Taking The Swiss Pulse From Kosovo

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Many opinion surveys for the Swiss research institute GFS are carried out by a call centre in Kosovo. To handle phone calls to people in Switzerland, the staff must be at ease with the different Swiss-German dialects. In the process, they learn a lot about Switzerland – a country where many have never set foot.

The working day begins amid a cacophony of voices.“Guten Tag, we're doing a survey...”“Grüeziwohl, we are conducting...”“... on the opinions of the Swiss...”“Bonjour, may I ask you a few questions?”

It is a polyphonic, multilingual choir of around 15 people wearing headsets and sitting in front of their screens. A private Zurich radio station plays softly in the background.

In many ways it is an ordinary call centre. It conducts representative surveys on the opinions, attitudes and political convictions of the Swiss. Only it is located on the outskirts of the Kosovan capital, Pristina.

Other Swiss companies, including some major mobile phone providers, have also set up call centres in Pristina. Wages and costs are low in Europe's youngest country and there are many German speakers. However, a call centre that deals with iPhone reception problems does not get as close to Switzerland as this one, which sounds out people's views on pension schemes, biodiversity and national politics.

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