Until now, joint initiatives between Swiss Post and the Red Cross (SRC) have been limited to Christmas. Now, as part of a partnership, Swiss Post aims to increase its support for people affected by poverty. CEO Roberto Cirillo explains the initiative.
Question: The Swiss Red Cross and Swiss Post have been working closely together at Christmas for around 25 years. Now, the partnership between the Red Cross organization and Swiss Post is being strengthened even further. What does this mean in concrete terms?
Roberto Cirillo: Poverty is a problem in Switzerland. By strengthening our collaboration with the Swiss Red Cross, we can do something about it. We are currently developing various measures together to help people who have fallen into financial hardship. For example, we are examining how we can support the Swiss Red Cross with our advertising opportunities. In this way, we want to help ensure that their fundraising appeals reach the widest possible audience.
M. Mader, R. Cirillo
What prompted you to take this step?
Social commitment has always been important to the postal service and to me personally. That's why we partner with social organizations and support cultural projects. We've been working closely with the Swiss Red Cross (SRC) since 1997 as part of the "2 x Christmas" . An important contribution from us is that we ship the donation packages free of charge. By taking over the logistics, we're contributing one of our greatest core competencies. We also encourage our employees to help with the campaign. It's always been a recipe for success when everyone does what they do best – and that's exactly what we do in our partnership with the SRC. For this reason, I'm delighted that the partnership will now become even closer.
They say that social commitment has always been important to the postal service. Many companies claim that…
The postal service is the largest logistics company and one of the largest employers in Switzerland. With that comes a great responsibility. We are very aware of this. That's why we want to be a role model and a pioneer; we want to act instead of standing by. This is also true in this specific case. We want to support those who are struggling financially. And we do this by working together with the Swiss Red Cross and focusing our efforts where we, as the postal service, can make a contribution.
You speak of responsibility. Besides the Swiss Red Cross, where does Swiss Post assume this responsibility?
I would like to highlight two examples, as they are personally important to me: Firstly, we are the main partner of Swiss Hiking Trails. In this capacity, we are actively involved in supporting the unique network of trails and supporting projects with the Swiss Post Sponsorship Award. We also encourage our employees to participate in volunteer work, where they can carry out maintenance work on hiking trails. Secondly, Swiss Post supports young Swiss artists, including through the development and maintenance of its own art collection. Swiss Post has been promoting and collecting contemporary art since 1924. Today, the collection comprises around 400 works. The collection aims to address current issues and present them in exhibitions throughout Switzerland.
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