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01 HHL NEWS winter 2012/13
Annual Enrollments Increased by 50%
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HHL’s M.Sc. Program is Ranked No. 1 in Germany
65 The Alumni of HHL are Living in 65 Countries
NEWS LEIPZIG GRADUATE SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT winter 2012/13 WWW.HHL.DE First Goals Reached Recently, HHL Dean Professor Dr. Andreas Pinkwart announced the first positive summary of the goals reached with respect to HHL’s innovate125 Future Concept: _ Increase in annual enrollments by 50% since 2010/2011. _ Major leap in the current global Financial Times Masters in Management Ranking from no. 3 (2010) to no. 1 in Germany and from no. 39 (2010) to no. 11 in the world. In this ranking, HHL is no. 1 worldwide in the focal point of Entrepreneurship and no. 2 globally in the specialization Corporate Strategy. _D oubling of third-party funded professorships. _T eam of Program Directors strengthens HHL’s M.Sc., MBA, Executive Education, as well as doctoral program.
hhl.de/futureconcept-innovate125
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New HHL Research Report Proves Excellence in Theory and Practice HHL published its 2012 Research Report. It is embedded in the new HHL Future Concept. HHL Dean Prof. Dr. Andreas Pinkwart says: “With our innovate125 Future Concept, we aim to sharpen our research profile on a long-term basis. To achieve this, we further developed our scientific structure to systematically consolidate our strengths and form new research focuses. One part of our strategy is to introduce a new type of research report presenting this new group structure and the new cross-group centers.”
Rethinking Leadership
Dynamic Competition and Sustainability Companies worldwide are currently facing a situation in which they must remain competitive in order to secure their existence on a long-term basis but also must accept responsibility and contribute to society or the environment. In many cases, these circumstances often lead to conflicts over goals and decisions which make company leaders face challenges of major importance. Consequently, crucial questions must be discussed: How distinctive is the conflict between competition and sustainability? How should companies react to requirements and challenges arising from this situation? What are the consequences for company management? What could a future leadership model look like? The 2012 HHL Forum on November 21 and 22, 2012, is dedicated to finding answers to these questions. In the process, the following three leadership-related topics will be the focus of the discussions: financial reporting, capital markets and future planning. Outstanding personalities from the economy and science are involved in the event supported by Stifterverband für die Deutsche Wissenschaft, the Heinz Nixdorf Foundation, MITGAS, enviaM, Blue Corporate Finance, and FUNDSTERS. With this event, HHL wants to set the course and develop sustainable leadership strategy by creating a “Leipzig Leadership Model”. The first topical module is to discuss the potential for conflict between competition and sustainability in a critical manner from an economic standpoint. It will be followed by talks on how certain aspects of sustainability may and should be embedded in competitive reporting before acknowledging the regulation of capital markets as an area of conflict. The HHL Forum will finish off with a demonstration of sustainable future planning through various scenarios. November 21 / 22, 2012
2012 HHL Forum Rethinking Leadership: Dynamic Competition and Sustainability hhl.de/research-report-2012
hhl.de/hhl-forum
René Obermann, CEO of Deutsche Telekom AG:
Georg Fahrenschon, President of German Savings Banks Association, DSGV:
“Rethinking leadership – dynamic competition and sustainability are not a contradiction for me. The telecommunications market is without a doubt a prime example for dynamic competition. New market participants basically arise from nothing, often with completely new business models. A company can only continue to exist if it adjusts to the changes in competition, if it becomes more flexible, faster and more innovative. Motivated employees are essential for that; employees who feel good about working for that company and who come with all sorts of different experiences – men and women, young and old, people from different cultures. In short: sustainable and responsible company leadership is virtually a precondition for economic success.”
“Regulation of the financial sector must deal with the risks as a starting point. The financial crisis has shown that we need more regulation: Unregulated financial markets greatly endanger stability. The financial sector has seen increasing deregulation, especially in the 1990s – a course which must be changed now.”
Professor Dr. Dr. h.c. Jörg Baetge, Leader of the Baetge research team, University of Münster: “Since operating economically became a competitive factor for companies, the various stakeholders have demanded an account on aspects of economic, ecological and societal sustainability from the company management. Accordingly, the German Commercial Code prescribes reporting of non-financial performance indicators in group reports. If applied correctly and exemplified by the management, the orientation towards Sustainable Development – Key Performance Indicators by Dr. Axel Hesse may play a vital role in sustainable company leadership.”
Sabine Busse, Vice President Dedicated to Customers Program, Alstom: “Working with disruptive scenarios has shown us that statements such as ‘This will never happen’ or ‘I am convinced that the future will hold exactly this development’ have very little substance. We would be wrong to assume we are able to control the future. What we can do, however, is to think it through and understand worst-case scenarios as an opportunity by preparing for them early on.”
Karsten Schröder, Hedge Fund Manager, CEO Amplitude Capital: “I have always supported the idea of regulation for fair, secure and stable markets. It promotes a functional financial system while avoiding bubbles and crises. However, the regulation initiatives suggested by German politicians are far from this concept - they only serve the purpose of catching votes in a populist manner and therefore are a threat to a free capitalist world.”
02 HHL NEWS Winter 2012/13 CAMPUS
“My Resarch is grounded in Practice” Professor Vasanthi Srinivasan is HHL’s new Holder of the ICCR Chair of Corporate Responsibility & Governance. The chair is kindly supported by the Indian Council of Cultural Relations (ICCR), an institution affiliated to the Indian Ministry of External Affairs. In an interview with HHL news, Professor Srinivasan, who acted as Associate Professor at the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore (IIMB) and as Chair of the IIMB Center for Corporate Governance and Citizenship, gives insights into her academic work. How would you describe your journey into academics? Professor Vasanthi Srinivasan: I did my MBA in Human Resource Management and then worked in the information technology industry in Bangalore for five years. Afterwards I did my Ph.D. looking at how human resource management departments can contribute significantly to the strategy of the business. After I finished my Ph.D, I became a consultant designing and developing interventions for the HR departments of large organizations. I am an applied researcher. I look at the problem and then I look at the theory that can explain the problem and then I go into the field and do my data collection, come back and theorize. Therefore, much of my academic research is context specific with significant implications for managers, who I believe are consumers of research from the business schools.
How is your academic research linked to the practice? Professor Vasanthi Srinivasan: Over the last ten years the area I have worked on is diversity n India, women’s participation in the workforce has increased significantly. Yet, global research on women shows clearly that the talent pipeline of women in senior executive positions is not as high. Would Indian women’s participation differ significantly from the global trend? Some of the research questions that I focus on are: What do organizations do to engage women more effectively? How can women pursue careers in a manner that the human capital is effectively utilized? And how do the societal and the structural elements support or hinder women to continue at the workplace? Currently, with my colleagues I am researching on women on boards in India.Another area of interest is caste-based diversity in Indian companies. As I chair the Center for Corporate Governance and Citizenship at the IIM in India, I also focus on “How do we make young MBAs more sensitive to creating responsible businesses and what is the role of business school faculty in this area? We teach functional areas of management very effectively but have we created responsible leaders for the future? I run a website for anyone interested in ethics, responsibility and governance called www.teachcsr.com. The site has about 600 members, many of whom are academics.
