Forward
Forward Partners AG is a Zürich-based Swiss consulting firm that advises DACH enterprises on customer experience, digital transformation, and benchmarking via its Service Excellence Cockpit (200+ participants), proprietary CX methodologies, and the Forward Academy training programs.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2006
- HeadquartersZürich, Switzerland
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Forward does
Forward Partners AG (operating as Forward) is a Swiss customer experience and digital transformation consulting firm founded in 2006 in Zürich. The firm operates through four service pillars: Consulting (strategy, organization, process, and technology advisory for customer management and CX); Digital (digital product, web, app, and omnichannel implementation via FORWARD DIGITAL AG); Benchmarking (the Service Excellence Cockpit — launched in 2013, described as Europe's most comprehensive online benchmarking database in customer management with 200+ participants — and the Digital Customer Excellence Cockpit trend platform, both housed under FORWARD BENCHMARK AG); and Academy (the Service Excellence Professional six-day practitioner program at CHF 4,800 per participant and the two-day Conversational Bots & AI seminar at CHF 1,800).
The technology stack combines proprietary benchmarking and methodology platforms (Service Excellence Cockpit, Digital Customer Excellence Cockpit, Value Irritant Matrix, Customer Circle/BLS Personas) with third-party CX technology partnerships (SAP, BSI, VIER Platinum/Gold; cxomni, Seismic, Sprinklr). Forward is technology-neutral in its advisory role and integrates AI/ML capabilities primarily through partner implementations such as Spitch automatic speech recognition and machine-learning-based persona classification.
Forward generates revenue through a mix of project-based consulting fees, recurring benchmarking subscriptions across 200+ European organizations, fixed-price service bundles (CRM-to-CX transformation), digital implementation project fees via FORWARD DIGITAL AG, and training course fees through the Forward Academy. The company sells primarily into enterprise and mid-market clients in the DACH region (Switzerland, Germany, Austria) through direct consultative engagement led by managing partners and senior advisors. Marketing is anchored on thought-leadership content (CEX Trendradar, Insights blog, The CX Goalkeeper podcast), the annual Forward Forum event, and the newly launched Swiss Loyalty Awards. The firm remains privately held by its partners (Daniel Stiefel, Rémon Elsten, Nils Hafner, Roman Lenz, Michael Schär, Phil Büchler, Lars Holthusen, plus Associate Partners) with no disclosed institutional investment.
Forward firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Forward
- Legal name
- FORWARD PARTNERS AG
- Website
- https://forwardwith.ch
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2006
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Forward Partners AG is a Zürich-based Swiss consulting firm that advises DACH enterprises on customer experience, digital transformation, and benchmarking via its Service Excellence Cockpit (200+ participants), proprietary CX methodologies, and the Forward Academy training programs.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Forward industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Customer Experience Consulting
- NAICS
- Management Consulting Services (54161), Advertising, Public Relations, and Related Services (5418)
- SIC
- Services-Management Consulting Services (8742), Services-Computer Programming, Data Processing, Etc. (7370)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Customer Experience (CX) & Digital Experience (BPAHAEAC)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Strategy & Corporate Development Consulting (BPAHACAA), Executive Leadership & C-Suite Development (EDABAAAA)
Keywords
Where Forward is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Zürich
- HQ country
- Switzerland
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices4 records
Markets served
Forward business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Management Consulting: Advisory engagements covering strategy, organization, process design, technology evaluation and implementation in customer management, CRM, and CX. Billed through project-based consulting engagements.
- Training and Education (Academy): Forward Academy offers practitioner courses including Service Excellence Professional (6-day program) and Conversational Bots & AI seminar (2-day program). Revenue generated through course fees.
- Benchmarking Subscriptions: Service Excellence Cockpit and Digital Customer Excellence Cockpit platforms operate as subscription-based benchmarking tools with over 200 participating organizations in Europe.
- Digital Implementation Services: Digital services including website development, e-shops, apps, webapps, and interfaces through partner network, billed as project engagements.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | Service Excellence Professional - 6-day practitioner program |
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | Conversational Bots & AI Seminar - 2-day intensive |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels8 records
Forward product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Forward (FORWARD PARTNERS AG) is a Zürich-based consulting firm that advises DACH-region enterprises on customer-centricity and digitalization. Its offerings span four pillars: management consulting (strategy, organization, processes, technology), digital implementation services, proprietary benchmarking platforms (Service Excellence Cockpit, Digital Customer Excellence Cockpit), and practitioner training through Forward Academy (Service Excellence Professional, Conversational Bots & AI).
