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Sabine Keller-Busse should let UBS’s important Swiss business shine again. If you prove your worth, you can rise to the top.
She once ran her own family business and now UBS’s flagship division: Sabine Keller-Busse.
Photo: zvg
It was always a bit in the background and yet one of the most important turning points for the largest Swiss bank. Sabine Keller-Busse, the former head of the engine room at UBS, is becoming the center of attention. The 55-year-old banker will be the new director of the large Swiss bank and will be in charge of the true heart of the institute. This is where the bank makes its money, even when other business units are in trouble. Keller-Busse follows Axel Lehmann, who drops out of high school. The “Manager-Magazin” wrote about the upcoming change a few days ago.
Keller-Busse is the daughter of a German businessman and a Swiss woman. He grew up in Germany, studied in St. Gallen and then returned to Germany for a short time. According to the “Handelszeitung”, at just 24 years old, after the death of his father in the provincial city of Gifhorn, he took over his parents’ business, Elektro Busse. After a year he returned to HSG, wrote his thesis and sold the company. He then worked for the consulting firm McKinsey, Credit Suisse and, since 2010, at UBS. There he was in charge of HR and the operational area.
The power couple has been known from their studies.
During her Ph.D. at St. Gallen, she met her current husband, Christian Keller. Together they form one of the highest ranking coaching pairs in Switzerland. Keller made his career at the IT group IBM and now heads the Swiss branch of the American giant. The couple have two daughters and live in the canton of Zurich. In relation to the “Bilanz”, Keller described his “three wives at home” as his greatest school of life.
Despite her steep career, Keller-Busse is not your typical banker. You seem more modest than many other managers in the field who prefer to show their own performance. At UBS, he also campaigned for work and family compatibility, thereby helping to rethink the industry. At many banks, part-time work in top positions was unthinkable not long ago, and in some cases still is today.
His signature is clearly visible at UBS today. Keller-Busse is one of the driving forces behind the large UBS centers in Schaffhausen, Biel and Lugano. In Biel and Schaffhausen, operational jobs were withdrawn from the Zurich metropolitan area and moved to cheaper locations. A new research center was opened in Lugano. Keller-Busse was also responsible for bringing numerous outsourced functions, and therefore thousands of jobs, to the bank to gain greater control over them.
First decision of the new chief Hamers
Now you will have to give new impetus to business in Switzerland. It still makes an important contribution to the group’s bottom line, but it has lost its appeal. In the third quarter of this year, for example, earnings before taxes fell more than 10 percent compared to the previous year. At the same time, competitor Credit Suisse made significant profits. Therefore, Lehmann’s departure is not surprising.
Axel Lehmann leaves UBS.
Photo: Urs Jaudas
The personal rogue is Ralph Hamers’ first effective decision. The Dutchman has been the bank’s top boss since November 1. Hamers comes from the Dutch bank ING, which relies especially on small business clients and has automated it with technical aids such as applications.
Keller-Busse’s appointment should also be an indication that Hamers would like faster progress here. The Swiss boss’s job is always seen as a stepping stone to the top of the bank. She was traded for this position even before Hamers was appointed. She is seen as one of the top executives that former UBS chief Sergio Ermotti intended to succeed him. But preference was given to external hamers. Keller-Busse’s new position may also be a signal to the banker that her new boss still wants to keep her. But Keller-Buss’s steep ascent doesn’t have to end there, because those who prove themselves to be Switzerland’s bosses can rise to the top. This also applies to the basement buses.
