After almost a decade at the helm of CSS, CEO Philomena Colatrella stepped down at the end of 2025. In an interview with thebrokernews, she talks about the deliberate timing of her retirement, the importance of culture and continuity, the successes of the digital transformation and why she knows her life’s work is in good hands at CSS.
In this interview, she looks back on formative decisions, health policy debates and leadership moments, while also outlining the challenges and opportunities that await her successor in a rapidly changing healthcare system.
Ms. Colatrella, You stepped down as CEO at the end of 2025. What was your main motivation for taking this step now and what are the most important aspects you wanted to ensure when handing over?
After 26 years at CSS – nine and a half of them as CEO – the time is right for me to take a new direction in my career. CSS is in excellent financial health and is a strong brand with firmly anchored values. Over the past few years, we have set a key course for the future and successfully transformed and modernized the company.
Today, CSS is regarded as a leading voice in the industry, driving innovation and advancing digitalization. I can therefore hand over my role to my successor Mirjam Bamberger with a clear conscience. My only wish is that she appreciates the people in this company as much as I do: because the unique culture and commitment of the employees make CSS what it is.
How did you prepare yourself and the company for the change in leadership, and to what extent did you influence the selection of your successor?
I informed the Board of Directors of my intention around two years ago. The selection of my successor was then entirely in its hands. The Board of Directors was very keen to ensure continuity. For this reason, we developed a vision for the future together with the employees. This sets out the strategic guidelines for the coming years.
When you look back on your almost ten years as CEO: What was your proudest moment, and what “unfinished business” remains for you?
I can’t limit myself to a single moment. I am proud of the company’s innovative strength and the fact that CSS’s voice carries weight in the healthcare sector. To name just a few examples: We have successfully positioned ourselves as a healthcare partner, launched award-winning bonus programs and played a leading role in drawing up new rules for cooperation with hospitals. In addition, a new supplementary insurance product has successfully established itself on the market.
In a short space of time, we have merged our basic insurance companies and modernized our customer portal, which is now regarded as a benchmark for the industry. In the last two years alone, we have achieved a great deal: we have pushed ahead with integrated care in various regions of Switzerland and prepared our entry into the life insurance business. I am leaving with the good feeling that we have set the right course.
During your time in office, CSS has undergone a major digital transformation. In which areas has digitalization proven to be particularly effective, and where do you feel that CSS is still lagging behind?
Without a high degree of digitization, CSS would not be able to run its business today: We receive around 25 million invoices from our insured persons every year. We now check 85% of these invoices automatically, which enabled savings of around CHF 850 million last year alone. Our checking system is constantly being developed further with the help of artificial intelligence.
Thanks to efficient digital processes and consistent spending discipline, we have also been able to continuously reduce administrative costs in basic insurance. This progress in administrative costs and billing controls has contributed significantly to the fact that our premiums have been below the national average for most of the last ten years. At the same time, I still see a need to catch up, particularly in the exchange of data between hospitals and doctors.
A central part of your strategy was the development of innovation and investments in digital healthcare solutions (e.g. venture funds). Looking back, how would you assess the balance between risk and return on these investments?
This decision has proven its worth. It gives us access to innovations that improve medical care and provide new impetus in the healthcare sector. The balance between risk and return is good, as we focus on projects that bring added value to our policyholders. For example, we have invested in the ETH spin-off Pregnolia. The start-up has developed a method to reduce the risk of premature births. A few years ago, we included this offer in our supplementary insurance.
Under your leadership, CSS launched the “Livo” product. How has this product performed and what lessons have you learned for future product developments?
Livo is a supplementary insurance product that bundles benefits across outpatient, inpatient and alternative medicine for the first time. Because the product breaks new ground, the market launch was challenging – particularly in terms of pricing, communication with the authorities and internal implementation. Our takeaway for future product developments is that such offers usually require more time than initially expected. Above all, the integrated approach has proven its worth: customers appreciate solutions that are geared more towards their needs and less towards traditional product boundaries.
Rising premiums in the Swiss healthcare system have been the focus of public debate for years. In your opinion, what is the most effective lever for slowing down premium increases without jeopardizing quality or access?
A sustainable improvement in the healthcare system requires reforms that address the central disincentives. These include the uniform financing of outpatient and inpatient services(EFAS), the new Tardoc medical tariff and a functioning patient dossier. At the level of care, I am convinced that integrated networks are the model of the future. GPs, specialists, hospitals, nurses and therapists work closely together to provide patients with holistic care. This increases quality and reduces costs at the same time – for example, by avoiding duplicate examinations and unnecessary hospital admissions. Such models have been around for some time.
