Timestamps
00:51 — Career Background
01:51 — Women in Public Affairs
03:10 — Why Public Affairs Matters
04:33 — What a Typical Day Looks Like
06:07 — Inside Lidl’s Public Affairs Process
08:24 — Cross-Organizational Collaboration
10:39 — Tools, Topic Mapping & Excel Reality
14:30 — The Human Knowledge Problem
17:31 — Coordinating a Small vs. Large PA Team
18:56 — Stakeholder Engagement Tactics
21:38 — Measuring Impact & KPIs
23:48 — Tools & Monitoring
25:13 — AI’s Role Today
27:04 — AI as a Sparring Partner
28:41 — Future Priorities
29:28 — Rapid-Fire Round
About Jacqueline Fäs
Jacqueline Fäs is the Head of Public Affairs at Lidl Switzerland, leading the company’s political strategy, stakeholder engagement, and regulatory positioning. With a background in communications and business administration, she brings a structured yet people-driven approach to political work. Her career spans years of navigating legislative processes, building long-term networks in Bern, and bridging internal and external perspectives. Jacqueline is known for combining deep policy expertise with practical organizational alignment.
Episode Summary:
In this episode, Jacqueline Fäs, Head of Public Affairs at Lidl Switzerland, takes us inside the real mechanics of public affairs at a major retailer. She explains how Lidl Switzerland structures political work, collaborates across the organization, manages ongoing issues, and navigates long regulatory cycles. We discuss internal processes, stakeholder engagement, AI’s emerging role in research and monitoring, and the realities of building trust inside and outside the company. Jacqueline also shares her views on measuring impact, staying aligned with leadership, and the misconceptions people often have about Public Affairs.
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Timestamps
00:55 — From Theology to Politics
02:55 — Founding Miller & Meier Consulting (1997)
04:10 — What Makes a Great Public-Affairs Professional
08:00 — How the Public Affairs Industry Changed
10:25 — People Over Data
11:55 — The Role of AI in Public Affairs
17:10 — AI as a Co-Pilot
18:45 — Tools & Gaps in the Market
20:20 — Business Model Shift: Retainers vs. Hours
25:15 — Value Creation in the AI Era
28:30 — Europe’s Digital Future
32:15 — Lessons from 30 Years
33:18 — Rapid-Fire Round
About Dominik Meier
Dominik Meier is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of Miller & Meier Consulting based in Berlin, Germany. He has been advising global players, international organizations, non-governmental organizations, and associations on political strategy for over 25 years in Germany and Europe. He focuses on strategy consulting, lobbying leadership, CEO positioning, global governmental relations, and transatlantic strategies. Dominik also co-founded and chairs de’ge’pol and further shares his insights as an advisory board member for the Swiss Green Energy Symposium. Dominik’s work extends into publishing with Freiheit|Macht|Politik, a pluralistic online magazine for political analysis and strategy. His book ”Power and its Logic: Mastering Politics”was first published in 2018.
Episode Summary:
In this episode, Dominik Meier, founder & CEO of Miller & Meier Consulting, joins Silvan to discuss how artificial intelligence and digitalization are transforming political consulting.
From his early days as a theology student to becoming one of Europe’s pioneers in public affairs, Dominik shares how the industry evolved — from reading newspapers for clients to deploying AI-powered monitoring and stakeholder-mapping systems.
He explains why AI is a co-pilot, not a replacement, how Europe can reclaim leadership in tech, and why human connection still defines influence.
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Timestamps
01:40 – The role of curiosity in building a career
04:30 – From corporate insider to consultant
05:55 – Culture eats strategy for breakfast
08:08 – Career in public affairs consulting
09:38 – When to move on in your career
12:10 – Staying curious at 50 and beyond
14:27 – Is there a methodology for public affairs?
18:15 – Political stability as a business advantage
24:40 – Dominique's Public affairs framework
30:00 – Dangers of unstructured lobbying
33:50 – Responsibility in public affairs
41:30 – How AI transforms the discipline
49:33 – Why human connection still matters
50:11 – Public affairs with AI in next 5 years
56:25 – Rapid fire round
About Dominique Reber
Dominique Reber is a Partner at Hirzel.Neef.Schmid Counselors, Switzerland’s leading strategic communications consultancy. With experience at Swisscom, eBay, and economiesuisse, Dominique has spent over two decades bridging the gap between business and politics. He is also an advocate for professionalizing public affairs through structured methodology and training future consultants.
Episode Summary: In this episode, Dominique Reber shares his journey from studying history to becoming one of Switzerland’s top public affairs consultants. He explains why curiosity has been his lifelong driver, how culture trumps strategy, and why methodology is critical in lobbying.
Dominique also explores the role of AI in public affairs, the value of stability in democracies, and what the future holds for the discipline.
Learn more about DELOS - www.delosanalytica.com
Don't forget to follow us on LinkedIn so you can always stay up-to-date with our latest initiatives.