Hildegard Kölliker will step down from her position as Secretary General of the University of St.Gallen (HSG) when she reaches retirement age at the end of April 2023. As Secretary General, she headed, among other things, the University's legal service and managed the secretariat of the University Council. "As President, I could not have wished for a better hand to lead the General Secretariat," said Prof. Bernhard Ehrenzeller. “We thank her sincerely for her very valuable and tireless commitment to HSG over the past 14 years or so.” During her tenure, she has played a decisive role in shaping the legal development of HSG. Shortly after her arrival, she was entrusted with drafting a new university statute, and in recent years she has played a key role in shaping and changinguniversity law. We wish Hildegard Kölliker a well-deserved retirement and thank her for continuing to be available to HSG in an advisory capacity, especially with regard to the new University Statute.

Multi-faceted, interdisciplinary legal expert

At the same time, HSG is pleased to have found a worthy successor in David Schneeberger. The lawyer with a doctorate has held various positions at the Federal Administrative Court since 2018, and currently serves as Head of Staff. In this role, he is responsible for organisational development and digital transformation. For example, he led the programme for the succession of the core applications, the introduction of a business management solution, the implementation of electronic legal transactions and the digital dossier, as well as the modernisation of the working environments. During the Corona pandemic, he led the court's internal technical staff, which implemented measures to protect the health of employees and maintain operations. In addition, David Schneeberger is a speaker on digitalisation topics in the legal environment, as well as the editor of a legal journal, author and editor of model contracts and professional articles, and a military judge. He also brings experience from a law firm and as an entrepreneur.

David Schneeberger holds a Master's degree from HSG, was admitted to the bar in the Canton of Zurich and completed his doctorate at the University of Basel. He has also completed numerous further training courses, most recently the CAS Legal Tech. "I am very much looking forward to the responsible task and the exciting challenges at my alma mater," says the future HSG General Secretary.

David Schneeberger is married and lives with his wife and child near Lake Constance. He can be found on the ski slopes in winter and hiking in summer. Like his predecessor, David Schneeberger will also be a member of the President's Board as General Secretary.