A survey conducted by the education platform Ausbildung-Weiterbildung.ch among those interested in management specialist courses shows the reasons for a specific inquiry to schools. 41% stated that they had asked one or more schools for this further education course because they had read a convincing online evaluation. In contrast, 33% did so following a recommendation. 26% already knew the school(s) before making the inquiry. In addition, two people gave us interesting further reasons for their school inquiry in a free text response, as for them the trigger was the "region of residence", "because the course is nearby", "the name appealed to me", "teaching times", "form of teaching" or "because online further education appeals to me the most".

Management specialist training is worthwhile for the following reasons:

• Acquire practical management knowledge
• Take on managerial functions in business and administration
• contribute significantly to the achievement of organizational goals
• Integrate business contexts into management work
• Design and manage organizational change processes
• Preparation for the professional examination for the federal certificate organized by the Association for Management Training SVF

The management specialist continuing education, further training course can be completed on a part-time basis and takes around one and a half to two years. The course can be completed as face-to-face teaching, as e-learning or as a combination of both. Those with little prior knowledge of accounting/bookkeeping should attend a basic accounting course beforehand. This takes an additional one to three months, depending on the provider.

The results of a survey conducted by the education platform Ausbildung-Weiterbildung.ch show the reasons for the interest in continuing education for management specialists. 79% of those surveyed still match the course with their own needs for further development. 18 % show their interest on the basis of a recommendation. For 3% of participants, their interest in this course is based on the fact that it is explicitly requested in job advertisements. Self-motivation and recommendations are therefore responsible for the interest in a course for management specialists. A free text response presumably shows the classic reason for interest: "I am offered a management position and would like to complete a suitable course.".

Management specialists who can demonstrate at least three years of professional experience, including at least two years of management experience (at organizational unit level), have the opportunity to take the Advanced Federal Professional Examination (AFPE). The Advanced Federal Professional Examination (AFPE) is also conducted by the Swiss Association for Management Training.

Furthermore, a management specialist with a Federal PET Diploma is admitted to various other Federal Professional Examinations (AFPE) and Advanced Federal Professional Examination (AFPE), provided that he or she meets the admission criteria for the desired course of study.

The Federal Diploma of Higher Education in Leadership is suitable for anyone who wants to lead or already leads a team or group professionally. The course provides the necessary knowledge to manage conflicts in a team, to lead a team and to communicate in a team. Self-knowledge and self-management, combined with business know-how, round off the competence profile of management specialists.

The Federal Professional Examination for Management Professionals is divided into two levels:

• Module examinations (first stage)
• Federal examination (second stage)

Passing the module examinations is a prerequisite for admission to the federal examination. Anyone who has received official recognition of equivalence for educational achievements already completed can be exempted from individual module examinations.

Overview of the module areas:

• Management modules for management specialists:
  • Business administration: basics of corporate management, strategic thinking, economic interrelationships
  • Finance and accounting: Budgeting, cost accounting, balance sheet analysis
  • Human resources: Employee recruitment, development and management
  • Organization: structural and procedural organization, structuring and optimizing processes
  • Project management: project planning, control and implementation
  • Law: Relevant legal principles for management practice
• Leadership modules for managers:
  • Self-awareness and self-management: personal responsibility, reflection and time management
  • Team leadership: leadership skills, motivation and task distribution
  • Communication within the team: Targeted information and exchange within the team
  • Conflict management: Recognizing conflicts at an early stage and tackling them in a solution-oriented manner

Final examination
The Federal Professional Examination for Management Professionals consists of a written and an oral part:

• Written examination: Processing of a practical case study (duration: 3 to 4 hours)
• Oral examination: Technical discussion with an examination duration of 45 to 60 minutes

This content, which prepares students for the Federal Professional Examination in Management with a Federal Certificate of Competence, teaches practical skills that are necessary for managing teams, projects or smaller organizational units.

Important: The specific learning content may vary depending on the education provider. Each school determines its curriculum individually. For more detailed information, we recommend contacting the respective school directly. Questions can easily be forwarded to the desired school using our contact form.

Management specialists with a federal certificate perform the following tasks:

• Take on management tasks in lower to middle management in companies in various industries and professional fields
• Analyze business contexts and integrate findings into management work
• Timely implementation of the organizational goals defined in advance using various planning and decision-making techniques
• use modern personnel management tools, including recruitment and employee development
• Develop project plans appropriate to the situation
• Lead project successfully through the various project phases incl. budget, controlling
• Derive target-oriented measures from projects
• Conducting discussions and negotiations

A management expert who has passed the professional examination has the following responsibilities:

• Achievement of defined key figures
• Budget responsibility
• Personnel management

Persons with the following qualifications are admitted to the Federal Professional Examination for Management Specialists:

• Federal Diploma of Vocational Education and Training, Vocational Baccalaureate, Specialized Baccalaureate, Secondary School Certificate or equivalent qualification

and

• At least three years of professional experience after completing an apprenticeship, including at least one year as a group or team leader.

Or

• Anyone who does not hold a Federal Diploma of Vocational Education and Training (apprenticeship certificate), a school-leaving certificate or an equivalent qualification must provide evidence of at least six years' professional experience, including at least one year as a group or team leader.

As well as

• Successfully completed module qualifications or certificates of equivalence

The "Swiss Association for Management Training" is responsible for assessing the equivalence of the educational achievements for the management specialist.

The forms "Application for equivalence of educational achievements" and "Pre-assessment of admission" are available on the homepage of the sponsoring association.

The SVF Leadership Specialist means that this person has successfully completed the SVF Leadership and SVF Management modules. With the two certificates, he/she is then admitted to the Federal Professional Examination - provided at least one year of management experience has been gained. The Swiss Association for Leadership Training (SVF) organizes the SVF certificates. These are very popular - over 7,800 module examinations are taken every year. Even with the SVF Certificate in Leadership or SVF Certificate in Management, successful graduates already have a good qualification in their pocket.

According to graduates, you can achieve the following with a management specialist training course:

• Gain very interesting and practical knowledge as a management specialist
• quickly use and apply what they have learned from their management specialist training in everyday life
• competently take on management responsibility
• have knowledge of leadership (aspects of interpersonal relationships) and management (business management)
• Clarity about your own understanding of leadership and leadership behavior through training as a leadership specialist
• Responsible for team leadership
• Resolving and addressing conflicts through conflict management
• Design networked management processes
• develop their leadership skills through self-knowledge and self-management in order to meet the high demands of the complex world of work
• Targeted preparation for the federal examination for the management certificate
• contribute to the success of the company as a management specialist with the subordinate team
• Further development possible in the field of business or marketing at a College of Higher Education