The future of industry in the Jura Arc: From long-range plans to fast learning loops

Articles

May 6, 202619 min read

At Le Tout Connecté 2026, hosted at Strate-J in Delémont, a panel moderated by RFJ journalist Jérémie Pignard explored a question that matters well beyond the region: what does it take for industrial companies to stay competitive when markets, technologies and geopolitics keep shifting at speed?

Answers to this wide-ranging and challenging question came from Olivier Haegeli (CEO of Willemin-Macodel and President of the CCIJ), Xavier Comtesse (President, Manufacture Thinking) and Samuel Davron (Executive Committee Member, Sonceboz).

What followed was wide-ranging, but remarkably consistent on one point: the “old” industrial playbook – stable assumptions, multi-year roadmaps, optimization as a default reflex – is giving way to a more adaptive model built on customer proximity, disciplined diversification, collaboration, and continuous capability building.

Strategy in the fog: the case for direction without rigid plans

A recurring theme was that companies cannot rely on traditional planning cycles anymore. Instead of five-year strategies, the more realistic approach is to define a direction, then iterate constantly as new signals appear.

Olivier Haegeli put it bluntly: the era of fixed, long-range strategic plans is fading, not because businesses no longer need ambition, but because the external environment forces continuous adjustment.

Xavier Comtesse pushed the same idea further by challenging the vocabulary itself: when the horizon is unclear, organizations increasingly operate from a philosophy and positioning, while meaningful “strategy” emerges from day-to-day tactical reality rather than a distant blueprint.

“If you have a 20-year strategy, you’re dead. It’s over.”

Xavier Comtesse

Stop optimizing the wrong thing: customer proximity as the real productivity lever

The panel returned repeatedly to a deceptively simple imperative: go back to the customer – not as a slogan, but as an operational discipline. When market conditions tighten, the organizations that win are the ones that understand demand shifts earlier, adjust faster, and stay close enough to spot new value pools.

Samuel Davron described this as becoming “vital”: electric vehicles and other structural shifts have changed customer expectations, and suppliers must understand those changes more deeply than before.

“Going more to the customer and understanding their needs even better – that’s becoming vital for us.”

Samuel Davron

Xavier Comtesse added a sharper critique: many companies still treat customer knowledge as optional – even in premium sectors – and leave lifetime value on the table simply because they don’t know who their customers are.

Innovation is shifting from products to functions – and that changes how firms collaborate

If the first question is “do we still have a market?”, the second is “what exactly are customers buying now?” A key insight from the discussion is that in many industrial segments, customers increasingly want complete functions and outcomes, not isolated components or narrowly defined expertise.

That shift naturally pushes companies toward collaboration – not as a feel-good ecosystem idea, but as a competitive necessity. Combining capabilities (for example, mechatronics plus software, or mechanics plus data) is often the only way to deliver what customers now expect.

The panel also drew a clear line between collaboration and consolidation. Consolidation can reduce diversity and resilience in a supply chain, while partnership models can broaden what firms can offer without destroying capability.

“When you put two things together, you don’t get 1+1 = 2. You get more than 2.”

Samuel Davron

Diversification, but with discipline: avoid panic pivots and “scatter”

Diversification came up as both an opportunity and a risk. The panel’s shared message: diversification is not a reflexive reaction to a downturn. It has to be deliberate, resourced, and anchored in the capabilities that made the company successful in the first place.

Samuel Davron framed diversification as a practical “matrix”: you can shift a product to a new market, move into a new geography, or adjust your customer base – but not everything at once. Trying to change too many variables simultaneously is how companies lose focus and fail.

Olivier Haegeli added an important nuance: diversification is essential, but it must not become “scattering”. And crucially, industrial leaders can’t insist on only making “sure bets”: progress implies accepting that some moves won’t work.

“Diversification, yes – but not scattering.”

Olivier Haegeli

The defense industry question: growth vector, ethical line, or both?

One of the most concrete – and sensitive – threads of the discussion was whether defense-related work could become a meaningful growth area for Jura industry.

The panel did not treat it as a simplistic taboo. Instead, the discussion distinguished between “defense” and “war”, acknowledged the reality of demand in Europe, and raised the deeper question of what companies choose to build – and why.

Olivier Haegeli’s view was pragmatic: regardless of personal preferences, defense is an existing sector and can be a development path for regional industry – especially if framed as deterrence and security rather than aggression.

Audience poll: ‘What are your priorities for 2026?’ – and what the panel took from it
During the discussion, the panelists paused to review the results of an audience poll that asked participants to select their three top strategic priorities for 2026. The strongest signal was clear: “Innovate” came first by a long way (68%), followed by “Finding new customers” (48%), “Strengthen skills” (44%), “Optimize operations” (42%), and “Digitize” (32%), with a longer tail of more targeted concerns (e.g., supply chain security, investment, reducing carbon footprint). The panelists commented on what those choices are likely to mean in practice: Innovation is only “innovation” if it lands in a market. Samuel Davron welcomed innovation as the core engine for progress but stressed that it is not simply inventing – rather, it is an invention that has found its market, which links innovation tightly to customer development and growth. Customer focus and skills reinforce each other as priorities. Samuel Davron also read the “new customers” and “skills” results as interconnected: stronger capabilities enable better innovation, and innovation must connect to real customer demand. Olivier Haegeli reinforced that innovation cannot happen without building competencies, whether that’s through training or acquiring new skills. Optimizing operations scored surprisingly high. Samuel Davron said he was struck by how prominent operational optimization was (42%). For him, cost discipline is basic “hygiene” and always matters; however, its high ranking suggests many companies still feel immediate pressure to protect margins and resilience through efficiency, even while trying to innovate and grow. Collaboration did not register as a top priority, and the panel wasn’t shocked. When Jérémie Pignard noted that “associating/partnering” was not highly selected, Olivier Haegeli argued that partnerships can help, but they are not a universal “lifeline” – they only work when they are grounded in concrete needs and shared gains. Sustainability slipped down the list reflecting a shift in customer pressure. When Jérémie Pignard pointed out that reducing carbon footprint was not among the top priorities, Samuel Davron observed that, in his experience, customer pressure on sustainability has decreased over the past 2–3 years, while attention has shifted back toward costs and innovation – even if companies may continue sustainability efforts for longer-term benefit. “Digitizing” is popular, but the term is fuzzy. The panel treated “digitalization” as a catch-all category that can hide very different realities (from process improvements to AI). Xavier Comtesse argued that organizations often confuse “keeping the first digitization running” with a second wave of digitalization, while Olivier Haegeli noted that the label tends to absorb everything (AI, IoT, etc.) unless companies define what they mean by it.

