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Why Great Startups Pivot

Gowtham Athem

A startup is not a plan being executed. It is a hypothesis being tested. Most founding ideas turn out to be wrong — about the customer, the problem, or the market. That is not a flaw. That is the process. Behind almost every great company is a moment where the founders stopped, looked honestly at what reality was telling them, and chose a different direction. We call that moment a pivot. And the ability to recognize it and act on it is one of the most underrated skills in building a company.

From Blueprints to Spare Parts: Our AI Journey in Industry

Imagine a tractor breaking down in the middle of harvest season. Every hour it sits idle costs the farmer money. Workshops need to give fast, accurate repair quotes, and that means knowing exactly which parts are needed before the technician even opens the hood. That was our challenge with CLAAS.

Despite strong clinical outcomes, studies indicate that up to 65% of GLP-1 patients discontinue therapy within the first twelve months of treatment. In many cases, this attrition does not occur because the therapy is ineffective or the high treatment costs.

Obesity and diabetes care - added value by GLP-1 treatment companion app

Dr. Frieder Haenisch

From Frankfurt to Boston: Three Days at Harvard University

Being selected for HCONF 2026, held on 6–8 February, whilst working as a Risk Advisory Consultant at Deloitte in Frankfurt, was one of the highlights of my early career. Flying from Frankfurt, landing in Boston, and walking onto Harvard’s campus for the first time was surreal. I had to stop and absorb it. Three days there turned out to be more than I had imagined.

For decades, the banking industry has defined its "customer" as a person with a signature, a face, and a predictable 9-to-5 financial pulse. However, as we enter 2026, that definition is becoming dangerously obsolete.

The Rise of AI Agents - Is your Financial Institution Ready to Onboard the Client of the Future?

Die Effizienzprüfung in der Gremienbetreuung und Aufsichtsratsarbeit

Stephan Hartenstein

Der Deutsche Corporate Governance Kodex (DCGK) empfiehlt und § 25d KWG verlangt die regelmäßige Effizienzanalyse des Aufsichtsorgans – und wer diese Prüfung klug anlegt, gewinnt weit mehr als Compliance: ein leistungsfähigeres Gremium und eine professionell gesteuerte Gremienarbeit.

What the IE Business Case Competition taught me about business and myself

Martha Zoller

In February, I flew to Madrid with three teammates and a lot of nervous energy. We were there to compete at the IE Business School Case Competition 2026, one of the most respected international case competitions in Europe, alongside universities from across the world. I came back with a lot more than I expected. I have been thinking about what exactly changed after that week and I keep coming back to the same answer: case competitions teach you things that no lecture, no group assignment, and no internship can fully replicate.

6 Lessons on Fairness, Trust and Altruism from 20,000+ Student Decisions Around the World

Daniel Apelbaum

Most modern economic models assume that people act in pure self-interest, the so-called "homo oeconomicus." And for many situations, that assumption works well enough. But there are good reasons to believe that humans are wired differently.

Last week, we had the opportunity to visit the European Central Bank (ECB) in Frankfurt. Listening to someone who has seen the evolution of European monetary policy from the inside was both insightful and inspiring. His talk gave us a broader understanding of the ECB’s role, its challenges, and the future of the euro.

25 February 2026

Inside the ECB: Insights from a Talk on Europe’s Monetary Future

20 February 2026

Artificial Intelligence and Sustainability – Progress or Problem?

Lucas Mayer-Klenk

Artificial Intelligence is transforming our world faster than ever, not only impacting how we work, but also the way we live. As one of the key drivers of digitalization and automation, AI shapes industries and societies worldwide. Yet, its effects on sustainability topics are often overlooked in the mainstream debate.

What happens when a bank’s biggest borrower is a real estate developer in a floodplain? Financial risk is shaped not only by market forces but by the physical environment. Rising sea levels, once a distant threat, now translate into credit risk, defaults, liquidity pressures, and mounting non-performing loans (NPLs).

30 January 2026

Climate and Credit Risk: Building Climate-Resilient Loan Portfolios

Alexandra B. Kinywamaghana

From Frankfurt to China: Winning a Consultancy Challenge at ZIBS University

Elisej Gontscharow

What does it take to advise a major Chinese tech company on breaking into the US market, while competing against universities from around the world? Qinyun Jiang, Shiyu Ni, Minja Todorović, Aayush Sanjay Bodke and Elisej Gontscharow from Frankfurt School found out first-hand this semester, travelling to Haining, China, for a real consultancy project that ended with a win.

Black Tax - Wie Kultur und Familie wirtschaftliche Entscheidungen in Namibia prägen

Jens Spanheimer

Warum gehen Menschen Risiken ein und warum sind einige deutlich risikobereiter als andere? Neben vielen anderen Faktoren spielt auch das emotionale und kulturelle Umfeld eine entscheidende Rolle. Im Rahmen meiner Bachelorarbeit habe ich mich mit genau diesem Thema auseinandergesetzt, allerdings mit einem spezifischen Fokus, der bislang eher wenig Beachtung findet: familiäre Erwartungen im post-kolonialen Kontext.

12 November 2025

Make Every Word Count: 4 Tips for Short Answer Responses

Your documents are prepared, your CV is finalised, and your application is almost ready to submit - but you’re stuck on how to answer the short admissions questions. How are you supposed to fit your personality, experience, and career goals into a few words?

Es gibt verschiedene Wege, um ein akademisches Studium aufzunehmen. Gerne beraten wir Sie hinsichtlich des Erwerbs der Hochschulzugangsberechtigung und senden Ihnen weiterführende Informationen zu den einzelnen Möglichkeiten zu.

12 September 2025

Studieren ohne Abitur? Das geht! 3 Wege zum Hochschulstudium ohne Abitur

Franziska Wirth

Why Great Startups Pivot

From Blueprints to Spare Parts: Our AI Journey in Industry

Obesity and diabetes care - added value by GLP-1 treatment companion app

Dr. Frieder Haenisch

Die Effizienzprüfung in der Gremienbetreuung und Aufsichtsratsarbeit

Stephan Hartenstein

From Frankfurt to Boston: Three Days at Harvard University

The Rise of AI Agents - Is your Financial Institution Ready to Onboard the Client of the Future?

What the IE Business Case Competition taught me about business and myself

6 Lessons on Fairness, Trust and Altruism from 20,000+ Student Decisions Around the World

Daniel Apelbaum

Inside the ECB: Insights from a Talk on Europe’s Monetary Future

25 February 2026

From Frankfurt to China: Winning a Consultancy Challenge at ZIBS University

Elisej Gontscharow

Artificial Intelligence and Sustainability – Progress or Problem?

20 February 2026

Lucas Mayer-Klenk

Climate and Credit Risk: Building Climate-Resilient Loan Portfolios

30 January 2026

Alexandra B. Kinywamaghana

Black Tax - Wie Kultur und Familie wirtschaftliche Entscheidungen in Namibia prägen

Jens Spanheimer

Make Every Word Count: 4 Tips for Short Answer Responses

12 November 2025

Studieren ohne Abitur? Das geht! 3 Wege zum Hochschulstudium ohne Abitur

12 September 2025

Franziska Wirth

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