Questions and concerns of the institutions of the ETH Domain to the ETH Board
During the internal preliminary consultation, the ETH Board received a great deal of feedback and questions about the project. You can find the questions and answers here.
As of 3 July 2025
The questions are divided into three categories:
General
The ETH Board website provides comprehensive information about the FIT for the Future project. This information is updated on an ongoing basis. A newsletter is also available. Anyone interested can subscribe to the newsletter on the ETH Board website. At the invitation of the ETH Domain institutions, regular town hall meetings with the President of the ETH Board are held on site.
Information and exchange with employees take place in various formats, such as town hall meetings, workshops, and consultations. This gives employees the opportunity to contribute. The workshops in particular are used to gather input from employees, which is then incorporated into the project design.
The ETH Domain owes its success in large part to its qualified and motivated employees. The well-being, job satisfaction and working conditions of its employees are therefore a high priority for the ETH Board.
The FIT for the Future project builds on the strengths of the ETH Domain institutions. One of these strengths is their attractiveness as employers. An explicit goal of the project is to further develop these strengths. Employees will also be supported in the change process through various measures.
The ETH Board is aware that the project will involve costs and time. Careful planning, close involvement of the institutions and employees, and a step-by-step approach will minimise any negative effects. A detailed cost estimate is currently being prepared and should be available in autumn 2025.
The two Federal Institutes of Technology and the four research institutes will be able to fulfil their core tasks during the organisational development process. Even if changes tie up resources in the short term, organisations must continually adapt to changing conditions in order to remain successful in the long term. In order to serve the Swiss economy and society even better despite stagnating finances, we must work more closely together, exploit synergies and further reduce administrative barriers.
- The feedback from the institutions was important for the opinion-forming process for the ETH Board’s decision on the direction in December 2024. It also helped to define the next steps in the project. Furthermore, the feedback underscored the need to press ahead more quickly with various tasks already planned by the ETH Board. These include a cost-benefit analysis, workshops on the future shared culture, and measures to exploit the opportunities and minimise the risks that the project entails, particularly for employees and stakeholders.
Merger of research institutes under one roof
Job security is a top priority. Every effort will be made to maintain the stability and attractiveness of jobs when employment relationships are transferred to the new structure. The institutions of the ETH Domain have long been reliable employers. This will remain the case in the future.
The ETH Board plans to transfer employment relationships to the new umbrella organisation under the following conditions:
- Employees’ contracts will be transferred to the new structure with their current salary levels.
- For the vast majority of employees, there will be no changes in their employment relationship. Therefore, there is no need to reapply or complete a probationary period.
- There may be changes in the employment relationship for individual employees. If their position is classified at a lower level than before, they will continue to receive their previous salary for two years.
- All employees will continue to be employed in accordance with the ETH Act, the Federal Personnel Act, the ETH Professors Ordinance and the ETH Domain Personnel Ordinance (PVO-ETH).
Larger organisations offer more and different career paths with new and interesting tasks and therefore have many advantages for the development of employees.
The ETH Board recognises the value of short decision-making paths, financial autonomy, and the opportunities for shaping and developing our institutions. The autonomy of the institutions is one of the reasons for the success of the ETH Domain.
The main tasks of the research institutes will remain unchanged and will even be expanded. The units of the future SNL will continue its work and will continue to enjoy a high degree of personnel, operational and financial autonomy. However, strategic coordination and thematic cooperation will be strengthened, and support services will be merged.
With the SNL, we want to create a third strong pillar in the ETH Domain alongside ETH Zurich and EPFL, with even more creative freedom and impact than the four individual research institutes have had to date.
The ETH Board will ensure that the research institutes’ co-determination in the orientation of research is not restricted and that their strategic input is considered. As in the past, the ETH Board will draw up a strategic plan for the coming ERI period. This will form the strategic framework for both the two Federal Institutes of Technology and the research institutes.
