB will step in to facilitate extended programmes before and/or after the conference by creating a landing webpage on the main conference site that provides destination information. This makes it easy for delegates to combine their meeting with a leisure discovery of the country,” said Albrecht.
She added that SCIB will include travel inspiration for a range of interests as well as details on the popular Grand Train Tour of Switzerland, festivals and events occurring during the period of the association meetings, sample itineraries and more.
The country also presents opportunities for associations to achieve their sustainability goals. With the help of SCIB, groups could visit Swiss national parks and participate in conservation work with specialists who will explain why they do what they do, or join behind-the-scene inspection of a power station and hydropower plant to understand how the country has been harnessing energy in sustainable ways before this concept became trendy.
The Swiss appeal is clear to many associations, evident in the country’s line-up of valuable meetings secured for the coming year.
The Drug Information Association will host its European congress from March 18-20 in Basel for 2,000 participants. Next, the European Society of Biomechanics’ ESBiomech25 will be held in Zürich from July 6-9 for some 800 attendees.
In October, the European Geothermal Congress will welcome 1,000 delegates to Zürich across five days, while the 48th World Hospital Congress by the International Hospital Federation will follow a month later to Geneva with 1,000 to 1,500 participants.
