Forum Day V: Ignite, Innovate, Inspire

On 19 November, the Switch community gathered at the FHNW campus in Brugg-Windisch for the most well-attended Forum Day yet, a day full of sparks and ideas. The motto of the event, 'Ignite, Innovate, Inspire', was not only printed on the invitation, but could be felt in every room.

Text: Roland Eugster, published on 25. November 2025

A large number of people gather in the foyer and engage in lively discussions while having a welcome coffee. — Lively discussions at the welcome coffee. Photo: Ramona Koksa

For the fifth time, the Forum Days brought together people to exchange ideas, collaborate and build relationships. It is an event that is deliberately not broadcast online because personal proximity cannot be replaced by even the fastest internet connection.

The energy of the community was palpable right from the beginning: familiar faces and voices and lively conversations everywhere. Since its redesign in mid-2024, Forum Days has united the working groups (WGs) and special interest groups (SIGs) that were previously divided into separate communities. Today, everything is more concentrated, more intense and stronger — like a good espresso.

The fifth event brought together the communities managed by Switch and the SIGs belonging to the eduhub community. Everyone made the most of the day to share knowledge, showcase progress, and generate new ideas together:

Network WG
Video WG
ICT Law WG
Eduroam WG
Cloud WG
Procurement WG
Switch edu-ID WG
SIG OER (Open Educational Resources)
SIG SAMoo (Swiss Academic Moodle Community)
SIG e-Assessment

A group of people in a meeting room discusses topics and votes on proposals.

Participants discuss topics and vote on proposals. Photos: Ramona Koksa

The groups shared some exciting insights into their current topics. Three of these are described in more detail:

Switch Cloud Community: Where digital sovereignty becomes reality

In a room filled to capacity, the Cloud Working Group learned about all that had been achieved in just eight months, from the relaunch of Switch Cloud to its first expansion with Kubernetes, a demonstration of Switch Cloud Monitoring and an overview of the Research Platform Bern. Finally, the team presented its vision for the 2026 roadmap and sought inspiration from the community regarding future topics. Switch Cloud is much more than just technology. The shared vision of a sovereign cloud for Swiss universities is becoming a reality.

We all do similar jobs at our universities and face similar challenges. In my opinion, there is no comparable event where like-minded people can come together, openly discuss challenges, exchange ideas and find solutions.
Dominik Hof
CIO University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland

Portrait photo of Dominik Hof, CIO at University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland

Procurement Community: Innovation starts with procurement

Procurement is no longer just about the cost-effective purchase of licences. It is about foresight, legal certainty and driving innovation. The discussions focused on the next phase of the Open Clouds for Research and Education (OCRE) framework agreement, new central tenders, and service updates for DeepL, Zoom, and other solutions. The benefits of the Procurement Community are clear: transparency regarding strategy, prioritisation of issues important to the community, and joint determination of the roadmap.

Switch edu-ID Community: Rethink, Rebuild, Reconnect

With the motto 'Rethink edu-ID', the community is focusing on the future by rethinking, further developing and connecting Switch edu-ID across systems. At the same time, the Switch edu-ID team addressed current challenges. The community gained insights into work that will improve the stability and availability of the service, particularly during peak times such as the start of the semester. Finally, the team presented a new group management platform and sought feedback on a proposal for new SLAs.

For me, the Forum Days are the ultimate community event for university IT: the only event where people from all levels, from CIOs to specialists, come together to discuss both strategic and operational issues.
Niklaus Lang
CIT Circle Strategy & Stakeholder Management at the University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland

Portrait Photo of Niklaus Lang, CIT Circle Strategy & Stakeholder Management at the University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland

Day recap: Sharing is caring

Towards the end of the day, all ten working groups (WGs) and special interest groups (SIGs) met for a joint day recap. Each community, WG and SIG shared their highlights. In just a few minutes, they painted a panoramic picture of the day. This shows us the path we are taking together. This path only becomes visible when people come together, spark ideas, provide impetus and inspire each other, in line with our motto: 'Ignite, innovate, inspire'.