The organisation of the ETH Domain and its institutions has already been developed several times. This has led to more than one success story. One example is the PSI, which, following the merger of the Swiss Federal Institute for Reactor Research and the Swiss Institute for Nuclear Research, is now one of the world’s leading research institutions. The integration of the SLF into the former Swiss Federal Forest Research Institute (EAFV), which led to the establishment of the WSL, can be seen as a similar example. As part of the WSL, the SLF is also very successful and enjoys a high reputation. The third and final example is the incorporation of the Research Institute for the Textile Industry in St. Gallen into Empa. This decision contributed significantly to the development of Empa’s location in St. Gallen and to Empa as a whole.
The planned consolidation of support units (finance, HR, infrastructure, legal services, etc.) should lead to greater efficiency. To achieve this goal, employees will be involved in the relevant work. They are closest to the issues and can find the best solutions.
To this end, specific proposals will be developed in various workshops with those responsible from the institutions, which will then be discussed with employees.
The risk of infrastructure overlaps is greater with several legally independent institutions than under a joint umbrella. The aim is to achieve more with the resources currently available in order to create new focal points for tackling societal challenges.
The joint umbrella will enable closer cooperation within the ETH Domain, remove administrative hurdles, and create additional synergies. Researchers and employees will then have access to the resources of all four research institutes. This will open up numerous new opportunities for collaboration.
The ETH Board is currently calculating the costs, benefits, and potential synergies. Initial results will be available in autumn 2025.
At the beginning of 2024, the ETH Board and the six institutions of the ETH Domain defined eight goals to be achieved as part of the “FIT for the Future” organisational development project and developed corresponding sub-projects. These sub-projects affect the entire ETH Domain, for example, strengthening strategic coordination within the ETH Domain, increasing efficiency and portfolio analysis. The latter will be continued with a more specific focus on ETH Zurich and EPFL. The sub-projects will be worked on in workshops and working groups by representatives from all six institutions.
Digital Unit
The new unit will focus on a wide range of research areas relevant to the successful digital transformation of society, including those currently being explored at the two Federal Institutes of Technology and four research institutes. It will work closely with existing institutions to ensure that we build on our strengths and avoid duplication.
It has not yet been decided whether research groups currently working at the two ETHs or the four research institutes will move to the new Digital Unit. Various options are currently being evaluated.
A detailed financing plan will ensure that the necessary funds are made available for the development and expansion of digital skills. This can be achieved through internal reallocations, additional third-party funding, or partnerships with external organisations. A large part of the costs (CSCS and SDSC) is already included in the current budget.
The services of the Digital Unit will be available to all units under the new umbrella organisation.
The ETH Domain serves the whole of Switzerland. For historical reasons, the current research institutes are mainly located in the greater Zurich area. Strengthening our presence in French-speaking Switzerland is therefore an opportunity for the ETH Domain and the whole country.
A stronger presence in French-speaking Switzerland will enable the ETH Domain to forge new partnerships and expand its research capacities. With the exception of PSI, all research institutes have locations in several cantons. This will also be the case for the Digital Unit. The CSCS will remain in Lugano and the SDSC will retain its decentralised structure, spread across three locations (Zurich, Lausanne, and Villigen).
RISE in Sweden has a digital systems division headed by a senior vice president, which includes departments such as smart hardware, cybersecurity and computer science. The eDIH is a Europe-wide network of institutions that support the digital transformation of the economy and society. The network consists of a large number of very different types of organisations. Models such as RISE in Sweden and the eDIH do indeed offer valuable insights into how the digital transformation of the economy and society can be supported.
By considering and implementing proven models such as RISE and eDIH, but also variants such as the National Labs in the USA or the Helmholtz Centres in Germany, it will be ensured that the Digital Unit will receive the right research and consulting expertise.
It is important that digital skills are available in all units. This promotes closer cooperation and enables teams to use digital technologies more effectively and drive innovation forward.
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