About the ESTT

The Energy & Strategy Think Tank (ESTT) is a collaboration between Verbund, Wien Energie and the Institute for Strategic Management (ISM) at Vienna University of Economics and Business (WU). Aims of the ESTT: Megatrends such as digitalization, decentralization, and decarbonisation are reshaping the energy industry and adjacent capital-​intensive industries. To lead, navigate, and understand these disruptive…

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About the Team

The ESTT team at WU consists of experts on strategy, innovation, and organization in and beyond the energy industry. Dr. Georg Reischauer  (Head) Univ-Prof. Dr. Werner H. Hoffmann  – Christian Bruck Dr. Philipp Buss Alexander Engelmann Univ.-Prof. Dr. Nina Hampl  Dr. Melanie Wiener Marlene Würfl  

Innovation Talk “Innovation Management in times of Covid-19”

The first Innovation Talk in 2021 was held by Catharina van Delden (Co-founder and CEO of innosabi GmbH). In her insightful talk, van Delden emphasized on current challenges of innovation management due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. Resulting from the current Covid-19 situation, many companies are confronted with the loss of informal exchange or a…

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Master Thesis on Open Innovation with Start-Ups in the Energy Industry

The master thesis “Open Innovation with Start-Ups in the Energy Industry: Value Capture Strategies and Start-Up Needs” examines the role of value capture strategies and the related needs of start-ups in the context of Open Innovation for the energy industry. Here is the abstract: Since the rise of the Open Innovation (OI) paradigm collaborations with…

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Paper in Industry and Innovation on Aligning the Design of Intermediary Organisations With the Ecosystem

ESTT member G. Reischauer published a paper on aligning the design of intermediary organisations with the ecosystem together with two colleagues in the Industry and Innovation journal. Here is the abstract: Intermediary organisations such as technology transfer organisations (TTOs) are an important mechanism of open ecosystem governance, as they support how ecosystem participants search for…

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Master Thesis on Demand Response

The master thesis “New Opportunities for Residential Demand Response in Austria” was just finished: The progressing transition towards a low-carbon society in order to tackle the climate crisis is going to challenge the existing electricity ecosystems heavily. Several solutions are conceivable to ensure a reliable and affordable electricity supply in the upcoming decades. Demand response…

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Innovation Talk “Artificial Intelligence in the Energy Industry”

The second Innovation Talk in 2020 was held by Dr. Jens Weinmann (European School of Management and Technology Berlin, Program Director and Researcher). In his insightful talk, Dr. Weinmann emphasized on various applications of the most common machine learning techniques in the energy industry. Illustrative use case examples highlighted companies from different industries which already…

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Master Thesis on IoT Ecosystem Framework for the Energy Industry

The master thesis “Challenges and Solutions with IoT Integration: An IoT Ecosystem Framework for the Energy Industry” examines the role of the Internet of Things (IoT) for the energy industry. Here is the abstract: This thesis focuses on the Internet of Things integration into an energy firm. The purpose of thesis is to understand the…

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Master Thesis on KPI-Guided Management of Corporate Innovation Hubs in the Energy Industry

Under the supervision of ESTT staff, the Master Thesis “KPI-Guided Management of Corporate Innovation Hubs in the Energy Industry” was recently finished. Here is the abstract: The emergence of open innovation has transformed the way innovation is managed in established corporations. Especially in today’s competitive market environment, characterized by an unprecedented pace of innovation and…

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ESTT at the SMS Conference 2020

ESTT members contributed to the Strategic Management Society (SMS) Annual Conference in Minneapolis with the paper “Collaborating and Competing in Multiple Platform Ecosystems”. The abstract is as follows: In platform ecosystems, platform sponsors provide the infrastructure through which firms offer complementary components. These complementors increasingly multi-home: they offer components in multiple ecosystems and thereby collaborate…

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Master Thesis on Smart Home Ecosystems in Real Estate Markets

The master thesis “Smart Home Ecosystems in Real Estate Markets: Use Cases and Actors” examines the role of smart home technologies and their value propositions for real estate markets. Here is the abstract: Devices such as voice assistants and networked appliances are gaining a foothold in more households every year. These smart home technologies open…

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