General remarks
In this course you will develop a technological artifact that has the potential to create value for a specific organisation (e.g. prototyping a new product, improving a process, supporting a decision).
As to that, you
- will apply your learning from your undergraduate degree as well as from the first semester of your Masters program; and you
- will also be introduced to current methodological and theoretical knowledge. This will help you to carry out the real-world problem and to reflect on the process and the results.
It is very important that you prepare yourself for the classes (see ?@tbl-schedule for details).
Contents
To support understanding and transfer of topics, additional knowledge of core concepts and related methods will be taught, e.g.:
- Business value sources and characteristics
- Essential aspects of IT/digital resources
- Identification of (customer) needs (e.g. Design Thinking)
- Turning digital resources into value
- Modern approaches of IT-enabled value creation
- Challenges in implementing digital innovations (changing, adopting & using)
Learning objectives
During this course, you should advance your skills in the following areas:
- Understand the mechanisms of value contribution by IT
- How to design and implement IT solutions that create value in a specific context.
- How to apply and contextualise existing knowledge and understanding of disruptive technologies in the context of a specific organisational environment
- Problem-solving skills to analyze the particularities and complexities of different project contexts
- Reflecting on social and ethical responsibilities and making responsible decisions with incomplete or limited information
Examination
During the semester you will be required to work within a group on a business challenge posed by company partners. The eximaniation will be based on following performances:
- A presentation of your approach to the challenge and the value contribution of your solution.
- A seminar paper that details your approach and solution.
Details regarding the assignment can be found here.
Effort
You will gain 5 ECTS for this course.
This corresponds to approx. 150 hours of workload for average students required to pass the module.
- Lectures and workshops (approx. 20 hours)
- Preparation of the lectures (approx. 5 hours)
- Project work and documentation (remaining time)
Please prepare your schedule accordingly.
Schedule
It is important that you work on the challenges in a self-organised and continuous manner.
| Date | Topic | Preparation |
|---|---|---|
| 27.03.2026 | Administrivia, Introduction & Presentation of Challenges | - |
| 30.03.2026 | Deadlline: Group Selection (Proposal, Moodle) | - |
| 10.04.2026 | Design Thinking Workshop (Innovation Space, Creative 1) | - |
| 17.04.2026 | Value Determination & Agentic AI | - |
| 24.04.2026 | Team Coaching (mandatory) | Interim Results (Approach) |
| 22.05.2026 | Communication | — |
| 18.06.2026 | Deadline: Upload Pitch Deck | Slides |
| 19.06.2026 | Final Presentation & Feedback (Innovation Space, Creative 1) | Pitch |
| 06.07.2026 | Deadline: Upload Paper | Paper |