Success through people, technology and methodology

What is your professional background and what made you want to work for msg Research?

I have a multidisciplinary degree in IT and did my doctorate in usability research. While completing my degrees, I also spent ten years working in the UX division of a research institute. After taking parental leave, I just happened to discover msg Research and immediately thought it was the perfect fit. I enjoy working in cross-sector innovation projects and I like sharing my know-how during training events, in communities and in publications.

Which core topics are you in charge of and do you drive at msg Research?

My passion is people-centric design. It is important to me that a solution focus on the user, whether designing the user experience for a single system or engaging in design thinking for new innovations.

What does an innovative, creative approach mean to you?

In my opinion, it is important that a creative process has a sound structure as well. A predefined approach and established methods help ensure innovative and beneficial solutions, and it often takes many iterations to make sure the final solution meets needs of the target group. It is also important to critically assess and optimize your own approach – and to make creative modifications where necessary.

How did you end up at msg Research and how were you received?

I initially spent four days working at a customer location for another division, but that did not work out with the part-time employment schedule I needed after coming back from parental leave. However, I did want to stay at msg and work in Ismaning. I had already met a few colleagues from the Research division, having worked with them on different projects and I had no problem switching to their team. Thanks to various division meetings, our work in CoCs and joint innovation projects, I was quickly able to get to know them even better.

How have you been able to apply your professional expertise in your work at msg Research?

Having focused on requirements engineering, I am a bit of an outsider in Research working with a bunch of techies. However, that has also led to very constructive collaboration opportunities that forced me to look beyond my own discipline. For example, I am currently working on the interaction between requirements engineering and user experience as well as requirements engineering in agile approaches. I share my know-how during training courses and quickly find out from participants where the “pain points” are in their projects. It is satisfying to bring attention to the relevance of requirements engineering and business analysis, especially since I began managing the Business Analysis CoC.

How have you been able to balance your professional and personal life at msg Research?

My supervisor has three kids themselves and is all too familiar with the craziness of daily family life with small children. As a result, there is a lot of understanding for my situation if I need to miss work due to illness or quarantine. I also really appreciate the flexibility of remote work which lets me get things done outside of normal working hours and since I live nearby, I can spontaneously switch between the office and home as well. My husband also works at msg, so we can help each other out when the unexpected happens and we are even able to go to group-wide meetings together, such as the town hall meetings.

Who are you and what has your career at msg been life so far?

I am an economist, family man and father, and project manager. I oversee international programs and projects, advise and train in the field of project management, and conduct audits. I was allowed to participate in the audit of a major project at msg right from the start. After holding different positions at msg, I now oversee the Project Management and Agility Center of Competence at Research. This allows me to advance different topics in this field, centrally, actively and group-wide.

How does msg Research help you develop and advance your topics?

In many ways. On the one hand, we have a dedicated, versatile and creative team. On the other, I enjoy a lot of creative freedom and support. Moreover, Research also provides operational and technical support for training courses, organizational matters, videos and much more.

If you were stranded on a remote island, how would you spend your time there?

I would plan and carry out two projects: my escape - and my long-term stay.

Who are you and what are your responsibilities at msg Research?

I am a user experience designer. In that role, I discuss the software developed by msg with future users and find out what they need. I then design the user interfaces for our software products. Ideally, my work ensures that our software is easy to understand, efficient and easy to use as well as attractive. At msg Research, I oversee the Center of Competence for User Experience, plan training courses, cultivate the exchange of know-how throughout msg and coordinate the project deployment of Research’s UX experts.

How does msg Research help you realize your responsibilities and goals?

I enjoy acquiring new knowledge and sharing my own knowledge with others. What I appreciate most about msg Research is that I can live out that passion here. For me, Research is both a place where I can learn an incredible amount about other fields from experienced colleagues, while also being in a place that offers so many opportunities for sharing my passion for user research with people from inside and outside msg: from a conference presentation on writing articles to hosting training courses. We work for many different units at msg as well, which gives me insight into a wide variety of fields. There is never a dull moment here!

What is it about the Chaos Communication Congress (C3) that you like so much?

The annual meeting of the Chaos Computer Club (CCC) is a celebration of creativity and is nerdy in the best way possible. I discover something fascinating around every corner. From a self-programmed sewing machine and IT security presentations to coffee nerds, there are so many people wandering around who are interested in the details of a topic and in how to create something special. I have yet to meet someone who is not excited to talk about their project and everyone is so friendly as well. I always leave the Congress feeling inspired and energized.