Human-Centred Design is an approach that places people at the core of every decision point throughout the design process. Identifying, understanding and fulfilling people’s needs, desires, wishes, and goals are imperative in human-centred design. The approach is relevant to any design endeavour that aims to deliver useful products, services, and combinations of both to people as the end-users. The same applies to the design of software, mobile applications, collaboration platforms, and other information systems.

This course is designed with Information Systems students’ needs and goals in mind. Students are guided through their journey in understanding the basics of human cognition and human behaviour that are relevant to the design of information systems. They also learn several methods of human-centred design that are applicable in their projects.

• The module involves interactive lectures with exercises to integrate theoretical knowledge with critical analysis skills.
• The e-learning platform Moodle is used throughout the course to disseminate course material and for information and discussion.
• Case studies are used to discuss the course contents.
• Contemporary scientific publications from Information Systems and Human-Centred Design are discussed in class.

After successful completion of the course, students will:

• understand the basics of human cognition and human behaviour that are relevant to the design of information systems
• understand different human-centred design methods
• be able to apply the understanding and the design methods into their own design projects or illustrative cases

Written exam (60min)

Emerging IT Topics addresses recent technological trends and developments in research and business, so its content can be adapted quickly to the job market’s emerging needs. Accordingly, the course content changes from semester to semester.

• The course involves interactive seminars that integrate theoretical knowledge with analysis skills.
• The e-learning platform Moodle is used throughout the course to disseminate course materials and for information and discussion.
• Contemporary scientific publications from the fields of Information Systems and Management are discussed in class.

After successful completion of the course, students will:

• have profound knowledge of current topics in IT
• be able to assess the usefulness and potential applications of emerging IT applications
• be current on recent scientific results on emerging IT topics

Written exam (60min)

Digital Entrepreneurship covers the intersection between digital technology and new venture creation, i.e., com-pany start-up activity. It addresses venture creation of digital artefacts as the core market offering (e.g., software, hardware, smart devices), digital technology as enablers of new venture creation (e.g., 3D printing, crowdfunding, platforms such as appStore), and venture creation in technology-intensive contexts (e.g., BioTech, IT Healthcare, FinTech). The course covers six primary topics:

• Forms and processes of entrepreneurship
• Business planning for new ventures
• Digital technologies as enablers and triggers for entrepreneurial activity
• Digital technologies as market offerings of emergent ventures
• Start-up activity in technology-intensive sectors

• The module combines interactive lectures with case studies and exercises to integrate theoretical knowledge with practical start-up and business planning skills.
• The e-learning platform Moodle will be used throughout the course to disseminate course material and for information and discussion.
• Case studies will be used to discuss and illustrate course contents.
• Contemporary scientific publications from Information Systems and Entrepreneurship will be discussed in class.

After successful completion of the course, students will:

• understand the fundamentals of entrepreneurship
• understand the unique challenges and opportunities of digital entrepreneurship
• understand peculiarities of digital technologies with respect to new venture emergence processes
• assess and evaluate the role of digital technologies in different phases of entrepreneurship

Written exam (60min)

• Overview on different Forms and Asset Classes of Alternative Investments
• Chances and Risks of Alternative Investments
• Alternative Investments in a Portfolio Context
• Regulation of Alternative Investments
• Socially Responsible Investments and Impact
• Alternative Investments and Corporate Governance

• Interactive lecture with discussion.
• Guest lectures by business leaders to show how theory is transferred into practice.
• Case studies could be offered and discussed in class.

After successful completion of this course, students

• understand the characteristics of specific types of alternative Investments
• know how to Interpret empirical results of specific types of alternative Investments
• know how to evaluate specific types of alternative Investments
• are capable to understand and evaluate the impact of alternative Investments on asset management portfolios
• have a clear understanding of sustainable finance and their financial and non-financial Impact

See lectures within the module.

• Role and Responsibility of Owners
• Practice of Right of Control for Various Actors
• Board structures and diversity
• Theory, Principles, and World-Views
• The Ethical Leader: Self-Mastery and Ethics, Mind-Sets
• Corporate Ethics: Shared Values, Professionalism (as part of Standards of Professional Conduct)

Lecture

Students …

• illustrate the role and responsibility of corporate owners
• explain the right of corporate control
• describe the problem of free riding
• understand the origins, discipline and business case of ethics
• discuss defined moments such as ethical dilemma in the corporate context
• familiarize with the standards of professionalism in particular

Data Visualisation covers techniques for creating effective data visualisations based on principles from statistics, cognitive science, and graphic design to help analysts and decision-makers understand and explore big data. The course covers eight primary topics:

• Visualising univariate and multivariate numerical data
• Visualising time series data
• Visualising geospatial data
• Visualising networked data
• Visualising high-dimensional data
• Visualising textual data
• Interactive dashboards
• Animations

• The course involves interactive lectures with exercises to integrate theoretical knowledge with practical design and analysis skills.
• The e-learning platform Moodle is used throughout the course to disseminate course material and for information and discussion.
• Real-life examples are used to show how the course content can be applied in practice.

