This year's Dirlmeier Foundation sponsorship award went to Dr. Julian Ruf for his dissertation entitled "How Values and Socioemotional Wealth influence Behavior and Performance in Family Firms".

At the university awards ceremony, graduates of the University of Siegen were honored for their outstanding work and special commitment. Dr. Laura Pütz received the Olpe District Study Prize for her dissertation "Longevity of family firms - the influence of family specific characteristics". The laudatory speech was held by Prof. Dr. Markus Schweitzer.

At the 17th annual reception of Schools III, Dr. Patrick Hertrampf's dissertation was awarded the Rolf H. Brunswig Doctoral Prize of the University of Siegen. This was the 15th time that this prize has been awarded. Prof. Dr. Peter Krebs, Vice Dean for Research, gave the laudatory speech after Heinz Meckel, long-standing representative and authorized representative of the Rolf H. Brunswig Siegen-Wittgenstein Foundation, briefly explained the history of the foundation and the doctoral prizes financed in this context.

Dr. Maximilian Philipp Krüger received the Althusius Prize of the Schools for Young Academics. Dr. Krüger completed his doctorate on the topic of "Careful Interventions - On Care and Participation in Design for Migration and Arrival". The laudatory speech was held by the Vice Dean for Research, Prof. Dr. Peter Krebs.

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Prof. Dr. Martin Thomsen (Business Administration)

This year, Professor Dr. Martin Thomsen received the Dr. Wolfgang Dieter Lange Science Prize, which was awarded by the first chairman of the Friends of Schools III, Dipl.-Kfm. Gerd Dilling. The prize was awarded for the essay "Market reactions to the appointment of audit committee directors with financial and industry expertise in Germany", which was published in the International Journal of Auditing.

Dr. Rober Rollin and Sonja Allen received the University of Siegen Prize for the Promotion of Young Academics from the Freie Rohrwerke Siegen Foundation for their dissertation and master's thesis. Dr. Rober Rollin wrote his doctoral thesis on "Essays on congruence theory in marketing- Special focus on digital products and webstores". The certificate was presented by Dr. Jens Jacobs.

t the 16th annual reception of Schools III, Dr. David Pielsticker's dissertation was awarded the Rolf H. Brunswig Doctoral Prize of the University of Siegen. This was the 14th time that this prize has been awarded. Prof. Dr. Peter Krebs, Vice Dean for Research, gave the laudatory speech after Heinz Meckel, long-standing representative and authorized representative of the Rolf H. Brunswig Siegen-Wittgenstein Foundation, briefly explained the history of the foundation and the doctoral prizes financed in this context.

Dr. Corinna Ogonowski received the Althusius Prize of the Schools for Young Academics. Dr. Ogonowski wrote her doctoral thesis on "The Living Lab as a Practical Approach for ICT Design: Setup and Maintenance Work in Domestic Environments". The laudatory speech was held by the Vice Dean for Research, Prof. Dr. Peter Krebs.

Junior Professor Dr. Thomas Kopp (Business Didactics)

Junior Professor Dr. Thomas Kopp received this year's Dr. Wolfgang Dieter Lange Science Prize, which was awarded by the first chairman of the Friends of Schools III, Dipl.-Kfm. Gerd Dilling. The prize was awarded for the essay "When Switching Costs Cause Market Power: Rubber Processing in Indonesia", which was published in the Journal of the International Association of Agricultural Economics.

Dr. Kristina Lemmer received the University of Siegen Prize for the Promotion of Young Scientists from the Freie Rohrwerke Siegen Foundation for her dissertation. She completed her doctorate on the topic of "Digital Transformation Strategies - Theoretical Foundations and Empirical Investigations". The certificate was presented by Dr. Jens Jacobs.

At the 15th annual reception of Schools III, Dr. David Unbehaun's dissertation was awarded the Rolf H. Brunswig Doctoral Prize of the University of Siegen. This was the 13th time that this prize has been awarded. Prof. Dr. Peter Krebs, Vice Dean for Research, gave the laudatory speech after Heinz Meckel, long-standing representative and authorized representative of the Rolf H. Brunswig Siegen-Wittgenstein Foundation, had briefly explained the history of the foundation and the doctoral prizes financed in this context.

Dr. Bastian Kordyaka received the Althusius Prize of the Schools for Young Academics. Dr. Starke completed his doctorate on the topic of "Playful Innovations - Emerging Concepts in the Context of Multiplayer Videogames". The laudatory speech was held by the Vice Dean for Research, Prof. Dr. Peter Krebs.

The winner of the Dr. Wolfgang Dieter Lange Science Award 2021 is Junior Professor Dr. Alexander Vossen. The prize was awarded by the first chairman of the Friends of Schools III, Mr. Gerd Dilling. University Professor Dr Stefan Klein from the Chair of Business Information Systems and Interorganizational Systems at the University of Münster gave the virtual laudation for this first-time award.