Audience poll: ‘What are your priorities for 2026?’ – and what the panel took from it

During the discussion, the panelists paused to review the results of an audience poll that asked participants to select their three top strategic priorities for 2026.

The strongest signal was clear: “Innovate” came first by a long way (68%), followed by “Finding new customers” (48%), “Strengthen skills” (44%), “Optimize operations” (42%), and “Digitize” (32%), with a longer tail of more targeted concerns (e.g., supply chain security, investment, reducing carbon footprint).

The panelists commented on what those choices are likely to mean in practice:

Innovation is only “innovation” if it lands in a market. Samuel Davron welcomed innovation as the core engine for progress but stressed that it is not simply inventing – rather, it is an invention that has found its market, which links innovation tightly to customer development and growth.
Customer focus and skills reinforce each other as priorities. Samuel Davron also read the “new customers” and “skills” results as interconnected: stronger capabilities enable better innovation, and innovation must connect to real customer demand. Olivier Haegeli reinforced that innovation cannot happen without building competencies, whether that’s through training or acquiring new skills.
Optimizing operations scored surprisingly high. Samuel Davron said he was struck by how prominent operational optimization was (42%). For him, cost discipline is basic “hygiene” and always matters; however, its high ranking suggests many companies still feel immediate pressure to protect margins and resilience through efficiency, even while trying to innovate and grow.
Collaboration did not register as a top priority, and the panel wasn’t shocked. When Jérémie Pignard noted that “associating/partnering” was not highly selected, Olivier Haegeli argued that partnerships can help, but they are not a universal “lifeline” – they only work when they are grounded in concrete needs and shared gains.
Sustainability slipped down the list reflecting a shift in customer pressure. When Jérémie Pignard pointed out that reducing carbon footprint was not among the top priorities, Samuel Davron observed that, in his experience, customer pressure on sustainability has decreased over the past 2–3 years, while attention has shifted back toward costs and innovation – even if companies may continue sustainability efforts for longer-term benefit.
“Digitizing” is popular, but the term is fuzzy. The panel treated “digitalization” as a catch-all category that can hide very different realities (from process improvements to AI). Xavier Comtesse argued that organizations often confuse “keeping the first digitization running” with a second wave of digitalization, while Olivier Haegeli noted that the label tends to absorb everything (AI, IoT, etc.) unless companies define what they mean by it.

A regional growth agenda: conditions first, then narratives

The final thread of the discussion moved from company-level decisions to the broader regional question: how does the Jura Arc attract and grow industrial activity, not just defend what already exists?

Here the panel converged on fundamentals: companies need land, usable zoning and construction rules, and – above all – access to skilled people. Without those enabling conditions, attraction strategies remain theoretical.

Olivier Haegeli also stressed a hard truth about putting forward the Jura’s case: a good quality of life helps, but it is not a sufficient argument on its own. Regions must compete on business conditions, industrial feasibility and local advantages, not only with lifestyle narratives.

“The future of Jura industry is in the hands of entrepreneurs and company teams.”

Olivier Haegeli

What industry decision-makers should take away

Despite covering multiple angles – strategy, customers, innovation, diversification, defense, sustainability and regional policy – the panel’s underlying messages were consistent:

A regularly updated or confirmed direction matters more than long-range certainty – and agility is now a core capability.
Customer proximity is the fastest path to relevance, especially in volatile markets.
Innovation is increasingly about functions and services, which makes collaboration a competitive tool, not a “nice to have.”
Diversification works when it’s disciplined – anchored in core strengths and executed without trying to change everything at once.
Regions win by building conditions that let industry execute, e.g. space, rules that work, and factors that attract talent.

Ready to turn these themes into action?

If you’re an industrial company in the Jura Arc looking to sharpen your customer focus, identify credible diversification moves, or build the partnerships and skills needed for the next cycle, we can help you translate these strategic questions into concrete next steps. Check out our InnoJura program.

About the experts

Olivier Haegeli is President of the Chambre de commerce et d’industrie du Jura (CCIJ) and a Director at Willemin-Macodel SA in Delémont. He brings more than two decades of leadership experience in Jura’s industrial ecosystem.

Samuel Davron is Industrial Excellence & Operations Director and a member of the Board at Sonceboz, where he has held senior industrial performance roles since 2007. Earlier in his career, he worked at Renault–Nissan–Mitsubishi as a Senior Consultant in Lean and Six Sigma.

Xavier Comtesse is a mathematician and computer scientist (PhD, University of Geneva) who has worked at the intersection of technology, communication and innovation since the 1970s. He has founded three startups, helped shape Swiss science diplomacy in Washington and Boston (including the Swissnex concept), and co-founded ManufactureThinking.ch, an industrial think tank focused on the new industrial revolution.