Annual Report 2024

Special emphasis this year was placed on the subject of artificial intelligence.  Our teachers evaluated the use of AI in teaching and encouraged students to use it responsibly and constructively. AI is used, for example, to develop ideas, in content creation and in academic work. At the same time, students are encouraged to critically reflect on the use of artificial intelligence in professional communication.

Our communication researcher Marian Adolf analyzed the disinformation crisis caused by digitalization, AI and fake news with speeches on fake news & hate speech and participation in discussions on media consumption and uncertainty as a result of AI. At this year’s Conversations Conference the head of the Bachelor’s program David Dobrowsky presented the latest research findings on human-machine interaction.

SDGs were once again brought to the fore in the period under review and combined with a focus on internationalism. At the SDG Day our students impressed the judges with their poster presentations on greenwashing; the SDG Award went to a Master’s thesis from our degree program. Students on the Bachelor’s degree program analyzed companies in relation to sustainability as part of the international inter-university COIL Project led by Simone Zwickl, expert for strategic communication and sustainability. Sustainability expert Leyla Tavernaro-Haidarian emphasized the importance of Inner Development Goals for the sustainable implementation of SDGs in companies as part of the UNESCO Chair for Communication.

In the practical projects, the professionalism of our students once more impressed our corporate cooperation partners  Amundi, Greenpower, KPMG, Procter & Gamble, ÖH FHWien (the Austrian Students’ Union at FHWien), the Austrian Football League, Sanofi and Screenforce. In addition, we are pleased to report that our study on the work ethic of Gen Z was well received when it was published in Der Standard.

We are especially proud of the prizes won by two Master’s theses. One received the Franz Bogner Science Prize, the other the Appreciation Award of the Federal Ministry of Education, Science and Research. In addition, five graduates were selected as some of the Top PR Talents under 30. Outstanding students received special support in the new, interdisciplinary Excellence Club.

Applied Research. The Department of Digital Economy, to which the Digital Economy study programs belong, concentrates its research activities in the Institute for Digital Transformation and Strategy. In addition to their teaching work, all members of the academic staff are actively involved in projects that are funded by third parties. They disseminate the results of their research in papers published in academic journals but also – which is especially important to us – in lectures and texts addressed to real-world users.

In 2024 our activities focused on two themes:

• Digital technology as a lever for optimizing professional small parcel logistics.
• The organizational synchronicity of efficiency and innovation as a strategic challenge in management

More Places on Bachelor’s Programs. In 2024 we again increased the number of places on our Bachelor’s degree program in Digital Business so that we are now able to take in 60 working students each year. One of the program’s special strengths is its hybrid organization from the second semester onward: Students can actively take part in tuition online even if they are not physically present on the campus for individual classes.

Master’s Degree Programs Launched. The most important milestone at the Department of Digital Economy in 2024 was the accreditation and successful launch of two new Master’s degree programs at the interface of digital technology and innovation: The Master’s program in Digital Innovation for graduates who hold a Bachelor’s degree in a business subject and the Master’s program in Digital Technology & Innovation for graduates of interdisciplinary study programs that provide a foundation in both information technology and business.

In 2024, digitalization remained a key focus area of the Financial Management study programs as nowadays it plays an important role in finance, accounting and taxation as well as in financial management and controlling. Our science-based academic program that nevertheless has a strong practical focus systematically integrates this development into our teaching and thus provides ideal preparation for a successful career in financial management.

The internationalization of our teaching activities also continued to be an important area of work, with students reaping the benefits in courses such as “Special Issues in International Accounting” and “Economics”.

In the area of project management and corporate projects existing partnerships were continued and new exciting projects were added.

As far as teaching was concerned, the proportion of online teaching was increased to create a didactically sensible balance of classroom teaching and distance learning. At the same time, increased use was made of modern didactic tools. In November 2024 one of our e-learning projects won a prize for innovative teaching.

In addition, implementation continued of the revised curricula for the Bachelor’s program in Finance, Accounting & Taxation and the Master’s program in Financial Management & Controlling.