Thorben Baumgart and Michelle Graversen received the University of Siegen Prize for the Promotion of Young Scientists from the Freie Rohrwerke Siegen Foundation for their Master's theses. The certificates were presented by Dr. Jens Jacobs.

t the 14th annual reception of Schools III, the dissertations of Dr. Pia Becker, Dr. Timo Jakobi and Dr. Anne Weibert were awarded the Rolf H. Brunswig Doctoral Prize of the University of Siegen. This is the twelfth time that this prize has been awarded. Prof. Dr. Peter Krebs, Vice Dean for Research, delivered the laudatory speech after Heinz Meckel, long-standing representative and authorized representative of the Rolf H. Brunswig Siegen-Wittgenstein Foundation, had briefly explained the history of the foundation and the doctoral prizes funded in this context.

Mr. Krebs then paid tribute to the founder, Mr. Brunswig, who celebrated his 80th birthday this year. On the occasion of this anniversary, three doctoral prizes were awarded this year. "The Schools is very grateful to Mr. Rolf H. Brunswig for his prize, because prizes are important for young scientists and are particularly suitable for documenting an outstanding achievement to the outside world," Prof. Krebs thanked Mr. Brunswig.

Dr. Christian Paul Starke received the Althusius Prize of the Schools for Young Academics. Dr. Starke wrote his doctoral thesis on the topic: Consumer Protection and Basic Law - Consumer Protection Law as a Constitutional Requirement of the Contract Law System.

Ms. Stephanie Weiss was awarded the 500 euro prize of the University of Siegen for the promotion of young academics by the Freie Rohrwerke Siegen Foundation. She was honored for her master's thesis on "Entrepreneurial Narratives' Effectiveness on Acquiring External Funding: An Empirical Study of Green Start-Ups".

The 35th IHK Prize went to two young researchers from the University of Siegen.

Marvin Kraft received the award for his Master's thesis - grade 1.0 - entitled "Influence of medium-sized companies on tax legislation in Germany - An empirical analysis".

He empirically examines the influence of medium-sized companies on tax legislation in Germany - a subject area that has (still) been little researched. Around 93% of companies in Germany belong to the SME segment. They are therefore of enormous importance for economic power and employment. This is particularly true for the local region. However, Resource Dependency Theory assumes that this segment has less influence on political decisions than large companies.

In addition, a young researcher from another Schools also received the IHK prize.

Marvin Kraft was delighted to receive prize money of 1,500 euros and the other young researcher received 2,500 euros. Both prizes were donated this year by the IHK Siegen, presented by IHK President Felix G. Hensel and Managing Director Klaus Gräbener. "We were happy to donate the prizes," explained Felix G. Hensel. The IHK Siegen is just as happy to be involved in the University of Siegen: be it in the support associations, in research institutions or through the IHK's own doctoral scholarship program. "We need the university and the excellence it generates for our region and its future."

This year, the Altenkirchen District Study Prize was awarded to Dr. Sebastian Schmidt from Fürthen. He was awarded the prize for his dissertation on "Usufruct of privately rented real estate assets as a tax planning tool - Comprehensive burden comparisons and recommendations for long-term tax planning". According to the press release, his thesis was awarded "summa cum laude" and stood out due to its very high academic standard and excellent practical relevance.

At the 13th annual reception of Schools III, Dr. Désirée Christofzik's dissertation was awarded the Rolf H. Brunswig Doctoral Prize of the University of Siegen. The laudatory speech was held by the Managing Director of Schools III, Dr. Michael Gail. "The dissertation analyzes various aspects of municipal finances in Germany. Two chapters of her work have already appeared in renowned specialist journals," he explained.

The new doctors Feriha Özdemir and Sebastian Schäfer have been awarded the Althusius Prize of the Schools for Young Academics. Özdemir completed her doctorate on the subject of diversity management, while Schäfer's thesis deals with the economic efficiency of renewable energies in power generation.

Laura Pütz and Sophie Reuter received the University of Siegen's prize for the promotion of young academics from the Freie Rohrwerke Siegen Foundation.

At the 12th annual reception of Schools III, the dissertations of Dr. Laura Dorfer, Dr. Sebastian Meiswinkel and Dr. Martin Stein were awarded the Rolf H. Brunswig Doctoral Prize of the University of Siegen, which was presented for the tenth time. Thanks to an extraordinary donation from Mr. Brunswig, the prize could be awarded three times to mark the anniversary. The certificates were presented by the Vice Dean for Research, University Professor Dr. Peter Krebs and Mr. Rolf H. Brunswig himself. The laudatory speech was also given by University Professor Dr. Peter Krebs.

At the 12th annual reception of Schools III, the Vice Dean for Research presented the Althusius Prize of the Schools for Young Academics. This year's prize was awarded to Dr. Daryoush Vaziri. The laudatory speech was given by the Vice Dean for Research. All award winners received their doctorates with the top grade "summa cum laude".

