The Making of Resilience in Organisations, Work and Society

The Role of Professional Associations

This interdisciplinary research project combines management, political science and sociology to examine how Swiss professional associations contribute to economic and social resilience at collective and individual level. As important actors in civil society and the economy, they regulate professions, provide training, transmit knowledge, defend collective interests, and foster social cohesion. Today, they face major challenges linked to digitalisation, ecological transition, and changing forms of engagement, which may complicate their functioning while also opening up new opportunities for renewal.

The project approaches member participation and organisational strategies as means of strengthening two broader forms of resilience: that of professionals and occupational groups, and that of the Swiss economy and society more broadly. It starts from the working assumptions that this capacity is reinforced when associations:

• promote innovation, autonomy, and collective mobilisation through a proactive, entrepreneurial orientation;
• adapt and renew core knowledge, including collaboration with new partners;
• ensure stable yet flexible resources to sustain organisational capacity;
• attract diverse members by addressing generational and professional needs;
• enable meaningful member participation in decision-making, strategy, and services;
• mediate between professions, institutions, and society to strengthen legitimacy;

While grounded empirically in Switzerland, the project addresses broader questions about the role of professional associations in times of transformation. It focuses in particular on two sectors: (1) the cultural and creative sector, marked by hybrid career paths and digitalisation, and (2) professions related to the environment and natural resource management, which are central to contemporary ecological transitions. This comparison makes it possible to identify sector-specific dynamics as well as transferable lessons across professional fields.

Research Focus

 The project explores three main questions:

• Participation: how associations involve members in collective life, decision-making, and service provision, and how digital tools are reshaping engagement;
• Transformation: how associations help professions respond to digital and ecological change;
• Comparison: how different sectors and organisational models address similar challenges, and what lessons can be shared across fields.

Methodologies

 We employ a mixed-methods approach, combining:

• Quantitative: Surveys and statistical modelling to analyse member perceptions and organisational strategies.
• Qualitative: Interviews, digital ethnography, and documentary analysis to explore lived experiences and discourses.
• Participatory: Junior/Young Professionals Labs and Futures Workshops to co-create resilient professional scenarios.

Project team

Muriel Surdez Sainsaulieu

Professor

PER 21 - G304
+41 26 300 8243

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Markus Gmür

Professor

PER 21 - B340
+41 26 300 8405

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Diana Betzler

Senior Researcher

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Lucien Delley

Senior Researcher

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References

• Betzler, D. (2023a). Von Kunst leben. Demokratischer Pluralismus und politische Interessenvermittlung in Kunst und Kultur. Bundesverband Freie Darstellende Künste.
• Betzler, D. (2023b). Kreativ, innovativ, sozial und nachhaltig. In P. Erpf & M. Gmür (Eds.), Unternehmerische Führung und Kultur in Non-Profit-Organisationen. Springer.
• Betzler, D., & Haselbach, D. (2025). The sound of work: Types of mixed professional profiles and hybrid employment in the music sector. Association of Cultural Economics International (ACEI) Conference 2025.
• Betzler, D., Loots, E., & Prokůpek, M. (2024). Arts and culture in transformation: A critical analysis of the national plans for the European Recovery and Resilience Facility. European Policy Analysis, 10(1), 101–127.
• Delley, L. (2022). Le dehors de toute fête : Une sociologie urbaine de la sécurité au Montreux Jazz Festival. Thèse de doctorat, EPFL.
• Drevon, G., Pattaroni, L., Delley, L., Jacot-Descombes, F., & Hamel, N. (2020). Rhythmanalysis of Urban Events: Empirical Elements from the Montreux Jazz Festival. Urban Planning, 5(2), 280-295. https://doi.org/10.17645/up.v5i2.2940
• Surdez, M. (2025). La constitution des rapports au politique au sein des groupes professionnels : l’apport de la sociologie des professions (pp. 265-293). In Collectif ALCoV (eds.) Les contextes du vote. L'ancrage social des pratiques électoral. Presses universitaires du Septentrion. https://www.septentrion.com/FR/book/?GCOI=27574100000120
• Surdez, M., Balsiger, P., & Jammet, T. (2024). When platforms challenge professions: A clash between models of professionalism among Swiss hoteliers? Professions and Professionalism, 14(1).
• Stock, D., & Gmür, M. (2024). Entrepreneurial orientation in business and professional associations. Working Paper, Universität Freiburg/CH.
• Stock, D., Gmür, M. & Erpf, P. : Entrepreneurial Orientation and Performance in Nonprofit-Organisations: A Meta-Analysis. Nonprofit Management & Leadership 35/1 (2024): S. 107-131.