History of the SGfB

On May 2, 2006, the SGfB constitutes itself for the first time at the founding meeting in Zurich. What happened since then until today, you can read on the following page.

2023

Marusca Klein takes over the presidency from Katharina Wolf and leads the association with renewed vigor.

Alejandra Cerezuela is elected Vice President. The Board of Directors is further strengthened with Peter Weber and Eleonora Savides.

The work of the examination board was marked by the successful graduation ceremony, at which 20 new graduates were honored.

The Board of Directors continues to focus on increased cooperation and professional structures in order to increase the visibility of the SGfB.

At the end of the year, the SGfB had 594 active members, 166 members in training and 39 collective members.

2022

Urs Vetter is dismissed as treasurer. Four new Board members were recruited and elected in the course of the year.

At the 2023 AGM, Katharina Wolf will hand over the chairmanship after three years in office and Margot Rupprecht will hand over the vice chairmanship after seven years on the Board.

For the Audit Committee, 2022 was a year of consolidation with increased cooperation with the Board of Directors and the Quality Committee.

Last year, nine SGfB advisors successfully passed the higher professional examination.

Unfortunately, the Quality Commission had to cope with three significant departures: Patrick Zahnd (Chairman), Thomas Frank and Gerhard Schobel.

At the end of the year, the SGfB had 554 active members, 165 members in training and 38 collective members.

2021

At the first extraordinary general meeting of the SGfB, the revision of the Articles of Association was successfully completed with an external appeal body. The conference of collective members (KKM) took place in Olten – with a lively exchange of experiences. Thanks to the commitment of the Communications and Marketing Committee, a new online discussion format “Sharing perspectives” was introduced.

For the Audit Committee, 2021 was still a year of handovers and new beginnings.

Last year, 11 SGfB consultants successfully passed the higher professional examination.

The Quality Commission is in close contact with our members and ensures the quality level of active members, not least with regard to online learning

At the end of the year, the SGfB had 574 active members, 158 members in training and 41 collective members.

2020

Due to the special circumstances this year, the annual business was voted on in writing for the first time. The new president Katharina Wolf was elected. Despite the challenges of the year, the new board succeeds in settling in.

The Appeals Commission was adopted this year. Appeal cases are now handled by Beat Messerli, Advokatur JSM.

Online learning and online consulting are gaining in importance this year and are slipping into the SGfB’s focus.

The Recognition Insurance Working Group is reformatting itself this year and is actively advancing this cause.

2019

An expanded Executive Board is introduced; the secretariat and Executive Board are now based in Zurich.

The examination regulations for the Advanced Federal Diploma Examination are definitively approved by the State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation SERI.

The newly established Communications and Marketing Commission has started its work. The topic of online consulting is coming more into focus.

2018

The AGM approves the newly developed strategy paper 2017-2020, in which the future challenges are named and the external and internal tasks are defined.

Last year, a pleasingly high number of SGfB advisors passed the higher professional examination.

The Board of Directors is being reshuffled and a number of Board and committee members are stepping down after many years of commendable service.

2017

Handover of the baton from Dr. Irène Kummer to Margot Ruprecht as Vice President.

The Higher Professional Examination for Counselor in the Psychosocial Field HFP is not united in one examination regulation with HFP Supervisor/Coach-Organizational Consultant. The SGfB remains the sole sponsor of the HFP PSB.

The examination regulations on the HFP for counselor, counselor in the psychosocial field, valid from 1.1.2018, will be definitively approved on 13.12.2017.

Britta Beinat announces her resignation as clerk in the SGfB secretariat as of March 31, 2018.

2016

The anniversary “10 years Swiss Society for Consulting SGfB” was the highlight of the reporting year and a great milestone in our history. It is through the powerful commitment of all our institutions and members, as well as volunteers, that we have come a long way as an association.

SGfB quo vadis in the next 10 years? We need a strategy that sets the direction. It was presented at the collective members’ conference in a short paper that identified challenges and opportunities, reflected SGfB’s mission statement, and included strategic guiding principles (including activities and indicators). The members should be able to participate in the strategy so that they can also support it. The product of SGfB – psychosocial counseling – should be made visible. The foundation is in place, the structures and existing resources provide security.

Under the direction of Gérard Kahn, KRIPS GmbH, the NQF evaluation for the HFP came to a pleasing conclusion with a rating of 6 (out of a maximum of 8).

2015

The Wikipedia entry was a highlight this year. Sylvia Baumann has thus taken the publicity of psychosocial counseling, or rather this new professional profile, a further step forward.

About 100 new members, including 3 collective members, have helped the SGfB to grow by about + 30%.

Another highlight is a change in the conduct of the Higher Professional Examination: HFPs in the national languages of German, French and Italian are also allowed to conduct advisory sequences in English, incl. the English version. Transcript included.