At the 12th annual reception of Schools III, Dr. Timo Kachel received the University of Siegen Prize for the Promotion of Young Scientists from the Freie Rohrwerke Siegen Foundation. Mr. Kachel's doctoral thesis is entitled "The selection of controlling instruments for the purpose of optimizing strategy transmission in medium-sized family businesses". The certificate was presented by university professor Dr. Hanna Schramm-Klein.

At the 11th annual reception of Schools III, Dr. Artur Grigoryan's dissertation was awarded the Rolf H. Brunswig Doctoral Prize of the University of Siegen, which was presented for the ninth time. The certificate was presented by the Vice Dean for Research, University Professor Dr. Peter Krebs and Mr. Rolf H. Brunswig himself. The laudatory speech was held by University Professor Dr. Peter Krebs.

At the 11th annual reception of Schools III, the Vice Dean for Research presented the Althusius Prize of the Schools for Young Academics. This year's prize was awarded to Dr. Sascha Stiegler. The laudatory speech was given by the Vice Dean for Research. All award winners received their doctorates with the top grade "summa cum laude".

At the 11th annual reception of Schools III, Mr. Marius Müller, M.Sc. and Dr. Sascha Stiegler received the University of Siegen prize for the promotion of young academics from the Freie Rohrwerke Siegen Foundation. Mr. Müller wrote his master's thesis on the topic "Development of a methodology for implementing the Responsible Innovation approach in design-oriented research projects and exemplary application to the SenseVojta project". Mr. Stiegler's doctoral thesis is entitled "Cross-border transfer of registered offices under German and European law". The certificates were presented to the award winners by University Professor Dr. Peter Krebs.

Christopher Weidt has been awarded the Siegen-Wittgenstein District Study Prize for his dissertation. District Administrator Andreas Müller and Prof. Dr. Peter Haring Bolívar, Prorector for Research and Young Academics at the University of Siegen, presented the award, which is endowed with a total of 1,250 euros. Christopher Weidt's dissertation in law dealt with the "Abuse of relative buyer power in business relationships".

He dealt with the question of what effects it has on producers if there are only a few buyers for their products - for example on the food market, which is dominated by a few retail chains. These try to dictate prices to producers. However, producers rarely defend themselves against this market power because they are afraid of being "delisted". However, if a food chain completely removes a manufacturer's products from its range, this can threaten its existence. This is why Christopher Weidt proposes a "delisting ban" as a new type of sanction in his work. This would force retailers to continue offering products at a fixed price if they are found to have abused buyer power.

Dr. Tobias Scholz: "Big Data in Organizations and the Role of Human Resource Management. A Complex Systems Theory-Based Conceptualization"

This year's Dirlmeier Foundation sponsorship award went to Dr. Tobias Scholz for his dissertation entitled "Big Data in Organizations and the Role of Human Resource Management. A Complex Systems Theory-Based Conceptualization". Dr. Scholz deals with the organizational handling of big data, which on the one hand is anchored in systems theory and on the other hand substantially substantiates the human resource management-related design.

Dr. Thomas Ludwig from the University of Siegen received top marks for his dissertation and has now been awarded the 32nd "IHK Prize" for his outstanding academic achievement. Felix G. Hensel, President of the Siegen Chamber of Industry and Commerce, together with Gunnar Kohlschein from BGH Edelstahlwerke GmbH and Wilhelm Rücker from Sparkasse Olpe-Drolshagen-Wenden, presented the award, which is endowed with a total of 4,000 euros. BGH and the Sparkasse donated the IHK Prize 2017.

For 32 years, the IHK Prize has been awarded to the best dissertation and the best practice-oriented Master's thesis of the academic year in the fields of Architecture, School of Economic Disciplines, Business Information Systems, Business Law or Natural and Engineering Sciences at the University of Siegen. In his speech at the ceremony in the Bernhard Weiss Hall of the IHK Siegen, Felix G. Hensel acknowledged the importance of the University of Siegen for the city and the region: "With more than 2,000 employees, it is one of the largest employers." Felix G. Hensel emphasized that the exchange between the university and industry has long gone far beyond "producing" applicants for local companies.

Dr. Thomas Ludwig: "ICT Tools for Researching Information Infrastructures"

"Designing ICT Tools for Researching Information Infrastructures" is the title of the dissertation that Dr. Thomas Ludwig successfully completed with "Summa cum laude" at the School of Economic Disciplines, Business Information Systems and Business Law at the University of Siegen. It deals with the optimization of computer-supported group work. The aim was to understand how the population uses information within new types of social media such as Facebook and Twitter or mobile media such as smartphones and tablets in damage situations such as the storm Kyrill and how they use such media to form spontaneous volunteer groups in order to become active in coping.

Dr. Ludwig has developed new IT technologies that enable the analysis of such information infrastructures. In view of the rapid development of technology and the increasingly complex cross-organizational information structures, Prof. Dr. Volker Wulf, who reviewed the work together with Prof. Dr. Volkmar Pipek, explained in his letter of recommendation for the IHK prize that "methodological and technical possibilities need to be developed in order to make the use and handling of information structures researchable." Wulf is "not aware of any dissertation in applied computer science that has researched the design of information structures in practice to this extent and in this depth."

