ICERTIAS Begins Research Collaboration with ETH Juniors

• ICERTIAS has begun an advisory collaboration with ETH juniors to strengthen research focused on younger consumers and evolving expectations

• The engagement gives ICERTIAS access to independent, academically informed perspectives spanning technology, science, analytics and business disciplines

• The collaboration reflects ICERTIAS’s commitment to keeping its programmes commercially relevant, intellectually rigorous and aligned with generational change

ZURICH, Switzerland, July 2026 — ICERTIAS, the international market research and certification organisation headquartered in Zurich, has begun a collaboration with ETH juniors, the student-led consultancy based at ETH Zurich, to support a research and analytics initiative examining the behaviour, opinions and expectations of younger consumers.

The engagement will bring an additional independent perspective to ICERTIAS’s work at a time when companies are seeking a clearer understanding of how younger generations evaluate products, services, brands and customer relationships.

ETH Zurich is one of the world’s foremost centres of scientific and technological education, research and innovation. Consistently ranked among the world’s leading universities, it has built a global reputation for advancing knowledge across science, engineering, technology and related disciplines.

ETH juniors, Europe’s largest student-led consultancy, connects organisations with academically trained talent from ETH Zurich across technical, scientific, analytical and business fields. Its model enables companies to draw on current academic knowledge, emerging technological expertise and perspectives developed within one of the world’s most respected research environments.

Within the agreed scope of the project, ETH juniors will provide structured advisory input, critically examine selected assumptions and contribute observations intended to broaden analytical thinking and identify opportunities for practical improvement.

ICERTIAS will retain full responsibility for its research methodologies, certification systems, analytical conclusions and final decisions. ETH juniors will act in an independent advisory capacity and will not participate in certification decisions.

The detailed subject matter, project documentation and commercial terms will remain confidential.

Understanding the Next Consumer Generation

Younger consumers are playing an increasingly influential role in determining how companies develop products, deliver services, communicate with customers and build long-term trust.

Their expectations are being shaped by artificial intelligence, digital-first service models, personalised communication, instant access to information and automated customer care. Price, quality and convenience remain central to purchasing decisions, but they are increasingly evaluated alongside transparency, authenticity, responsiveness, privacy and the ability of companies to combine advanced technology with effective human support.

For major consumer-facing organisations, understanding these shifts is becoming a strategic priority.

ICERTIAS believes that research concerning younger generations should not rely solely on established analytical models or the perspectives of experienced researchers and business leaders. It should also be tested against informed younger viewpoints capable of recognising emerging behaviours, questioning inherited assumptions and identifying expectations that conventional frameworks may overlook.

The collaboration with ETH juniors is intended to introduce that additional level of independent challenge.

By bringing ICERTIAS’s established market research and certification expertise into dialogue with technologically informed and analytically trained talent from ETH Zurich, the organisation aims to strengthen the relevance, adaptability and analytical resilience of its future research programmes.

The engagement forms part of ICERTIAS’s broader commitment to independent scrutiny, emerging consumer insight and the responsible application of advanced analytics.

Its purpose is not to replace established methodologies, but to examine them critically, strengthen their responsiveness to changing markets and help ensure that ICERTIAS’s research remains commercially relevant, intellectually rigorous and aligned with the expectations shaping the next generation of consumer markets.

About ICERTIAS

ICERTIAS is an independent market research and certification organisation established in Zurich in 2011. Active across more than 40 countries, it helps consumers identify excellence in quality, value and customer orientation. Its international programmes, including Best Buy Award, QUDAL - Quality Medal and Customers’ Friend, combine structured research, advanced analytics, transparent evaluation principles and expert validation.

About ETH juniors

Founded in 1997, ETH juniors is a student-led consultancy associated with ETH Zurich and financially and legally independent from the university. Through a network of more than 10,000 students and graduates, it connects organisations with highly qualified talent across science, technology, engineering, analytics and business, bringing current academic knowledge and fresh interdisciplinary thinking to real-world commercial challenges.

About ETH Zurich

Founded in 1855, ETH Zurich is one of the world’s foremost universities for science, technology and engineering. Renowned for pioneering research, entrepreneurial impact and close links with industry, it has helped shape Swiss and global innovation for generations. Its academic legacy includes Albert Einstein, while 22 Nobel Prizes have been awarded to researchers associated with the university.