Inside ESMT Master’s programs: Student Q&A with the Director

This spirit of openness is exactly what shaped a recent conversation between Alexander Sainishvili, a Master in Innovation and Entrepreneurship (MIE) student, and Tino Elgner, Director of Master Programs.

In this interview, the two discussed how ESMT designs its three master’s programs, supports student development, and stays connected to the world of business. Below are the key takeaways from their conversation. 

The full interview video is available at the end of this article. 

How does ESMT plan to evolve its master’s programs in response to emerging global business trends and challenges?

Tino: One of the most important responsibilities of a business school is staying close to the market. At ESMT, we do this in two main ways.

1. Program Advisory Committees (PAC):
   Each faculty lead, together with the director of programs, keeps several ears on the market through the Program Advisory Committees that exist for each master’s program. Each PAC is made up of members from ESMT’s founding companies as well as alumni from the respective master’s programs. This structure not only strengthens the bridge between theory and practice but also encourages us to think outside the box, drawing inspiration from the diverse perspectives of committee members.
    
2. Continuous student feedback:
   We also maintain strong feedback loops with our current students. Their input helps us understand what works, what doesn’t, what needs strengthening, and where we may need to shift gears to advance our master’s programs. Sometimes feedback takes longer to implement and sometimes our hands are tied, but we always treat student feedback as one of our main sources for evolving the programs, alongside what we learn from the PAC and the broader market. 

In what ways can current students engage with the ESMT alumni network to enhance their learning and career opportunities? 

At ESMT Berlin, we prioritize building and nurturing a supportive lifelong community whose members actively contribute to improving both student and alumni experiences. Students can engage with alumni in several ways:

• Career Fairs: 
  Hosted twice a year, where many ESMT alumni represent their companies and recruit students for internships, consulting projects, or full-time roles after graduation.
• MentorMap: 
  Since last year, ESMT offers a structured mentoring program in which alumni and other stakeholders actively mentor current students.
• Career Development Center (CDC) events: 
  ESMT alumni frequently return to campus to share their professional journeys through events organized by the CDC, such as the Executive Insight Series.
• Berlin Alumni Stammtisch: 
  Current students are welcome and encouraged to attend the Stammtisch (German for “regulars’ table”), held on Thursdays, for networking and informal socializing. 

Can you discuss the diversity of the student body and how it enriches the learning experience at ESMT? 

At ESMT Berlin, diversity is a core pillar of everything we do, value, and actively seek in candidates.

Across the three master’s programs, around 80% of students are international, creating a community of 40+ nationalities who learn, grow, and inspire each other on campus.

However, diversity extends far beyond cultural heritage. Students also bring:

• Different academic backgrounds
• Different working and study styles
• Varied life choices and experiences
• Distinct career aspirations

What unites our students is their desire to create impact, discover their career paths, and do meaningful work that inspires them and others. We believe this journey becomes easier when diverse talents and perspectives come together in one place. 

How versatile are the programs for graduates considering different career paths? If I choose a specific specialization, will I still be well-prepared for a different career path? 

All ESMT Master programs were fundamentally designed around choice, due to the high degree of customization they offer.

“Choice” might sound simple, but it requires self-reflection and trade-offs—choosing one path often means not choosing another. This is why many electives, some core courses, and various skill seminars are open to all students across the three master’s programs. This flexibility allows students either to broaden their skill sets or to sharpen highly specific skills aligned with the career and impact they seek.

For example, if you begin with a particular career path in mind but later shift your thinking, the elective period will allow you to make part of that transition.

In other words, choice enables students to tailor their programs to the career paths they wish to pursue, while the strong business foundation provided by the curriculum forms the soil from which they can grow.  

What is the biggest difference between the MGM program and the other two master’s programs (MIE & MAAI) at ESMT?

These are simply very different programs. One is not better than the other; they are just distinct.

• The Master in Global Management (MGM) is a general management master’s program for students who want to understand how business works from all major angles on a global scale.
• The Master in Analytics and Artificial Intelligence (MAAI) is highly specialized, designed for students who aspire to build a bridge between data science and management and provide value through this “translation” between the two worlds.
• The Master in Innovation and Entrepreneurship (MIE) is all about creating value by understanding the best practices behind innovation and learning how to turn ideas into something tangible, whether through a startup or an intrapreneurial project.

In summary, what truly differentiates the three master’s programs is the degree of specialized knowledge they convey and, consequently, the types of career outcomes they prepare students for.  

ESMT is a business school. How technical is the MAAI program, and what is the balance between the technical and business aspects of the program? 

The MAAI program is quite technical. Students should expect a high degree of quantitative and analytical rigor through courses such as:

• Machine Learning
• Causal Inference
• Advanced Marketing Modeling
• Econometrics
• Coding and Data Management
• AI Models in Production

However, the goal is not to turn students into number crunchers or data scientists in the pure sense. The aim is to create translators—professionals who can connect data science with management.

As technical as the program is, equal attention is paid to helping students understand the business context in which they will create value. The better they understand the context, the more effectively they can apply analytics and AI. 

How flexible is the MIE degree in terms of transitioning from startups to corporate roles? If a startup doesn't succeed, can I still move into a corporate career? 

Yes, absolutely! It all comes down to transferable skills. It is not about the failure of a startup that limits someone’s career options; rather, it is the skills and experience gained while attempting to turn an idea into a value-creating venture that ultimately counts.

This nimble, agile approach that we call an “entrepreneurial mindset” really is something that companies are actively seeking. 

When you try to create a business, you inevitably take on elements of general management: finance, fundraising, marketing, value proposition design, and more. These skills translate extremely well to corporate innovation roles.

This is why the MIE program focuses as much on corporate innovation as it does on entrepreneurship; they are two sides of the same coin when you look at the fact that every established business once was a startup. 

Could you share examples of how faculty members integrate their research into the classroom? 

There are two key ways in which the Master's Programs faculty members at ESMT integrate their research into the classroom: 

1. They incorporate pieces of their research into their respective courses adapted to the audience and learning objectives.
2. They design an entirely specialized course around a specific expertise and research focus.

Examples within ESMT Master programs

In the MAAI, Professor Boyaci is building his elective “Sustainable Operations via Analytics” on his research on circular supply chains. Professor Gurkan is integrating his research on optimization models in both his core course “Advanced Decision Modeling” and in his elective “Optimization for Prescriptive Analytics.” The faculty lead, Professor Stefanescu-Cuntze brings insights from her work on customer analytics into her core course on Advanced Marketing Modeling. Professor Sönmez designed her course on Health Analytics and AI around her research expertise in that field. 

In the MGM, the faculty lead, Professor Baquero, bases his course “Alternative Investments” directly on his research around hedge funds. Professor de Véricourt, on the other hand, published a book not long ago on “Framing,” which is an important part of his course called “Judgement and Decision making”.

In the MIE, Professor Sevilir brings in a lot of insights from her research on private equity into her course on “Entrepreneurial Finance”, and the faculty lead Professor Papachroni uses her work on ambidextrous organizations in her course “Organizing for Innovation”.