Sebastian Schmidt from Fürthen has been awarded the Altenkirchen District Study Prize for his Master's thesis. District Administrator Michael Lieber and Dr. Andreas Reingen, Chairman of the Board of Sparkasse Westerwald-Sieg, presented the certificate and the prize money of 2,000 euros. The prize is intended to intensify the links between the University of Siegen and the business community in the district. The prize is awarded for outstanding theses and dissertations by students from the Altenkirchen district.

26-year-old Sebastian Schmidt wrote his thesis on the subject of "Inheritance tax today and tomorrow - tax structuring options for business asset transfers in the course of an upcoming tax reform". He dealt with the ruling of the Federal Constitutional Court on inheritance tax and the question of how companies can react to the existing and expected legal situation.

District Administrator Lieber praised the outstanding quality of the Master's thesis. Prof. Dr.-Ing. Peter Haring Bolívar, Prorectors for Research and Young Academics at the University of Siegen, emphasized that Schmidt's work shows that innovation comes from individuals. Sebastian Schmidt graduated from Kopernikus-Gymnasium in Wissen in 2009 and went on to study business administration at the University of Siegen. He is currently working on his doctorate.

This is one of the most highly endowed awards in the field of economics and social sciences: The Roman Herzog Institute (RHI) has now honored three young scientists* with the Roman Herzog Research Prize in Munich. Dr. Julian Dörr, a member of staff at the "Center for Economic Education in Siegen" (ZöBiS), was delighted to take first place. He received prize money in the amount of 20,000 euros.

Julian Dörr's doctoral thesis deals with the EU's regional and structural policy, which aims to improve the economic development of the member states and the quality of life of their citizens through various funding programs. In his dissertation, Dörr analyzes why the funding is so ineffective and discusses various reform approaches. Dörr is a member of the ZöBiS at the University of Siegen. The ZöBiS sees itself as a competence center for research into the various dimensions of economic education and attempts to find out how economic skills can be developed, improved, taught, learned and evaluated.

The Roman Herzog Research Prize is awarded annually to three young academics who deal with the topic of the "social market economy" and future regulatory issues. The work submitted is evaluated by the Roman Herzog Institute's interdisciplinary advisory board. The prize, which is endowed with a total of 35,000 euros, is sponsored and supported by the Bavarian Business Association (Vereinigung der Bayerischen Wirtschaft e.V.).

Prize for the best dissertation

In his scientific work, Dr. Christian Reuter dealt with the challenges and possibilities of technology design for emergent, i.e. dynamic and unpredictable, contexts using the example of crisis management. He received the 31st prize from the Siegen Chamber of Industry and Commerce for his work.

This year's IHK prize, which is endowed with 5,500 euros and sponsored by three companies, honors the best dissertation of the academic year in the fields of Architecture, School of Economic Disciplines, Business Information Systems, Business Law or Natural and Engineering Sciences at the University of Siegen. This year's prize sponsors include Schäfer Werke GmbH from Neunkirchen, Sparkasse Burbach-Neunkirchen and the Friedhelm Dornseifer GmbH group of companies from Wenden.

Dr. Christian Reuter received the prize for his dissertation "Emergent Collaboration Infrastructures - Technology Design for Inter-Organizational Crisis Management", which he wrote at the School of Economic Disciplines, Business Information Systems and Business Law. The thesis was assessed by Dr. Volkmar Pipek and was awarded "summa cum laude".

Prize for the best Master's thesis

Viola Pfersich was awarded the prize for the best Master's thesis for her work entitled "Business succession in the bakery trade in the context of structural changes in the industry - a qualitative empirical study". The Master's thesis was written at Schools III (Entrepreneurship and SME Management) and is entitled "Business succession in the bakery trade in the context of structural changes in the industry - a qualitative empirical study". She was supervised by Prof. Dr. Petra Moog. In her thesis, Viola Pfersich focuses primarily on the phenomenon of "bakery deaths". In particular, she examines the question of whether there is a connection between business succession and the demise of bakeries in addition to current market-dependent factors. The overall grade of the Master's examination is "very good".

At the 10th annual reception of Schools III, Dr. Gerhard Wagner's dissertation was awarded the Rolf H. Brunswig Doctoral Prize of the University of Siegen, which was presented for the eighth time. The certificate was presented by the Vice Dean for Structure and Regional Affairs, University Professor Dr. Andreas Dutzi and Mr. Heinz Meckel from Sparkasse Siegen. The laudatory speech was held by University Professor Dr. Andreas Dutzi.

The Althusius Prize of the Schools for Young Academics was presented by the Vice Dean for Structure and Regional Affairs, University Professor Dr. Andreas Dutzi. This year's prize was awarded to Dr. Hermann Dück. Professor Dr. Andreas Dutzi also gave the laudatory speech. All award winners received their doctorates with the top grade of "summa cum laude".

