Teach­ing

International Strategic Management (course in English)

Strategic management is the art and science of formulating, implementing and evaluating cross-functional decisions that enable an organization to achieve its objectives. Strategic management is a continuous process of strategic analysis, strategy creation, implementation and monitoring, used by organizations with the purpose to achieve and maintain a competitive advantage

by Professor Dr Schallmo

Virtual Startup Boot Camp (course in English)

This course enables students to gain new insights, to apply tools, to work in teams and to transfer their knowledge into practice. We will apply Design Thinking and Business Model Innovation as methods. The didactic concept includes: interactive presentation, case studies, group work and application, discussion of results, application of creativity techniques.

by Professor Dr Schallmo

Applied Design Thinking – User-oriented design of solutions (course in German)

The customer-oriented development of products and services is an important factor for the success of companies, as erroneous developments and flops can be avoided. It is also necessary to inspire customers and to bind them to the company in the long term with suitable products and services. The lecture offers you the opportunity to get to know and apply Design Thinking. Here, the needs of customers are taken up and implemented by means of a structured process in the form of prototypes. Design Thinking can be applied to both end customers and business customers.

by Professor Dr Schallmo

Seminar on Business Information Systems (course in German)

The seminar on business informatics in the main study period offers the opportunity to take up current scientific questions and to discuss them through scientific work. Typical topics include digital maturity, digital strategy, digital transformation of business models and digital implementation.

by Professor Dr Schallmo

Management tools in business and IT (course in German)

Students should be able to understand and apply the process model for management instruments in business and IT with its phases and their objectives, activities, input and results. Students should be enabled to design a management instrument for a case. They should be able to reflect on the results independently.

by Professor Dr Schallmo

Method of Business Model Innovation (course in German)

Companies are constantly being forced to differentiate themselves from their competitors as a result of the increasing homogeneity and transparency of products and services. In addition, stagnating or shrinking markets and increasingly intense competition lead to increasing price pressure. Frequently used means of differentiation are product, service and process innovation, which can, however, in many cases be quickly imitated. In recent years, business model innovation has instead become the focus of theory and practice.

by Professor Dr Schallmo

Digital transformation of business models (course in German)

Some companies are already using digital transformation to gain a competitive advantage. Customer requirements can be better met, throughput times reduced and costs saved. In addition to production processes, digital transformation also refers to changes in products, services, internal processes and cross-company value chains.

by Professor Dr Schallmo

Business Analytics (course in German)

Business Analytics comprises the main trend fields/drivers of digital transformation and the central pillars of data-driven companies. Participants learn the basics of a modern IT infrastructure and can gain in-depth experience in the implementation of deep learning algorithms by means of selected examples. They will be able to analyse existing planning processes with regard to inefficiencies in data/process consistency and to match identified potentials with the currently prevailing technological possibilities. Furthermore, the participants will know the basic procedure for analysis, conception and implementation of digital planning assistants.

by Professor Dr Schallmo

Information Visualization (course in English)

Participants are made aware of the topic of information visualization and understand what information visualization management can look like and how they themselves can become experts. Participants know how the approach for information visualization is applied for a real company. 

by Professor Dr Schallmo

In the Bachelor's degree programme in Business Studies (BA), specialising in "Marketing, Branding & Strategy" with these subjects:

Strategic brand management and brand tools

In this predominantly interactive lecture, students learn about and apply all the concepts and tools necessary to build brands, especially for startups. Contents: Brand concept, brand positioning, brand personality, brand tools (customer insights, archetypes, customer journey, personas, creative brief, content marketing, storytelling).

by Professor Dr Pätzmann 

Creative Idea Generation and Innovation Management

This lecture is also predominantly interactive. Here, students learn about concepts of creativity research, how to creatively apply empirical social research to arrive at well-founded customer insights and how to translate the research results into business models, brand concepts and content marketing. Contents: Creative thinking, qualitative content analysis and coding, netnography, expert interviews, focus groups, individual explorations, online surveys, archetypes, business models and prototypes, branding and communication. 

by Professor Dr Pätzmann 

Concept seminar: Strategy and implementation of brand concepts

In this course, startups or companies that want to launch intrapreneurship initiatives are invited.  They give student teams a marketing briefing, which they work on within three weeks. The teams present analysis, strategy and concept in front of these companies. There are two concept seminars and a concept sprint. In the sprint, the teams develop their own startup ideas within one week and pitch them, e.g. in front of experts from the Ulm and Swabia Chambers of Commerce and Industry. In the conception seminars and in the conception sprint, the students apply what they have learned in the lectures. 

by Professor Dr Pätzmann 

Marketing seminar: Special aspects of brand management

In this seminar, students learn how to write a scientific paper. They think about a research question on topics that vary from semester to semester. However, the topics always have to do with startups and entrepreneurship. For each seminar paper, an exposé is written consisting of the following elements: relevance of the problem, state of research and research gap, objectives and research question, delimitation of the topic, approach and method. 

