Combining interests of forests and people

Foresters are well-qualified and eclectic executives; their knowledge of the forest is based on first hand practical experience as lumberjacks and later in higher education and training.

As operation managers of a public or private forest enterprise, foresters are capable of developing and implementing business plans. They have to be able to reconcile all requirements and considerations at the same time: economic efficiency, occupational safety, achievement of the rational use of operating resources. And they also have to take the silvicultural, environmental/ nature protective and the public interests into consideration.

The specifications of the foresters' duties are leadership and the management of personnel, task and work scheduling/planning, finances and accounting, sales, communication and operational analysis.

They also get involved in the field of training and continuing education and maintain contacts to all professionals that are interested and concerned about forestry.

Foresters find fascinating fields of occupation and demanding tasks in other domains in relation to forestry as leaders of enterprises, consulting in the wood industry, in administration, in planning offices, in associations and in the environmental area.

There are more exciting work opportunities for foresters in other occupational fields such as being the leader of a business, in the wood industry, in cantonal administration, public planning offices or in the environmental sector.