Ms. Gabriella Logarzo, M.Sc. and Mr. Kevin Berk, M.Sc. received the University of Siegen's prize for the promotion of young academics from the Freie Rohrwerke Siegen Foundation at the ninth annual reception of Schools III. Ms. Logarzo wrote her master's thesis on the topic "Women on DAX30 executive and supervisory boards as role models for women in working life". Mr. Berk's thesis is entitled "Modeling and forecasting medium-term electricity demand of enterprises from various business sectors". The certificates were presented by University Professor Dr. Peter Krebs together with Mr. Bernd Berg, General Manager, Bergrohr GmbH Siegen. The first assessors, University Professor Dr. Volker Stein and University Professor Dr. Alfred Müller, paid tribute to the special achievements of the award winners in their respective laudatory speeches.

At the 9th annual reception of Schools III, the dissertations of Dr. Michael Fritz and Dr. Christian Reuter were awarded the Rolf H. Brunswig Doctoral Prize of the University of Siegen, which was presented for the seventh time. The certificate was presented by the Vice Dean for Research and Teaching, University Professor Dr. Peter Krebs and Mr. Heinz Meckel from Sparkasse Siegen. The laudatory speeches were held by the first assessors, University Professor Dr. Rainer Heurung and University Professor Dr. Volkmar Pipek.

The Schools III Althusius Prize for Young Academics was presented by the Vice Dean for Research and Teaching, University Professor Dr. Peter Krebs, at the ninth annual reception of Schools III. This year it went to Dr. Sebastian Draxler. The laudatory speech was held by first supervisor Professor Dr. Gunnar Stevens. All award winners received their doctorates with the top grade of "summa cum laude".

Dr. Caroline Wang's academic thesis dealt with investments by German companies in China. She received the 30th prize from the Siegen Chamber of Industry and Commerce for her work.
The IHK prize, endowed with 4000 euros and donated this year by Vetter Krantechnik GmbH (Siegen), honors the best dissertation and the best practice-oriented Master's thesis of the academic year in the fields of Architecture, Economics, Business Information Systems, Business Law or Natural and Engineering Sciences at the University of Siegen.
Dr. Caroline Wang received the award for her dissertation "German Direct Investment in the People's Republic of China - An Empirical Analysis of the Direct Investment Behavior of German Companies in China", which she wrote at the School of Economic Disciplines, Business Information Systems and Business Law. The thesis was assessed by Prof. Dr. Jan Franke-Viebach (Chair of Foreign Economic Theory and Policy) and the second reviewer, Dr. Ralf Runde. It was graded "magna cum laude". The subject of the dissertation is the analysis of German direct investment in China in relation to the development and future planned direct investment activities of German companies.

Ms. Ariane Bresgen, M.Sc., received the University of Siegen Prize for the Promotion of Young Academics from the Freie Rohrwerke Siegen Foundation at the 8th Annual Reception of Schools III. Ms. Bresgen wrote her Master's thesis on the topic "The concept of a permanent establishment in double taxation agreements - current developments from the perspective of companies operating across borders", a topic from the field of business administration. The certificate was presented by Prof. Dr. Hanna Schramm-Klein together with Mr. Bernd Berg, General Manager, Bergrohr GmbH Siegen. In his laudatory speech, Prof. Dr. Rainer Heurung praised Ariane Bresgen's special achievement and was pleased that Ms. Bresgen is pursuing a doctorate at his chair as a research assistant.

At the 8th annual reception of Schools III, Dr. Catharine Titi's dissertation was awarded the Rolf H. Brunswig Doctoral Prize of the University of Siegen, which was presented for the sixth time. Dr. Catharine Titi wrote her dissertation on "The Right to Regulate in International Investment Law" and gave a brief presentation of her work. The certificate was presented by the Vice Dean for Research, Prof. Dr. Peter Krebs and Mr. Brunswig in person.

The Schools's Althusius Prize for Young Researchers was presented to two winners, Dr. Claudia Müller and Dr. Tobias Arens, by the Vice Dean for Research, Prof. Dr. Peter Krebs, at the Schools's eighth annual reception. The work was briefly presented by the two prizewinners and Prof. Dr. Peter Krebs emphasized once again that there had been a particularly large number of outstanding dissertations this year, making the selection of the prizewinners very difficult. All award winners received their doctorates with the top grade of "summa cum laude". In addition, there were a further 7 doctorates with this overall grade this year.

At the 7th Annual Reception of the University of Siegen, Dr. Dominik Sebastian Kreß's dissertation was awarded the Sponsorship Prize of the Schools for Young Academics. The dissertation is entitled "Sequential Competitive Location on Networks", a topic from Business Information Systems.

The dissertations of Ms. Stefanie Jung and Ms. Jenny Nossack were awarded the Rolf H. Brunswig Doctoral Prize of the University of Siegen, which was presented for the fifth time at the 7th Annual Reception. Dr. Jung wrote her dissertation in law on "The capital constitution of the Societas Privata Europaea (SPE)". Dr. Nossack wrote her dissertation on "Operational Planning Problems in Intermodal Freight Transportation", a field of Business Information Systems.

