Hello again!

Good vibrations, inspiring topics and interesting discussions with old acquaintances – as well as a victory for Germany’s football team against Denmark in the European Championships – that sums up the FS Alumni Homecoming 2024. More than 500 participants celebrated their reunion on campus last Saturday, reminisced and made new contacts in the FS Community.

One of the highlights of the day was the keynote speech by Gregor Pillen, Executive Growth Initiatives Global Sales at IBM in DACH, titled "AI – balancing act around creativity, productivity, ethics and governance". Among other things, he addressed pressing questions that are currently on the minds of all companies worldwide: How is artificial intelligence (AI) changing my IT infrastructure and how can we benefit from AI? The major hurdles that companies are facing are the challenges of integration, governance aspects, the high price as well as limited expertise among staff and the lack of development tools.

Referring to these findings, Professor Nils Stieglitz, President and CEO of Frankfurt School, emphasised: “If you were wondering why our university, with its focus on finance and management, also has a Department of Computational Science and Philosophy, I hope this keynote has answered that question. Whatever AI will bring in the future, we have to be prepared for it.”

The day began with seven workshops, which provided many starting points for further discussions. Participants were able to choose between the following topics: "The role of venture capital financing and its current state in Europe", "Will artificial intelligence kill authentic leadership?", "Innovation and real estate: Can AI save the 'construction site' of an entire industry / reform the real estate industry?", "Green deal, sustainable finance and disclosure regulation: Europe as a leading example or on the wrong track?", "Decoupling", "Team player and leader? Perfect Match with the AECDisc" and "Financial Education for Academics".

Networking, barbecue, football and party into the night

Of course, there were also plenty of opportunities for networking during the event: Alumni from the anniversary classes of 1999, 2004 and 2014 met Professor Stieglitz for an exclusive reception. At the same time, alumni from the other classes had the opportunity to meet up in smaller groups with former fellow students from their own degree programmes.

After enjoying the big barbecue, numerous alumni came together at the public screening area on campus to watch the German football team's victory over Denmark in the European Championships. With music and a party, the alumni and staff of Frankfurt School celebrated the fantastic FS Community in a relaxed atmosphere and brought the night to a close.

“Thank you so much for the cool event! I met a lot of old friends, and we had a great evening at FS. That calls for more!”

Thomas Ribbe, Project Lead Test Stand Development at BMW and FS alumnus, EMBA Class of 2017