Entrepreneurship and business management
Degree: Bachelor
Study programs:
Faculty of Agricultural, Nutritional and Engineering Sciences: Agrarwissenschaften (B.Sc.), Ernährungs- und Lebensmittelwissenschaften (B.Sc.), Agrarwissenschaft (Lehramt Berufskolleg), Ernährungs- und Hauswirtschaftswissenschaft (Lehramt Berufskolleg)
Faculty of Law and Political Science: Volkswirtschaftslehre (B.Sc.), Wirtschaftswissenschaften (B.A.)
Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences: Geografie (B.Sc.), Geowissenschaften (B.Sc.), Cyber Security (B.Sc.), Informatik (B.Sc.)
Is your degree program not listed? Please contact us directly by e-mail (ies.info@uni-bonn.de) .
We welcome students from all faculties and degree programs!
Semester:The course is offered in the winter semester
Language: German
Exam: e-Exam
Responsible: Prof. Dr. Denise Fischer-Kreer
Further information on the module can be found at BASIS.
After successfully completing the module, you will be able to:
- Identify the unique features and challenges of entrepreneurship
- Explain various aspects of sustainability in an entrepreneurial context and apply concepts for implementing sustainable corporate management
- Outline methods for measuring corporate sustainability and associated challenges
- Evaluate the social, ethical, and ecological responsibility of founders and companies, and formulate strategies for sustainable corporate transformations
During the semester, we will begin with an introduction to entrepreneurship. The learning content includes the basics of entrepreneurship regarding entrepreneurial decisions, as well as recognizing, evaluating, and exploiting entrepreneurial opportunities. We will learn how entrepreneurs implement ideas and innovation processes.
The second part of the module deals with the opportunities and challenges of business management, with a particular focus on sustainable business management. We will discuss the entrepreneurial scope, approaches, opportunities, and risks of sustainable management in the context of natural and social developments. Theoretical insights into sustainable corporate management and concepts for resolving contradictions among economic, social, and ecological concerns will be covered. You will learn how to integrate sustainability aspects into a corporate strategy and how to critically evaluate corporate communication regarding sustainability.
Damien:
"A clear recommendation for anyone interested in startups and business management! The module conveys theoretical content in a practical and tangible way. Prof. Dr. Fischer-Kreer and her team present the topic in a structured and motivating way – no dry frontal teaching, but real added value.
The high-quality guest lectures were particularly impressive, including a founder from 'Die Höhle der Löwen' (the German 'Shark Tank') and experts from Deutsche Telekom. The atmosphere in the course was outstanding thanks to the active exchange and the committed team.
If you are seriously thinking about founding a business, you should definitely also take the 'Founding a Business' module – both together are the perfect foundation. Absolutely recommendable!"
Winter Semester 2025/2026
The “Entrepreneurship and Business Management” module was offered for the second time during the winter semester of 2025/2026, once again giving students the opportunity to delve deeply into the world of entrepreneurship.
A particular highlight this year were eight practical guest lectures from various industries. Among the guests was Sophie Gnest from Pack & Satt, a company focused on sustainable and innovative catering concepts. Vanessa Rexin, former founder of leamon—a Berlin-based startup that developed an alarm bracelet—spoke candidly about her startup experiences as well as her subsequent career moves, including her time at Ottobock, and provided insights into growth strategies and the process of an initial public offering (IPO). Bernard Winterhalter from Rose Switzerland spoke about strategies in the bicycle and e-commerce sectors, while Dr. Nuri Morava from DB Schenker shared sustainability perspectives from the logistics industry. Leandro Burguete of Haferkater also shared valuable insights into building his business, focusing in particular on the development and scaling of a successful franchise concept.
In addition, students this semester engaged intensively with the topic of business succession, with a particular focus on challenges and opportunities in the German agricultural sector. Another key focus was on diversity, which provided important insights for future-oriented and responsible corporate governance. Particularly influential in this regard were the guest lectures by Prof. Dr. Susanne Schmidt from Magdeburg and Dr. Louise Blume.
The combination of sound theory and practical insights offered students a comprehensive overview of entrepreneurship—from startup and growth phases to strategic corporate management. We hope that the participants were able to take away many exciting ideas and will continue to pursue entrepreneurial thinking in the future.
Wintersemester 2024 / 2025
The new "Entrepreneurship and Business Management" module was first offered at the University of Bonn in the winter semester 2024/25. It provided students from various disciplines the opportunity to immerse themselves in the world of entrepreneurship. In addition to lectures and exercises on entrepreneurship and corporate management, which conveyed key concepts, practical knowledge, and scientific findings, six exciting guest lectures offered valuable insights into real-world practice.
Highlights included:
- Johannes Weimar, founder of aarnt.bioworks, discussed the conversion of unused stables into modern agricultural land, including one of the first recreational cannabis plantations in NRW.
- David Dung, founder of Midelphotonics, shared his journey from earning a doctorate in physics at the University of Bonn to launching his own laser startup.
- Tiana Trumpa provided insights into Deutsche Telekom's sustainability strategy and its implementation.
- Sara Grohé reported on her experiences selling her company, erlich textil, to a large corporation and subsequently buying it back.
- Georg Reifferscheid spoke about his work at Rewe Ventures and his own entrepreneurial lessons.
- Florian Hornig discussed his food startup, Fruping, his experiences behind the scenes of "Die Höhle der Löwen" (the German 'Shark Tank'), and his current work on the digitalization of a mid-sized company.
This blend of theory and practice offered students a comprehensive insight into entrepreneurship—from founding and growth to strategic corporate management.