Graduates report

If someone had told us at the beginning of our seminar that we would be able to present our work at the 56th Hawaii International Conference on Systems Science less than a year later, we most likely would have shaken our heads in disbelief. How this came about, however, is something we would like to explain to you in more detail.

In our work, we investigated how artificial intelligence can contribute to more sustainability in the field of agricultural economics. During our research period it was especially valuable that we could go to our supervisor with all our questions and that we could clarify them in weekly to bi-weekly meetings (e.g. how to conduct a structured literature review in the field of information systems). This also allowed us to clarify any new questions that arose and be sure we were on the right track and within schedule. With the results of our research, we developed a so-called Concept Matrix, which allowed us to clearly structure the relevant articles on the topic. By following a systematic approach, we were able to gain interesting insights and identify research gaps. For us, it was already a success to be able to delve so deeply into the scientific work and thus contribute to the discussion around the topic of sustainability.

However, the most exciting part of our work actually happened after the actual seminar: We had the opportunity to further elaborate our work and submit it to a scientific international conference afterwards. And indeed, our work was accepted at the 56th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences. This gave us the opportunity to go to Hawaii and present our work to researchers from all around the world. That was pretty exciting! On site, we were able to expand our knowledge through many interesting talks, making new contacts and, of course, having the experience of presenting our work at an international conference. On top of that, we had plenty of time to explore the island and its beautiful nature.

All in all, it was a very exciting and interesting time in which we were able to gain many new insights into the world of scientific work. Therefore, we can only encourage students to approach scientific work with commitment and fun – it's worth it! Maybe you will be the very next to present your seminar paper or thesis at a conference!

Jonas Witte & Kevin Gao

The goal of my thesis was to develop a design process for an AI-based business model. In addition, Deutsche Bahn Vertrieb GmbH supported me as an external practical partner. Practical insight – great! Not a minute later, the mail left my inbox in which I applied for the topic. Shortly thereafter, I received a message that the topic was still available.

Maybe you're feeling the same way I did when I was looking for a topic for my thesis. Perhaps you are still undecided about the direction you want to take? With this report I would like to give you some orientation. You will get an insight into why I chose the department of Prof. Buxmann and why this was my best decision.

I wrote my bachelor thesis at the department of control engineering. I wanted to find a counterbalance to this and therefore write my master thesis at an economics department. “Something about disruptive technologies, digital business models, IT or AI … ”, I thought to myself. I visited the websites of various departments at FB 01. I finally found what I was looking for at the Software & AI Business Group: the advertised exposés covered exactly the topics I was looking for. One call for proposals particularly caught my eye and I immediately fell in love with it. It formulated the need for a design process for an AI-based business model. In addition, Deutsche Bahn Vertrieb GmbH was present as an external partner, which made the posting that much more interesting to me. Practical insight – great! Not a minute later, the mail left my inbox in which I applied for the topic. Shortly thereafter, I received a message that the topic was still available.

During the kickoff, I got to know the contact persons at Deutsche Bahn better. During this meeting, we decided on contract management as a suitable use case. An AI service was to be developed for this use case. In the first few weeks, I combed through numerous scientific publications and highlighted the current state of development on AI services. At the same time, I researched how business models are generally developed in companies. One tip I'd like to share right away: a thorough examination of the literature helps to narrow down the methodology that will be used later on at an early stage. Therefore, I recommend to start with the literature review as soon as possible and to deal intensively with a lot of papers.

In the weeks that followed, I developed a draft for a business model, which I then validated in expert interviews and adapted to the Deutsche Bahn. The challenge was to get employees from various departments at DB on board. I noticed in the first interviews that the business model was still very abstract formulated for some DB employees. I therefore created an individual presentation for each subsequent interview. This allowed me to visualize and explain my ideas more comprehensibly. The key result of my master thesis consisted of a design process for AI-based business models. Within the expert interviews, I was able to identify five escalation stages within change management.

Julian Hüsselmann

In December 2024, I had the opportunity to present my first academic paper at one of the most prestigious conferences in the field of Information Systems: the International Conference on Information Systems (ICIS) in Bangkok, Thailand. This experience was not only academically enriching but also a remarkable personal and cultural journey.

My path began in early 2023 with the planning of my bachelor’s thesis. With the support of my advisor, Dr. Oliver Vetter, I was able to turn an initial research idea on AI startups into a concrete topic within an exciting and relatively unexplored research niche. Specifically, I investigated the influence of investor-related ecosystem effects on the success of AI startups using a compelling quantitative methodology. Thanks to strong methodological guidance and academic supervision, my bachelor’s thesis yielded relevant research insights.

After completing my bachelor’s degree, Oliver encouraged me to further develop the thesis with him—with the goal of submitting it to an academic conference. Over the following months, we worked through several iterations of the paper while I was simultaneously beginning my master’s degree in Munich. Despite the physical distance, our collaboration remained productive and flexible.

After successfully passing the ICIS review process, we received the confirmation: the paper was accepted, and I would get to present it at the conference.

Thanks to the support of the department, I was able to make the trip. Once there, I was warmly welcomed by the rest of the chair’s team and was able to take full advantage of the conference as a platform for networking and exchanging ideas with other researchers.

A personal highlight was, of course, my own presentation. The discussion following the successful talk was especially valuable—the questions and feedback from participants provided new perspectives, some of which I plan to explore further in my master’s thesis. Beyond the academic sessions, the social program was also outstanding, with great emphasis placed on helping participants experience Thai culture.

My takeaway: I would take this opportunity again in a heartbeat and can only recommend getting involved in research beyond the bachelor's thesis.

This journey was so much more than just attending a conference. It marked the end of a long and rewarding process that stretched across nearly two years—from the initial idea and thesis, to publication and presentation. At the same time, it confirmed how rewarding it is to dive deep into a topic and to think beyond the boundaries of a traditional thesis.

My recommendation to anyone considering academic publishing: If you find a research question that truly excites you, make the most of the support your department offers and pursue your ideas further. The opportunities that research and publication can open up—for both your academic and personal development—are immense.

Paul Altunay