Dr. Dietmar Lange's dissertation has been awarded this year's sponsorship prize of the Nürnberger Steuergespräche e.V.. The thesis is entitled "Interest expense and loss recognition in the case of restructurings in corporate groups".

The award ceremony will take place at a symposium on October 5, 2012 in Nuremberg.

Marc Zielinski's dissertation was awarded the Rolf H. Brunswig Doctoral Prize of the University of Siegen at the 6th Annual Reception of the University of Siegen. The topic of the dissertation is "Controlling learning processes and continuous improvement in production - Results of experimental studies".

At the University of Siegen's 6th Annual Reception, the dissertations of Nefail Berjasevic and Nina Schirmer were awarded the Schools' Sponsorship Prize for Young Academics. Dr. Berjasevic's dissertation is entitled "Usury-like legal transactions - an attempt at dogmatics".

Dr. Schirmer received her doctorate with her thesis on "Personnel management for creative professionals: The concept of artist relationship management".

All information on the 2011 Altenkirchen District Study Prize can be found here.

The dissertations of Felix Becker and Philipp Seidel were awarded the Rolf H. Brunswig Doctoral Prize of the University of Siegen in equal parts at the 5th Annual Reception of Schools III. The topic of Mr. Felix Becker's dissertation is "The necessary boundary between general terms and conditions and individual agreements in business transactions".

Mr. Philipp Seidel received the prize for his dissertation entitled "System of income taxation of periodic foreign income of a corporation from permanent establishments and shares in corporations".

Mr. Boris Nöll received the Schools's award for young academics. The award ceremony took place during the Schools's 5th annual reception at Haus Patmos. The topic of Mr. Nöll's dissertation is "Measuring interest rate risk in companies".

All information on the 2010 Altenkirchen District Study Prize can be found here.

The dissertations of Ms. Julia Naskrent and Mr. Torsten Klein were awarded the Rolf H. Brunswig Doctoral Prize of the University of Siegen. During the 4th annual reception of Faculty 5 on 27.05.2010 in the Haus der Siegerländer Wirtschaft, Mr. Rolf H. Brunswig presented the certificates in the presence of renowned representatives from politics and business. Julia Naskrent's dissertation topic is "Behavioral determinants of donor loyalty - An empirical study and implications for donor loyalty management".

Mr. Torsten Klein received the prize for his dissertation on "Dynamic resource configuration management: A functionally oriented value retention of strategic competencies".

Mr. Christian Dörner received the department's award for young academics. The award ceremony took place as part of the 4th annual reception on 27.05.2010 in the Haus der Siegerländer Wirtschaft. As Mr. Christian Dörner is currently in the USA for a research project, Prof. Dr. Volkmar Pipek accepted the certificate on his behalf. The topic of Mr. Dörner's dissertation is"Tailoring Software Infrastructures - Integration of End-User Development and Service-Oriented Architectures".

Mr. Martin Cordes' dissertation was awarded the Rolf H. Brunswig Doctoral Prize of the University of Siegen, which was awarded for the first time. At the 3rd annual reception on 14.05.2009, Mr. Rolf H. Brunswig presented the certificate in the presence of the Rector, Prof. Dr. Ralf Schnell, and renowned representatives from politics and business. The topic of Mr. Cordes' dissertation is "Business analysis of tax documentation requirements for international transfer pricing".

Mr. Christian Trottmann received the department's award for young academics. The award ceremony took place at the 3rd annual reception of the department on 14.05.2009 in the Haus der Siegerländer Wirtschaft. The certificate was presented by the Dean Prof. Dr. Carsten Hefeker. The topic of Mr. Trottmann's dissertation is "Equal treatment and neutrality in international income tax law from the perspective of world trade law (WTO). The requirements of the prohibition of subsidies and discrimination for the taxation of the cross-border movement of goods".

Every passenger is familiar with the boarding pass, which not only gives them access to the aircraft, but is also an important indicator of which gate to go to. And in most cases, it is quite easy to find the way to the right plane. This makes it all the more difficult for the airport operator to assign a gate to each aircraft. After all, there are well over 1000 take-offs and landings a day at many airports. In addition, numerous restrictions have to be taken into account when assigning an aircraft to a gate, explains Dr. Florian Jaehn from the University of Siegen: "Many aircraft are too large for certain gates or block neighboring gates. Some aircraft are towed to a parking position after passengers have disembarked before continuing."

Dr. Jaehn is a researcher at Prof. Dr. Erwin Pesch's Chair of Business Information Systems. Both have been working on this topic for years and can point to notable successes. Together with a partner company from the industry, they analyzed a large amount of data and then determined the gate allocation for international airports in Europe, North America and Asia. And with success: "We can show that almost all airports have to place fewer aircraft on the unpopular apron, from where passengers are then bussed to the terminal," says Dr. Jaehn.

