Privacy policy

1 Controller

The controller responsible for processing your personal data is Coaching Institute St. Gallen GmbH, Rorschacher Strasse 286, 9016 St. Gallen, Switzerland, UID CHE-349.690.418 («we»). Please send questions about data protection to info@coaching-institute.ch or call +41 79 870 90 16.

2 Principles

We process personal data in accordance with the Swiss Federal Act on Data Protection (FADP). We only collect what we need for the respective purpose and never sell data. Where the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) applies, we rely on the performance of a contract, our legitimate interests, legal obligations or your consent.

3 Visiting the website

When you visit coaching-institute.ch, we do not use analytics, tracking or advertising cookies and do not embed third-party content that sends data to others.

• Hosting: The website is hosted on Microsoft Azure (Static Web Apps). When a page is requested, Microsoft processes technically necessary data such as IP address, time, requested page and browser information in order to deliver the page and protect it against abuse.
• Fonts, images and videos are served by us; no data is sent to Google Fonts, YouTube or similar services.
• Local storage: Your choice of light or dark mode and whether you marked a blog post as “Helpful” are stored only in your browser. While blog comments are still in preview, a comment you write also stays only in your browser. This information never leaves your device, and you can delete it at any time in your browser settings.
• Links to social media and maps: TikTok, Instagram, LinkedIn, WhatsApp and Google Maps only open when you click a link. We store the preview images of our posts ourselves. Once you click, the privacy policy of the respective platform applies.
• Anonymous usage statistics: To see which pages are read, we count page views without cookies and without IP addresses. We only record the page, the rough source (e.g. Google, Instagram or direct), the device type (phone, tablet, computer), the language and whether the enquiry form was started or submitted. The data passes through our queue in Switzerland into our portal, where it is stored only as daily totals. It cannot be traced back to individuals.

4 Enquiry form

You use the form to request coaching; we only use your details to advise you, make you a suitable offer and find a coach.

• What data: university or school, study details (e.g. level, programme, attempt), subjects and exam dates, preferences for lessons and start, your message, name, email and phone, the billing contact if provided, and how you heard about us.
• Spam protection: We use Cloudflare Turnstile to tell real enquiries from bots. Cloudflare processes technical data such as IP address and browser characteristics. We ourselves only store your IP address as a non-reversible hash to limit abuse.
• Transmission: The enquiry passes through a protected queue in a Microsoft Azure data centre in Switzerland (Switzerland North region) into our internal portal. It is deleted from the queue once picked up; entries not picked up expire after 14 days.
• Confirmation: You receive a confirmation by email. We send our emails via Microsoft 365.
• Health information: If you voluntarily tell us something about your health, such as exam anxiety, difficulty concentrating or a diagnosis, we use this information only to handle your enquiry and find the right support for you. We treat it confidentially and share it only as far as your support requires. By ticking the box in the form, you expressly consent to this processing.
• Enquiries via WhatsApp: If you message us on WhatsApp, you use the WhatsApp service (Meta Platforms Ireland Ltd., with transfers to the USA). WhatsApp processes your phone number, your profile name and your messages; the WhatsApp privacy policy applies. We use your message only to answer your enquiry and transfer it to our portal where needed. Information about your health is better sent to us via the form or by email.
• Consent: By ticking the box in the form, you confirm that we may process your details for this purpose.

5 Coaching and invoicing

Once you start coaching, we manage your data in our internal portal to organise and invoice lessons.

• What data: contact details, address and any billing contact, study details, subjects, exam dates, agreed price, appointments and lessons held, internal notes about the coaching, and the time you accepted the terms.
• Onboarding: You complete missing details via a personal link that is valid for 7 days.
• Coaches only see what they need for teaching: name, contact, subjects, appointments and notes we release to them.
• Appointments can be sent to you as calendar invitations by email. We only record lessons if everyone involved explicitly agrees beforehand.
• Invoices are created with AbaNinja (Abacus Research AG, Switzerland).
• Clio: If you use the Coach + Clio package, you create an account with Clio. If you link it with coaching, we tell Clio the subjects in which you take coaching, your coach's name and email address, whether the assignment is running and the times of your last and next lesson. Clio tells us which subjects you have there and whether you allow your coach to access them. With your permission, your coach sees an overview of your progress in the portal, which we do not store. Clio's privacy policy applies to your Clio account.
• Hosting of the portal: Microsoft Azure in Switzerland (Switzerland North region).

6 Applications as a coach

Applications are made by email to info@coaching-institute.ch. We use your CV, grades and details only for the selection process. If you become a coach, we additionally collect the data needed for salary or invoicing and social insurance via the coach onboarding (e.g. AHV number, bank details, ID and permit, withholding tax details).

7 Service providers and transfers abroad

We use a small number of carefully selected service providers who process data only on our behalf.

Where data is transferred to a country without adequate data protection, in particular the USA, we rely on the recipient's certification under the Swiss-U.S. Data Privacy Framework or on standard contractual clauses.

8 Retention

• Enquiries that do not lead to coaching: as long as we need them to respond and for possible follow-up questions. We delete them immediately on request.
• Coaching and invoicing data: for as long as the coaching lasts and afterwards as long as required by law. We keep accounting records and invoices for 10 years (Art. 958f Swiss Code of Obligations).
• Applications without employment: until the selection process ends, at most 6 months, unless you agree to longer retention.

9 Security

We protect your data with technical and organisational measures: encrypted transmission (HTTPS), access only for authorised persons with login, separate systems for website and portal, and regular backups.

10 Your rights

You can request information about your data at any time, have it corrected or deleted, withdraw consent and object to processing, unless a legal obligation prevents this. Write to us at info@coaching-institute.ch. You can also lodge a complaint with the Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner (FDPIC).

11 Changes

We update this policy when our processes change. The version published on the website applies.