On May 29, 2026, Business Contacts once again opened its doors, bringing together students and companies from the region as well as from across Germany at the Oeconomicum of the University of Münster. The career fair offered numerous opportunities for personal conversations, career orientation, and the establishment of valuable professional connections for the future. More than 40 companies introduced themselves to visitors and provided information about internships, working student positions, trainee programs, as well as entry-level and career opportunities. The event focused particularly on direct interaction, which was actively embraced by both students and company representatives.

Am 29. Mai 2026 öffnete die Business Contacts erneut ihre Türen und brachte im Oeconomicum der Universität Münster Studierende und Unternehmen aus der Region sowie aus ganz Deutschland zusammen. Die Karrieremesse bot zahlreiche Möglichkeiten für persönliche Gespräche, berufliche Orientierung und den Aufbau wertvoller Kontakte für die Zukunft. Mehr als 40 Unternehmen präsentierten sich den Besucherinnen und Besuchern und informierten über Praktika, Werkstudierendentätigkeiten, Traineeprogramme sowie Einstiegs- und Karrieremöglichkeiten. Dabei stand insbesondere der direkte Austausch im Mittelpunkt.

As part of the 11th Tech-Kalinen Meetup, titled “From idea to career: Women in STEM share their journeys,” three different career paths in STEM fields were presented. The goal of the event was to highlight the diversity of career opportunities in STEM and to shed light on both the differences and similarities among these career paths.

The event was organized by the Tech-Kalinen network together with the Women+ in Information Systems initiative at the Department of Information Systems at the University of Münster. The student initiative Women do IT from Department 10 (Mathematics and Computer Science) also presented itself

Among the speakers were Dr. Beate Rottkemper (Head of Sustainability Management, UKM), as well as Dr. Lena Clever and Dr. Fumi Kurihara from the Department of Information Systems. They shared personal insights into their career paths in research, teaching, and industry, and reflected on key experiences, challenges, and pivotal moments. It became clear that career paths are rarely linear and that openness to new opportunities often leads to unexpected possibilities.

Key takeaways from the evening included the importance of individual career paths as well as the insight that technological innovation and societal impact are not mutually exclusive.

The Tech-Kalinen network connects women in tech professions in the Münsterland region, fostering exchange and increasing the visibility of women in tech as role models and contacts for early-career talent. The network focuses on current topics in the digital and technology sectors and discusses approaches to addressing the lack of diversity in the field.

From June 8 to 10, the 21st International Conference on Design Science Research in Information Systems and Technology (DESRIST) took place at Münster Castle. For three days, the conference featured engaging workshops, inspiring paper sessions, and intensive exchange within the international research community.

Under the theme “Design for better futures. Beyond the science of the artificial.”, participants discussed how design science can go beyond the purely artificial to contribute to a vibrant, sustainable, and responsible future. This year’s conference aimed to expand the boundaries of what design science is and what it could become. In doing so, it created space for new ways of thinking, knowing, and creating that are as adaptive, entangled, and generative as the challenges we face..

The conference theme closely aligns with one of the key research areas of the Department of Information Systems. This is reflected in projects such as the Flow Factory, where responsible AI innovations are developed and put into practice.

During the Conference Dinner at A2 am Aasee, Prof. Jan vom Brocke was honored with the Design Science Research Lifetime Achievement Award. Since 2007, this award has been presented to individuals who have made outstanding contributions to research and the scientific community.

During the ceremony, laudator Prof. Samir Chatterjee from Claremont Graduate University praised Jan vom Brocke's significant scientific achievements, highlighting in particular his dedication to the community: "Jan has brought people together across institutions, countries, and disciplines (...) and created an environment where ideas can flourish and researchers feel welcome and supported." 

Award recipient Jan vom Brocke expressed his honor and gratitude to be part of such a "wonderful community": "Design Science has always been so close to my heart, as it provides the opportunity to conduct research of value to society." 

This year’s conference was organized by the Department of Information Systems led by Jan vom Brocke, Timo Strohmann, Hans Näscher, Fumi Kurihara, Armin Stein, Katrin Bergener, and Lea Kleinekathöfer, with the support of numerous additional contributors who contributed to the event’s success.