Record: Number of Enrollments at HHL Increased by 50% The enrollments for the fall of 2012 embody a new record for HHL Leipzig Graduate School of Management. Compared to last year’s 126 matriculations, Germany’s oldest business school can tally 186 enrollments in 2012. HHL Dean Prof. Dr. Andreas Pinkwart said: “Compared to the annual enrollments in previous years, the number of enrollments for 2012 could be increased significantly by 50 % through the offer of additional programs and classes. In addition, the faculties and their internationalization have further developed with HHL’s high quality standard being a constant factor here. The increased internationality at HHL is also very gratifying. Almost a third of all students at HHL come from abroad. We currently have students from 25 countries at our campus. We reached peak numbers in this year’s international full-time MBA program, with over 80 % of course participants coming from outside of Germany. The increase in student numbers as well as the international popularity of our Business School confirm the direction of the HHL strategy concept innovate125, which was developed over the past one and a half years.” The enrolment celebrations for all new students of the Master of Science in Manage-
ment, MBA and the Doctoral Program took place on Wednesday (September 12, 2012). More than 50 exchange students from 17 countries were also welcomed on the HHL campus. In his lecture Rolf Schmidt-Holtz, the former Chairman of the Bertelsmann Music Group (BMG) as well as Chairman of Just Software AG, gave the new HHL students the following advice: “If you want to manage a company it is your creativity that counts. Creativity is eight times more important than strategy!” In connection with successful leadership Schmidt-Holtz elaborated: “It is not your or the investors money that make a company successful, it is the people. If you want to lead a company you must be able to communicate with people and to drive them forward.”
What would you like to contribute to the life at HHL and what would you like to get out of your German experience? Professor Vasanthi Srinivasan: So far, my impressions of Leipzig and HHL have been extremely positive. I find Leipzig a warm city with extremely helpful people. I have been quite fortunate to be inducted into HHL in a way that one could call a best practice in HRM to bring in international faculty. Having someone like Ms. Beate Kanheisser, with her wide experience to assist in my settling in is a privilege. I have begun teaching and did my first few sessions in the MSc8 class. The students have been highly engaged and participative with several questions on cross cultural aspects. When you enter a new culture, you discover more about yourself. I suppose, this is the phase that I am going through. I start with what I would like to take away: It is actually the first time that I have moved out of India for a year. Usually I do shorter teaching assignments and travel. So for me, staying a year at a school in a new city allows you to think about yourself and what you did in ways that can be very different from what you do back home. Secondly, in the past few years since the financial crisis, I think there have been larger questions I suppose several of us have to ask. We are living in a global economy. How are we looking at those questions, whether it is human resource management, corporate governance or corporate responsibility – in a manner that is holistic and interconnected? One of the expectations that I have is to get more of that clarity, as a teacher and researcher on how to look at several global problems in an interconnected world. Thirdly, I think Germany has a place in the global economy. This year we celebrate 60 years of Indian-German diplomatic relations. When I got offered the Chair here at
HHL, I found that there is a lot of interest by German companies in India for research. I have several invitations from companies in Germany to visit their facilities. The outcome of these talks and research, I believe would help to develop a research agenda which I would like to contribute to HHL. Apart from understanding India I would be able to bring a distinct South-East-Asian view in teaching, research or executive education. I have insights on South East Asia through my participation in several international research projects. This truly has to do with intercultural management. A topic, which you are also teaching at HHL? Professor Vasanthi Srinivasan: In the fall term I am teaching International Management Competencies with the intention that the students can look at themselves as managers in a global context. No matter where the student will work in the future, be it in Qatar, Ukraine or Sydney, they will require cultural intelligence which will allow them to focus on similarities to build relationships and become effective leaders while acknowledging the differences in cultures.
2nd Day of the Welcome Event for New HHL Students: The Code of Responsible Conduct for Business
The 2nd day of the Welcome Event was organized by the Dr. Werner Jackstädt Chair of Economics and Business Ethics. Thursday, September 13th, 2012 drew special attention to responsible economic conduct – entirely in accordance with HHL´s mission statement, “We educate effective, responsible and entrepreneurial business leaders through outstanding teaching, research and practice”. The intense but fruitful day was made possible by the generous support of our sponsors RWE AG, Klöckner & Co SE and Deutsche Telekom AG. Wolf-Rüdiger Grohmann, the former Director of Corporate Affairs at BP Germany, offered the students some insights from business practice. Speaking on the topic of “Code of Conduct: Paper or Practice?” Mr.
Grohmann emphasized the importance of responsible role models and actions as opposed to sweeping declarations of responsible behavior which are not, and in the face of complex reality, often cannot be maintained in the company’s daily operations. After a lively discussion of the complexities of combining principles with practice, Professor Dr. Suchanek (left) returned to the stage to present the “Code of Responsible Conduct for Business” (“Leitbild”). He stressed the importance of understanding and managing the potential for conflict due to society’s expectations of business and the restrictions of the competitive environment which businesses operate in. The concluding discussion then turned to the issue of which societal expectations business can reasonably be expected to fulfill. In the afternoon, teams of students from the new MBA and Master of Science classes and this semester’s intake of exchange students created presentations in response to several scenarios dealing with the “Leitbild”. A number of these scenarios were conceptualized by the sponsors RWE and Klöckner & Co (as “Leitbild” signatories) and students’ ideas and suggestions were delivered to these firms.
HHL NEWS Winter 2012/13 03 campus
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“Think Outside the Box!” At the Graduation Ceremony on September 1, 2012, HHL news talked to speaker Rainer Neske, member of the Management Board of Deutsche Bank AG. As Head of Private & Business Clients, he is in charge of Deutsche Bank's global franchise with 28 million private and business clients and more than 40,000 employees worldwide.
Financial Economics. Kenneth Rogoff and Robert J. Shiller have been among the world renowned economists to have received the prize so far. Furthermore, Deutsche Bank supports the House of Finance at Goethe Universiy Frankfurt, Luxembourg School of Finance and the renowned Bocconi University in Milan.
As part of its support for HHL through its foundation, Deutsche Bank Stiftung, Deutsche Bank has sponsored the Chair of Innovation Management and Entrepreneurship since April 2011. How important is this ongoing exchange between business and research and educational institutions for Deutsche Bank?
What memories do you have of your own studies, and how do you assess the changes the university world has seen since?
Rainer Neske: Deutsche Bank attaches great importance to the exchange between business and academia. Our commitment to education is therefore based on support for pure and applied science and international dialogue, with a focus on research on issues of global relevance in economics and finance. We honor outstanding achievements in these fields through the Deutsche Bank Prize in
Rainer Neske: I studied IT and Business Administration in Karlsruhe. Two subjects simultaneously – that was a tough program, of course. Nonetheless, I enjoyed my time at university very much. After graduating, I followed the changes in the university world mainly from an outside perspective. In my opinion, the development has been a very positive. Firstly, successful private universities, were founded over the past 20 years, including HHL. Secondly, many universities now have institutes specializing in a particular field that are funded by private spon-
Graduation Ceremony at HHL 116 graduates from 17 countries celebrated their graduation from the Masters of Science, MBA or the Doctoral Program at HHL on September 1, 2012.
Awards for Deserving Students, Graduates and Employees
Besides participating in the ceremony with a commencement address given by Rainer Neske (see left) and the handing over of degrees, the 350 guests consisting of the graduates' families and friends, the US Consul General Marc J. Powell, members of the German Bundestag as well as the Saxon Landtag, members of the HHL Supervisory Board and Board of Trustees and its partner institutes and friends, supporters and sponsors of the school also witnessed several awards being granted.
M.Sc. graduate Dominik Kanbach received the award “Schmalenbach Scholar 2012” for outstanding academic achievements as well as his commitment to the students' interests and his exemplary involvement in extra-curricular activities. Last year’s best of class awards were granted to Christina Dier (P5), Stefan Frisch (MSc4), Andreas Hönl (MSc4), SvenjaKlups (MSc4), Marko Krause (M11), Denis Ranke (M11), Jens Reinstädt (P5) and Ramilya Sufianova (MSc4). All award winners received a book voucher of EUR 150, donated by the Association of Friends of HHL and buecher.de. Christian
careers Bettina Redl, founder of MyRoomStyle
Onur Köksal, CFO of Atasun Optik AS
Directly after finishing her Full-Time MBA Program with a master thesis on internet startups in 2011, Bettina set out to found MyRoomStyle – a social commerce platform for furniture and decoration. The 31-year old is CEO and is responsible for Product and Marketing and successfully launched the platform in September 2012.
