Our continuing education programs provide up-to-date and practical knowledge in our focus areas. By contributing our expertise, we offer you optimal support to be successful in global competition.

• DAS Applied Diplomacy
• CAS Foreign Affairs and Applied Diplomacy
• WBK Diplomacy in the Digital Age
• WBK Diplomacy & Information Security
• WBK Business Skills Training - The Middle East

All continuing education courses at a glance

Our team, which consists of experts from various disciplines with extensive experience, conducts research on current and practice-relevant issues. Below you will find some of our current research projects:

• Bauen 4.0
  The "Bauen 4.0" project aims to investigate the impact of the use of new technologies on CO2 emissions in the construction industry.
• Evaluation and Testing of new cross-boarder cooperation in additive manufacturing
  Additive manufacturing, also known as 3D printing, has the potential to fundamentally change international value and supply chains. The Interreg-funded project is about helping local SMEs successfully participate in the emerging global market.
• The Economic Reconstruction of Belarus / Deputy project leader / Project completed
  The economic performance of Belarus has been unimpressive ever since the fall of the Soviet Union, due mainly to the country’s lack of serious structural reforms. This study examines the consequences of this benign neglect should a democratic transition occur and attempts to understand the assistance that may be required to help Belarus successfully transform.
• Business Models of a Dentistry Network
  In rural areas it is becoming increasingly difficult to maintain dental practices. ASAM & Partners want to offer an innovative solution by means of a dental practice network.
• Insurance Tokens
  In the public opinion blockchain technology is usually associated with financial speculation. However, the technology has many other application which allow to reduce costs, automate complex processes, and establish legal certainty for all kind of transactions. In this project we assess the potential of blockchain or distributed ledger technologies in the insurance sector.
• Nearshoring Study
  The Center for Global Competitiveness has been working intensively on nearshoring projects in the IT sector since 2019 and has developed a quantitative Nearshoring Index that evaluates the attractiveness of more than 100 regions within Europe. The index enables companies to narrow down their location choices and make better location decisions.
• Parliamentary Friendship Group Switzerland-Japan / Project leader / Project ongoing
  The purpose of the parliamentary friendship group Switzerland-Japan is to promote contacts between parliamentarians of the two states.
• Pelt8 Scale Up / Project leader / Project completed
  Pelt8 offers a Software as a Service (SaaS) platform for firms to automatically create sustainability reports. The platform enables firms to collect and manage all their sustainability-related data in one place accessible to suppliers, customers, and affiliated firms.
• Swiss-Japanese Chamber of Commerce (SJCC) / Project leader / Project completed
  The focus of the project was the digitalization of the office, as well as an intensification of public relations for Swiss-Japanese business concerns.

All research projects at a glance

We advise companies, international organizations and institutions according to their needs and our extensive expertise and experience by providing customized consulting solutions. Our strength lies in solving practical business problems using scientific knowledge and research techniques. Working closely with the client, we design business models for the company and provide support in establishing a strong market position.

Our team also has a well-established business and academic network and close ties to international contacts.

Our current service and consulting activities focus on the following competence areas:

• Nearshoring solutions
  We have studied the nearshoring trend in more detail and developed an IT Nearshoring Index from it, which is updated annually. This company-specific and personalized nearshoring index is able to determine optimal nearshoring locations. This enables companies to be supported in their location evaluation by means of location risk assessments. Several IT companies have already made use of this service of a customized index.
• Applied Negotiation
  Our International Negotiation specialist Khaldoun Dia-Eddine regularly trains companies and their employees in negotiation techniques, including an established Swiss security company.
• Digital Diplomacy
  The CGC develops analyses on the success factors of the digital transformation and what these mean for digital foreign policy.
• Management of the office of the Swiss-Japanese Chamber of Commerce (SJCC)
  For six years (2016-2021), Dominique Ursprung managed the office of the Swiss-Japanese Chamber of Commerce. The Zurich-based association promotes Swiss-Japanese economic relations and has 300 members. All six years ended with a profit, raising the chamber's profile as a key player in bilateral relations.
• Secretariat for the Switzerland-Japan Parliamentary Group
  Since 2016, Dominique Ursprung has served as secretary of the parliamentary group, which supports exchanges between parliamentarians from Switzerland and Japan.
• Tailor-Made Study Trips