Quality assurance

When it comes to selecting the issues and perspectives we cover in our reporting, relevance means giving preference to the universal interest over that of a specific group. Relevant reporting also considers the topicality of the issue in question and its political, economic, cultural and social significance. Geographical or cultural proximity to the everyday world of the public audience can also make an issue relevant.

Professional media work consists in reporting factually and in accordance with ethical standards. This means that in our overall content, all the available key facts and points of view are taken into account and are presented correctly and in a balanced manner. Our objective is to enable the public audience to form its own opinion on any given issue. Media professionals are aware of the legal boundaries, and respect the standards of media ethics and the journalistic guidelines even when time is of the essence. The key to journalistic professionalism is training and development.

Independence means that our media professionals select the topics they cover without regard to government, societal, political or economic interests, and report on those topics impartially and fairly. Where there is a conflict of interest, they step back from covering that particular issue. They conduct research on their own initiative.

SRG engages in dialogue with the diverse population groups of 21st-century Switzerland – for example, with all age groups, genders, educational levels and ethnic groups. Our content covers a raft of different genres and formats and reflects a broad range of views.

SRG ensures that its content is available at the points of contact that are relevant for users of our services. The entire population and all members of society should have barrier-free access. Our content covers all four of Switzerland’s official languages. Our programmes and products are presented in a clear, understandable manner, and the SRG archives are accessible to the public.

• The context and the principles for all the work SRG does and the organisation’s services are set out in the Federal Act on Radio and Television (RTVG), the SRG Charter, SRG’s corporate and content strategy, and its Content and Services Charter. These documents are updated at regular intervals and are published both on the group's intranet and internet, and adopted by the enterprise units.
• RSI, RTR, RTS, SRF and SWI incorporate these documents into their working practices and add to them instructions and rules applying to the specific circumstances of each individual enterprise unit. The documents are updated at regular intervals and are published both on the group’s intranet pages and on the internet. 
• All proposals for services within our structure must be described as part of a concept/mandate. This concept/mandate sets out the genre, thematic framework, editorial orientation and component parts of each individual programme or service, as well as quantitative and supplementary performance objectives for the proposed project. The concepts/mandates are updated regularly, and their provisions are binding on editorial staff.

Regular checks are carried out to assess how the standards, norms and objectives are being applied and how external factors are being taken into account.

Editorial staff are responsible for ensuring that quality-control checks are carried out both before and after broadcast/publication. These checks are performed on the basis of the individual enterprise units’ checking procedures, which are themselves updated at regular intervals.

Departments conduct regular and timely checks on the services within their individual remits.

Each enterprise unit conducts regular and timely checks on the services within its individual remit. The enterprise units also produce an annual Quality Report, which focuses on a specific aspect of their service.

The results of these checks are then communicated to the staff involved and to the public as appropriate, using the following system:

Editorial staff: Quality-control results are discussed at regular meetings. Large editorial teams draft minutes and reports, which are then passed on to the individual staff concerned. External queries are answered in writing as appropriate.

Departments: Quality-control results are discussed at regular meetings. Minutes and reports from these meetings are passed on to all individual staff members concerned. External queries are answered in writing as appropriate.

Directors: Quality-control results are discussed at regular meetings. Minutes and reports are passed on to all individual staff members concerned. External queries are answered in writing as appropriate. At this level, the quality-control procedure includes holding meetings with the relevant editorial teams to communicate the inspection results. The key results of the quality-assurance inspections are communicated to the public in the form of Quality Reports, which are published as part of SRG’s Annual Report.

Following the quality-assurance checks, action is taken to address the findings within the specific areas of the business concerned.

• Standards and aims: The underlying documents (internal standards and broadcast mandates) and the relevant objectives are reviewed and updated as required with a view to implementing any remedial measures that may have been agreed.
• Individual training: Training and specific objectives for individual members of staff are recorded once a year as part of their annual Performance Appraisal (PA), a meeting between individual staff members and their direct Line Managers. Details of the training are recorded on dedicated forms. The procedure for these performance appraisal meetings is standardised across Switzerland.
• Group training sessions for editorial teams, departments or business units are agreed with the business areas concerned (training, technology, etc.) on an ad hoc basis and tied into specific projects. Key training initiatives are recorded in the Quality Reports, which are in turn incorporated into SRG’s Annual Reports and made available to the public.
• Changes to services: Changes are made to programmes and services on the basis of the inspection results and additional analysis. Key changes are recorded in the Quality Reports, which are in turn incorporated into SRG’s Annual Reports and made available to the public.

• SRG pays special attention to the quality of its employees' training and development by establishing uniform principles and regulations for the entire enterprise. If necessary, RSI, RTR, RTS, SRF and SWI supplement these with their own guidelines that take into account the different needs of the enterprise units. These documents are reviewed regularly, adapted if necessary and published internally. 
• New employees receive training on our quality standards and quality-management procedures as part of their initial training, in an adequate form. Interns and those on work experience receive training appropriate to their specific roles. 
• Training measures and individual targets for the individual staff member are defined according to the SMART scheme and recorded in writing, as part of their annual Performance Appraisal (PA), a meeting between individual staff members and their direct Line Managers. Group training sessions for editorial teams, departments or business units are agreed with the business areas concerned (training, technology, etc.) on an ad hoc basis and tied into specific projects. The public is informed about the essential measures of education and training through the quality reports, which are published in the SRG annual report.