The year 2024 was dominated by a host of new topics and so-called HR trends. These were successfully integrated into the teaching of Bachelor’s and Master’s degree programs in the form of guest lectures, excursions and exciting practical projects in cooperation with partners from the business world. Among the trending topics were HR analytics, digital automation and the use of AI in HR processes, future skills, lifelong learning and upskilling, hybrid work models, agile organizational development,  employee wellbeing, diversity, equality and inclusion (DEI) as well as employee experience.

The study program team joined forces with some of our most dedicated students to organize and carry out numerous HR events which they enriched with presentations. One highlight in April was the first Transformation Camp ever to be held in a German-speaking country; organized and implemented in cooperation with fifty1 it attracted more than 200 participants. This innovative bar camp format was largely organized by students on our Master’s degree program and was dominated by the so-called trending topics.

In fall, we were able to demonstrate our expertise at several prestigious events, for example, in lectures at the HR Inside Summit in the Vienna Hofburg, but also at specialist events organized by karriere.at and the Work Smart Circle. Another highlight was our lecturers’ evening out at a wine tavern in September which was attended by many of our external instructors. They all enjoyed the opportunity to reflect on shared successes and current challenges in a relaxed atmosphere.

The year 2024 was also marked by a question of crucial importance: What influence does the use of artificial intelligence have on our teaching activities? The use of AI tools in teaching and in academic theses as well as the adaptation of examination formats in particular posed major challenges. Many of our in-house and external instructors took part in further training to meet these new demands.

I would like to extend my sincere thanks to the team of our study programs, our external lecturers, our students and all cooperation partners for helping to make 2024 such a successful year!

For the Journalism & Media Management study programs, the year 2024 was marked by intense engagement with the effects of artificial intelligence (AI) on journalism. The focus in this regard was on the ethical, social and practical aspects of AI: for example, in the fight against disinformation, the use of AI in editorial processes and its consequences for journalism training. One highlight in this context was the cooperation with the Austrian UNESCO Commission at two events in the series “(High-quality) Journalism and Artificial Intelligence”.

International Projects and Intercultural Cooperation

Internationalization and intercultural cooperation also played a significant role for the study program in 2024. The multimedia project International School of Multimedia Journalism and the radio project Europe On Air used the opportunity provided by the European parliamentary elections to bring students from different countries together to produce reports on democracy, cultural diversity and the future of Europe.

Research Areas and Findings

The study program set research accents in areas ranging from an analysis of young media users’ trust in public service news to studies on the influence of AI on journalism. Gisela Reiter, Marian Adolf and Andreas Hess presented the results of their research at conferences and in specialist journals.

Workshops and Supporting Young Talent

An AI taster seminar introduced students to the potential applications of AI in journalism with participants then trying these out for themselves. The Sports Journalism Workshop enabled participants to benefit from the expertise of renowned reporters. The Journalism Young Talent Award was awarded in 2024 for the first time with the support of Der Standard and Kurier newspapers. The new Excellence Club is an interdisciplinary program that supports the personal and professional development of outstanding students.

With its wide range of activities, Austria’s leading journalism training program contributes to a public discourse that combines theory and practice.

With a strong focus on practical relevance, the Management & Entrepreneurship study programs prepare students in both the Bachelor’s and Master’s program at various levels for future leadership roles.

In the winter semester 2024/25, the Bachelor’s program in Management & Entrepreneurship launched its new concept for Bachelor’s theses, which includes intensive support for students in the form of regular academic discussions and presentations as they write their theses. This modified approach compels students to argue every step of the process from identifying a research gap through to gaining new insights and providing recommendations for practical action for the respective target group. Carrying out realistic assignments and practical projects underline the program’s very high level of practical relevance.

The range of project topics this year again covered the entire portfolio of entrepreneurial activities. Students worked on real-world cases dealing with next generation home loan savings (commissioned by Raiffeisen), standards and certifications in the context of AI systems (Austrian Standards), modern incentive systems in sales (Würth), human resources management at the Ministry of Finance (Federal Ministry of Finance), artificial intelligence in van sales and the associated change processes (MAN) as well as Retail Media, AI in Marketing and Purpose-Driven Marketing (Santander Consumer Bank).

