Sir Mary and Alliance provide a celebrity role reversal

50 years after the introduction of women's suffrage, Allianz Suisse would like to know what the situation is like in terms of equal treatment of the sexes in everyday life. Does the so-called women's or men's bonus still exist? Are more competencies attributed to the other gender in certain areas?

With the help of voice distortion technology, a recording studio and around three dozen phone calls, Allianz and Sir Mary got to the bottom of this question. The agency found the perfect protagonists in presenters Melanie Winiger and Marco Fritsche, since both like to break with traditional gender roles anyway.

The result is a good six-minute mix of entertainment and awareness-raising, which is intended to make an important area of Allianz Suisse's existing diversity commitment tangible for the network community.

Role reversal of a different kind

Driven by the question of how it feels to be perceived as the opposite sex, the protagonists went through three different challenges using a voice distortion device. The tasks were based on common female and male stereotypes in the areas of humor, patience and competence. Among other things, they had to test which gender made the people on the other end of the line laugh faster. The trick: the moderators themselves didn't know whether they were conducting the conversation in a male or female voice. In eight out of ten cases, Winiger and Fritsche were unable to determine the reactions to their calls based on gender. "It was surprising for me because I had taken one or two preconceived opinions into the experiment," they concluded.

Innovative technology and loose narrative form

Filming took place in the heart of Zurich at Jingle Jungle, whose recording studio was unceremoniously converted into a TV studio and equipped with the appropriate technology. Live, minimalist setting, without script and real reactions was the motto. Sir Mary's approach was to present content in an unagitated and documentary-like way.

Nani Nold, Diversity, Inclusive & Work Well Manager at Allianz Suisse sees the advantages in this kind of agenda setting for gender issues: "Even today, gender inequality is still topical and equal opportunities in work and everyday life should be on our agenda. With the experiment, we address the issue in an authentic and entertaining way and raise awareness."

Allianz's commitment to diversity

Allianz Suisse is the main sponsor of the Swiss Diversity Awards. The insurer is also committed to inclusion far from the diversity campaign. For example, its diversity projects in the workplace range from its own LGBTIQ+ networks and the inclusion of people with disabilities to career support for female talent. The insurer was even awarded the "Edge Asses" label for its commitment to gender equality.

The Voice Swap movie is streaming now on Instagram and Facebook.

Responsible at Allianz: Thomas Wegmann, Thomas Jost, Rahel Habersaat, Simone Schmitt, Corina Brunner. Responsible at Sir Mary: Florian Beck, Adrian Merz, Julia Fischhaber, Katrin Espelage, Torben Cording, Sabrina Huwiler, Andreas Portmann, Jessica Do Amparo, Nicolas Hostettler, Daniel Zuberbühler. Responsible at Filmgerberei: Maria Brendle (Director), Flavio Gerber (Executive Producer), Marike Löhr (Producer), Silvio Gerber (DP), Luca Zuberbühler (Editor), Urs Westermann (Animation), Unsere Farben (Our Colors), GREAT GARBO (Music), Jingle Jungle (Sound Design).