Onur Köksal, 36, is the Chief Financial Officer of the Optical Retailer Atasun Optik AS which is an investment of HAL Investments BV in Turkey. HAL Investments BV has investments in more than 40 countries, such as Apollo Optik and Geers Hörgeräte in Germany. Mr. Köksal has been working for the company since its establishment in 2007. Before he joined Atasun Optik he worked for the Istanbul office of PwC as senior auditor and for Multi Corporation as Senior Project Controller in several shopping center construction projects both in Turkey and Bulgaria. Mr. Köksal is a graduate of HHL’s MBA class M3.
Anja Ritchie, Senior Analyst Alternative Investments at BOKF, N.A. Anja Ritchie, 29, joined BOKF in 2010. In her capacity as Senior Analyst the M.Sc. graduate of HHL is responsible for the sourcing and due diligence of hedge, private equity and real asset fund investments. Her team of three investment professionals manages roughly $700,000,000 in alternative assets and is based out of Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA.
Samuel Kermelk, CEO of HeiterBlick Samuel Kermelk, 33, is the CEO of HeiterBlick GmbH based in Leipzig. HeiterBlick is a producer of customized trams for the European market. Before joining HeiterBlick in July 2011, he was responsible for the logis-
Part-Time M.Sc. Student in the Finals of ARD Game Show
sors. I would not have thought this was possible 20 years ago. What advice would you give HHL graduates for the future? Rainer Neske: Continuously expand your horizon by thinking outside the box. We need elites who are not only excellently trained in their fields of expertise but who also have a wide variety of interests. My second advice: Become politically involved for Europe! I am convinced that only as a united continent will we Europeans continue to have a strong voice at the global level.
Hoffmann, research associate at the Center for Scenario Planning at HHL, was awarded the scholarship “Beta Gamma Sigma” of USD 1,000. For outstanding academic achievements Dr. Sebastian Hoffmann, Research Associate at the Chair of Accounting and Auditing, was granted the Research Award 2012, which includes EUR 500 donated by the Association of Friends of HHL. The DAAD-Prize for outstanding achievements by foreign students at German universities with a EUR 1,000 award was received by the American MBA student Kyle Wilson (M12) in the presence of the US Consul General Marc J. Powell. The Marketing Award for the most outstanding marketing student of a year, including EUR 500 donated by the Academic Marketing Association, went to Tobias Rapper (MSc5).
tics planning at Porsche. Samuel Kermelk is an engineering graduate of RWTH Aachen and holds a MBA from HHL.
Bidisha Chakrabarty, Senior Business Analyst at Avery Dennison Bidisha Chakrabarty, 31, works in the field of business process transformation with Avery Dennison, currently based in the Netherlands. Bidisha started her career in the IT Industry in India as an engineer. Thereafter, she moved to Germany and graduated from the MBA Program of HHL in 2006. Since then, Bidisha has worked in various roles in Germany and later, in the Netherlands in the area of operational excellence and business process transformation based on Lean Six Sigma methodologies and supported by ITenabled services.
In October, the German television channel ARD was looking for “Der klügste Deutsche 2012” (The smartest German 2012). Parttime M.Sc. student Christine Hamann (25) had a good chance to receive the title and the prize money of EUR 100,000. Amongst thousands of applicants nationwide, the student, who originally comes from Eisenhüttenstadt, managed to make it into the top 8. A short portrait of Christine Hamann was filmed at HHL a few weeks before the final.
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Stephan Stubner Finished Habilitation On November 5, Dr. habil. Stephan Stubner obtained his post-doctoral qualification (habilitation) with an inaugural lecture on "Challenges in Strategy Development". Dr. Stubner, a graduate from HHL’s Diploma program in 2000, had re-joined HHL in 2007 as Assistant Professor for Strategy and Academic Director for HHL's highly successful Entrepreneurship program. In his research leading to the habilitation, he focused on three topics: entrepreneurial management and family firms, governance and top management teams as well as strategic and scenario planning. With 13 academic publications, more than 20 working papers and over 40 conference presentations, he built up his research profile cumulatively, which was unanimously accepted by HHL's faculty, who awarded him the venia legendi. Prior to HHL, Dr. Stubner received his Ph.D. from the University Erlangen-Nuremberg where he worked from 2002 to 2004 as a Research Assistant at the Chair of Management. He also spent several years in strategy consulting with The Boston Consulting Group and co-founded the two online companies Ciao.com and trivago.de. Dr. Stubner will remain in academia and pursue a role as full professor. He already is in discussion with two institutions that are offering him a position.
04 HHL NEWS Winter 2012/13 CAMPUS
programs
Student from Illinois is Germany’s Best Foreign Student
Global Executive MBA Program by HHL and EADA Kicks Off
During the graduation ceremony on September 1, Kyle Wilson, an MBA student at HHL, was awarded the DAAD Prize 2012. Only the top ten international students in Germany who show outstanding academic performance are eligible for this award. The prize along with EUR 1,000 were awarded in the presence of the American Consul Marc J. Powell. The German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) is one of the world's largest and most respected intermediary organizations in its field. The 26-year old student very much liked the international MBA class with students coming from 12 countries: “HHL quickly caught my attention as a leading business
school in Germany, as well as the whole of Europe – a quality which never wavered throughout my year-long study. From the students to the administration, everyone was open, friendly, and fully committed to exemplifying and fulfilling the values and standards so crucial to the culture of HHL.” Wilson is currently on a study abroad term at the Nanyang Business School in Singapore: “As one of the high quality universities selected by HHL to form a partnership, Nanyang Business School is located in a region which has time and time again proven itself to be critical to the future of the global business environment, offering a unique learning opportunity to round out the comprehensive program provided at HHL.” Wilson plans to search for a job located in Germany first: “I would like to find something that utilizes both my undergraduate degree in Mechanical Engineering as well as my newly acquired MBA. Though I came here with the hope of working for renewable energies, I find that my interests were broadened during my studies at HHL. Anything from a start-up to a large well-known corporation could be potentially appealing for me.”
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“Business Students Without Borders” Student Initiative Growing Due to an increase in enrollment in the fall term of 2012, the number of active members in Business Students Without Borders (BSWB), HHL's student initiative, rose to 30. Founded in 2009, the initiative, which aims to help people to help themselves, may now put together even more individual projects. Very recently, a group of committed BSWB members helped organize a popular biennial fall festival at a children's home in Machern near Leipzig. M.Sc. students Miriam Amedick, Maximilian May and Torsten Nowell (all MSc7), among others, were involved and helped set up, maintain and take down the various game stands, such as beer mug sliding and moon bounce, all over the spacious area around the children's home.
Another wonderful project, which was already started during the last term, is the planned computer tutorials for children from the Leipzig area. They will be taught how to work with Microsoft Office software such as Word, PowerPoint and Excel as well as how to use the internet. This year, the organizers plan to have additional courses taught in English.
[email protected]
A large part of BSWB team now forms the new MSc8 Master class which aims to launch various new projects despite the stressful HHL studies at HHL. Rene Rabe and his group, for example, want to support the Leipzig Forikoloe.V. association with the construction of schools in Sierra Leone.