Things get really tight at the gates when planes are delayed, which is unfortunately far too often the case. But the researchers have learned to deal with this too. After all, Dr. Jaehn dedicated his doctoral thesis to this topic. And this work has now also received high recognition in scientific circles. At the annual conference of the Society for Operations Research, an association of over 1000 scientists, the work was recently awarded the 2008 Dissertation Prize. A great honor for the 29-year-old scientist, who had already received the Science Prize of Faculty 5 of the University of Siegen in April. But the University of Siegen and in particular Faculty 5 are also delighted with this award, as it underlines the scientific importance of our university.

Dr. Jaehn's work was particularly well received by the judges because it creates a direct transfer of knowledge from theory to practice. This is nothing unusual for Prof. Dr. Pesch's team: "We work together with many large and medium-sized companies. This results in very different projects, such as the arrangement of machines in a factory, personnel resource planning or the improvement of websites so that they can be found by search engines." There seems to be no lack of demand from the business world. "That's because companies benefit from our methods. And it is important for us to prove our research results in practice," explains Prof. Dr. Pesch, adding: "However, we are always open to new collaborations.

A project of a completely different kind is already waiting for the scientists. Prof. Dr. Pesch is the main organizer of an international scientific conference, the "European Conference on Operational Research 2009", which will take place from 5-8 July 2009. Even though Siegen would have been the preferred venue, it is easier to accommodate the 1500-2000 participants in Bonn. So a lot of work awaits the dedicated team, but the researchers still want to report to their colleagues from the airports and the gates at this conference.

Dr. Florian Jaehn has been awarded the department's prize for young academics. The Dean, Prof. Dr. Carsten Hefeker, presented him with the certificate on 10.04.2008 at the annual reception in the "Haus der Siegerländer Wirtschaft" in the presence of the Rector, Prof. Dr. Ralf Schnell, and well-known representatives from politics and business. The topic of his dissertation is "Robust Flight Gate Assignment".

Prize winner 2008:

Prof. Dr. Arnd Wiedemann / Dr. Peik Achtert:
Dynamic loan conditions with creditworthiness-dependent interest change clauses and covenants. Honored with the 1st prize of the Paul Julius Reuter Innovation Award 2008 in the category "Dissertations".
Event:

The Paul Julius Reuter Innovation Award was established on February 25, 1999, the 100th anniversary of the death of company founder Paul Julius Reuter. The prize is endowed with 24,000 euros and is awarded for outstandingly innovative work (theses and dissertations) on specified topics in the fields of finance, IT or economics in general.
Objective:

The award honors the scientific creativity of professors who, on behalf of their chairs, assign interesting, advanced and innovative topics to students and doctoral candidates and thus also promote them. At the same time, students who work on and implement the topics well are also honored. All universities and universities of applied sciences in Germany are eligible to participate.
Prizes and awards:

As the dissertations and theses cannot be directly compared in terms of their innovative character and scientific value, the Paul Julius Reuter Innovation Award has been expanded so that these categories are judged separately.
The two best dissertations and theses are each honored. Both the authors and the chairs receive an award, which is why a total of eight prizes are awarded.
The first prize in the dissertation category - the actual Paul Julius Reuter Innovation Award - is symbolized by a sculpture designed by the Frankfurt artist Bernd Vossmerbäumer. It is awarded to the chair and presented together with a cash prize. The author of the work will be honored with a certificate and a cash prize. The following applies to all other prizes in both categories (diploma and doctoral theses): The relevant department and the author will each receive a certificate and a cash prize.

Procedure:

Every year, the jury determines a topic of practical relevance to which theses (diploma theses and dissertations) from specific subject areas can be submitted. The focus is on the innovative character of the work, based on the life and work of company founder Paul Julius Reuter. In addition to the thesis itself, a two-page abstract must be submitted for the application. The award is announced once a year towards the end of April. The deadline for submissions is always November 1. The applications are then forwarded to the jury for a decision and the winners are notified at the end of January of the following year. The award ceremony always takes place in February.

Further information: www.reuters.com

Dr. Michael Schuhen has been awarded the Siegen-Wittgenstein District Study Prize for 2007. District Administrator Paul Breuer and the Rector of the University of Siegen, Prof. Dr. Ralf Schnell, presented him with the award on April 1, 2008 at the Siegen Technology Centre in Geisweid for his dissertation on "Planning and designing a learning environment for trainee programs. Conceptual foundations of a competence-oriented design of a classic cross-departmental trainee program from a business didactic perspective".

Winner:

Dr. Hagen Radowski

Reason:

The management of Business Objects Deutschland GmbH has decided to endow a prize to promote science and research. The prize is endowed with €500 and is awarded for outstanding research achievements in the field of economics.

Objective:

The prize is intended to recognize outstanding or very good scientific research work (e.g. dissertation, habilitation) which has been submitted to a German university in the current year and which meets the intended award criteria of the Business Objekcts Deutschland GmbH prize.

