Yan Grossenbacher has been working in HR at UDITIS since March 2023. A trained business administrator, he took a detour through customs, taxation, Canada, a stint in Mexico, and several years in public administration before finding, at age 50, the position in which everything he had learned finally made sense.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\u201cHR at UDITIS is all about making people happy. When they told me that during my interview, I knew I was in the right place.\u201d<\/mark><\/em><\/h3>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
A Journey Spanning Two Continents<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Yan grew up in Switzerland, completed an apprenticeship as a commercial clerk, and started working for the federal customs service, handling the clearance of commercial goods. He quickly realized that the job wasn\u2019t right for him. \u201cI like to be in control and have things under my thumb. In that role, you only control a tiny fraction of the flow.<\/em>\u201d He switched to trust taxation, then decided at age 28 to move to Vancouver to learn English.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That trip changed everything. There, he met his future wife, a Mexican national. Together, they chose to settle in Switzerland, partly to stay close to Yan\u2019s parents. Upon his return in 2004, he re-entered the accounting field, first working for a municipal administration, then for the canton of Neuch\u00e2tel. It was there that he discovered payroll and human resources. \u201cIt piqued my interest. I realized that was the direction I wanted to go in.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He then moved on to a medical laboratory, where he became administrative director, overseeing finance and part of HR. Then COVID hit. As the father of three daughters, an only child with elderly parents to care for, and a wife working full-time, he made a difficult decision: to leave his job to devote himself to his family. \u201cIt wasn\u2019t a defeat. It was a priority.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The break allowed him to assess his skills and explore what he truly wanted. The answer was clear: human resources, in its most human form. It was with this mindset that he came across UDITIS.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Arriving with a backpack and no more government filing cabinets<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
In March 2023, Yan joined UDITIS on an 80% work schedule. From the very first days, something surprised him. \u201cThey gave me a workstation, a backpack, and told me, \u2018Here you go, this is your office.\u2019 And right then, I wondered where the government filing cabinets were.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
No paper documents. Everything had been digitized. For someone used to public administrations where the binder reigns supreme, it\u2019s unsettling. But then it\u2019s liberating.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\u201cI realized I could work from anywhere, without having to lug anything around. It\u2019s impressive.\u201d \u201d
<\/mark><\/h3>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\nHe\u2019s taking over from C\u00e9dric Ross\u00e9 on the operational side of HR. Together, they complement each other: Yan brings the HR expertise, while C\u00e9dric provides the technical know-how. \u201cWhenever I needed to describe a business requirement, he could implement it in the system very quickly. It\u2019s great to have this partnership.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Structure, bring in-house, simplify<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Over the course of three years, Yan laid a solid foundation. He brought recruitment back in-house, a process that had previously been outsourced to agencies, and implemented the JobUp platform to enhance UDITIS\u2019s external image. He created an HR portal on SharePoint, accessible to all employees, featuring company policies, family allowance forms, and the payroll schedule. He co-authored a new employee handbook. And since January 2025, he has taken over full management of payroll, which was brought back in-house after years of being outsourced to CSEM.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cPayroll is when I zone out. You know that for half a day, you\u2019re making progress on something specific, and by the end, it\u2019s all wrapped up.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n
Three Daughters, Top Chef<\/em>, and a Leg of Lamb<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Outside the office, Yan\u2019s life revolves around his family. Three daughters, ages 7, 9, and 14. A working wife. Meticulous organization. \u201cWe managed for a long time without smartphones or screens. When you don\u2019t have screens at home, you have to keep your kids busy: walks, biking, the ice rink.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Cooking came into the picture during the pandemic, almost out of necessity. He\u2019s become passionate about it. Betty Bossy for recipes, vegetables prepared in various ways, a leg of lamb for Easter. And on Friday nights or Sundays, the family gathers to watch Top Chef. \u201cYou\u2019ve got the competition, the respect between contestants, the adrenaline. And the kids realize you can do all sorts of things with the same vegetable.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the morning, when he can, he goes for a run to clear his head before the day begins.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What flexibility means in practice<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
The last year before his parents moved into a nursing home was demanding. His mother needed to be dropped off at a day care center every morning. Yan took care of that. \u201cI\u2019d start at 6 a.m., stop at 8 a.m. to take them there, and then resume working from home. That\u2019s what UDITIS\u2019s flexibility allowed me to do.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n
That\u2019s what makes the difference between a stated HR policy and a culture lived out every day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\u201cAt UDITIS, we don\u2019t stress out, and we don\u2019t judge others. That kind of kindness is priceless.\u201d<\/mark><\/h3>\n<\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
After a diverse career spanning Switzerland, Canada, and Mexico, Yan Grossenbacher joined UDITIS in 2023 and finally found purpose in his professional journey.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":6569,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[41],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6570","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-profile"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t