At the beginning of October, the first class of the new Global Executive MBA Program, designed by HHL and the Spanish Escuela de Alta Dirección y Administración (EADA), kicked off with 14 students representing 8 different nationalities (Brazilian, Bulgarian, Colombian, German, Icelandic, Israeli, Spanish and Russian). The members of this diverse group of outstanding and highly motivated students have an average of 10 years of work experience in areas such as E-Commerce, IT, Green Technology, Tourism, Retailing, Consulting, Media and Banking. The modular Global Executive MBA Program is offered com-
pletely in English. The program focuses on business practices in Western European countries (especially Germany and Spain). In addition, participants gain insight into the economies and cultures of the Chinese, Brazilian and Indian markets, attending three International weeks in prestigious Business Schools of these Countries. The German student André Keeve (35), Head of Marketing at Axel Springer AG, shares his enthusiasm in this way: “I am particularly excited to be part of the new Global Executive MBA program because it presents a great challenge for my professional and personal development. I am certain that the program’s global approach and highly international mix of participants is going to help enhance my intercultural skills. In addition to this, the particular focus on rapidly emerging markets will widen my understanding and outlook on today’s globally intertwined market.” hhl.de/GEMBA
PROGRAMS
Global Executive MBA Program Accredited by ACQUIN The new Global Executive MBA Program by the German HHL and the Spanish Escuela de Alta Dirección y Administración (EADA) has been successfully accredited by the German organization ACQUIN. The modular structure of the 18-month Global Executive MBA Program is suited to the professional and personal needs of international execu-
tives. The program consists of eight core modules, of which four take place in Germany and four in Spain. The two additional modules are completed at reputable business schools in Brazil, China, or India.
hhl.de/global-executive-mba
International Relations
HHL Extends Cooperation with Indian Manager Forge HHL recently extended its partnership with the Indian Management Development Institute (MDI) Gurgaon. The cooperation, which has existed since 2001, not only includes exchange programs for students and professors but also double degrees for students in the M.Sc. and MBA degree Master programs. Both business schools cooperate in the field of company-specific training courses and within the new Global Executive MBA program of HHL and the Spanish EADA Business School. One module of this international program takes place at MDI. Since the beginning of the partnership with the Indian manager forge, HHL has welcomed
17 Indian students to its campus. In return, ten HHL students went to study at MDI.
From left to right: Professor Dr. Andreas Pinkwart (Dean of HHL), Gita Bajaj, Ph.D. (Chairperson International Relations of MDI), Mukul P. Gupta, Ph.D. (Director of MDI), Frank Hoffmann (Director International Relations of HHL)
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4 International HHL Manager Golf Cup
From left to right: Andreas Fichte, Dr. Horst Saalbach, Christian Haase, Christian Strenger
The International HHL Manager Golf Cup at Dübener Heide golf course saw full visitor numbers on September 14th. Numerous regional and international guests from the economy, politics and society turned up for the competition and the culminating evening event.
They were joined by graduates and current students of Germany’s oldest Business School, and besides the small white ball in a trial lesson and during the competition, it was all about the expansion of their personal and professional network. Leipzig-born Dr. Horst Saalbach, entrepreneur and former president of Festo Corporation USA had initiated the Manager Golf Cup for exactly that reason, to support HHL in the realization of its growth targets. The patrons of the competition, Professor Dr. Georg Milbradt, former Prime Minister of Saxony and Chairman of the Board of the Kramer Foundation of HHL as well as Christian Strenger, board member of DWS Investment GmbH and Academic Director at the Center for Corporate Governance at
HHL, follow this same intention. Strenger said: “We are moving in the right direction with the Golf Cup and its concept of regional networking as well as the support of HHL. The importance of HHL’s role for Leipzig area becomes more and more obvious.” The winners in the gross category of this year’s tournament were Sandra and Jürgen Balthasar (R.S.V.P. Kommunalberatung GmbH). The special price for the “longest drive” went to recently enrolled HHL student Cornelius Schilling. HHL is looking forward to even more participants and supporters of the 5th Manager Golf Cup 2013.
hhl.de/events
[email protected]
We thank our supporters of the 4th International HHL Manager Golf Cup BMW Niederlassung Leipzig, Breuninger Leipzig, Deutsche Bank AG Leipzig, CBW Chemie GmbH Bitterfeld-Wolfen, Dr. Dietmar Heintzschel, Dr. Horst Saalbach, DWS Investment GmbH, Firma Jürgen Berger, Gerd Schmidt, Hotel Fürstenhof Leipzig, Hotel und Residenz Leonardo, Jana Martin – www.incentivearts. com, Kanzlei Thomas Rößler, Lufthansa, Mattukat & Partner Steuerberatungsgesellschaft, Modehaus Fischer GmbH & CO. KG, R.S.V.P. Kommunalberatung GmbH, Seeteufel GmbH & Co. KG, Sheraton Essen Hotel, Signal Iduna, www.taschenkaufhaus.de, Thomaskirche Leipzig, VW Automobile Leipzig, Weidinger Richtscheid Rechtsanwälte, Wubbe Prins, Zander Malerfachbetrieb & Restaurierung GmbH, Zentralkonsum eG, Zills Tunnel Restaurant Betriebs GmbH
HHL NEWS Winter 2012/13 05 Programs
Campus
“We are a Motley Crew”
Victor Schlenkhoff, 24, describes his first days in the M.Sc. program at HHL Leipzig Graduate School of Management. Born in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia, he obtained a Bachelor in Business Administration from the University of Passau. Schlenkhoff talks about house hunting in Leipzig as well as the studying atmosphere and the internationality at HHL. How did you experience your first days at HHL? Victor Schlenkhoff: Although we come from all over Germany and abroad, we got to know each other quite well during the first two weeks. This was also the time I was looking for an apartment. To be honest, I thought it would be easier. Nonetheless, you can find a cool place in Leipzig – no matter whether you want to live on your own or share an apartment. Compared to Munich or other university cities, the housing situation in Leipzig is a lot more relaxed. How do you assess the learning environment? Victor Schlenkhoff: The Bachelor program at the state university did not focus on the
practical side so much. The team work with open tasks is much more intensive at HHL. When we are discussing things as a team, group dynamics develop which we use to find the best possible solution. Working with fellow students from other cultures is particularly exciting because you get to learn about different approaches and opinions from them. And what about the topic of internationality at HHL in general? Victor Schlenkhoff: The school itself and the life on campus are incredibly international. Everybody speaks English. If we speak German and a foreign student joins the group, we immediately switch to English. We are motley crew and do a lot together here in Leipzig. I remember my Bachelor program where exchange students did not mingle with the German students very much. Here at HHL, the atmosphere is a lot more interactive.
National Scholarship through mysportbrands and Stadtwerke Leipzig During the festive enrollment ceremony on September 12, two HHL students were awarded the National Scholarship through the company mysportbrands and Stadtwerke Leipzig. The 26-year-old M.Sc. student Phillipp Veit (left) was elated to receive the National Scholarship. He said: “I am very grateful for the opportunities I have been given so far and especially for the chances offered by HHL. I think it is great that a start-up such as mysportbrands, which was founded by HHL graduates, now supports current students of their alma mater.” Scholarship holder Victoria Dressel (32, second from the right), student of the parttime MBA program of HHL, added: “I am very grateful for the wonderful support of Stadtwerke Leipzig and HHL. As a senator and class representative but also as a selfemployed person and single parent I will continue to give my very best.”
Lydia Wagner (second from the left), area manager Finances/Materials Administration at Stadtwerke Leipzig, explained: “We are honored to award yet another National Scholarship to an HHL student. We are an essential employer in the Leipzig region and also very interested in supporting local schools. The local region is indebted to HHL’s work and we cooperate closely with the business school in specialized topics. Therefore it was only logical for us to again award a National Scholarship to an HHL student.”
