"We feel the entrepreneurial interest of the owner".

Vantage Education's educational offerings range from basic commercial training to certificates, diplomas, professional certificates, diplomas from the University of Applied Sciences, as well as postgraduate courses or bridging courses to the Bachelor's programme and the internationally accredited Executive MBA programme. The Vantage Education Group focuses on the range of courses offered by the Höhere Fachschule. The HF courses are aimed at professionals from the fields of business, tourism and information technology.

The Swiss investment company Invision is behind the Vantage Education Group. In this interview, CEO Heinz Sommer and Chairman of the Board Marco Martelli, representing Invision, explain the opportunities offered by the Swiss education market and discuss the future of education and the group's plans.

Mr Sommer, Switzerland's dual education system is a model for the whole world. As a result, there are a large number of public and private educational offerings. How does the Vantage Education Group position itself in this environment?
Heinz Sommer: Our educational offers are aimed specifically at people who would like to advance personally and professionally through further education. With our range of further education courses, we mainly address interested parties who have traditionally completed a vocational apprenticeship. Our programs are clearly structured in a practical and action-oriented way. The main aim is to enable the participants to experience the transfer of practice in addition to the theory by means of real situations in the professional environment during the further training, supported by lecturers with a practical orientation. This should give them a better chance of applying what they have learned in their everyday working lives. Our graduates are therefore in great demand on the job market.

Mr. Martelli, the investment company Invision is behind Vantage. What motivates an investor group to invest in this market?
Marco Martelli: The education market is a growth market worldwide, but also in Switzerland. On the private side, however, the market is very fragmented. There are many education providers that are very strongly tailored to the founder and often only a few people. Invision can offer help with succession solutions through the Vantage Education Group. A further consolidation of the market is also to be expected. To this end, we began investing in this sector through Vantage Education in 2013 with HSO as the nucleus. In line with our buy-and-build approach, HBS and KMZ Rapperswil and HMZ Academy in Baar joined the Group in 2014. The companies were later integrated into the HSO Group. The BVS Bildungszentrum St. Gallen joined the Group in 2015, and most recently, in 2017, the tourism sector was added to the Group portfolio through IST with locations in Zurich and Lausanne.

Where are the synergies between the three schools HSO, IST and BVS? The institutes are active in different areas.
Heinz Sommer: On the one hand, we make use of existing synergies in the further development of the learning content within the training programmes across the company, where this is expedient. On the other hand, we make use of the group size in the purchase of teaching materials, in the optimal insurance solution for our employees, in the procurement of technical aids or in the infrastructure. Companies also help each other out with lecturers, depending on the course on offer. The mutual use of premises is also one of the sy nergy potentials.

What influence does the public sector have on the education sector and on the business of the Vantage Education Group?
According to the Federal Statistical Office, the Confederation, cantons and municipalities invested a total of CHF 37 billion in education in 2016. A proportion of this expenditure is used to provide direct financial support to students who obtain a Federal Diploma of Higher Education or a diploma from a higher technical college.

So are you relying on government support?
No. As mentioned, we offer a wide range of education and training courses where students have to manage without state support, and in the case of the education and training courses mentioned, the student benefits exclusively directly. In contrast to universities and universities of applied sciences as well as para-state education providers, which are indirectly subsidised, we are fully exposed to the conditions of the market economy with our companies and educational offers.

According to the Swiss Federal Statistical Office, the number of higher technical school diplomas has risen since 2000 from 3249 to 8754 in 2017. How do you assess the future growth potential?
Thanks to various political initiatives, Parliament has given the Federal Council the mandate to strengthen the courses on offer and the Höhere Fachschule. This decision directly benefits the students on the one hand and the education providers on the other. Both will benefit from the value, on the one hand the students in terms of recognition and comparability and on the other hand the providers in terms of their status as education providers. Therefore, this will certainly have a positive influence on demand in the market.

Where do you see development opportunities for the Vantage Education Group in this environment?
Marco Martelli: The trend towards lifelong learning will also increase the importance of further training courses such as those offered by our Group in the future. We will therefore develop new training courses and supplement existing offerings. In connection with digitalization, we are developing new educational offerings that take into account the changing needs of students and industry. Of course, we are also looking around for other private education providers that would suit us.

What schools would fit the bill here?
Heinz Sommer: They should already have reached a certain critical size and not be exclusively dependent on the owners. Thematically, the areas of technology, medicine, human resources and finance are very interesting. The education portfolio should include federal certificates and HF courses.

How do you experience the cooperation with Invision as a financial investor, and what support can Invision offer you?
As the owner of the Group, Invision is very interested in the sustainable development of the Group. We feel the entrepreneurial interest of the owner in the management, in that we can discuss both strategic and operational topics in a very pragmatic and goal-oriented manner. We experience a great deal of entrepreneurial freedom, so that we can make the best possible use of opportunities and chances at any time and in the interests of all concerned. The Invision team provides us with a wide range of support in this regard, but especially in the financing of investments in group consolidation, infrastructure or acquisitions. Thanks to the many years of experience that Invision, or Marco Martelli and Alex Brennwald for us, bring to the table in the field of education, an exchange of experience always takes place on an equal footing. And in line with its buy-and-build strategy, Invision is prepared to forego short-term and quick profits in favour of sustainable growth. For them, the focus is on long-term and value-enhancing corporate success.