2014

Hedi Bretscher-Zeier has handed over the presidency of the SGfB to her successor Rosmarie Zimmerli after the intensive 8-year pioneering and building-up phase. The growth of the SGfB is expressed, among other things, in the enlargement of the secretariat, which undergoes a move from Rheinfelden to Möriken.

In March, April, October and November, higher professional examinations are held in Olten and Bellinzona in German, French and Italian. 49 candidates receive the diploma of counselor in the psychosocial field.

As part of its membership in the Mental Health Network, the SGfB is collaborating on the “Swiss Manifesto for Public Mental Health”.

2013

On June 28, 2013, the examination regulations for the Higher Professional Examination (HFP) come into force. The SGfB has thus been commissioned by the Swiss Confederation to organize and conduct the federal professional examination in the psychosocial field.

Preparations for the organization and implementation of the first examinations are started. A working group drafts a guideline for developing the personal consulting concept. This will be part of the HFP.

The SGfB becomes a member of the NPG Network Mental Health Switzerland/RPG Réseau Santé Psychique Suisse.

2012

The year brings great changes and challenges for the board, commissions, delegates, treasurer and secretariat.

In the middle of the year, IFCoS in Lugano, the Istituto di Formazione per la Comunicazione Specialistica and Webster University in Geneva will be integrated. Thus, 20 SGfB collective members offer a total of 22 SGfB-approved counseling trainings. Italian and English language versions are added to the SGfB website.

In September, the Federal Office for Professional Education and Technology OPET approves the examination regulations for the Higher Professional Examination HFP in the psychosocial field. An objection is raised and later rejected by OPET.

SGfB joins the EAC European Association for Counselling.

At the end of the year, the SGfB has 225 active members and 47 members in training.

2011

In the spirit of professionalization, the membership categories will be reorganized. Member institutions become collective members and titleholders become active members with voting and election rights. There are two new categories: Members in training and passive members.

At the end of the year, the SGfB has 132 active members. With the Christmas mail they will receive the new SGfB logo.

Thanks to the great commitment of the board, commissions and collective members, the position of the SGfB as a professional association is visibly strengthened with regard to the HFP.

2010

The consultants entitled to use the title are provided with graphics in the SGfB corporate design for their personal advertising. The sur dossier procedure for acquiring the specialist title is introduced.

An OPET working group is created. Examination regulations and guidelines for the Fachausweis (FA) and the Höhere Fachprüfung (HFP) are being drawn up. BSO, SCA and SKA terminate the cooperation with SGfB in the sponsoring organization regarding a common examination regulation and SGfB will conduct the HFP in the counseling format “Psychosocial Counseling” on its own.

2009

Collective professional liability insurance will be created and the web directory of registered counselors will be expanded.

The first draft project for the Higher Professional Examination is submitted to OPET. One challenge is the differentiation between the various consulting formats. The need for more public acceptance of the psychosocial counseling format becomes clear.

At the end of the year, the number of members of institutions and associations is 17, and the number of consultants with specialist titles is 83.

2008

Within the framework of vocational training at the federal level, new qualification opportunities for counselors are to be created. The goal is the Federal Advanced Federal Diploma Examination HFP.

The project sponsors consist of 4 associations:
Professional Association for Supervision and Organizational Consulting BSO
Schweizerische Kader Organisation SKO
Swiss Coaching Association SCA
Schweizerische Gesellschaft für Beratung SGfB.

A flyer is designed and an advertising campaign is launched with it. The number of SGfB titleholders doubles, reaching 44 people by the end of the year.

2007

A further 5 institutions become members of the SGfB, the specialist titles Consultant and Counsellor SGfB are trademarked, regulations for the various commissions are adopted. A secretarial position will be created and the website will be expanded to include a French language version.

2006

The SGfB is constituted on May 2 at the founding meeting in Zurich. The founding members represent psychologically oriented counseling disciplines from individual, couple and family counseling as well as from the environment of counseling groups, institutions and organizations.

The founding members are the following 11 institutions:

Swiss Association for Individual Psychology according to Alfred Adler, SGIPA Swiss Association for Integrative Body Psychotherapy, IBP
Swiss Association for Person-Centered Psychotherapy and Counseling, SGGT
Swiss Association for Systemic Therapy and Counseling, SGS
Swiss Association for Transactional Analysis, SGTA
Verband für Systemische Paar- und Familienberatung und -therapie, VEF Frauenseminar Bodensee, FSB
Institut für Körperzentrierte Psychotherapie, IKP
Weiterbildungsinstitut für lösungsorientierte Beratung, wilob
Zentrum für Form und Wandlung, Organismisch-integrative Psychotherapie, OIP
Zentrum für Psychosynthese und Ganzeitliches Heilen, aeon

As president, Hedi Bretscher also takes over the secretariat and the management.

Admission regulations for membership in the SGfB, application forms for obtaining the SGfB specialist title, regulations for the commissions, etc. are being prepared. Contacts with BSO, EAC and DGfB are created.