PROGRAMS
Are you a member in any of the numerous student initiatives at HHL?
Euro*MBA Again Certified by AMBA
Victor Schlenkhoff: I work in the 'Business Students Without Borders' initiative. It is a great thing since you organize projects that you have an interest in together with a partner or on your own. We are currently thinking about offering computer classes for older people in Leipzig. I also dedicate my time to the European Ivy League, the largest soccer tournament for European business schools.
The Euro*MBA, an innovative two-year MBA program for executives, which is based on blended learning, was awarded again the international quality seal of the organization AMBA (Association of MBAs). Alongside AACSB and EQUIS, AMBA is one of the best known international accreditations for MBA programs. The Euro*MBA program connects the latest technology in the dis-
tance learning sector with compact presence seminars at six European locations, amongst others at HHL. The Euro*MBA is listed as one of the leading programs internationally in the distance learning sector in the renowned MBA rating of The Economist.
hhl.de/euromba
INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
Excellent Cooperation: HHL and Its Partner Universities in France For 16 years, HHL has maintained intensive contact with outstanding business schools in France. ESCP Europe was the first partner. Over the ensuing years, contracts with 13 other French universities were signed. Audencia Nantes and, since May 2012, ICN Business School in Nancy as well are among the partners all of which have international accreditations such as AACSB, AMBA and/ or EQUIS. This unparalleled high number of partner universities in one country is based on the requirement to secure the intercultural success of the studies. A maximum of only two HHL students may go to one university at the same time as part of the exchange program. The schools cooperate in the field of student exchange and double-degree programs (MBA and M.Sc.). Addition-
ally, HHL also conducts exchange programs for professors and employees with specific French universities. With some partners, HHL cooperates in the Euro*MBA program as well as in the fields of student initiatives and career service. Since 1996, HHL has welcomed 73 students to its campus. In return, 81 HHL students seized the opportunity to study at a French partner university. One of them is Mirjam Rössler (MSc6, right), who is currently completing a term abroad in Paris. “Besides capitalizing on the high quality of academic standards at ESCP Europe, being a part of this extensive network all over Europe is a rich experience you should not be missing.” Due to her strong interest in the wine industry, Miriam Rössler’s MSc6 classmate, Anastasiya Romanova, is spend-
ing a term at INSEEC, Bordeaux. She says: “Today I had the opportunity to participate in a blending workshop. The cuvee “J’aime HHL” has 80 % Merlot and 20 % Cabernet Sauvignon and according to the Maître de Chai, the wine should now be matured ten years in the bottle and only then be consumed. I promise to really do my best and bring it to Leipzig in January!” Frank Hoffmann, Director of International Relations at HHL, describes the importance of the cooperation between German and French universities: “France is Germany’s closest and most significant ally in Europe. Germany is the most important trading partner for France but also schools and universities from these two countries work on increasing their network structures in the bilateral
and European framework. HHL actively focusing its course on this region is simply the logical result of the developments so far.”
PROGRAMS
PROGRAMS
Team of Directors Strengthens HHL’s Study Programs
Part-Time MBA Global Immersion Seminar to Boston
With its innovate125 Future Concept HHL states its goal of moving up into the league of the top 10 graduate schools in Europe with its significant M.Sc., MBA and Executive programs as well as its well-structured doctoral program. To achieve this, a strong team of directors oversees the content, the structure as well as the further development of these academic offerings. Professor Dr. Manfred Kirchgeorg acts as new Academic Director for the Executive Education programs of HHL and Professor Dr. Schwetzler as his counterpart for the MBA programs. Professor Dr. Henning Zülch supervises the M.Sc. Program and Professor Dr. Wilhelm Althammer is responsible for
HHL’s Doctoral Program. In the upcoming editions of HHL news you will find editorial portraits of each HHL Program Director.
Professor Dr. Kirchgeorg
Professor Dr. Schwetzler
Professor Dr. Zülich
Professor Dr. Althammer
Embracing the topic “Feel the Innovative Spirit of a Hub City: Key Success Factors of Innovators” the part-time MBA class P7 went on a Global Immersion Seminar to Boston September 16 - 21, 2012. During lecture sessions at Harvard Business School, Boston University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Fletcher School/Tufts University and Boston College, students got a glimpse of the various academic institutions in Boston and attended lectures on “Innovation Strategy”, “Flexibility in Engineering Design”, “Financial Reporting in a Global Economy” and “Social Networks in Organizations”. To explore Boston’s leading role in entrepreneurship, innovation, business and science
the class visited several companies and organizations. Cambridge Innovation Center and Akiban Technologies presented the entrepreneurial spirit of the city. MIT Media Lab and the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard gave important insights into ground-breaking and innovative research.
06 HHL NEWS Winter 2012/13 Alumni Relations
ENTREPRENEURSHIP
HHL Alumni Homecoming with Alumni from all over the World In context of this year’s Alumni-Homecoming HHL welcomed close to 100 of its Alumni and their families and friends on its Campus at Jahnallee Leipzig on the last October-weekend. During the three-day happening all Alumni enjoyed the possibility of a Campus-Tour with a special focus on the new Schmalenbach Building, talks with fellow alumni, HHL professors, and staff members and also held its annual General Assembly. In addition, the Diploma class K10 celebrated their 10th anniversary with former classmates coming to Leipzig from all over Germany, from London as well as the Netherlands. All Alumni attended the Homecoming Dinner at the Panorama Tower, where the Dean of HHL welcomed them and gave the Dinner Speech. By doing so he also presented the new future strategy innovate125 to the Alumni, and gave an insight into all current developments at HHL as well as answered questions by the Alumni. The homecoming ended with a brunch on Sunday.
Election of new HHL Alumni Association Board During the Homecoming Event the General Assembly also elected a new HHL Alumni Association Board after the former Board with Friedhelm Wachs (P2) as its chairman decided not to run for another term after six years. Unanimously elected by the Alumni as the new chairman was Lars Wulfken (P6), currently working for Adobe as product manager in Hamburg. The Board is completed by Christoph Stancke (P6) who takes up the position as new Deputy Chairman and works as counsel (Corporate/M&A) for the Otto Group in Hamburg as well as by Dr.
New Board of the HHL Alumni Association: (from left to right) Lars Wulfken, Chairman of HHL Alumni Association, Kai Schultz, Julia Höffner (HHL Alumni Officer), Christoph Stancke, Deputy Chairman of HHL Alumni Association, Jan Möwe-Jarren, Alexander Perske (all alumni P6)
Marco Sperling, who currently works as an consultant with McKinsey in Berlin, who was re-elected as Treasurer. In his address Friedhelm Wachs took the chance to look back on the last six years, in which it was possible to double the number of members who pay their membership fee and quadrupled the annual income of the HHL Alumni Association to EUR 26,000. Other achievements were the establishment of the HHL Alumni Foundation as well as the donation of all in all EUR 148,000 to HHL. For this he especially thanked his partners on the Board with Dr. Burkhart Eymer (K3) being the Deputy Chairman for their extensive involvement with HHL and its alumni in the last years and wished the new board all possible success in the coming years. Right after the elections Lars Wulfken and his team pointed out that it is their goal to establish an active, growing and high quality alumni network, which provides its members with premium events, contacts as well as knowledge transfer.
hhl.de/alumni
HHL Graduate Launches First Universal Crowdfunding Platform How can the funding for promising startups founded by HHL students and graduates be supported in the future? The talks between HHL Dean Professor Dr. Andreas Pinkwart and alumnus Markus Brütsch resulted in a business idea to answer this question. Europe’s first universal crowdfunding platform FUNDSTERS was launched in early November. Whether you are a founder, project initiator or developer of ideas – FUNDSTERS enables crowdfunding without limitations to individual industries, fields of interests or funding volume. The platform is open to everyone burning for an idea. “Crowdfunding in Germany should no longer be restricted to individual industries or niches. This form of fund-raising is the modern-day alternative to classic funding through banks and it is open to all people believing in the success of their ideas,” says Markus Brütsch, co-founder and CEO of FUNDSTERS, on the reasons behind
Supervisory Board, and Christian Strenger, Academic Director of the Center for Corporate Governance, at the meeting. Special thanks go to alumna Katharina Rosenbohm (M7) from Deutsche Bank who hosted the event in the Deutsche Bank Tower Taunusanlage.
