People are foundational to the success of digitization in a company – they are the ones who push this transformation forward. Companies are already desperately hunting for managerial staff and specialists who have digital expertise. For this reason, etventure is increasing its involvement in education and academia. During the winter semester of 2016, etventure is involved in courses at the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (LMU) in Munich and the Augsburg University of Applied Sciences. It is providing students with insights into startup methods and innovation processes.

 Developing digital business models – from the idea through to live testing

Last week, a series of classes entitled ‘User-centric Product Validation’ began at the LMU in Munich. The course is led by Prof. Dr. Thomas Hess, in partnership with etventure. During the classes in the coming months, the master’s degree students will work on specific projects to learn how to develop, test and validate digital business models while maintaining a clear focus on the end user/client. Visiting lecturers Matthias Potthast and Raffael Schmidt, who are both Project Managers at etventure, are providing the students with an introduction to startup innovation methods such as Design Thinking and Lean Startup. They are also guiding the project teams along the way, beginning with user exploration and developing prototypes, right through to live testing.

guest lecturer Raffael Schmidt (left), Matthias Potthast (middle) and etventure founder Philipp Depiereux

“We don’t want to be giving presentations from the front. Instead, we want to provide the students with a real insight into entrepreneurial practice. This is exactly the same approach that we use at etventure when developing digital projects for clients such as Klöckner, Wüstenrot & Württembergische and Haniel,” explains Project Manager Matthias Potthast. Founder and Managing Director of etventure Philipp Depiereux was also present at the launch session last week and he gave a presentation about what the ‘old economy’ can learn from digital players.

Using the ‘Business Model Canvas’ to evaluate business models

etventure is also involved at the Augsburg University of Applied Sciences this winter semester. Thirteen students majoring in industrial engineering and business management are taking a course run by Prof. Dr. Marcus Labbé entitled ‘Evaluating Business Models.’ They will learn more about digitization, technological trends and new, disruptive business models. “Companies such as Netflix and Airbnb show how quickly startups can shake up whole sectors. This makes it all the more important for tomorrow’s young professionals to know how to evaluate business models, anticipate technological developments, and develop new areas of innovation,” says Raffael Schmidt.

This class also involves the use of specialist analysis and evaluation methods that originate from the startup scene, such as Blue Ocean Strategy and the Business Model Canvas. The students will work in project groups and will use these methods to evaluate the business models of companies from various sectors. On the basis of these evaluations, they will then develop ideas for corporate innovation.

In the coming weeks and months, we will continue to follow both of these courses here on the blog. In particular, we will present the project outcomes and relay what students think of the classes.