New Chapters

I had been studying business administration for over 20 years. A lot had changed in the meantime and I wanted to make myself fit for the future. When I signed up for the “CAS Board of Directors” course at Rochester-Bern, I would never have dreamed that I would sell my company a few months after graduating and start a new business.

13 years earlier, I had founded the company Connectiv Relocation AG and had since built it up with a great deal of passion and dedication. For my performance assessments, group work and theory assignments, it was opportune and valuable for me to deal with my own company. I dealt in depth with topics relating to risk management, strategic management, corporate governance, financial management (including valuation in the event of a company sale 😉) and digitalization & innovation.

This intensive reflection on my own company triggered many things and got the ball rolling. The desire to sell my company grew with every module I completed: It was the right time for me to let go and hand over my heart project into new hands.

True to the quote from Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, “It is not enough to know, one must also apply; it is not enough to want, one must also do”, I was able to tackle and initiate this project myself thanks to the deepening and expansion of my knowledge acquired from the CAS. I was able to combine theory with practice and experience and manage the extremely exciting experience of selling a company myself.

And indeed: shortly after successfully completing the CAS, I proactively approached a potential buyer and a few months later had two concrete purchase offers to choose from. I opted for the offer that was fully based on my team and would keep all employees on. In the buyer, I had found a competent partner with an excellent infrastructure throughout Switzerland and state-of-the-art technology. Two companies with strong roots in the region joined forces to offer their customers extended services and first-class support.

I am proud to announce today that I sold my company on January 1, 2025 and started a new chapter. Thanks to this further training, I have not only made valuable contacts and new friendships – it has also changed me and my company in a lasting way. Under the overall direction of Rochester-Bern CEO Petra Joerg and with top-class lecturers, the knowledge of our class was supplemented and expanded in an intensive and challenging way. My sincere thanks go to them and to my fellow students!

The journey continues, because the need to continue my personal and academic development in the future has been awakened….

Caterina Schneeberger, CAS Board of Directors Class 16, Seminar Foundation Board Class 6