Innovation Office Open main menu
Several students walk in front of the library building on the WU campus

Innovation Bootcamp

Participants of the Innovation Bootcamp in Spring 2022
LEARN INNOVATION

Tools and skills for user-centred and solution-oriented innovation

The Innovation Bootcamp is a 5-day format in which hands-on tools for user-centered innovation are learned and experienced by applying the design thinking approach within transdisciplinary team settings and by tackling university-linked real-life challenges. On top, participants will apply their learnings directly within their own working environments. Further topics are team dynamics, as well as the culture for feedback and how to deal with mistakes. 

The innovation bootcamp is for all WU employees who are frequently confronted with complex tasks, and who are interested in in-depth problem understanding and user-centred solution creation. 

Since 2022, also employees of the universities in Mannheim (Germany) and St.Gallen (Switzerland) can participate in the programme.

*PLEASE NOTE THAT THE INNOVATION BOOTCAMP WILL BE HELD IN GERMAN*

Dates 2025: 

2025:

11.03., 12.03., 13.03., 19.03. and 3.04.

REGISTRATION

Participation fee: free for WU employees. Participants from other universities need to pay a participation fee of 810,- euros. Travel and accomodation expenses are not included. 

What our participants say about the Innovation Bootcamp

The Innovation Bootcamp was one thing above all, an excellent workshop that encourages you to challenge your own limits and move out of your personal comfort zone. The framework conditions are excellent. We had 5 intense days that were challenging and full of knowledge. On the one hand, cross-university and cross-professional teamwork marks an exciting challenge to integrate different knowledge, experiences and desires and to get out of one's own mindset. On the other hand, the "somewhat different" view of the colleagues from the administrative areas on university tasks, students and teaching as well as expectations of science and academics was particularly interesting for me.

Anett Hermann // Institute for Gender and Diversity in Organizations // WU Vienna

After more than 25 years of professional experience, I initially viewed many new methods critically. Agile working sounded to me more like a chaotic mess without any plan. At the Innovation Bootcamp at WU Vienna, I was quickly proven wrong. Today's complex problems cannot be solved with yesterday's structures. What is needed are fast, creative solutions involving a wide variety of institutions and people. You experience all of this "hands-on" at the bootcamp, plus also take away ideas for problems at your own institution in the exchange with colleagues from other universities.

Christian Queva // Head of the Department of Student Affairs // University of Mannheim

My AHA moment from the Innovation Bootcamp: We can already bring about innovation on a small scale. Good understanding of problems, the willingness to try out new solutions and further improvements based on constructive feedback are the basic elements for an innovative mindset. Since then, I have been facing new and existing challenges with this mindset and experienced the insights from the Innovation Bootcamp as a valuable enrichment for my daily business and the service management at the University of St. Gallen.

Laura Rotheichner // IT Service Management // University of St. Gallen