SUCCESS AT GOOGLE WITH A MASTER DEGREE IN INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS & LAW

The Master Degree program International Business & Law has a new, contemporary curriculum. In this context, we also want to take a closer look at the realities faced by our graduates in the working world. Success stories like Lisa Baumann's are the greatest honor for our work, thus we wanted to examine the thematic focus of our new Master Degree program together with her.

Lisa completed her Master Degree in 2016 and then worked as a Social Media Specialist for the DACH market at Airbnb. After that, she started as a Key Account Manager at Google, supporting one of the biggest German start-ups. Currently, she is part of the global Go-To-Market team in Market Intelligence at Google in San Francisco, where she is working on a product strategy to stay competitive.

STUDY TOUR
However, Lisa's career already had its beginnings during her studies, where she got her first insights into international tech companies as part of our study tour.

"Before the Study Tour, I was not even aware that Dublin is such a big tech hub in Europe and I had never been physically inside a tech company. During the Study Tour, we visited several companies, and especially Google made a lasting impression on me with its vibe, design and its team of young people."

GLOBAL CHALLENGES
We asked Lisa to tell us where she personally identifies global challenges in business and within her company.

"Since I personally enjoy spending a lot of time in nature, I see the climate crisis in particular as a social challenge, for individuals but also for companies. Google has been CO2 neutral since 2007, but that alone is not enough. For this reason, Google set itself an ambitious goal last year: By 2030, we want to run our data centers and sites with CO2-free energy around the clock. Google also believes that sustainability is easier to achieve when everyone is pulling in the same direction. That is why they are working with nonprofits, research institutes, government agencies and businesses to develop customized technologies and tools to turn things around faster.”

NEW FOCAL POINTS OF OUR CURRICULUM
When asked about the changes we have introduced in the Master Degree program, Lisa gives us positive feedback throughout.

“I am very pleased to hear that MCI is constantly reflecting on the content of the curriculum and that it regularly adds new content. Especially in business studies, agility is important and just learning rigid models is not enough to be successful later in your career”

Since we are also taking a closer look at topics such as new leadership, diversity and sustainability in our new program, we wanted to know from our successful graduate how important these topics are in her work.

"I hear about topics such as new leadership, diversity and sustainability on a weekly basis in my work, and corporate culture is a very important component at Google. Especially topics like these are also addressed here and we make sure that they are implemented. The topic of DEI - Diversity, Equity and Inclusion - is also very present in our company and Google is convinced that diversity is the key to long-term success – Building diversity, equity, and inclusion into our workplace, products, and programs is at the heart of creating a more helpful Google for everyone. When we get this right, we ensure that everyone feels like they belong at Google and beyond.”

A LOOK BACK AND SOME ADVICE FOR THE FUTURE
Finally, we asked Lisa to give our future students a bit of advice for the road ahead.

"Innsbruck is a beautiful city with the unique opportunity to spend a lot of time in the mountains, and at the same time to get a business-oriented and modern academic education. My time in Innsbruck was so valuable and I still look back with pleasure, and wouldn't want to change anything. Studying taught me what work-life balance is and how important prioritization is; when it is better to be at university to successfully complete my studies and when a day in deep snow is mentally good for me to regain strength for my studies. These strategies also help me in the working world to deliver top performance, but also not to lose sight of my mountain passion, because it gives endless energy for work."

We would like to thank Lisa Baumann for these valuable insights and we wish her as much success and foresight on her way in the future!