Strategy, Innovation and Management Control

WU Vienna ranks Top 10% (QS) worldwide with its Master’s Degree Program in Strategy, Innovation, and Management Control. This is perhaps also due to the fact that students here have the opportunity to choose between 7 different double degree options.

The Master in Strategy, Innovation, and Management Control prepares tomorrow's executives for their role as organizational leaders. The program combines theory, practice, and instruction in relevant social skills, for an integrated approach to organizational leadership. Great emphasis is placed on developing the ability to identify new entrepreneurial opportunities and, based on that ability, creating strategies for achieving sustained success.

5 reasons to study Strategy, Innovation, and Management Control:

1. Top ranked master's program

2. Global study opportunities

3. Excellent career opportunities

4. Top corporate partners

5. Vibrant student community

The 21st century is characterized by challenges that are unique in the history of mankind. Technological advances and social developments, together with a high level of interconnectedness due to globalization and the continuous expansion of the Internet are dramatically changing the world's dynamics. Change is happening faster, in a more complex way, and occurs on a more profound level. As a result, management tasks have never before been as demanding as they are today. Simultaneously, entrepreneurial opportunities have never before been as great and diverse as now. For executives to operate effectively in this promising yet risky economic environment, they need to be equipped with a broad range of knowledge, techniques, and skills. Tomorrow's leading executives will have to combine know-how in the areas of strategy, innovation, organization and change management, and have profound knowledge of how to manage and control business from a financial perspective. They will need analytic and creative skills, to think and act as entrepreneurs.

THE PLUS EXPERIENCE

If you decide to complete your Master‘s degree at the WU Vienna University of Economics and Business, you will receive one of the best business educations at one of the top 1% business schools in the world. But that‘s not all: You are guaranteed to experience excellent job prospects, an awardwinning campus, state-of-the-art teaching, a diverse range of degree programs and, on top of it all, life in the world‘s most livable city.

First Year

In the first semester foundation courses provide the basis for an in-depth understanding of how companies develop corporate and business strategies (strategy development) and how they can translate their strategies into employee action (strategy implementation). The second semester is dedicated to the contextualization and integration of the program's core subjects. You are provided with the opportunity to apply and deepen the knowledge gained from the introductory courses in a comprehensive way.

Second Year

Building on this solid foundation you have the opportunity to specialize by choosing four out of numerous electives and start to prepare and write your master theses. In addition, a business project is organized in cooperation with our corporate partners which offers the opportunity to apply theoretical knowledge to real life problems or a garage course is offered which allows you to develop your own start-up idea.

The program's flexible structure allows you to spend one or two semesters of your second year of studies at one of our prestigious partner universities. For selected students we provide the opportunity to join a double degree program.

This two-year full-time master's program provides you with an excellent academic and practice-oriented education. It has been carefully designed to provide you with the skills and experience needed to become a successful future business leader. Here you can find a general overview of the curriculum.

1st semester (30 ECTS)

• Fundamentals of Strategic Management (7 ECTS-credits)

• Fundamentals of Entrepreneurship and Innovation Management (7 ECTS-credits)

• Fundamentals of Management Control (7 ECTS-credits)

• Fundamentals of Entrepreneurial Finance (7 ECTS-credits)

• Thesis Seminar: How to Write a Thesis (2 ECTS-credits)

2nd semester (30 ECTS)

• Digital Transformation (5 ECTS-credits)

• Strategic Business Analytics (5 ECTS-credits)

• Managerial Economics (5 ECTS-credits)

• Professional Development Workshop (5 ECTS-credits)

• Business Planning and Performance Management (10 ECTS-credits)

3rd and 4th semester (60 ECTS)

• Business Project (15 ECTS-credits)

• 4 Electives (5 ECTS-credits) to choose from the following main areas:

  • Advanced Strategic Management

  • Advanced Entrepreneurship and Innovation Management

  • Advanced Financial Management and Management Control

  • Advanced Organizational Design

  • Advanced Business Research Methods

• Personal skills I + II (2 ECTS-credits each)

• Master's Thesis (20 ECTS-credits)

• Master's Thesis Defense (1 ECTS-credit)

For a more detailed study plan, check out the website of our program: wu.ac.at/en/programs/masters-programs/strategy-innovation-and-management-control/overview/

Completion of the Master’s Program in Strategy, Innovation, and Management Control qualifies students to:

• Master the challenges faced by internationally successful executives

• Adequately structure, model, and systematically solving practically relevant management issues

• Apply existing management techniques in practice in a reflective manner by considering their possibilities and limits

• Handle new challenges in a creative and entrepreneurial way

• Analytically and critically deal with questions of managing organizational units and their economic, social and ethical implications

• Observe the development of new management approaches and, based on the principle of life-long learning, independently deepen knowledge of such approaches