Meet. Share. Discuss. Innovate.
ESB International Staff Days 2025
Join our ESB International Staff Days - ’Empowering Minds, Embracing Change’! You’ll have the opportunity to engage with international colleagues, corporate partners and the ESB community, to share experiences, exchange ideas and foster innovation in international higher education.
Our five-day programme will encompass an interesting mix of expert workshops, presentations and focus groups along with an inspiring company visit. You will also discover the city of Reutlingen on foot, experience the vibrant ESB culture during our international campus day and, last but not least, get a taste of the local Swabian culture and cuisine in the festive season.
When: 1–5 December 2025
Where: ESB Business School, Reutlingen, Germany
Who: Colleagues from all functional areas at partner universities - academic and administrative staff, programme directors and coordinators, International Office, Student Services and Career Services staff, Quality Management, PR and Communications, etc.
Provisional Programme
Building 17, lower entrance, rooms U15-U18
| 09:00 – 09:30 | Registration |
| 09:30 – 10:30 | Welcome to ESB Business School and Introductions Marlene Ferencz, Vice-Dean, ESB Business School |
| 10:30– 11:00 | Baden-Württemberg: The Innovation Hub Paul-David Bittner, Innovation and Economy Team Lead, Cyber Valley GmbH |
| 11:00 – 11:30 | Coffee Break |
| 11:30 – 13:00 | Campus Tour |
| 13:00 – 14:00 | Lunch |
| 14:00 – 14:30 | Transfer to town (by public transport) |
| 14:30 – 16:00 | Guided City Walking Tour of Reutlingen |
| 18:30 | Informal Get-Together in the City Centre |
Building 17, lower entrance, rooms U15-U18
| 09:30 – 10:00 | Keynote Arian Kozica Professor for Organisation and Leadership, ESB Business School |
| 10:00 – 10:45 | The Corporate Perspective: Empowering Leaders for the AI-Driven Shift Benjamin Hermann, Managing Director, Zoi |
| 10:45 – 11:00 | Coffee Break |
| 11:00 – 12:15 | Finding Your Focus and Owning your Attention Elizabeth Hofvenschiöld Professor for Strategic Management and Corporate Development, ESB Business School |
| 12:15 – 13:15 | Lunch |
| 13:15 – 14:15 | We Help You Grow Franziska Müller Project management ‘We help. You grow!’, ESB Business School |
| 14:15 – 15:15 | Interactive Group Session Carolien van der Hulst, Career Center, ESB Business School |
| 15:15 – 15:45 | Short Break |
| 15:45 – 16:30 | Transfer to Tübingen |
| 16:30 – 18:00 | ChocolART 2025 |
| 18:00 | Welcome Dinner in Tübingen Neckarmüller Tübingen, Gartenstraße 4, 72074 Tübingen |
Building 17, lower entrance, rooms U15-U18
| 09:30 – 11:00 | Focus Groups: Topic 1 and 2 (Two parallel sessions) Topics will be chosen based on participants' stated interests at registration. e.g. Innovation in Collaboration, COIL Learning and Teaching Formats, Student and Staff Mobility, AI in Teaching and Work Processes, International Student Recruitment, Quality Management |
| 11:00 – 11:15 | Coffee Break |
| 11:15 – 12:45 | Focus Groups: Topic 3 and 4 (Two parallel sessions) Topics will be chosen based on participants' stated interests at registration (see above). |
| 13:00 | International Campus Day with food festival and the opportunity to interact with the ESB community and to arrange individual meetings |
| 08:00 – 09:30 | Company Visit: Transfer to Alfred Kärcher GmbH & Co. KG Meeting point in front of Hotel Württemberger Hof, Reutlingen city centre |
| 09:30 – 13:30 | International Career Opportunities for Students @Kärcher and How Future Trends Shape Job Profiles of Tomorrow Rüdiger Bechstein, Executive Vice President Corporate Human Resources Guided Factory Tour with Lunch Wolfgang Zernickel and Melanie Wiens |
| 13:45 – 14:15 | Transfer to Esslingen |
| 14:15 – 17:45 | Free Time to Visit Esslingen and it’s Medieval Christmas Market |
| 18:00 – 20:00 | Visit to Kessler Sekt with Historical Wine Cellar Tour Georg-Christian-von-Kessler-Platz 12-16, 73728 Esslingen |
| 20:15 | Departure to Reutlingen |
| 09:00 – 12:00 | Individual Meetings and Departure |
This event is free of charge for colleagues from partner universities of ESB Business School. Accommodation and travel expenses are to be paid by the participants. Please check if your home university can provide you with Erasmus+ funding for staff mobility.
We recommend that you arrive in Reutlingen on Sunday 30 November and depart on Friday 5 December.
| Closest airport: | Stuttgart Airport (There is a direct bus connection from the airport to Reutlingen city centre) |
| Closest train station: | Reutlingen main station (Reutlingen HBF) |
| Accommodation: | We have a block reservation in two Reutlingen hotels. Details will be provided upon receipt of your registration for the event. |
Should you require any further information, do not hesitate to contact joanne.corlett@reutlingen-university.de.