Product overview
Forward (Forward Partners AG) is a Swiss consulting and benchmarking firm specializing in customer management and digital transformation. Its portfolio is organized into four service pillars: Consulting (advisory across Service Excellence, Customer Experience, CX Strategy, Process & Operations, and Technology & Data Management), Digital (digital product development, omnichannel implementation, and startup incubation), Benchmarking (the flagship Service Excellence Cockpit — Europe's most comprehensive online benchmarking database — and the Digital Customer Excellence Cockpit for technology decision-making, both accompanied by the annual Service Excellence Report and CEX Trendradar publications), and Academy (the Service Excellence Professional practitioner program and Conversational Bots & AI seminar). The company also organizes the annual Swiss Loyalty Awards. Forward does not offer a unified software platform but rather a combination of consulting engagements, cloud-based benchmarking subscriptions, and training programs.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Service Excellence Cockpit: The most comprehensive online benchmarking database in Europe for customer management KPIs, serving over 200 participants.
- Digital Customer Excellence (DCX)
- Service Excellence Professional
- Conversational Bots & AI
- Swiss Loyalty Awards
Products and services
- Service Excellence Cockpit Cloud-based benchmarking platform providing the most comprehensive online benchmarking database in Europe for customer management KPIs. Organizations submit service quality data and receive comparative analytics across Customer Service, Customer Relationship, Customer Loyalty, Fieldservice, Campaigns, and Customer Experience. Over 200 participating organizations across Europe.
- Digital Customer Excellence (DCX) Cockpit Information and trend platform that provides an overview of the latest trends and technologies in Customer Experience Management, allowing organizations to compare technology adoption against competitors using current market data and filters.
- CEX Trendradar Annual trend publication covering Customer Experience developments in People, Process, and Technology categories. Includes business partnerships with technology providers (SAP, BSI, VIER, cxomni, Seismic, Sprinklr) and CX lighthouse project showcases.
- Forward Academy Training and education arm offering the Service Excellence Professional practitioner program (6 modules, 6 days) and the Conversational Bots & AI seminar (2 days) for customer service professionals, delivered in person in Zürich.
- Service Excellence Professional (Praxislehrgang) A 6-module, 6-day practitioner program covering strategic customer management, Service Excellence frameworks, Customer Journey design, KPIs, and tool implementation. Participants develop a concrete project proposal.
- Conversational Bots & AI Seminar A 2-day seminar covering conversational process and system fundamentals, use cases, integration architecture, and hands-on experience with chat and voice bots, including vendor-agnostic training.
- Consulting Services Advisory services spanning Service Excellence, Customer Insights & Market Intelligence, Strategy & Digitalization, Customer Experience & Engagement, Customer Process & Operations, Organization & Change Management, and Technology & Data Management for customer relationship transformation.
- Digital Services Digital product, service, and campaign development including strategy, web/app development, UI/screen design, content creation, and expert network access. Also covers startup support from business idea to MVP and market scaling.
- Service Excellence Report An annual benchmarking report generated from Service Excellence Cockpit data, providing KPIs such as Self-Service Rate, NPS, CES, automation benchmarks, and strategic insights for service center management across Europe.
Quantifiable outcome
- Cost per contact reduced by 20% at Stiftung Auffangeinrichtung BVG through process optimization and digitalization
- +5 more outcomes
Companies that use Forward
Customer profileNamed customers9 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Forward technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability8 records
Feature7 records
Forward partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Eight partnerships are on record, tiered partner, gold partner, platinum partner, core and minor.
- cxomnipartnercxomni is a Business Partner in the CEX Trendradar 2024 ecosystem, contributing technology insights to Forward's annual CX trend research.
- SeismicpartnerSeismic is a Business Partner in the CEX Trendradar 2024 ecosystem, contributing enablement and content technology perspectives to Forward's annual research.
- SprinklrpartnerSprinklr is a Business Partner in the CEX Trendradar 2024 ecosystem, providing CX platform technology perspectives to Forward's annual research.
- VIERgold partnerVIER is a Gold Business Partner in the CEX Trendradar ecosystem, providing solutions for CX technology and conversational systems featured in Forward's annual research.
- SAPplatinum partnerSAP is a Platinum Business Partner in the CEX Trendradar ecosystem. Forward provides thought leadership content featuring SAP's CX solutions as part of the annual trend research publication.