The topic of artificial intelligence ran through 2024 like a red thread. At the beginning of the year, Senior Researcher Ilona Pezenka gave a paper on tourism advertising between AI and cultural background at the ENTER Conference; later in the year, the chatbot study by Ilona Pezenka, David Dobrowsky and Gerald Janous was published in the journal Communication Studies. In addition, our teaching staff engaged intensively with the use of AI in teaching, as a result of which this subject found its way into numerous courses.

Our students demonstrated a high level of professionalism in field projects with BLAGUSS, HOFER, Mondelez and the Ottakringer Brauerei, impressing their clients with creative and innovative concepts that lived up to agency standards. The research results from two practical projects with the Austrian Football League were very well received when they were presented at the end of November at an event organized in cooperation with Marketing Club Österreich . Fittingly, the evening on the topic of Sports Sponsorship with Impact took place at the Generali Arena of Austria Wien Football Club.

We are very proud that a Master’s thesis on the Perception of Sustainability Aspects in Packaging  that was supervised by Senior Researcher David Bourdin won the Best Paper Award. In addition, in a joint action with the Communication Management and Journalism & Media Management study programs, we launched the Excellence Club for outstanding students.

The new curricula were successfully implemented with the support of our experienced lecturers using suitable didactic methods. All academic papers produced in our study programs are thematically aligned to the SDGs. The immQu awards for the best Master’s thesis and the best graduate from the Master’s program were presented at a ceremony attended by the media.

One highlight in 2024 was the reaccreditation of our degree programs by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), the global professional body for the real estate industry. Following a review of the curricula, the presentation of theses and quality management procedures, the RICS accreditation panel also asked students and lecturers for their opinions.  In particular, the panel praised the professional and practical management of the degree programs.

Anna-Vera Deinhammer’s Endowed Professorship for Sustainable Real Estate, which is fully funded by corporate donors, makes it possible to explore sustainability issues in project development even more deeply, to play an active role in the development of ÖNORM standards and to participate in international bodies and events, such as the Forum Alpbach. Research results are shared with the Chair’s sponsors TPA Steuerberatung GmbH, BUWOG Group GmbH, LENIKUS Immobilien GmbH, Erste Bank and Raiffeisenbank International and are incorporated into teaching on the Real Estate Management study programs.

A field trip organized in cooperation with the HLSU Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts gave our students the opportunity to view a number of projects in Zurich and Lucerne. In return, students from the university in Lucerne came to visit us in Vienna.

On monthly excursions to real estate projects our students gained valuable insights into ongoing projects in a variety of asset classes in Vienna, Lower Austria and Burgenland. At the study programs’ second Digital Day, which featured a large number of industry partners, students were able to take home some valuable ideas and inspiration for their professional development.

All members of the study programs’ staff publish in specialist media and are sought-after speakers for lectures and discussions.

Despite difficult economic conditions, persistently high levels of inflation and geopolitical uncertainty, demand for travel continues unabated. The volume of business travel and leisure travel is equally high; at most, travelers skimp on spending at their destination. For tourism businesses, the year 2024 was dominated by the hot-button topics of sustainability, digitalization and employees.

Activities in the areas of research and teaching were also driven by these key issues. Cornelia Dlabaja, holder of our Endowed Professorship for Sustainable Urban and Tourism Development, joined forces with the Vienna Tourist Board to address the issue of urban space design in the context of tourism, and the acceptance of tourism. This work contributes directly to the overhaul of Vienna’s Visitor Economy Strategy. As part of the Master’s program in Urban Tourism & Visitor Economy Management, a study was conducted on the indirect economic effects of a destination’s investments in culture; the conclusions of the study were then translated into specific measures for a tourism strategy.

Implementation of the new curricula for the Bachelor’s degree program continued with innovations that included a new specialization module in Food Entrepreneurship. In the dual study program variant, the practical phases began for the first time in 2024. The more than 50 companies now offering practical work experience include all the leading tourism companies in the greater Vienna area.

Digitalization in tourism is subjected to a critical analysis yet at the same time utilized by students and lecturers to develop tourism products. Artificial intelligence has found its way into both our teaching activities and our day-to-day work and in the long term will bring about significant changes to how we work in the study programs.