Hundreds of UBS asset managers are moving to new offices as the bank reduces the number of properties it occupies in Zurich.
UBS is moving out of two buildings in the inner-city of Zurich – the high-rise building on Stockerstrasse and the Felsenhof on Pelikanstrasse.
The move is part of a major reorganization of the office space in Zurich that UBS embarked upon a decade ago. At the time, UBS had staff spread out over some 50 buildings in the city with a ratio of 120 workplaces per 100 members of staff.
The Mobile Desktop
Switzerland’s biggest bank then decided to reduce the number of buildings in Zurich to no more than 20. Today, it has a ratio of 80 workstations per 100 members of staff, which is more in line with similar companies.
Back in 2013, the bank put its «Workplace for the Future»-concept into practice, whereby bankers were asked to shift from a fixed workplace to mobile desktops with a laptop and a cabinet on wheels.
A Cost Efficient Move
At the moment, the turn is on the bank's asset management division to move into new offices, according to a report in «Neue Zuercher Zeitung» (in German behind paywall). Most of the 650 bankers will move to either the representative offices on Bahnhofstrasse, to Europa-Allee close to the main station, or to buildings in Altstetten and Opfikon on the periphery.
The strategy of moving staff into fewer offices may extend to other major hubs of UBS such as London and Singapore. It has paid off already: while the cost for its office space amounted to $1.07 billion in 2012, it had fallen to $914 million by 2018.
Credit Suisse has executed a similar move and reduced the number of properties to 15 from an original 60.