Award:

For the submitted dissertation "Network crises and crisis management in strategic corporate networks, examined using the example of a European consulting network. With a view to the complex subject of network crises, the work provides an extremely well-founded concept and, above all, practical instructions on how corporate networks at their various levels should position themselves for successful performance management in the event of a crisis.

Winner 2006:

Prof. Dr. Arnd Wiedemann / Dr. Heino Betz:
Integrated Credit Spread and Interest Rate Risk Measurement with Corporate Bonds. Honored with the 1st prize of the Paul Julius Reuter Innovation Award 2006 in the category "Dissertations".
Event:

The Paul Julius Reuter Innovation Award was established on February 25, 1999, the 100th anniversary of the death of company founder Paul Julius Reuter. The prize is endowed with 24,000 euros and is awarded for outstandingly innovative work (theses and dissertations) on specified topics in the fields of finance, IT or economics in general.
Objective:

The award honors the scientific creativity of professors who, on behalf of their chairs, assign interesting, advanced and innovative topics to students and doctoral candidates and thus also promote them. At the same time, students who work on and implement the topics well are also honored. All universities and universities of applied sciences in Germany are eligible to participate.
Prizes and awards:

As the dissertations and theses cannot be directly compared in terms of their innovative character and scientific value, the Paul Julius Reuter Innovation Award has been expanded so that these categories are judged separately.
The two best dissertations and theses are each honored. Both the authors and the chairs receive an award, which is why a total of eight prizes are awarded.
The first prize in the dissertation category - the actual Paul Julius Reuter Innovation Award - is symbolized by a sculpture designed by the Frankfurt artist Bernd Vossmerbäumer. It is awarded to the chair and presented together with a cash prize. The author of the work will be honored with a certificate and a cash prize. The following applies to all other prizes in both categories (diploma and doctoral theses): The relevant department and the author will each receive a certificate and a cash prize.

Procedure:

Every year, the jury determines a topic of practical relevance to which theses (diploma theses and dissertations) from specific subject areas can be submitted. The focus is on the innovative character of the work, based on the life and work of company founder Paul Julius Reuter. In addition to the thesis itself, a two-page abstract must be submitted for the application. The award is announced once a year towards the end of April. The deadline for submissions is always November 1. The applications are then forwarded to the jury for a decision and the winners are notified at the end of January of the following year. The award ceremony always takes place in February.

Further information: www.reuters.com

Three teams of students and professors from the University of Siegen, Heidenheim University of Cooperative Education and Ruhr University Bochum are the winners of the
Postbank Finance Award 2005/2006. They share Germany's highest endowed university prize of 70,000 euros, which was awarded for the third time on June 29 in Frankfurt am Main. 37 working groups from 30 universities in Germany and Austria took part. They were looking for answers to fundamental questions about the development of the banking system in Germany: Do we need stronger German banks in the international environment? Does
Germany need more flexible ownership structures for banks? Why do German banks achieve comparatively low returns? What should the banking system look like in ten years' time? "With the competition, we want to encourage and challenge students, but also provide impetus for the discussion of key topics in our industry. The high quality of the entries and the strength of their concepts make it clear that this has once again been achieved," says Prof. Dr. Wulf von Schimmelmann, patron of the competition as Chairman of the Management Board of Deutsche Postbank AG.

The winners and their work

The first prize of 40,000 euros was awarded to the work of a team of students from the University of Siegen, which was supervised by Prof. Dr. Arnd Wiedemann. Under the title "The Evolution of Bank Value Creation", Tobias Keßler, Jan Schumacher and Sebastian Wiechers investigated the question of why the profitability of German banks has fallen significantly behind in an international comparison. The young academics came to the conclusion that in recent years, successful cost management has only partially succeeded in compensating for the deficits on the earnings side. In the long term, only those banks that concentrate on value-added activities that set them apart from the competition through superior quality and low costs will be successful, the students wrote in their work.

The second prize of 20,000 euros went to Heidenheim University of Cooperative Education. Supervised by Prof. Dr. Florian Lohmann, Christoph Droste, Philip Grottenthaler, Sonja Hieber, Ronny Morack and Anna Pflüger dealt with the question of whether consolidation and networking represent a way out of the profitability trap of the German banking system. The team developed an "M&A index" for various merger constellations in order to analyze company mergers in terms of their value creation.

Prof. Dr. Stephan Paul, Daniela Barth, Anna Christina Raute and Sebastian Wedemeyer from Ruhr University Bochum received the third prize of the Postbank Finance Award, endowed with 10,000 euros. Together they investigated the possibilities of increasing performance through focused mergers. The researchers concluded that this strategy has already proven successful in other European markets. Focused mergers create larger operating units and allow economies of scale to be exploited. However, they also concentrate the business on specific market segments, customers and geographical markets. Both increase shareholder value.

The award winners were selected by a jury of seven experts from business, academia and the media, chaired by Prof. Dr. Günter Franke from the University of Konstanz.

Further information and the study can be downloaded from www.postbank.de/finance-award