by Professor Dr Pätzmann 

In the Master of Advanced Management (MSc) and International Corporate Communication and Media Management (MA) programmes, all courses in English:

Strategic Brand Management and Branding Techniques

Covered topics in this interactive lecture are Brand Concept, Brand Positioning, Brand Extension, Brand Personality, Brand Planning, Employer Branding and Brand Controlling.

by Professor Dr Pätzmann

Branding Case Studies

Teams work on case studies which are closely linked to the topics of the lecture. The cases enable students to do a deep dive.

by Professor Dr Pätzmann

Branding Seminar

Here students write a research paper and present core results in class.

by Professor Dr Pätzmann

Conceptual Seminar

A startup or a mature company is invited to give student teams a marketing-briefing, which they work on for three weeks. Tools and concepts from the lecture are applied here. The briefings usually are targeted at international markets.

by Professor Dr Pätzmann

Fundamentals of the Game Industry

In this fundamentals course, students gain an (economic) insight into the core market as well as the broader game market. This emerging multidisciplinary IT and creative industry offers numerous job opportunities, start-up possibilities, as well as an academic career in an emerging discipline. As a focal point, students deal with game history in order to acquire the ability of a so-called game literacy and to further develop and shape the creative market of the future.

by Professor Hebel

Game conception

This course looks at the board game market, identifying trends and niches. Students further develop existing board game classics in conjunction with contemporary themes. They learn to give a meaningful pitch presentation for a market launch in front of a publisher (e.g. Ravensburger).

by Professor Hebel

Gamification & Serious Games

The extended game market increasingly uses gamification and serious games. The students deal with the differences and characteristics of both genres, develop their own solutions based on a real customer order, test them on the target group and present their final proposal professionally to the customer.

by Professor Hebel

eSport Management

eSports is a strongly emerging branch of classic sports management. In this course, eSport events with real customers are analysed, planned and implemented. Optionally, a spin-off offers itself for the continuation of the course projects.

 by Professor Hebel

Start Up Compulsory Elective Subject

The Compulsory Elective Subject illustrates to the participants realistic entrepreneurial challenges on the way to self-employment. Using the example of a surfboard manufacturer, the simulation game deals with all the steps of setting up a business, from the idea to entering the market.

by Prof. Dr Julia Künkele

Intercultural management

In this course participants learn cultural models and comparisons, intercultural competences and communication, the influence of culture on organisation and management as well as an insight into intercultural fields of activity.

by Prof. Dr Julia Künkele

International Controlling

In this course, students learn the conceptual basics of International Controlling as well as Objectives of International Controlling, Contents of Management Accounting, Analysis of Financial Statements Budgeting Process and Cost Management Approaches.

by Prof. Dr Julia Künkele

Fundamentals of automotive engineering

In this course, knowledge of the basics of various components and assemblies in automobiles such as drive systems, chassis, brake systems, bodies and electrics/electronics is taught. In addition, the ability to work with individual and overall functions in static and dynamic states of the components, assemblies or the entire vehicle is taught. Students are taught the ability to understand complex processes from the field of vehicle technology (e.g. electromobility) and driving dynamics (e.g. autonomous driving) and to be able to successfully work on them in the form of practical tasks.

by Manfred A. Plechaty

Automotive product development processes

Participants of this course learn to understand and apply development processes including interfaces to sales/marketing and production. Furthermore, knowledge of the basics and methods for solving tasks in the definition, concept and development phase is imparted. Participants learn how to apply individual and overall methods such as Matlab, requirements management, competitive analysis, construction methods, FMEA or Six Sigma.

by Manfred A. Plechaty

Production & Quality Management

Here students learn to relate, evaluate and execute quality within the framework of industrial processes and the increasing importance for the consumer and for competition with other existing operational processes. Course participants gain knowledge about influencing factors, methods and strategies for quality optimisation and can process and apply these. In addition, students learn to apply quality techniques in the context of projects and to use quality tools in a targeted manner for existing problems and in projects. In addition, participants learn to coordinate the evaluation and development of QM systems for projects, processes or operations under social, legal and financial aspects in the respective company.

by Manfred A. Plechaty

Product Lifecycle Management & PLM-Systems

This course provides a basic understanding of product lifecycle management in a continuous product lifecycle with integration and supply chain, in theory and practice using case study-based, application-oriented, realistic scenarios. Course participants receive an overview of the organisational and methodological requirements of PLM systems based on practical examples, which they transfer to "their" company.

by Manfred A. Plechaty

Financial Decision-Making

The students should be enabled to independently solve complex financial problems. The complexity results from the fact that the topics dealt with each cover several financial sub-areas. The focus is therefore particularly on methodological competence and transfer exercises.

by Professor Dr Elmar Steurer

Corporate Finance

Classical and modern methods of corporate financing are presented and compared in a qualitative and quantitative manner. Their application is discussed on the basis of case studies.

by Professor Dr Elmar Steurer

Financial risk management in the company

Focuses on the presentation of financial risks in the company as well as getting to know methods and understanding how financial instruments work to reduce risks.

by Professor Dr Elmar Steurer