Prof. Dr. Michèle F. Sutter-Rüdisser

Prof. Dr. Michèle F. Sutter-Rüdisser is an adjunct professor of Organizational Control and Corporate Governance at the University of St. Gallen as well as director at the Institute for Law Economics of the University of St. Gallen (ILE-HSG). Michèle Sutter-Rüdisser is also a long-term visiting professor for 'Banking and Insurance' at the Università Commerciale Luigi Bocconi’s School of Management in Milano and works as an independent, non-executive board member for various companies.

eMail: michele.sutter@unisg.ch

Davide Paliaga

Davide Paliaga is a Ph.D. Student in Management and teaching assistant at the Institute for Law and Economics of the University of St.Gallen (ILE-HSG). His research explores how boards of directors are adapting to face and proactively solve grand challenges. Davide Paliaga is also a consultant at our partner organisation HCM International and previously worked in finance and auditing in Zurich, gathering experiences in sustainable financing and investing, accounting and external audit.

eMail: davide.paliaga@unisg.ch

Patrick Zbinden

Patrick Zbinden is a Ph.D. Student in Management and a teaching assistant at the Institute for Law and Economics of the University of St. Gallen (ILE-HSG). His research emphasis lies in the field of board governance, with a specific focus on sustainability. He has gained professional experience across various organizations, including start-ups, family businesses, government agencies, and large multinational companies, particularly in the areas of business development, innovation, management, and consulting.

eMail: patrick.zbinden@unisg.ch

Dr. Felix Horber, Attorney at Law

Dr. Felix Horber is group company secretary of Swiss Re and honorary judge at the Supreme Court of the Canton of Zug. In addition, Dr. Felix Horber is a lecturer for bachelor students and also supports certain further training courses in the management for company secretary’s at the Executive School of Management, Technology and Law (ES-HSG) at the University of St. Gallen, regularly appears as a speaker at other panels on the subject of board of directors and is also a member of the board of several voluntary organisations and associations.

Rolf Bachmann

Rolf Bachmann is heading the Business Development Team at the Swiss Re Institute. This includes the strategic steering and use of the Centre for Global Dialogue, Swiss Re's premier place for open, knowledge- and impact-driven client and stakeholder engagement. Previously, Rolf Bachmann served nine years in the leadership team of the St. Gallen Symposium, an international student initiative that fosters intergenerational dialogue. Rolf Bachmann co-founded healthapp.ch, a Swiss tech start-up that empowers health practitioners to successfully digitize their businesses.

Dr. Stephan Hostettler

Dr. Stephan Hostettler is the founder and managing partner of HCM International and has been active as an entrepreneur and consultant in Switzerland, the US, Europe and other regions since 2002. Prior to this, he worked for a major Swiss bank in the area of financial analysis and as a consultant on corporate finance and corporate governance in the US. Besides his teaching activities at the University of St. Gallen and his research, Stephan Hostettler has also become a renowned guest speaker at various conferences, including the TED Talks. He holds a doctorate degree in finance from the University of St. Gallen and is the author of several books.

Dr. Hanna Hummel

Dr. Hanna Hummel is Partner of HCM and joined the company in 2012. Her advisory focus is on governance topics and compensation strategy in the financial services industry. In addition, she expands the cross-industry competencies in the areas of cultural transformation and leadership. Hanna Hummel holds a Master of Arts in Banking and Finance from University of St. Gallen and received her doctorate from University of Wuppertal in 2017 on the topic of banks risk and compensation structures in the regulatory context.

Christian Reuss

Christian Reuss is Head and member of the committee of SIX Swiss Exchange. Earlier roles at SIX include Head Cash Markets Swiss Stock Exchange and Head Department Sales & Product Management (including Marketing) for SIX Swiss Exchange. From June 2009 until June 2013, he was CEO of Scoach (by SIX and Deutsche Börse). From 2002 to 2009 Christian Reuss worked in several locations for Goldman Sachs, ultimately as Executive Director with pan-European responsibility in the Private Investor Products Group. Christian Reuss has a degree in business administration from Frankfurt’s Johann Wolfgang Goethe University and another Master of Business Administration from the Henry B. Tippie School of Management at the University of Iowa.

Valeria Ceccarelli

Valeria Ceccarelli is Head of Primary Markets and member of the Executive Board of SIX Swiss Exchange. She has over twenty years of experience in the financial sector. Before joining SIX, Valeria Ceccarelli worked for more than eleven years in the Investment Banking division of Morgan Stanley in London and Milan, where she was an Executive Director. She worked in all areas of Corporate Finance (M&A, IPOs, bond issues and financing) in different countries and different industries. Subsequently she worked for about three years as Investment Manager at private equity firm Ambienta SGR. She holds a master degree in Management Engineering from Politecnico di Milano.