New Seating in the Library and New Design of Alumni Lounge Since the beginning of this year, HHL’s library has new seating. This has been made possible thanks to the extensive engagement of the HHL Alumni Association who sponsored 40 new seats. Therefore, the Dean, Professor Dr. Pinkwart (middle), and the Chancellor, Dr. Baisch (left), proudly presented the new furnishings in the library to Friedhelm Wachs (right), Chairman of the HHL Alumni Association, during graduation ceremonies. The 15-year-old basic equipment could be replaced with the support of our HHL alumni. The new seats are much more comfortable, quieter and fitted to the table height which makes time in the HHL library as pleasant as possible. Furthermore, the former “Cafeteria” on the 1st floor has been redesigned and now offers great opportunities for reading newspapers and magazines, which are on display.
With the new sofa furniture a comfortable atmosphere has been created in order to relax and meet with fellow students and staff. In addition, it is an excellent location to bring HHL closer to interested people who might join HHL. All in all, the redesigned lounge is illuminated by seven wall lights while the beverage and food vending machines are hidden by frosted glass.
fundsters.de
SMILE Events in the Winter Term The Self-Management Initiative Leipzig (SMILE) is offering a total of almost 100 different events up to March 2013. In addition to well-known “Leipzig Ideas Competition for Founders of New Businesses”, LIFE, with its awards ceremony on November 28, numerous seminars and workshops on topics such as entrepreneurship, start-up financing, preparation of business plans and soft skill management have been scheduled. For the first time, on-demand events are being offered, for which there is no fixed date. People interested in starting their own businesses have the opportunity to participate in individual coaching ses-
sions this year as well. They can contact the SMILE office at HHL overseen by Nagwan Abu El-Ella and Eric Weber. Students, alumni and employees of the cooperation partners may use all SMILE offers free of charge. SMILE is a joint project of the University of Leipzig, HHL Leipzig Graduate School of Management, and Leipzig University of Applied Sciences funded by the European Social Fund (ESF), the Saxon State Ministry of the Economy, Labor and Transport and the Saxon Ministry of Higher Education, Research and the Arts. smile.uni-leipzig.de
Schumpeter Junior Professorship for Entrepreneurship and Technology Transfer
Start-ups and Funding must Attract one Another
Alumni Onsite in Frankfurt On October 4, more than 40 participants joined our alumni onsite meeting in Frankfurt and got a comprehensive insight into HHL’s Future Concept innovate125 and the latest success stories from HHL. We were also very pleased to welcome Torsten Griess-Nega, member of HHL’s
launching the platform. For those wishing to make investments through FUNDSTERS, the new crowdfunding platform offers two options. The first one envisages yield-oriented investments in the form of a silent partnership, the other one is for funding projects that offer project-related services in return (e.g. discounts or pre-emptive rights). The platform also allows for charity funding with thank-you gifts of sentimental value such as dedications or photos. FUNDSTERS has another obvious advantage compared to other platforms when it comes to high capital requirements: a BaFin license allows FUNDSTERS as the first platform in Germany to administer investments exceeding the usual limit of EUR 100,000. This is an important factor since about 45 % of all start-up projects have capital requirements of EUR 100,000 or more.
“What are the conditions for technologyoriented start-ups in Leipzig and how can they be improved?” – this was the central question of the first Leipzig Forum for Innovation and Investment which took place on October 15, 2012. The Technologiegründerfonds Sachsen (Technology Start-up Fund Saxony, TGFS) hosted the event. Representatives from the economy, politics and education discussed how to invigorate the triad of ideas, capital and networks. Looking at the statitics, it becomes obvious that the Saxon metropolis has some catching up to do: both the expenditures for research and development and the number of patent applications are far below the national average. Furthermore, the specific structure
in Leipzig shows a gap in the field of earlystage funding: there are no major venture capital companies. “Start-ups and funding must attract one another: investors will only come to Leipzig once existing startups have made the region more attractive,” points out Dr. Vivek K. Velamuri. As the Schumpeter Junior Professorship for Entrepreneurship and Technology Transfer at HHL he is proud of his university's success: “The teaching as well as the active network allow us to motivate our students to start their own businesses and to strengthen the entrepreneurial spirit. We can measure our success by the fact that more and more students are highly motivated to complete their internships in a start-up business whereas 15 years ago, most people focused on major enterprises.” Strengthening the entrepreneurial spirit, providing capital and expanding the network – those are the main tasks according to those participating in the event.
HEINZ NIXDORF CHAIR OF IT-BASED LOGISTICS
Managing a Company through Processes On September 25, 2012, as part of the course “IT-based Logistics” of the Heinz Nixdorf Chair of Logistics, Mr. Hans Steinbeck, a longterm IBM manager and freelance lecturer, offered HHL’s full-time MBA students an insight into IBM’s quality management and restructuration processes. After a short insight into IBM’s Six Sigma and Total Quality Management processes, Mr. Steinbeck concentrated
his guest lecture on the reengineering program at IBM in the 1990s. Looking at this program not just from the logistics perspective, Mr. Steinbeck focused on the importance of a lean and efficient IT structure and displayed the rollout of SAP in the whole corporation. Through the relating of anecdotes and the involvement of participating students, the guest lecturer presented a diverting speech.
HHL NEWS Winter 2012/13 07 ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Chair of Accounting and Auditing
Female Entrepreneurs and Success?
Doctoral seminar for Chairs of Accounting
Professor Dr. Christine Volkmann: Just go for it! Do not let others who attach more importance to potential deficits deter you but remember what it is you can and want to do and believe in yourself (self-efficacy). It is of profound relevance that you develop a scalable business model as well as a support network.
On the occasion of this year’s Leipzig Entrepreneurship Lecture, HHL news spoke to Professor Dr. Christine Volkmann, UNESCO Chair in Entrepreneurship and Intercultural Management at Wuppertal University, about success factors for female entrepreneurs. Do female entrepreneurs have different goals compared to their male counterparts? Professor Dr. Christine Volkmann: No, as a matter of principle, they do not. The goals of female entrepreneurs mostly depend on how much time women spend involved in their start-up. Statistically speaking, women tend set up companies in the form of part-time and side businesses. A major reason for this is that women attribute more importance to the household context when making the decision to start a business. If they have children, women do most of the family work. They often work from home in their business. Naturally, this leads to a different weighting of the goals. What advice would you give female HHL students interested in starting their own businesses?
