At maxon, employees are well-provided for: both now and after retirement

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At maxon, employees are well-provided for: both now and after retirement

At maxon, a company based in Sachseln, the well-being of employees is a top priority. This applies not only in terms of their professional everyday lives, but also with respect to occupational retirement provision.
At maxon, employees are well-provided for: both now and after retirement
Between lake and mountain in the centre of the canton of Obwalden, a hidden champion has its headquarters: the company maxon from Sachseln. The firm specializes in drive technology for small, extremely efficient electric motors. Its components are found in products such as e-bikes and medical technology, but also in space exploration: maxon's premium products have been built into the rovers used in all Mars missions to date.

A global, yet familiar business

"We have international – even interstellar – operations and a total of 3,000 employees in 38 national subsidiaries around the globe," reports Stefan Preier, Head of HR at maxon. Nevertheless, the company sets great store by a personal and familiar corporate culture. Employees should not feel like numbers; they should be valued as individuals. "We want them to see themselves as part of the family, to be well and to feel happy. After all, these are the optimal conditions for joint success."

Around 1,300 maxon employees work in Switzerland. Its headquarters lie outside the metropolises, in tranquil Sachseln by Lake Sarnen. As Stefan Preier remarks, this does nothing to harm the firm's appeal as an employer: "We can recruit talented individuals thanks to our exciting projects and the beautiful landscape with a wide range of options for sports activities in a natural setting. The opportunity to quickly assume a great deal of responsibility, and so to grow on a professional and human level, is appealing to applicants."

Respectful culture and good employment conditions

Dominik Angehrn can confirm this wholeheartedly. The electrical engineer leads the Hardware team, which develops electronic components for measuring technology: "Respectful interaction is typical of the culture at maxon." Dominik Angehrn considers maxon to be an employer that cares a lot about the welfare of its employees: "To sum up, I would just say: beautiful place to work, top infrastructure and good employment conditions."

To offer employees optimal conditions for the future as well, Stefan Preier sets great store by a well-thought-out pension fund solution. That is why maxon has placed its trust in Vita and Zurich for many years. For the Head of HR, one subject is particularly important: "I want employees to get back what they contribute – without anything being redistributed. For me, that's fair play." maxon achieves this equal treatment of employees and retired staff thanks to Vita Invest's new and innovative solution: each customer company has its own pension fund and the returns are used entirely for the benefit of its insured employees. "In this way, we gain additional scope with respect to the investment strategy, and our insured get much better interest on balance. After all, I want our employees to be well provided for. Both now and after their retirement."

I want employees to get back what they contribute – without anything being redistributed. For me, that's fair play.


Stefan Preier

Information and clarification

To ensure that employees understand the complex interrelations within occupational retirement provision, maxon organizes information workshops. "Our solution is not particularly unusual, but it adapts precisely to our needs," reports Stefan Preier. "We have enjoyed good and trusting collaboration with our partner Zurich for years. I am convinced that we have the best solution that currently exists on the market for our situation. I also want to convey this trust to our employees and to demonstrate to them how diverse their opportunities are with the pension fund solution."

One of these opportunities is flexible retirement. Stefan Preier and Dominik Angehrn may also take advantage of this themselves: "I can imagine working beyond regular retirement age," says Angehrn. Stefan Preier doesn't want to commit himself yet: "I have drafted several scenarios; time will tell which of them comes true." However, they both agree that high interest on retirement assets is the prerequisite for a worry-free future that can be planned

The Vita Invest concept

The Vita Invest offer for occupational retirement provision stands out on several levels. First, each company benefits in full from the investment income it generates. Second, Vita Invest ensures generational fairness, meaning that persons in gainful employment and retired persons have the same guarantees and benefit directly from investment performance to the same extent – persons in gainful employment thanks to higher interest and pensioners thanks to an annuity bonus. Third, risk benefits for death and disability can be adapted to the needs of each company individually. This is how fair play in occupational retirement provision works. And this enables the interest earned on savings balances to be optimised: in 2021 the Foundation was able to provide average interest of more than 9 per cent on the retirement assets of insured persons. These rates are much higher than the statutory minimum interest rate of 1 per cent. Incidentally: large companies like maxon are not the only ones that can benefit from the solution; small companies with more than three employees can too. Together, Zurich and the four Vita collective foundations offer a suitable pension solution for every SME - for more fair play in occupational pension provision.

Fairplay in occupational retirement provision

Vita is committed to fairplay in occupational retirement provision and provides transparent information on redistribution. Vita also creates future-proof pension products and supports you in choosing the right pension solution for yourself.

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