Memorial service held for Swisscom CEO Schloter

Swisscom CEO Carsten Schloter was found dead at his home in Villars-sur-Glâne near Fribourg Keystone

Mourners filled the St Nicolas cathedral in Fribourg on Monday afternoon for a service in memory of Carsten Schloter, CEO of Switzerland’s largest telecommunications company, Swisscom. The 49-year-old manager committed suicide at his home on July 24.

Communications Minister Doris Leuthard was present at the service, in addition to Swisscom President Hansueli Loosli and other members of the Swisscom management. Also present were the heads of the Swiss Federal Railways and Swiss Post, plus numerous representatives of business, politics and the Army.

Schloter’s wife – from whom he had separated –  and his sister addressed the congregation. His wife recalled the good times they had spent together and read out messages from the couple’s children.

Condolences

News of Schloter’s death had been greeted with great dismay and sadness. Swisscom received hundreds of condolence messages, said spokeswoman Annina Wish, demonstrating “how popular Carsten Schloter was and how much he was valued.”

On Monday at 9 a.m. Swisscom employees throughout the country observed a minute of silence for their former director. A delayed version of the memorial service was broadcast over the company’s Intranet. And on Tuesday, members of the company’s executive board will participate in a roundtable discussion in Schloter’s memory.

The press was filled with tributes in the week following Schloter’s death.

“We will remember his directness, his transparency, his reliability, his zest and his incredible technical expertise,” said Mark Walder, CEO of the publisher Ringier, on Sunday in the newspaper Sonntags Blick.

Schloter, a German citizen, joined Swisscom in 2000 as the head of its mobile communications division, and had served as Swisscom’s CEO since 2006. The Swiss government is the main shareholder of the private company, which has more than 19,000 employees.