socialdesign

What socialdesign does

socialdesign ag is an independent, Bern-based management and policy consulting firm founded in 2004, operating across Switzerland's German, French, and Italian language regions, with occasional cross-border engagements in Liechtenstein. The firm serves public administrations, nonprofit and foundation clients, and a smaller base of private companies operating at the intersection of state and market — concentrated in the healthcare, social services, and education sectors. Its senior partners and team members combine direct management experience in these sectors with academic credentials and board-level exposure (e.g., Fondation Protection de l'enfance Suisse, Asyl-Organisation Zürich, WWF), positioning the firm as a specialist advisor on performance contracts (Leistungsverträge), public procurement, organizational development, and quality management in the Swiss social-policy ecosystem.

The firm's service portfolio comprises seven core offerings: Beratung (strategy and organizational consulting), Leitungsmandate (interim management), Recruiting & Onboarding, Coaching, Externe Überprüfung (external auditing, including the proprietary registered trademark SOZIALREVISION® for case-file reviews in social organizations), Fachreferate & Bildung (teaching, presentations, training), and Studien & Evaluationen (scientific studies, impact evaluations, needs analyses). SOZIALREVISION® is the firm's only productized, trademarked IP, and the firm also operates the 'Green Bag Lunch' knowledge platform developed during the COVID period. Academic partnerships with Bern University of Applied Sciences, the University of St.Gallen, and Lucerne University of Applied Sciences support research, executive education, and knowledge transfer.

Commercially, socialdesign operates a fee-for-service model with transparent, performance-related pricing billed against actual effort — effectively a pay-as-you-go professional-services structure. The firm is privately held by its co-founders, with no disclosed external investors, no M&A activity, and no parent organization. The team visible on its website numbers eight core members, and the firm completed 200+ client assignments in 2021 and several thousand projects cumulatively over its 20-year history, with its customer base dominated by episodic cantonal, municipal, and nonprofit mandates rather than a small set of retainer clients.

Name

socialdesign

Legal name

socialdesign ag

Website

https://socialdesign.ch

Company type

Private

Founded year

2004

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

socialdesign ag is a Bern-based independent Swiss consulting firm providing strategy, organizational development, management mandates, recruiting, coaching, and evaluation services to public administrations, nonprofits, and private companies in the healthcare, social services, and education sectors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Management Consulting

NAICS

Management Consulting Services (54161), Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services (5416), Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities (541720), Individual and Family Services (6241)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742), Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700), Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Sustainability & ESG Consulting (BPAHACAK)

Keywords

• Management consulting services
• Organizational development
• Public sector advisory
• Social services consulting
• Healthcare sector consulting

Headquarters

HQ city

Bern

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Consulting Services: The company provides consulting services including strategy consulting, organizational development, management mandates, recruiting, coaching, external auditing, specialist presentations & education, and studies & evaluations. They operate on a fee-for-service basis with transparent, performance-related pricing and bill based on actual effort expended.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

socialdesign ag is an independent Swiss consulting firm providing strategy, organizational development, leadership, financing, and transformation advisory services to public administrations, nonprofit organizations, and private companies in the healthcare, social services, and education sectors. The firm delivers seven core service lines — Beratung (Consulting), Leitungsmandate (Management Mandates), Recruiting & Onboarding, Coaching, Externe Überprüfung (External Auditing), Fachreferate & Bildung (Presentations & Education), and Studien & Evaluationen (Studies & Evaluations) — supported by the proprietary SOZIALREVISION® audit tool for case-file reviews in social organizations.

