The Otto Group Chair of Strategic Management directed by Prof. Dr. Markus Reihlen focusses its research and teaching activities on various areas of management, in particular strategic and international management, entrepreneurship, organization design, and the management of professional service firms. Our research and teaching agenda is best described as interdisciplinary embedded in various local, national, and international networks. We work with a broad range of theoretical frameworks from sociology, economics, and organizational psychology. Our teaching philosophy reflects the interests in situated and collaborative learning. Instead of applying the frontal teaching method, we prefer student-centered teaching that encourages critical reflection and learning by both students and instructors.
The Otto Group Chair contributes to various teaching programs for undergraduate, graduate, and doctorate students at Leuphana University of Lüneburg. Among others, the chair is in charge of the extra-occupational MBA in Strategic Management for future leaders at the Otto Group and is involved in various university-industry-cooperations with companies.

Der Forschungsansatz des Lehrstuhls basiert auf drei zentralen Grundpfeilern. Erstens basiert unser Forschungsansatz auf der Einsicht, dass wir die facettenreichen Phänomene der Unternehmensführung am besten erklären und verstehen können, wenn wir diese mit sehr unterschiedlichen „Denkwerkzeugen“ (Theorien und Methoden) untersuchen.Die Forschungsagenda ist deshalb interdisziplinär ausgerichtet und greift sowohl auf ökonomische als auch auf verhaltenswissenschaftliche Theorien zurück.

Zweitens ist unsere Forschung international ausgerichtet, indem Forschungsergebnisse des Lehrstuhls über Tagungen und Workshops innerhalb der internationalen Fachgemeinschaft kommuniziert und reflektiert werden.

Drittens sind viele bisherige Forschungsprojekte in unmittelbarer Kooperation mit der Praxis entwickelt worden und liefern damit die Möglichkeit, sowohl neue Praxisthemen aufzugreifen als auch neue Erkenntnisse aus der Forschung in der Praxis umzusetzen.

Anknüpfend an bisherige Forschungsarbeiten dienen folgende Themengebiete der exemplarischen Konkretisierung des Forschungsprogramms: Entrepreneurship, Lernen und Innovation, Strategischer Wandel, innovative, flexible Organisationsformen, Wissensmanagement sowie Internationalisierung von Unternehmen Gesellschaftliche Verantwortung von Unternehmen (Corporate Social Responsibility) und Unternehmensstrategie.

The international MBA in Strategic Management - a programme for Professionals

Business Development, Corporate Development and Strategy are combined with one another in the MBA Programme in Strategic Management.

The programme will familiarise you with classic theories of business development and strategic management while teaching you how to successfully apply the methods and tools of a manager internationally. Within the context of your own career experience, you will be encouraged to adopt different points of view as you reflect on factors relevant to success in general management and strategic management in particular, together with corporate development. The MBA Programme in Strategic Management takes a targeted approach to developing your personal and substantive skills further, so that you can approach situations not as invariable givens but as opportunities in which to seize the initiative and actively take charge.

English-language instruction in the MBA Programme in Strategic Management was originally developed in co-operation with the Otto Group under academic supervision of Leuphana University and has been accredited by FIBAA as exceeding the relevant quality requirements. From April 2013, the MBA in Strategic Management will also be available for external applicants as well as for employees of other co-operation partners.