Claudia Pletscher
Head of Development & Innovation

Claudia Pletscher, in the Development & Innovation Group unit, you “get new ideas off the ground”. What does that mean in concrete terms?

We bring expertise and new partners to Swiss Post; we connect and inspire. We try to break out of old ways of thinking and go beyond the obvious. As the driving force behind development, we launch cross-unit projects and promote market-oriented programmes.

Why does Swiss Post focus on topics such as the Internet of things and autonomous technologies?

New technologies are changing customer expectations and Swiss Post’s core business with increasing speed. So we have defined specific search fields, and we conduct in-depth analysis of the impact these have on Swiss Post’s core business. From this we then identify new business opportunities.

What is the role of Development & Innovation in this process?

We support the business units in the digital transformation. Swiss Post can make full use of its core competencies from the physical world in the digital sphere.

Development focus: Smart systems

The Internet of things makes life easier

The world around us is becoming more intelligent: objects are networked, systems act autonomously. This opens up new possibilities – including for Swiss Post and its customers.

Stolen bikes report their location to their owner, shelves know how much stock they’re holding, and Postbuses are driving autonomously through pedestrian zones – this is no longer just a vision of the future. Everyday objects are being fitted with sensors and connected to the Internet of things. They send their data to powerful software systems that teach themselves to make even better decisions and in turn control other objects – such as robots.

Investing in the future

The development of smart systems of this kind is being driven forward by major investments around the world. While the subject also raises questions, above all it offers opportunities: in goods logistics and passenger transport in particular, the potential is huge. Swiss Post therefore wants to contribute to this development and is committed to building a special wireless network for the Internet of things. Since March 2016, various efforts have been under way to link “postal things” to the Internet.

New, intelligent services

In the future, it will be possible to use a wireless network to connect parcels, letter boxes and many other things to the Internet with a minimum of energy consumption, thanks to smaller and more inexpensive sensors that no longer need a SIM card. This will allow Swiss Post to offer its customers new, intelligent services.

For example, sensors enclosed with a consignment could provide alerts if the consignment is opened while not permitted or the ideal temperature for a medication is exceeded. An additional sensor detects the process step and provides the location at which the incident has taken place. Customers in turn could use small smart buttons to re-order directly from the storage rack or cabinet – easily and directly, with no detours through a webshop or app.