Master-Studium Digital Business Innovation and Transformation

Upon completion of this course, students are able to:

• explain the principles of strategy development
• identify basic terms and concepts for key strategic groups (internal/external, public/private, economic/social)
• carry out strategy development methodically
• distinguish between organisational structures, processes and tasks based on the principles of organisation theory
• identify competitive factors that influence a particular industry as well as profitability
• apply basic principles of financial management

Upon completion of this course, students are able to:

• analyse and evaluate the significance of digital technologies for companies’ processes, products and business models
• understand significant current and future technologies and evaluate them in terms of their functionality
• develop new digital business and innovation models
• in the course of this, recognise and critically evaluate new opportunities and risks for companies (data security, transparency, data protection, etc.)
• describe, classify and evaluate the influence of digital technologies on society and the world of work

Upon completion of this course, students are able to:

• distinguish between types of business model by sector and industry
• identify key factors influencing business models, and explain how business models change as a result of market transformation
• develop strategies for adapting to disruptive developments
• explain the influence of new technologies (e.g. cloud computing, 3D printing, global sourcing, etc.) on company processes and analyse their effects

Upon completion of this course, students are able to:

• analyse the ways in which globalisation and digitalisation influence business processes, and identify new developments
• assess a company’s internal digitalisation capabilities and identify direct or indirect cost advantages that can be derived from them
• devise the implementation of core business processes using digital technologies, and plan the introduction and implementation of these processes in the company
• identify where processes implemented as part of digital business fit into the big picture
• evaluate the digital maturity and intensity of businesses and organisations, and determine the need for transformation

Upon completion of this course, students are able to:

• describe the central elements of an innovation process
• categorise different types of innovation, and evaluate the demands they place on the innovation process
• analyse a variety of approaches to developing innovation strategies
• identify the features of innovation cultures and discuss methods of implementing them
• illustrate the conditions that cause innovations to come about and methodically work through resistance to innovation

Upon completion of this course, students are able to:

• use data management as an information source for innovation and process management
• apply modern methods of innovation management in digitalisation
• use suitable technologies in combination to take advantage of innovations

Upon completion of this course, students are able to:

• perform a textbook analysis of current data use in an organisation and critically evaluate it
• make the case for fundamental technical approaches to IT data generation, data analysis and data integration

Upon completion of this course, students are able to:

• process and present data material
• carry out methods of empirical data analysis (e.g. variance analysis, factor analysis, segmentation methods)
• apply empirical results as a basis for making decisions in operational research
• acquire fundamental skills in descriptive and inferential statistics

Upon completion of this course, students are able to:

• identify changes in value chains resulting from digitalisation processes, and analyse their strengths and weaknesses
• identify unused potential that could be leveraged using alternative digital processes and structures
• identify individuals and/or parts of a company involved in value-creation processes
• identify and analyse decision-making problems associated with aspects of new types of value chain
• plan the implementation of a KPI evaluation system
• analyse and evaluate digital business processes along the value chain

Upon completion of this course, students are able to:

• describe the core aspects of a transformation process and analyse various change management approaches
• critically analyse alternative organisational structures for transformation management, and develop proposals for each
• identify core change management tools and the necessity of change processes in organisations
• expertly manage restructuring measures, assess progress and propose corrective action
• plan change processes and digital transformation using targeted culture-related measures

Upon completion of this course, students are able to:

• plan projects
• define, distinguish between and apply traditional and agile project management, and describe the attributes of each
• analyse the procedures involved in corporate transformation processes
• select and apply modern management techniques suited to a particular situation to support strategy development, strategy communication and successful performance improvement
• identify and apply analytical and decision-making tools used in project development

Upon completion of this course, students are able to:

• assess the advantages, disadvantages and areas of application of big data technology, architectures and analysis tools, and apply them to solve problems
• process data streams and carry out complex data analyses
• make the case for IT structures for data modelling and data generation
• combine intelligent applications and interpret the volumes of data they generate

Upon completion of this course, students are able to:

• analyse existing processes, derive the core processes and assess them with regard to digitalisation measures
• evaluate alternative ways of conducting processes, in particular by incorporating the results of data analysis
• plan standardised process steps
• identify responsibilities, milestones and standard documents in digital process management
• understand data-driven, innovative process design

Upon completion of this course, students are able to:

• select and evaluate appropriate literature
• formulate a research question
• evaluate theories to apply in addressing a specific topic scientifically
• select a hypothesis and determine the academic methods to be used

