Meet our founders!
A conversation with Alexis and Annette from seniors@work

seniors@work: Alexis, you founded seniors@work in 2018 and are the heart and soul of the start-up. Why don't you introduce yourself to our readers?

Alexis Weil: Yes, seniors@work really is a matter close to my heart! About me: I am 31 years old, come from Basel and studied Finance and Accounting at the University of St. Gallen before I founded seniors@work.

seniors@work: How did this come about?
Alexis Weil: When my father retired, he still felt young and active and wanted to continue working part-time - but it was almost impossible to find suitable job offers. I then did a bit of research, and the more I looked into the topic of "working in old age", the more I realized that this is a very important topic for the future - not only for fit young retirees who have a whole new phase of life ahead of them, but also for companies that are increasingly suffering from a shortage of skilled workers. This gave rise to the idea for seniors@work.

seniors@work: And how did you go about it?

Alexis Weil: With the help of a programmer, I set up the job platform in 2018, recruited the first retired people as candidates and looked for clients. Once the website was up and running, I was lucky enough to have three "lions" from the Swiss Lion's Den - Roland Brack, Bettina Hein and Tobias Reichmuth - invest in me in May 2019. After that, the work really started, because as a single founder, there are never enough hours in the day to complete all the tasks! Today we have over 3,000 candidate profiles on the platform, more and more job offers, and our monthly income is growing strongly. And to accelerate this growth, I started looking for a CMO and co-founder in the second half of 2021... 

seniors@work: Perfect transition, because that's where Annette comes in. Can you also briefly introduce yourself?

Annette Ehrhardt: Yes, I would love to! I've been on board since January 2022 and have loved every minute so far! At 45, I'm a bit older than Alexis and have almost 20 years of experience in management consulting and marketing. I'm originally from Germany, but have lived near Zurich since 2009, and my two children were also born here. Alexis and I complement each other very well with our experience and skills, and we were also a good fit on a personal level right from the start - that's very important when you work so closely together in a small team! 

seniors@work: How did you come to switch to a start-up? 

Annette Ehrhardt: After so many years in the corporate world, I felt it was time for a change. Also, like so many people, at the beginning of the pandemic I thought a little harder about my professional priorities. As I wanted to make a difference and have a broader field of activity than in my well-paid corporate job, I specifically looked around for start-up roles - and when I came across Alexis, it immediately clicked for me. Because I think the social significance of seniors@work is really great! Opening up career prospects for retired people and at the same time helping companies that are desperately looking for staff is a huge motivation for me. 

seniors@work: What do you enjoy most about working in a start-up? 

Alexis Weil: The freedom and agility are important factors. Simply making your own decisions, testing things quickly and implementing them straight away - that's exactly my thing. And when I see how many retirees we have already been able to offer a career perspective, it makes me proud! 

Annette Ehrhardt: I can only agree with that! What Alexis has achieved so far is mega impressive. And for me, the "Lean Start Up" approach is very refreshing. Roll up your sleeves and just get on with it, that's our motto. 

seniors@work: And what are your biggest challenges? 

Alexis Weil: Socially, the topics of "old age" and "senior citizens" still tend to have a negative connotation, so we still have some work to do to raise awareness. It will certainly take patience and a lot of staying power before the majority of companies specifically hire retired specialists on a part-time basis. 

Annette Ehrhardt: And here internally, we also have to manage the growth we have set ourselves - growing the team, improving our platform, expanding... these are no small tasks! 

seniors@work: Speaking of growth and expansion: where do you see seniors@work in five years' time? 

Alexis Weil: Oh, we certainly won't be bored! First of all, we are focusing entirely on becoming the market leader for jobs for retired professionals in German-speaking Switzerland - with over 1.5 million retirees and a shortage of 500,000 professionals over the next few years, the potential is enormous! 

Annette Ehrhardt: But that's not all. In the medium term, we also want to expand into Germany and Austria and extend our member community to areas such as friendships, dating, sport, travel and learning. 

Candidate of the month (03/2022): Iris Lentjes, HR Expertin

seniors@work: Iris, you can look back on an impressive career as HR Manager and member of the Executive Board at a number of well-known companies such as Livit (Uto Albis), MSC, Bombardier and Weka Business Media. And long before you retired, you also worked independently as a leadership coach and HR consultant. Today, at 69, you are more active than ever. What is your secret?

Iris Lentjes: I love working with people, learning new things and am happy to help shape change. There is no "expiration date" for this. It's a great feeling when my clients achieve their goals with my help and I realize that I'm needed. Especially when coaching managers, it is an advantage to have extensive life experience.

seniors@work: What are the major differences between employment and self-employment?

Iris Lentjes: Being self-employed allows me to organize my time relatively freely, which is a big plus. And I feel more valued than I did as an employee. This direct, positive feedback from my customers is an important driving force. Apart from that, I am and will remain a service provider.

seniors@work: That sounds as if "serving" people is really a passion for you?

Iris Lentjes: You could say that! To date, only my first apprenticeship had little to do with people. I trained as a reinforced concrete draughtswoman and already realized in my first year of training that this wasn't for me. Because contact with people is incredibly important to me. After completing my apprenticeship, I immediately changed careers and focused on HR. After various further training courses and lots of personal development training, I then worked successfully in several service companies as HR manager. And for 20 years now I have been working independently as a sparring partner for managers and as HR manager in an SME (at mandate level) - always close to people!

seniors@work: How much do you work at the moment, and how long do you plan to remain professionally active?

Iris Lentjes: I currently work about 30 hours a week and enjoy both work and leisure. Because I don't have to work, I want to work! I will continue as long as I am healthy and able to learn - and of course as long as the customers want me!

seniors@work: You were already self-employed long before seniors@work existed. What prompted you to register with us?

Iris Lentjes: The platform is a great offer and Alexis, the founder, is very committed. I think it's very important that people have the opportunity to take on exciting professional tasks after retirement.

seniors@work: Today is International Women's Day. Based on your professional experience, do you have any advice you would give to younger women?

Iris Lentjes: For me, it's always about people first and foremost, not so much about gender roles. For me, it's all about working together - not against each other! I can recommend this to all younger women: If you want to lead, it has to come from the heart. Love people and don't bend yourself. And take yourself just as seriously as the others.