The 2012 Leipzig Entrepreneurship Lecture Within the framework of the Gründerwoche Deutschland (Start-up Week Germany, November 12 to 18, 2012), HHL hosted its Leipzig Entrepreneurship Lecture entitled “Female Entrepreneurs and Success?” on November 13, 2012. In addition to Professor Dr. Silvia Roth (formerly Roth & Rau AG developing and producing plasma process systems for the photovoltaic industry), female entrepreneurs Katja von der Burg (www.projecter. de, an online marketing agency in Leipzig), Marlene Schroeder (www.formverleih.com, a studio for product design in Leipzig), Katja Thieme (www.betourt.de, a provider of outdoor tours and events in Leipzig), Antonia Neubauer (www.sister-mag.com, a digital women’s magazine from Leipzig) as well Tanja Bogumil (www.modemeister.com, an online shopping service for men) attended the event. Professor Dr. Christine Volkmann, UNESCO Chair in Entrepreneurship and Intercultural Management at Wuppertal University, also gave a lecture. The event was moderated by Professor Dr. Helge Löbler, Chair of Marketing at Leipzig University. HHL Dean Professor Dr. Andreas Pinkwart as well as Deputy Managing Director of the Leipzig Chamber of Industry and Commerce, Rita Fleischer, kicked off the event with their opening speeches. The Leipzig Entrepreneurship Lecture was supported by the SMILE Selbst Management Initiative Leipzig (Self-Management Initiative Leipzig), the Leipzig Chamber of Industry and Commerce as well as Commerzbank Leipzig.
CHAIR OF financial MANAGEMENT
Professor Schwetzler at the Annual Meeting of the German Finance Association Established to bundle the efforts of financial research in Germany, the German Finance Association (DGF) has become a central hub between financial theory and practice in the German speaking areas. Professor Dr. Bernhard Schwetzler gave a presentation entitled “An Anatomy of Serial Acquirers, M&A Learning, and the Role of Post-Merger Integration” of the 19th Annual Meeting of the DGF which took place this year at Leibniz University Hannover on October 5, 2012. Against this background, the question of whether companies could actually learn how to acquire other companies
arose. According to Professor Dr. Schwetzler, the results drawn from more than 20,000 corporate transactions are of great practical importance: they show that the transaction performance of serial acquirers is significantly lower than that of non-serial and one-time acquirers contrary to the assumption of positive learning curve effects. The results, obtained from the dissertation by Dominic Klemmer in collaboration with the Center for Corporate Transactions and the Boston Consulting Group, have thus an added value for both practice and science.
CHAIR OF MARKETING MANAGEMENT
Study on the Development of Consumer Trade Shows in Germany Published What are the future prospects for consumer trade shows in Germany? What kind of potential do the results pose for trade show organizers and exhibitors and what effect does this have on the position of trade shows? The “Perspektiven, Potentiale und Positionierung von consumer trade shows” (“Prospects, Potential and Positioning of Consumer Trade Shows”) study dealt with these questions. The team under the leadership of Professor Dr. Manfred Kirchgeorg found that consum-
er trade shows will face increasing competition from a large number of shopping, event and leisure activities. The study shows that the multi-sensual brand experience represents an unrivaled ace up the sleeve compared to online shopping. The results of the study will be published as part of the series by the Institute of the German Trade Fair Industry and are available for download free of charge on the following website: auma.de
The chair of Accounting and Auditing hosted the 4th Doctoral Seminar for Chairs of Accounting of the Region East at HHL in cooperation with the Ernst & Young Foundation. The event dealt with the latest developments in international financial reporting as well as special topics of corporate social responsibility, auditing, forensic services, and costs of capital, and saw selected professors and research associates from leading universities of Eastern Germany gathering at HHL on September 27 and 28, 2012. Moreover the program included a presentation from representatives of Ernst
& Young’s management dealing with latest developments in the accounting for leases. The seminar offered the participants a unique opportunity to present their own accounting research and to learn what colleagues at other universities are doing. The 28 academics enjoyed two interesting and challenging days at HHL and in the city of Leipzig. The Chair of Accounting and Auditing is looking forward to hosting the 5th Doctoral Seminar in 2013 again at HHL.
Top in CSR, Flop in Financial Reporting? Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has become a popular and increasingly used term among firms, authorities and in the press. Sustainable and responsible corporate management is moving more and more into the focus of companies and investors. Whether companies in fact do change so as to become more social, sustainable and responsible remains to be seen. Marcus Salewski and Professor Dr. Henning Zülch from HHL's Chair of Accounting and Auditing analyzed the association between CSR and the quality of financial reporting in their new working paper entitled: “The
Impact of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) on Financial Reporting Quality – Evidence from European Blue Chips”. The findings of the published research paper are now subject of discussion on several national and international accounting conferences. Starting point for discussion is the HHL-Forum 2012 on November 22, 2012. In this context Prof. Dr. Henning Zülch will chair a panel discussion about “Financial Reporting – A Sustainable Management Tool?” http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers. cfm?abstract_id=2141768
What is a ‘Fair Value’? On September 18, 2012, the Gesellschaft für kapitalmarktorientierte Rechnungslegung e.V. (GKR), which is part of HHL’s Center for Financial Reporting and Consolidation, held a seminar on the new regulations for fair value accounting under IFRS. On this occasion, GKR also invited more than 40 IFRS practitioners who regularly meet for an IFRS Roundtable in Leipzig to participate. Dr. Sebastian Hoffmann, Assistant Professor at HHL’s Chair of Accounting and Auditing, presented the new regulations and outlined that they will become effective from 2013 onwards. The fair value is now defined as a hypothetical selling price which needs to be determined from the perspective of an independent market participant. For companies it will be a particular challenge to identify such a market partici-
pant who then sets the parameters for valuation. In that regard it is important to keep in mind the newly introduced fair value hierarchy. It requires determining the fair value based on current and actual market prices. Only if such prices are not available, may one apply valuation methods, such as Discounted Cash Flow procedures or option pricing models. Those methods should also be based on market input parameters as far as possible. Dr. Hoffmann assessed the regulatory changes as not imposing significant material changes. However, new disclosure requirements will increase costs for preparing financial statements. Furthermore, the new rules “will still allow for discretionary valuations when determining fair values”, as one practitioner concluded.
CHAIR OF MARKETING MANAGEMENT
Changing Telecommunication Markets Top executives of the German economy meet twice a year to exchange their experiences in the Wissenschaftliche Gesellschaft für Marketing und Unternehmensführung (Academic Society for Marketing and Business Leadership). Since 2006, Professor Dr. Manfred Kirchgeorg of HHL has been in charge of the academic support of this circle. On October 25 and 26, 2012, the members met for the 63rd Leadership Talks at the Berlin office of Deutsche Telekom AG. Kicking off the event, René Obermann, Chairman of the Executive Board of Deutsche Telekom AG, spoke about the challenges of changing telecommunication technologies. In addition to technological competencies, customer orientation, quality of service and brand trust represent important requirements for the future success of telecommunication service providers. With this background, Deutsche Telekom has expanded its service quality and networks as well as adjusted its brand architecture. These measures caused a significant increase in
the brand trust of Deutsche Telekom. Following further presentations by Niek Jan van Damme (Deutsche Telekom AG), Dr. Jürgen Meffert (McKinsey & Company Inc.) and Professor Dr. Ansgar Zerfaß (University of Leipzig), challenges as well as potential courses of action regarding the technological change were discussed. Different aspects of the opportunities and risks of new forms of digital communication (e.g. social media, free apps for direct communication, cloud computing) were highlighted, just as much as concrete portal solutions by Deutsche Telekom. The participants closed the Leadership Talks with a panel discussion on potential courses of action for market-oriented leadership.