Upon completion of this course, students are able to:

• think in a design-oriented way to independently devise innovation projects
• use design thinking to develop a systematic approach to complex problems in respect of user requirements and needs
• understand suitable approaches from methodology
• apply the six-phase process to human centred innovation projects
• identify and evaluate methods and tools of the human centred innovation process 

Upon completion of this course, students are able to:

• apply key indicators and quality control instruments within innovation controlling, as well as methods for capacity planning and cost control
• assess the efficiency and effectiveness of innovation activities
• identify risks in innovation projects
• apply and evaluate methods for targeted planning and management of innovation processes in a business

Upon completion of this course, students are able to:

• apply data management and data analysis on a case-by-case basis
• interpret and evaluate resulting data correctly
• draw appropriate conclusions and develop strategic planning steps

Upon completion of this course, students are able to:

• assess current developments in the field of human-computer interaction
• analyse relevant aspects of human perception, information processing and action regulation in relation to the use of computers
• discuss natural speech dialogue systems, multimodal interfaces and interface tasks
• evaluate the user-friendliness of the design of interactive systems and their user interfaces
• assess design methods (design, implementation and evaluation) for user-friendly human-computer interfaces

Upon completion of this course, students are able to:

• prepare target-driven organisational and employee development concepts
• plan and implement exemplary recruitment measures incorporating the latest technology
• identify success factors for communication in the digital age
• discuss modern forms of work and working time models, and evaluate them in terms of their applicability
• understand the importance of and draw up sets of measures to implement employee-oriented employer branding
• prepare a transformation roadmap and a digital agenda based on a company’s human resources

Upon completion of this course, students are able to:

• practically apply what they have learned to a project
• use the core competencies of digital transformation and innovation within the innovation lab
• plan, carry out and reflectively evaluate a relevant transformation project in collaboration with their own company or a partner organisation
• try out the latest innovative forms of customer and user inclusion, using the design thinking method

Upon completion of this course, students are able to:

• critically appraise planning and forecasting methods
• classify forecasts based on data modelling with regard to the past, the present and the future
• identify future opportunities and risks
• discuss the role of corporate foresight processes in organisational structures
• make the case for the use of foresight models and trend research methods

Upon completion of this course, students are able to:

• identify success factors for leadership in the digital age
• analyse and evaluate core HR, leadership and organisation models and concepts, as well as their applicability to new forms of organisation
• capitalise on available digital leadership potential and resources
• develop and apply new leadership tools for managing teams and networks effectively (Innovation Lab)
• draw up strategies for sustainable digital leadership

Upon completion of this course, students are able to:

• give reasons and arguments in support of values and norms
• identify and critically evaluate ethical problems linked to digitalisation
• identify the responsibilities of managers in a corporate, social and macroeconomic context
• analyse communication situations from ethical standpoints on the basis of different theories of communication
• deal professionally with complex ethical questions in connection with specific practical examples of digitalisation

Upon completion of this course, students are able to:

• demonstrate a thorough understanding of digitalisation and transformation in companies and organisations
• identify areas of application in practice and research
• analyse existing planning and forecasting methods critically in light of disruptive developments in a fast-paced world, and discuss new methods
• critically analyse existing and newly developed innovation concepts for digitalisation strategies
• analyse whether suitable data interpretation is required, on the basis of data models and data generation

Upon completion of this course, students are able to:

• evaluate data streams and prepare data appropriately for users
• apply their data management and data analysis skills in new and unfamiliar situations, and where required develop new approaches to solutions/new digitalisation strategies
• take the necessary steps for integration of data use within the organisational context
• develop cost and process optimisations based on data analysis

Upon completion of this course, students are able to:

• implement proactive, company-wide risk management systems
• understand practical tools for identifying and assessing risk (interest rate, exchange, price, project and strategic risks)
• identify and analyse the role of risk management in value-based management, planning and reporting
• understand optimisation processes and timely consideration of a risk/opportunity profile

Upon completion of this course, students are able to:

• interpret the legal framework in areas of decision-making that are important for digital business
• independently draw up and present solutions to simple legal questions and problems (including labour law)
• evaluate alternative technical and organisational solutions in terms of their legal implications
• make practical use of intellectual property rights in order to protect innovations, intellectual achievements, patents, copyright, etc.
• accurately assess the scope and effect of intellectual property rights
• evaluate the importance of intellectual property as an asset in a business context