Franziska moved from her home in Richterswil to Zurich to study at ETH. Her diverse range of interests meant that Franziska eventually decided to study materials science using a process of elimination. After a semester at the EPFL in Lausanne and an internship in Sweden, she decided to complete her master's degree abroad in Cambridge, England. Her dissertation on nanomagnetic particles brought Franziska back to Switzerland.
"I decided to go into industry and learned about Sensirion at the Polymesse at ETH Zurich. This was also the first time I saw a semiconductor through a microscope, which I found extremely fascinating."
The job application that followed two weeks later was welcomed by Sensirion, as a new team was being formed. For the first time, sensor packaging was being integrated into the company and new packaging technologies had to be developed. "In 2006, I started as the first development engineer at Sensirion, which meant my daily work was extremely varied." After a few years, the project was progressing well, Franziska's task seemed to have been completed, which meant she was now looking for a new challenge.
In 2010, she therefore moved to another company to take on a position as a researcher and short after as team leader. Although she liked the international atmosphere, the team and the versatility there, after a while she lacked the freedom to participate meaningfully in shaping internal processes. Also, pushing ahead with new technologies within the group proceeded very slowly due to the slow market. Therefore, seven years later, Franziska returned to Sensirion as Head of R&D Packaging.
"What I really like about Sensirion is the dynamic here. The team's enormous commitment and very high social competence contributes to this and makes it an exceptional place to work."
Due to Sensirion's organization, the company is very much oriented towards the individual compared to other employers. Much of it is about contacts and direct conversations. One knows the employees, can talk openly with everyone and directly address HR with concerns. "As a result, the scope for each individual to participate is much greater than at other companies." As a manager, you can show employees that they have a direct influence on the success of a project and make a major contribution to it. Everyone is invited to identify and implement possible improvements. This gives product and process development engineers a wide range of responsibilities. According to Franziska Brem, the freedom to make decisions, the dynamism and the top performance of employees were the deciding factors in returning to Sensirion.
