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Innovation

The open and collaborative culture at WFI provides fertile ground for innovation and creativity to thrive in all aspects of scholarship. The governance model at WFI, through the elected Faculty Council body, guarantees involvement of all internal stakeholder groups (faculty, staff, and students) on a regular basis. Our governance structure allows for a spirited, respectful exchange of ideas across all internal stakeholders, resulting in multiple innovative initiatives each year. In contrast to strategic decisions made centrally through a hierarchy, or in silos, the governance structure gives voice to all groups within the school and promotes robust discussion and input on all ideas that are discussed during the monthly Faculty Council meetings. Indeed, innovation can come from anywhere in the organization.

How We Innovate…

Innovation Initiatives in Cooperation with the Academic Community

The foundation of our programs at WFI is to create and seek innovative ways of teaching, so we can offer our students the best with the tools at our disposal. To that end, we take great care in providing education that is high in quality, accessible, future-focused, and relevant.

Some recent, select examples of our innovation initiatives with the academic community include-

An innovative Hybrid MBA with business immersions in the Silicon Valley and the German Mittelstand. WFI’s MBA program (weekend, in-person format), which was paused in 2018 for re-evaluation, is now ready to relaunch in a hybrid format that includes 50% in-person and 50% digital learning modes, in October 2022. This creatively re-designed program now includes a global immersion in the Silicon Valley in collaboration with the Graduate School of Management at the University of California at Davis, and a business immersion in the German Mittelstand (Middle Market Firms). A Hybrid format for the MBA, though available in many schools internationally, is uncommon in Germany. This program is poised to offer a differentiated, value-laden educational experience that offers a balance of flexibility and experiential learning, not found elsewhere in German business schools.

Here are some select examples of innovative initiatives with the academic community.

  • Living lab in the Ingolstadt City Center in cooperation with regional companies on the future of urban air mobility. Living Lab - Living Lab (Ingolstadt.digital)
  • KU is the first university to support „YES! – Young Economic Summit“, a nationwide student competition in economics. Each year students, in close cooperation with researchers of renowned economic research institutions, develop their own solutions for regional and global challenges in the economy, society, politics and environment. 

New areas of programming, including Digital and Data-driven Business, and Sustainability. WFI has developed two new bachelor programs, one ready for launch in October 2021 (B.Sc. in Digital and Data-driven Business) and the second for a launch in October 2022 (B.Sc. in Economic Sustainability and Social Responsibility). Both these programs were conceptualized and developed over two years, each starting their lifecycle in WFI strategy meetings that include all professors and the full Faculty Council body.  The Digital and Data-driven Business program addresses a growing need in the industry fueled by an emphasis on business analytics and digital business. The Sustainability focused program responds to an emerging demand from high school students who view climate change as the most important issue of their generation, and from industry partners who are looking for well-trained talent to work on sustainability related initiatives in their organizations. These program innovations represent responsiveness in providing innovative solutions to marketplace needs.

Here are some select examples of innovative programs and courses at our Faculty.

Innovation based on Collaborations and Partnerships

At WFI we put great value into creating relationships with different institutions, organizations, and partners of all kinds. This allows us to not only offer important experiences and resources for our students, but also to contribute to a variety of communities.

Some recent, select examples of our innovation initiatives based on collaborations and partnerships include-

Unique collaborative activities with businesses, with internationally competitive Open Innovation competitions. Integrating experiential learning projects into program curricula is common and expected at WFI. Open Innovation competitions are a novel way in which our students collaborate with businesses under the rubric of experiential learning. Two such recent Open Innovation challenges provide a showcase for the creative talent of our students. In the first example, students in a master’s class at WFI participated in an international Open Innovation challenge by a French multinational energy company, EDF. WFI students created a record with their winning performance in this competition that included 422 teams from all over the world. A total of 31 teams were selected for the second round, consisting of a mentoring phase by EDF executives. Of these, seven were from WFI. One WFI student team was awarded one of three grand prizes in the final held in Paris in December 2019. In a second Open Innovation challenge, student teams from a master’s class at WFI competed with several other student teams to provide innovative solutions to STIHL, with four WFI teams making it to the finals where a total of nine teams competed for three grand prizes. A WFI team won the Game Changer grand prize in December 2021, capping this unique form of collaboration and providing a showcase for the abundant creative student talent at WFI.

Here are some select examples of unique collaborative innovations activities with businesses

Student and Faculty Led Innovation and Initiatives

Our WFI students are our priority, and we wish to offer them the best possible tools, which is why we put special focus on having interesting and useful opportunities and engagement possibilities for them. This includes the UNICEF campus group of the Catholic University of Eichstätt-Ingolstadt, a student engagement organization that actively supports UNICEF's work in Ingolstadt and the surrounding area. Our studies programs are designed to prepare students for an international career and for working in interculturally mixed teams. In particular, this is achieved through international and intercultural content in the courses, and language modules as well as intercultural preparation, support, and follow-up for students going abroad, Double Master's degree in Business Administration – International Marketing in cooperation with Université Toulouse 1 Capitole supported by Franco-German University provide the students a bi-national professional training and will strengthen their intercultural competences.

Our faculty also supports innovation initiatives such as consulting and support for a rideshare app start-up, developing strategies for early-stage marketing/market entry, and even study abroad programs. The Center for Entrepreneurship is preparing an application for the nationwide EXIST program of the Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Energy – BMWi. The application aims to increase the number of university-related start-ups at the KU, with a focus on charitable and social-scientific establishments, and to improve start-up support at the KU with relevant measures, also at the WFI. Through these opportunities, we teach and encourage innovation, by supporting our students’ initiatives and giving them spaces where they can learn through practice the meaning of innovation and what it can do for their communities.

Some recent, select examples of our innovation initiatives from students and faculty include-

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