- BSIplatinum partnerBSI is a Platinum Business Partner in the CEX Trendradar ecosystem. BSI Customer Suite with AI applications (Brains) and marketing automation steps is featured. BSI's ecosystem development model is showcased in the trendradar.
- Hochschule Luzern (Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts)coreLong-standing academic partnership with Prof. Dr. Nils Hafner as professor at the university. Joint research on CX trends, Customer Analytics, and KPI frameworks. Collaborative Long-term study on KPIs and their effects conducted in 2022-2023.
- Crystal PartnersminorCrystal Partners was the predecessor company to Forward Partners. Founded by Daniel Stiefel, Rémon Elsten, and Nils Hafner in 2006. Rebranded to Forward Partners around 2021 after Roman Lenz joined as additional partner and the team expanded.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Forward competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Bain & Company: Global top-tier management consulting firm with a Customer Strategy & Marketing practice. Competes for senior-executive-level CX transformation and loyalty engagements at large Swiss and European enterprises.
- Accenture Switzerland: Global consulting leader with major Zürich presence and large Customer Experience / Salesforce / Service Cloud practice. Competes for CX transformation mandates across Swiss enterprise market; Gregorio Uglioni's prior employer.
- KPMG Switzerland: Big Four firm with a large Swiss practice offering Customer Experience, Digital Transformation, and Management Consulting services. Competes with Forward on enterprise CX mandates in Switzerland but as part of a much broader portfolio.
- Deloitte Switzerland: Big Four firm with substantial Zürich operations covering Digital Customer, Strategy, and Human Capital practices. Overlaps with Forward's service portfolio on enterprise CX strategy and digital transformation projects.
- PwC Switzerland: Big Four firm with significant Swiss CX/digital transformation practice. Competes for the same enterprise CX transformation budgets as Forward, with vastly larger headcount and global delivery capability.
Emerging players
- Qualtrics: Experience management platform owned by Silver Lake/CPPIB offering CX benchmarking, surveys, and analytics. Comparable to Forward's benchmarking subscription business as an enterprise-grade CX measurement platform with broader global reach.
- Medallia: Customer experience management platform with native benchmarking, analytics, and industry benchmark data. Adjacent competitor to Forward's Service Excellence Cockpit as a CX measurement and benchmarking technology vendor; also partner of Forward in advisory contexts.
Direct peers
- Forrester Research: Global research and advisory firm producing CX benchmarks (e.g., CX Index), reports, and consulting. Directly comparable to Forward's combination of benchmarking subscriptions, CX trend research (CEX Trendradar analog), and advisory services for enterprise CX leaders.
- Horváth: Stuttgart-headquartered management consulting firm with a strong DACH presence and a dedicated Customer Experience and Service Excellence practice. Direct comparable to Forward in CX strategy, transformation, and performance benchmarking for European enterprises.
- Simon-Kucher: Bonn-headquartered global consulting firm specializing in pricing, sales, and customer experience/monetization strategy. Closely comparable to Forward in DACH enterprise CX consulting focus and boutique-scale professional services model.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks7 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Forward social profiles
Digital presenceForward financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Forward leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles11 records
Forward subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries2 records
Forward funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Forward M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Forward
What does Forward do?
Forward (FORWARD PARTNERS AG) is a Zürich-based consulting firm that advises DACH-region enterprises on customer-centricity and digitalization. Its offerings span four pillars: management consulting (strategy, organization, processes, technology), digital implementation services, proprietary benchmarking platforms (Service Excellence Cockpit, Digital Customer Excellence Cockpit), and practitioner training through Forward Academy (Service Excellence Professional, Conversational Bots & AI).
Is Forward a public or private company?
Forward is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Forward founded?
Forward was founded in 2006. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Forward based?
Forward is headquartered in Zürich, Switzerland, in the Europe region.
How does Forward make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Management Consulting is the primary driver. The others are training and Education (Academy), benchmarking Subscriptions and digital Implementation Services.
Who are Forward's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Bain & Company, Accenture Switzerland, KPMG Switzerland, Deloitte Switzerland and PwC Switzerland. Emerging players are Qualtrics and Medallia. Direct peers are Forrester Research, Horváth and Simon-Kucher.
Does Forward have an API?
No public API is recorded for Forward.
What industry is Forward in?
Forward's product category is Customer Experience Consulting. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAHAEAC, Customer Experience (CX) & Digital Experience, with a secondary code of BPAHACAA, Strategy & Corporate Development Consulting. Its NAICS code is 54161 and its SIC code is 8742.