Challenges within the Swiss logistics sector and the implications they have for a provider of further education programs in logistics
Logistics is part of our lives. The food we eat and the clothing we wear are produced outside our country. The BZLT in Dietikon provides further education programs in the logistics sector and needs to know what challenges and trends logistics faces and thus how it should adapt its degree programs.
Küng, Marius, 2019
Type of Thesis Bachelor Thesis
Client BZLT Dietikon
Supervisor Moser, Mark
Views: 30
The BZLT Dietikon is currently undergoing substantial changes. Heading into a new direction, it is crucial for the BZLT to know the challenges faced by logistics and what they imply for the institution providing further education programs. Until recently, the courses offered by the BZLT were cost centers. In the future, the BZLT’s offering will become profit centers, meaning that the courses are redesigned to attract enough people for the school to cover its cost. The content of the courses must be evaluated, market needs must be assessed, and potential participants must be identified timely.
The first step of the research process was to split the logistics sector into the functional areas of the vocational training of Swiss logisticians. Many participants of degree programs know the BZLT from their apprenticeship and return to the institution. Afterwards, research questions were defined covering challenges for logistics companies, employers’ skill expectations, and expected future program content. The challenges within the Swiss logistics sector were assessed by reviewing the literature. To answer the remaining research questions, interviews were conducted.
By reviewing the contemporary literature, the question regarding the challenges within the Swiss logistics sector could be answered. The logistics sector faces challenges from technological innovation, green logistics, demographic changes, automation, e-commerce, and the Swiss transportation infrastructure. During the interviews conducted, the author asked logistics company representatives for their views regarding the challenges in the market. The interviewees were also asked to list the skills they think their employees should have. The companies’ answers included the following soft skills: Communication, empathy, and flexibility. Moreover, employees should be able to apply theoretical knowledge in practical situations. To answer the final research question, the interviewed companies were asked to rate the importance of the modules of the current program at the BZLT. The rating of the modules was high, except for the Natural scientific basics. Therefore, the author’s recommendation for the BZLT is to design a new course pro-gram along the current modules and thereby consider the suggestions from the interviews which included labor law, customer satisfaction, and company visits.
Studyprogram: Business Administration International Management (Bachelor)
Keywords Logistics, Switzerland, challenges, trends, further education
Confidentiality: vertraulich