The curriculum of the MBA Strategic Management and Technology sounded like the challenge I was looking for in my career. Being able to lead a company through a process of change at the end of the training is the goal. In addition, the technical component is not neglected in this program.

The supervision by the ACE (Academy for Continuing Education) is done in a very close relationship with the student. The lecturers and the dean of the institute are excellent in imparting knowledge and show the scientific side of management education. This clearly distinguishes the TU Wien from other universities. In addition, of course, the connection for technicians comes into play.

First and foremost, a basic business education to be able to work successfully in a management position. Secondly, it is also a personal development, as you should never neglect this.

Approach your studies with the necessary composure, take as much as you can with you on a personal level and never lose sight of the goal.

Through many night shifts and a wonderfully supportive family.

Three times three days Leadership Retreat. That's the start of my MBA journey. After 6 months of lockdown, being on the road again for the first time, in a hotel and meeting new people.

Expectations are high, how will the group behave, will they get along? The weather for the first weekend is predicted to be bad.

After getting to know each other, we are thrown into the deep end - the first of many bridges has to be built. We fail the exercise, but grow as a group. The other weekends are similar. Theory is accompanied by exciting outdoor exercises. Not infrequently we fail. We learn what leadership means in theory and then try to put it into practice right away.

You can see particularly well how much our group has grown together during the voluntary after-work sessions. After an exhausting day, almost all of us actually allow ourselves to be entertained by nuclear energy for another hour and participate in the discussions.

The last weekend shows that even our so harmoniously praised group can show conflicts. As we realize only afterwards, these were deliberately brought about in order to illustrate processes in organizations. Here you can see how valuable good outdoor trainers are.

The three weekends have left their mark on all of us. The subsequent personal reflection was certainly not always easy. To understand where there is potential for improvement, but also what opportunities are now open to us with the newly learned.

Eileen Langegger, August 2021