From colleague to manager: the first six months
Promoted within their own team, a new manager keeps the same colleagues and loses almost everything else. The most common mistakes, and what helps through the first months.
Global teams. Shared management practices.
From Geneva to Zurich, the same decision is not discussed the same way on either side of the language border. ABP Consulting trains managers and coaches leaders in French- and German-speaking Switzerland, starting with self-awareness — DISC and the Enneagram — so that each person understands their own way of working before trying to adjust anyone else's.
- Sessions are delivered inEnglish · Français · Español
- Modular, in person or onlineTwo to three days
- Certified tools behind every programmeDISC · Enneagram
Some of the companies that have worked with ABP
ABP Consulting in 2025
- 1’801people trained
- 18’870hours of training delivered
- 9.2/10average satisfaction score, given by clients at the end of training
Figures for ABP Consulting as a whole.
Sectors we work with
- Agrifood
- Tourism & hospitality
- Construction
- Services
- Medical, paramedical & pharmaceutical
- Banking
- SMEs
- Call centres
- Public sector
Management, sales, communication, coaching
Take a course in full, or pick out the modules that answer your managers' real difficulty: we assemble them into one coherent programme.
Management
Managing in Switzerland means leading teams of several nationalities, working languages and employment statuses.
6 courses
Sales
Selling in Switzerland rarely means convincing quickly: the cycle is long and the decision is made by several people.
1 course
Communication and self-awareness
Understand how you operate before trying to adjust how others do, with DISC and the Enneagram.
3 courses
Seminars and team coaching
Team coaching does not pass on content: it works on a team's real situation — cohesion, how people work together, a shared vision.
1 course
The Buffet method
The right module, in the right place, nothing superfluous.
ABP builds its programmes as modules rather than fixed courses. You choose the modules that match what is actually holding your managers back, and we assemble them into one coherent programme. That is the Buffet method, and it travels from France to Switzerland unchanged.
- Modules combine across categories — a management programme can borrow a communication module.
- Groups stay small enough for every participant to work on a real situation from their own team.
- Sessions run in person in Switzerland, live online, or at your own premises.
Certifications
Proven tools, a founder who stays involved
Alain Palacios, who founded and runs ABP Consulting, is certified in DISC, the Enneagram and professional coaching. He delivers some of the sessions himself; the others are led by the firm's trainers, on programmes built around those tools.
- DISC
- Enneagram
- Coaching
Blog
Notes on managing in Switzerland
Deciding by consensus without everything grinding to a halt
Consensus is what makes Swiss decisions solid, and sometimes slow. What separates a consultation that strengthens a decision from a discussion that postpones it indefinitely.
DISC or the Enneagram: which tool for which team?
The two tools are often presented as interchangeable. They are not: one describes what you can observe in a meeting, the other what drives each person to act.
Frequently asked questions
What Swiss companies ask us
In which languages are the courses delivered?
Training and coaching are delivered in French, English or Spanish. The site is published in French, German and English, but the sessions themselves are not delivered in German at this stage — we would rather say so than let you find out.
How long do the courses last?
One to three days depending on the course. A course can also be split into half-days spread over several weeks, which often suits managers who cannot leave their team for three days in a row.
Do you work in German-speaking Switzerland?
Yes, in person as well as online. The useful question is not the region but the group's working language: a session is held in French, English or Spanish, and the group must be able to debate in that language, not just follow it.