Practical experience and project management skills

 In the course "Applied Project", our Business Administration Online students deal with the topic project management. In order to apply the acquired skills in practice, the students work on specific projects for companies. This year, for example, Palfinger, Liebherr, Bioalpin and SWAROVSKI OPTIK were company partners."Of course, most of our students are employed and thus gain practical experience on a daily basis. With these projects, however, we want to give students the opportunity to look beyond their own company and approach issues from the perspective of external project managers," says Prof. Maria Rabl, head of studies, explaining the idea behind the course, which took place for the first time. Over a period of 14 weeks, the students worked on company projects and were supported by MCI lecturers. As usual in an online study program, a large part of the collaboration and communication between the project team members, the companies and the MCI took place via online tools.Two project teams worked on a project on employer branding for the company SWAROVSKI OPTIK. Although these practical projects certainly involved more effort for the students than traditional courses, the students were proud of the output. "The survey of the target groups "young professionals" and "career starters" showed that the meaningfulness of work and training and development are particularly important criteria when deciding on an employer," says Manuel Gerstorfer, one of the students who worked on the project. SWAROVSKI OPTIK is already committed to creating an attractive working environment through targeted initiatives and numerous employee benefits. Based on the study results, recommendations for further strengthening the employer brand were developed. The students particularly appreciated the fact that they were able to deal intensively with a specific topic and to prove their project management and presentation skills.The final presentations then took place at SWAROVSKI OPTIK in Absam (without online conferencing tools). Both project groups presented their results to the company. "Our goal was to gain external insights into the needs and expectations of young professionals in terms of employer attractiveness and job search. The two project teams were able to derive very interesting recommendations for action for us from their surveys and analyses," says Stefan Aufschnaiter, HR Manager at SWAROVSKI OPTIK, pleased with the final presentations.Final presentations at SWAROVSKI OPTIK.Final presentations at SWAROVSKI OPTIK.Final presentations at SWAROVSKI OPTIK.Project presentations at MCI.Bachelor Business Administration Onlinehier können Videos eingespielt werden.