wissenschaftliche-gesellschaft.de
08 HHL NEWS Winter 2012/13 Stiftungsfonds Deutsche Bank Chair of Innovation Management and Entrepreneurship
Center for Strategy and Scenario Planning
Trust, Internationalization and Innovation - Recent Publications
Extension of Cooperation between Center for Strategy and Scenario Planning and Roland Berger Strategy Consultants
The chair members have worked on a number of current and forthcoming publications that cover a range of topics. For example, one paper (ref.: Nagwan Abu El-Ella) is about the role of trust in “Open Innovation”, which highlights the new trust challenges posed by open innovation, in a number of organizational contexts of innovation that require trust. Another paper (ref.: Dorian Proksch) discusses the role of trust in “Venture Capital Investments” in new technology-based firms and shows the main determinants of trust-building in those cases. Another forthcoming paper (ref.: Dorian Proksch) is about the internation-
alization of German start-ups. For a general overview of the development of innovation management as a part of the Business Economics discipline, as well as the shift in the role of universities as entrepreneurial hubs (from a German as well as an international perspective), and a number of current innovation topics, check out the working paper written by Professor Dr. Andreas Pinkwart and Nagwan Abu El-Ella in our library or visit the following link for the electronic version: hhl.de/en/faculty-research/publications/show/4019/
Center for Leading Innovation & Cooperation
Series of Workshops on the Future of Work in the Service Sector As a part of the “ServProf – Service Professionalität lernen und leben” (“Learning and Living Service Professionalism”) project, the Center for Leading Innovation & Cooperation (CLIC) conducted a series of workshops on the future of work in the service sector. ServProf is a meta project initiated by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research to join together various concepts on the topic of professionalizing services. The three workshops “Interaction Work”, “Successful Professionalization Models from the Service Sector and Application to New Service Jobs” and “Training as a Service” were held on September 17 and 21 as
well as October 1 under the leadership of Professor Dr. Ralf Reichwald and Dr. Agnes Schipanski. Experts from science and practice were invited to each of these workshops. servprof.de clicresearch.org
Individuality is very important to the company selve. After all, selve is based on the idea that customers can design their own shoes according to their own ideas by combining the cuts, shapes, heels, fabrics and colors they like. At first, the business focused on personal consultation in a store. However, when selve transferred its idea to the internet and launched a website where you could design your own shoes using the modular principle, one problem occurred: on the one hand, the company sold highly individualized products but on the other
Margarete Schmidt Sonntag
hand, the customers did not have personal contact with a qualified assistant on the internet. In order to combine the benefits of both worlds, CLIC developed the Selve Live Help system in cooperation with selve and technology service provider Level 4.0/vee24. With the help of this system, customers can contact the assistants via video and text communication while discovering the possibilities of personally designed shoes on the website. As part of a pilot study, CLIC is now examining how this innovative service affects customer perception and operation. The pilot phase of approx. three months will be completed within the framework of the KUMAC research project funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research. The person to contact at CLIC is Stefan Thallmaier who expects first results at the end of the year. clicresearch.org/tag/kumac/
Programs
New Series of Lectures for Executives As of January 2013, the Leipzig Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCI) and HHL will start a new series of lectures addressed to executive directors of small and mediumsized enterprises. “KMU – Kompaktes Managementwissen für Unternehmer” (SME – Compact Management Awareness for Entrepreneurs) combines technical know-how, network development and practical further education. The series of lectures will kick off by looking at succession planning. Over
scenariomanagment.de
Publication in Zeitschrift für Controlling: Special Issue on Scenario-based Controlling
How Effective is Personal Consultation via Video? How can we use the benefits of the internet and provide a more personalized service at the same time? Stefan Thallmaier from the Center for Leading Innovation and Cooperation (CLIC) is currently conducting a pilot study examining the effectiveness of online consulting via video.
In March 2012 the successful cooperation between the Center for Strategy and Scenario Planning at HHL and Roland Berger Strategy Consultants was extended for another three years. As part of this cooperation Roland Berger Strategy Consultants continues to fund the Roland Berger Research Unit at the Center. Since 2009, the Center, with the goal of advancing scenario planning and thinking in research and practice, has established itself as an important think tank in the field. In the coming years the Center will concentrate its activities on new research areas such as the quantification of scenarios and the development of specific tools like the 360° Stakeholder Feedback, which ease the application of scenario planning in practice. The Center continues to be led by Professor Dr. Torsten Wulf and Professor Dr. Burkhard Schwenker, Chairman of Roland Berger Strategy Consultants.
the course of three evenings the question of how succession can be created in a strategic and at the same time operational way will be discussed, and which legal and financial aspects have to be considered in the planning process. In summer 2013 CCi and HHL will offer another series of lectures titled: “Innovation instead of Imitation“. Further information and registration: hhl.de/kmu T +49 341 9851-831
The Center for Strategy and Scenario Planning has published an article on how executives can integrate scenario-based planning in controlling processes of organizations in a special issue on scenariobased controlling published by Controlling. The article titled “Strategische Planung und strategisches Controlling mit Szenarien” co-authored by Professor Dr. Torsten Wulf and Dr. Stephan Stubner describes how scenario-based planning enables organizations to amend their controlling processes in volatile environments. The article highlights the importance of considering external developments in the controlling process. It introduces the Scenario Cockpit as a tool, which can help managers achieve this goal.
New Industry Scenario “The Future of the German Consumer Electronics Industry” Together with Roland Berger Strategy Consultants the Center for Strategy and Scenario Planning has published a study on the future of the German consumer electronics industry. The industry is an example of a sector that is presently influenced by a large number of uncertainties making future developments hard to predict. On the one hand, customers are strongly interconnected making price comparisons of different offers more common than in the past. On the other hand, customers are less attached to a specific brand when purchasing consumer electronics products and look more for features such as individuality, service and design. The scenario study presents four industry scenarios for the year 2016 based on a sound industry analysis and an expert inquiry. Both producers and retailers of consumer electronics will need a more flexible and robust strategy in order to be successful in an increasingly volatile environment.
Programs
General Management Program 2013 The next round of HHL Executive’s General Management Program (GMP) will run from January to June 20131. The open-enrollment program with Professor Dr. Torsten Wulf as Academic Director is designed for managers who want to expand their business knowledge. The 15-day program (in German) costs EUR 9,000 plus VAT. Special financial support from the European Union is possible. hhl.de/gmp2013
campus
HHL Meets RB Leipzig The soccer club RB Leipzig is one of the great beacons of hope for the city of Leipzig and the region. Just like HHL with its innovate125 Future Concept, RB has set itself ambitious goals aiming to make it to the Champions League over the next few years. Being next door at Jahnallee campus, we are looking to working more closely with the team in the future. The friendly cooperation kicks of with the premier game of RB Leipzig against FC Carl Zeiss Jena at Red Bull Arena on Sunday, December 2, at 1.30 pm. RB Leipzig has been kind enough to provide us with some free tickets. If you are interested in seeing the game, you may pick them up at the Dean's Office (while supplies last).
Upcoming Events November 24 HHL GMAT Seminar for Beginners November 27 HHL on Tour: Master & More and MBA Lounge in Stuttgart December 5 HHL@trivago: Challenges in Strategy Development December 6 HHL on Tour: Master & More in Berlin December 8 HHL on Tour: Master & More in Münster
Application Deadlines for HHL’s Study Programs Full-time M.Sc. Program: January 15 (intake March) June 20 (intake September) Full-time MBA Program: June 30, Non-EU applications: May 30 Part-time M.Sc. Program/ Part-time MBA Program: January 15 Global Executive MBA: August 31, 2013 Impressum Publisher: HHL Leipzig Graduate School of Management Jahnallee 59 · 04109 Leipzig · Germany Tel.: +49 341 9851-60 · Fax: +49 341 9851-679 e-mail:
[email protected] · Internet: www.hhl.de Publication Date: November 22, 2012 V.I.S.D.P.: Prof. Dr. Andreas Pinkwart, Dean of HHL Editors: Executive Management of HHL: Prof. Dr. Andreas Pinkwart, Dr. Axel Baisch Editorial Board: Volker Stößel (MBA) Concept: CLAUS KOCHTM www.clauskoch.com Photos: HHL, David Ausserhofer Frequency: quarterly ISSN 1433 934X | ISSN 1867-8017 Thank you to all contributors and proofreaders of this edition.