Product overview

socialdesign is an independent consulting firm based in Bern, Switzerland, offering a portfolio of seven core professional services: Consulting, Management Mandates, Recruiting & Onboarding, Coaching, External Auditing, Presentations & Education, and Studies & Evaluations. The firm specializes in healthcare, social services, and education sectors, combining practical experience with methodological expertise. Key offerings include the proprietary SOZIALREVISION® audit tool for social organizations, and the Green Bag Lunch knowledge platform for professional exchange.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Beratung (Consulting) Strategic and organizational consulting services for public, social, and healthcare sector organizations, covering strategy, organization, financing, leadership, and transformation.
• Leitungsmandate (Management Mandates) Interim management and leadership mandates for organizations requiring temporary or project-based executive support.
• Recruiting & Onboarding Executive and leadership recruitment services with structured processes for C-level and institutional leadership positions, including onboarding support.
• Coaching Individual coaching services for leadership development, operational leadership challenges, and conflict resolution for executives and employees across organizations.
• Externe Überprüfung (External Auditing) External auditing services including file reviews, service audits, individual needs assessment examinations (IBB/BIA), and quality audits for social and healthcare organizations.
• Fachreferate & Bildung (Presentations & Education) Professional presentations, teaching at universities and colleges, internal training programs, and conference organization for knowledge transfer.
• Studien & Evaluationen (Studies & Evaluations) Scientific studies and impact evaluations including expertise reports, process evaluations, impact evaluations, and needs analyses for policy and practice.
• SOZIALREVISION® Proprietary audit tool developed by socialdesign for reviewing case and file management in social organizations to ensure legality, efficiency, and effectiveness.

Quantifiable outcome

• Several thousand projects completed successfully over 20 years

Named customers5 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Bern University of Applied Sciences (BFH)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with Bern University of Applied Sciences for research projects, teaching, and knowledge transfer in social work and healthcare sectors.
• University of St.Gallen (HSG)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with University of St.Gallen for executive education and professional development programs, including a joint training on Leistungsverträge and public procurement law.
• Lucerne University of Applied Sciences (HSLU)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partnership for research and education collaboration in healthcare and social services domains.
• Swiss Health Observatory (OBSAN)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with the Swiss Health Observatory for health data analysis and planning projects.
• cm-integracoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-founding partner in anstellunghochzwei (Emploi puissance 2), a joint venture focused on onboarding and employee integration services for organizations.
• sozialinfo.chcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with the digital competence center for social work, supporting organizations in digital transformation through the Digitalisierung & Soziale Arbeit center.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Ecoplan: Bern-based economic, transport, and policy research consultancy. Closely comparable in size, geography (Bern), and reliance on public-sector research, evaluation, and policy mandates in Switzerland.
• BASS (Büro für arbeits- und sozialpolitische Studien): Bern-based research and consulting firm specializing in social policy, labor market, and public administration studies. Directly comparable because both serve Swiss cantonal/federal clients on social-sector research, evaluation, and policy advice.
• Interface Politikstudien: Lucerne-based policy research and consulting firm. Comparable as a small Swiss consultancy conducting studies, evaluations, and policy advice for public administration and nonprofit clients.
• KEK-Beratung: Swiss consultancy focused on healthcare strategy, planning, and organizational development. Highly comparable because both serve Swiss cantonal healthcare and social-service providers with strategy, evaluation, and mandate work.
• INFRAS: Zurich-based research and consulting firm covering transport, environment, energy, and social policy. Comparable as a Swiss niche research/evaluation consultancy competing for public-sector evaluation and strategy mandates.
• Polynomics: Swiss economic research and consulting firm with offices in Olten and Bern. Comparable as a small, specialized Swiss consultancy delivering studies and evaluations to public administration.

Regional players

• B,S,S. Volkswirtschaftliche Beratung: Basel-based economic and policy consultancy active across Switzerland. Comparable as a small-to-mid-sized Swiss consultancy serving public-sector clients with studies and policy advice, anchored in Northwestern Switzerland.

Broad incumbents

• PWC Switzerland: Big Four advisory firm in Switzerland with large public-sector and healthcare practices. Comparable as a competing provider of management consulting, organizational development, and public-sector advisory in Switzerland, though it operates at much greater scale and breadth.
• McKinsey & Company (Switzerland): Global management consultancy with a Swiss practice serving healthcare, public-sector, and social-sector clients. Comparable on management consulting and transformation mandates, but at substantially larger scale and broader scope.

Emerging players

• ZHAW Institute of Public Management: Academic applied-research arm conducting public administration and social-sector studies. Comparable as a provider of evaluations and policy studies to Swiss public administration, though operating within a university mandate rather than a commercial firm.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/socialdesign
• Xx.com/socialdesign_ch

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about socialdesign