 Jan vom Brocke (right) with laudator Samir Chatterjee (Photo: Julian Meyer).

Prof. Dr. Jan vom Brocke, Direktor des Instituts für Wirtschaftsinformatik und des European Research Centers for Information Systems (ERCIS), ist mit dem Design Science Research Lifetime Achievement Award ausgezeichnet worden. Der Preis wird seit 2007 an Persönlichkeiten vergeben, die herausragende Beiträge für die Forschung und die wissenschaftliche Community leisten.

Dr. Colin Schulz widmet sich am Institut für Entrepreneurship dem digitalen und ökologischen Wandel aus betriebswirtschaftlicher Perspektive. Gleichzeitig beweist er, dass er selbst ein spannendes Gleichgewicht aus Beständigkeit und Veränderung gefunden hat. Für seine wissenschaftlichen Leistungen erhält Colin Schulz am 9. Juli den Förderpreis der Universitätsgesellschaft – ein Porträt.

Vor gut einem Jahr begann Donald Trump als Präsident der Vereinigten Staaten von Amerika, hohe Zölle für Handelspartner anderer Länder zu erheben. Welche Auswirkungen solche Alleingänge auf den globalen Handel haben und welche effektiveren Mittel es gibt, um das Wachstum zu erhöhen, erläutert der Wirtschaftswissenschaftler Prof. Dr. Bernd Kempa im Interview mit Brigitte Heeke für die Unizeitung wissen|leben.

On Wednesday, June 11, 2026, twelve students from the School of Business & Economics were honored with the BMS CS-AlumniUM Junior Award in recognition of their outstanding academic achievements during their first year of study. The award ceremony took place in the distinguished setting of the renowned Schloss Wilkinghege.

Am Mittwoch, den 11. Juni 2026, wurden zwölf Studierende der Wirtschaftswissenschaftlichen Fakultät für ihre herausragenden Leistungen im ersten Studienjahr mit dem "BMS CS-AlumniUM-Junior-Award" ausgezeichnet. Die Verleihung fand im feierlichen Rahmen im renommierten Schloss Wilkinghege statt.

Prof. Dr. Sebastian Hohenberg, holder of the Chair of Digital Transformation and Co-Director of the Centre for Business Transformation (ChanCe), has been awarded as “Outstanding Reviewer” by the prestigious Journal of Marketing (JM). This leading international journal honours reviewers who make an outstanding contribution to quality assurance in marketing research.

Prof. Dr. Sebastian Hohenberg, Inhaber des Lehrstuhls für Digitale Transformation und Co-Direktor des Centers for Business Transformation (ChanCe),  wurde vom renommierten Journal of Marketing (JM) als „Outstanding Reviewer“ ausgezeichnet. Die international führende Fachzeitschrift würdigt damit Gutachter:innen, die einen herausragenden Beitrag zur Qualitätssicherung in der Marketingforschung leisten.

From May 18 to May 20, 2026, Lennart Schäpermeier and Leonard Papenmeier from the Department of Information Systems participated in the COSEAL (Configuration and Selection of Algorithms) workshop at RWTH Aachen University. 

The workshop is a premier international event bringing together researchers from academia and industry across all areas of automated artificial intelligence (AutoAI). Participants discussed current advances and trends in the automated configuration and selection of algorithms, including automated machine learning (AutoML), Bayesian optimization, neural architecture search and automated algorithm selection. The latter was celebrated with a special session highlighting 50 years of algorithm selection research.

At this edition, Lennart Schäpermeier presented BONO-Bench, based on joint work with ERCIS member Pascal Kerschke, which was recently accepted at the ACM TELO journal (SJR Q1). BONO-Bench advances the state of the art in evaluating bi-objective optimization heuristics by providing a test suite with controllable challenges and reference solutions, enabling researchers to better understand and configure their optimization heuristics.

The COSEAL workshop series originally started in 2013 at the Department of Information Systems with a workshop organized by Prof. Dr. Heike Trautmann (ERCIS member, now University of Paderborn). It is held anually in locations across Europe and attracts approximately 100 participants from dozens of research institutes. Additionally, Lennart Schäpermeier (together with André Biedenkapp, University of Freiburg, and Theresa Eimer, University of Hannover), serves as a general chair of the COSEAL network.