After successful completion of the course, students will:

• understand the main concepts, theories, and methods of data visualisation
• recognise the typical challenges of visualising large and complex data sets
• be able to create graphs like bar charts, scatterplots, line charts, and heatmaps to represent various types of data sets visually
• be able to use data-visualisation methods to analyse business problems, generate possible solutions, and compare these solutions in terms of their effectiveness and efficiency

Written exam (60min)

Data Management covers the modern data-management cycle, from the collection of data from diverse sources to the preparation of data for data-driven applications. Students learn how to handle various data formats, how to assess and improve data quality, and how to store and process data using SQL, NoSQL, and Hadoop technologies. The course covers eight primary topics:

• Modern data-management requirements
• Database system architecture
• Diagnosing and handling data quality problems
• Relational databases (SQL)
• Hands-on labs with MySQL
• Concurrency control techniques
• NoSQL databases (e.g., MongoDB)
• Apache Hadoop (HDFS, MapReduce)

• The module involves interactive lectures with exercises to integrate theoretical knowledge with practical design and analysis skills.
• The e-learning platform Moodle is used throughout the course to disseminate course material and for information and discussion.

After successful completion of the course, students will:

• understand the basic concepts and methods of modern data management
• be able to collect and prepare data for data-driven applications
• be able to select and apply appropriate technologies for building data-driven applications

Written exam (60min)

Business Statistics covers statistical methods that are used to support decision-making in business contexts, so it also provides a methodological foundation for the students' master's thesis projects. The course builds on the basic concepts of statistical testing and estimation theory that are usually taught in bachelor’s programmes. The course covers five primary topics:

• Graphic and numeric characterizations of random variables and their distributions
• Framework and basic applications for testing hypotheses and estimating parameters
• The ordinary least squares (OLS) method
• Simple linear regression, including parameter estimation, diagnostic plots, hypothesis testing, predictions, and model specifications using log-transformations
• Introduction to the software package R

• The module involves interactive lectures with exercises to integrate theoretical knowledge with practical design and analysis skills.
• Students complete homework assignments after each lecture.
• The e-learning platform Moodle is used throughout the course to disseminate course material and for information and discussion.

After successful completion of the course, students will:

• be able to present the distributions of random variables graphically and to calculate and interpret their moments
• understand the framework of testing hypotheses and estimating parameters
• know the assumptions made in basic testing and estimating procedures when drawing general conclusions
• be able to derive the minimum sample size for basic testing and estimation procedures
• be able to apply the ordinary least squares method to derive estimators and compare their statistical properties
• be able to explain the classic linear model assumptions, run simple linear regressions, check the diagnostics plots, use log-transformations to specify models, and interpret the results correctly

Written exam (60min)
To successfully pass the module, students must collect at least 50 percent of points in a final exam (60 minutes; 30 points in total). During the exam, students may use a self-created “cheat sheet” (DIN A4, double-sided, machine-written or handwritten, any contents) and a calculator of their choice (including programmable calculators).

Business Process Management provides an introduction to fundamental concepts, frameworks, models, theories, and methods in process management and covers the operation, improvement, and innovation of business processes. Business Process Management (BPM) is one of the core topics of the degree programme, so the course also provides a basis on which students can choose their electives. The course covers eight primary topics:

• Business process operations
• Business process change
• Strategic alignment
• Business process governance
• Quality management
• Six Sigma
• BPM skills
• Organizational culture

• The course involves interactive lectures with exercises to integrate theoretical knowledge with practical design and analysis skills.
• The e-learning platform Moodle is used throughout the course to disseminate course material and for information and discussion.
• Case studies are used to discuss the course contents and to train students in using the methods covered.

After successful completion of the course, students will:

• understand the foundations and contextual roots of BPM (e.g., business process re-engineering, total quality management)
• understand the goals of BPM (e.g., time, cost, quality, sustainability)
• understand the core components of holistic BPM approaches (strategic alignment, governance, methods, technologies, people, culture)
• understand the key principles of good BPM

Written exam (90min)

Business Process Analysis focuses on process analysis, covering approaches and methods for designing, analysing, and simulating processes in organisations. The course covers four primary topics:

• Introduction to process analysis
• Process modelling and design
• Process flow analysis
• Process simulation

• The course involves interactive lectures with exercises to integrate theoretical knowledge with practical design and analysis skills.
• The e-learning platform Moodle is used throughout the course to disseminate course material and for information and discussion.

After successful completion of the course, students will:

• know how processes can be modelled, analysed, and simulated
• know the basic methods of process modelling for analysing, designing, and implementing information systems in organisations
• be able to use the methods of process flow analysis and simulation to analyse, design, and improve business processes in organisations

Written exam (60min)