CSS has further developed these networks with various partners, for example in Vaud, Jura, Appenzell, Ticino and the Biel region. Up to now, care has mostly been geared towards curing illnesses, with prevention often playing only a subordinate role. This is different in these models. And we offer special support for people with chronic illnesses.
In 2024, you said you mobilized a lot of resources to strengthen solvency ratios and become more efficient. Where were the most difficult levers to pull and which initiatives proved to be particularly effective?
The mergers of the various CSS subsidiaries in particular had an impact on the solvency ratio. To strengthen it, CSS has raised premiums slightly more for 2025. We achieved the turnaround in just one year: our solvency ratio is now well above the statutory minimum. This gave us a good starting position for 2026. Because we were able to offer attractive premiums, many new clients decided to switch to CSS.
Criticism was voiced, including in the context that CSS had allegedly set premiums for basic insurance too low in the past, as a result of which you were sanctioned by FINMA. Looking back, how do you view this episode and what lessons has CSS learned from it?
It was neither about a sanction nor about premiums being set too low for basic insurance. CSS and the supervisory authority did not agree on how to account for the costs of external intermediaries and advertising and marketing costs. We are still of the opinion that there were no clear regulatory requirements for the allocation of administrative costs. Our practice has also been classified as permissible by external auditors. We have therefore appealed to the Federal Administrative Court to have this issue clarified in court. Its ruling is still pending.
You were and are a powerful voice in health policy debates (EFAS, financing of outpatient/inpatient services, etc.). Which reforms do you consider to be particularly urgent today and what obstacles are holding them back in Switzerland?
A key cost driver is the wrong incentives in the system, for example in the tariff structures. These should actually reward quality rather than quantity. This makes two recent developments all the more important: the introduction of EFAS and the replacement of the previous doctors’ tariff with a modern tariff. Both reforms address key weaknesses in the system and show that progress is possible. New reforms are not needed all the time – it is crucial that these two are carefully implemented and have an impact. All stakeholders must take responsibility for this. However, the right incentives are currently lacking when it comes to the digitalization of the healthcare system: the widespread use of patient records would be a decisive step forward for the healthcare system.
How confident are you that Switzerland will make tangible progress in this area over the next few years – and what role can CSS play in this?
It is positive that the federal government is making a new attempt to advance the electronic health record at national level. At the same time, experience shows that such large, complex projects take time and often progress slowly. At the same time, CSS and its partners are already committed to data-supported and digitalized healthcare. Specifically, we are working in the five care networks mentioned above to ensure that all healthcare professionals involved work with an electronic dossier in future.
You are one of the few women to have managed a large Swiss insurance company. How has your gender influenced your career – both in terms of opportunities and obstacles – and what advice would you give to women who want to do something similar?
Even though I worked in a predominantly male environment, I never had the feeling that I was at a disadvantage. It is important to position yourself clearly, pursue goals consistently and develop a certain resilience. Women in particular should take this to heart: You shouldn’t hide and wait to be discovered and promoted. Instead, you should talk about your ambitions and seize opportunities when they arise.
How would you characterize your management philosophy? Which of these elements were particularly helpful in times of crisis?
My management philosophy is based on dialog, transparency and authenticity. For me, leading means demanding a lot on the one hand. However, it is equally important to see the people behind their roles, to be approachable and honest myself and not to hide in an ivory tower. With this attitude, I wanted to contribute to a corporate culture that is based on mutual trust and where mistakes can be addressed openly.
What cultural changes would you like to see as your legacy in the company, even after your departure?
The essence of today’s CSS is characterized by a combination of down-to-earthness and a high level of innovation. For all the willingness to change that I have demanded of my employees and myself, it has always been important to me not to lose touch with our roots. This is the fertile ground on which we at CSS have approached innovation and change in order to remain competitive and meet the needs of our customers. I very much hope that this balance will remain a defining feature of CSS’s corporate culture.
What are your plans after stepping down as CEO? Will you continue to be involved in the healthcare or insurance industry, e.g. on the advisory board or in start-ups?
I am currently looking at various interesting options. I will certainly continue to work in the business world with passion and energy. For example, I am a member of the Board of Directors of SwissLife and, in future, of the newspaper Le Temps. I am very much looking forward to what lies ahead. Because my motto has always been: the best is yet to come.
The questions were asked by Binci Heeb.
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