The next COSEAL workshop is held from May 10-12, 2027 at TU Dortmund.

On 13 May 2026, the School of Business & Economics awarded the Dr. Andreas Dombret Doctoral Prize for the year 2026. This year’s recipient is Dr. Janina Wiebringhaus from the Chair of Marketing Management, headed by Prof. Dr. Manfred Krafft. In her dissertation “Essays on Transformative Value Creation in Mental Healthcare Services”, she examines how transformative value can be created in mental healthcare through interactions between employees, patients, and digital technologies. The focus is particularly on treatment and care contexts in depression therapy and long-term mental health care.

Am 13.05.2026 wurde an der Wirtschaftswissenschaftlichen Fakultät der Dr. Andreas Dombret-Promotionspreis für das Jahr 2026 vergeben. Preisträgerin ist Dr. Janina Wiebringhaus vom Institut für Marketing unter der Leitung von Prof. Dr. Manfred Krafft. In ihrer Dissertation „Essays on Transformative Value Creation in Mental Healthcare Services“ untersucht sie, wie in der psychischen Gesundheitsversorgung durch Interaktionen zwischen Mitarbeitenden, Patient:innen und digitalen Technologien sogenannte transformative Wertschöpfung entstehen kann. Im Mittelpunkt stehen dabei insbesondere Therapie- und Versorgungskontexte bei Depressionen und in der stationären Langzeitversorgung.

Can Germany still have a future? This question was at the centre of the lecture by Prof. Dr. Nils Foege, Head of the Institute for Innovation, Strategy and Organization, at the 2nd Update Economics event. In short, his answer is: yes – if we want it to be, and if we shape digitalisation and sustainability together. How this can be achieved was also a key focus of the subsequent discussion with the audience and moderator Prof. Dr. Johannes Becker. The event concluded with the statement: “The future is not a state – it is a decision,” marking another successful edition of the “Update Economics” series.

For many years, Dr. Adam Widera has shaped the Department of Information Systems at the University of Münster with his dedication and expertise. His academic journey at the university began early: while studying political science, philosophy, and political economy, he worked as a student assistant at the Institute for Political Science from 2002 to 2005.

Afterwards, he worked initially as a research associate at the Chair of Political Science and International/Comparative Political Economy before joining the Department of Information Systems in 2006. There, he first served as a project coordinator in the BMBF-funded project “Computer-Assisted Higher Education”, at the Chair of Information Systems and Controlling. He later supported the Chair of Information Systems and Logistics as managing director and lecturer, where he discovered his passion for humanitarian logistics and crisis management and completed his doctorate in this field.

In December 2013, Adam Widera and Prof. Dr.-Ing. Bernd Hellingrath founded the ERCIS Competence Center Crisis Management (C³M). As Managing Director, he plays a key role in shaping the center’s work and future development. Over the past years, he has successfully acquired several national and international research projects, helping C³M become an important actor within various research and practice networks. In 2020, Adam Widera additionally took on the role of Deputy Managing Director of the department and, since this year, has joined the executive board of the ERCIS Flow Factory as managing director.

On the occasion of his 25th anniversary, we asked him a few questions:

You originally studied political science, philosophy, and economic policy – how did you end up at the Department of Information Systems?

After completing my magister degree, I contributed to a study and quickly realized that I was missing a stronger practical orientation and greater research impact. At the same time, I was involved in an EU project in which the Department of Information Systems was also participating through our current director, Prof. Dr. Jan vom Brocke. Through this, I came across the exciting project “Computer-Assisted Higher Education,” where a position as project coordinator had become available. I did not hesitate for long and applied immediately. Information Systems quickly became my new academic home.

You have been working at the department for many years – first as a project coordinator and later as a research associate at the Chair of Information Systems and Logistics, where you also completed your doctorate. Which projects or experiences were particularly formative for you during this time?

I could name many highlights here. However, if I had to emphasize one project, it would be DRIVER+, the largest EU-funded crisis management project to date, involving more than forty partners from across Europe. The project was not only interesting because, as the competence center, we were able to test and evaluate various research results together with crisis management practitioners under realistic conditions, but also because, as the only university institution in the consortium, we were able to develop and test a novel, practice-driven evaluation approach – the Trial Guidance Methodology (TGM) – in collaboration with the European Commission’s Joint Research Center. Unfortunately, the reality of research funding is often that project results are forgotten once a project ends. With TGM, however, things were very different. The methodology was adopted by many stakeholders in security research and applied in numerous initiatives and research projects. A particular highlight last year was certainly receiving the Security Innovation Award from the European Commission and DG HOME in the category “Best Open Source Innovation 2025.”

You have been Managing Director of the ERCIS Competence Center Crisis Management (C³M) since 2013. How have the center and your work there evolved over the past few years?

After initially focusing on logistical processes and information systems in international disaster management, we increasingly expanded our perspective toward European and regional challenges through successfully acquired research projects. Especially since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, our research has focused more strongly on national and municipal civil protection. Alongside this development, our stakeholder landscape has broadened significantly, so that in addition to international non-governmental organizations, various emergency response organizations and public authorities have become long-standing practice partners.

The entire department thanks Adam Widera for his excellent work, loyalty, and continued commitment. We look forward to many more years of successful collaboration.

Am 11.06.2026 haben Studieninteressierte die Möglichkeit, via Zoom mehr über die Studiengänge der Wirtschaftswisenschaftlichen Fakultät zu erfahren. Im Rahmen der ZSB-Reihe "Uni kennenlernen - Studieren an der Universität Münster" stellt Programmmanager Dr. Jan Niklas Dörseln die Bachelor in Betriebswirtschaftslehre (BWL), Volkswirtschaftslehre (VWL), Wirtschaftsinformatik und die interdisziplinären Studiengänge vor, gibt Einblicke in den Studienalltag und beantwortet Fragen rund ums Studium.

In May, 38 participants took part in the windsurfing seminar in Hvide Sande, Denmark, in cooperation with the HSP Windsurf School (windsurf instructors: Jenny Weiß and Rolf Lexen). The seminar was organized by Janis Elmer and Tobias Zimmermann from the Institute for Information Systems.

Four courses participated in the seminar: the Bachelor’s course Urban Analytics and the Master’s courses Efficient Machine Learning, Flow Factory: TideStats, and Flow Factory: TideTalks.

As part of the bachelor’s seminar “Urban Analytics”, led by Ann-Kathrin Meyer and Johannes von Ivernois, students explored the fundamentals of location-based services and examined the intersection between spatial and content analysis. They worked with a large-scale dataset of georeferenced Twitter messages or with self-selected georeferenced datasets.

The master’s seminar “Efficient Machine Learning”, led by Nina Herrmann, Jorunn Mense, and Jan Pauls, provided students with an interest in machine learning with in-depth knowledge of advanced topics, particularly through the reproduction and summary of current scientific papers on topics such as efficient vision transformers, self-supervised learning, and related approaches.

The seminar “Flow Factory: TideStats”, led by Josephine Moritz, Phlipp Michels, and Tobias Zimmermann, focused on practically relevant research questions, in particular the investigation of the impact of artificial intelligence on employees. Master’s students learned and applied scientific methods, with a special focus on quantitative data analysis using R, and conducted their own research project on “AI & People”.

The master’s course “Flow Factory: TideTalks”, led by Fumi Kurihara, Paul Brützke, and Janis Elmer, addressed practically relevant research questions from the Flow Factory, in particular the investigation of the impact of artificial intelligence on users. Students learned and applied qualitative methods, with a special focus on conducting interviews, and carried out their own research project on human–AI interaction.

In addition to the final presentations, there was also time for a sports: with perfect weather, participants enjoyed windsurfing together and exchanging ideas along the Danish North Sea coast.

Weibliche Talente im Finanzbereich zu vernetzen und zu stärken – das ist das Ziel des Women-in-Finance Events, das am 22. Juni 2026 in Kooperation mit dem „Finest in Finance“-Programm stattfindet.

Die Veranstaltung steht nicht nur Mitgliedern des Programms offen, sondern richtet sich ausdrücklich auch an externe Interessentinnen. Eingeladen sind insbesondere Studentinnen aus Bachelor und Master, die sich vertieft für Themen rund um Finance interessieren.