The 17th Karl Vodrazka Colloquium took place on 11 June 2024 and once again provided a platform for the exchange of knowledge and ideas in the field of business management research and practice. The event began with a warm welcome from Prof Dr Gerald J. Pruckner, Dean of the Faculty of Social and Economic Sciences, and Prof Dr Helmut Pernsteiner, Director of the Institute of Corporate Finance.

What is the Vodrazka Colloquium?

The Karl Vodrazka Colloquium is an annual event that was established in honour of the renowned economist Karl Vodrazka. The aim of the colloquium is to shed light on current topics and developments in business administration and to promote a dialogue between science and practice. The focus is on lectures by leading experts who present and discuss their research findings and experiences.

After the welcome address, this year's speaker was introduced by Prof. Dr Christoph Teller, Director of the Institute of Retailing, Sales and Marketing. This year we had the honour of welcoming Prof. Dr. Robert Kreuzbauer from the University of Stavanger, Norway.

Prof Dr Robert Kreuzbauer gave a captivating presentation on "Increasing management efficiency through AI: strategies and applications". He began with a personal story about his experiences with artificial intelligence (AI) and its influence on management effectiveness.

Content of the presentation

Prof Kreuzbauer asked big questions, such as:

• How will AI spread?
• How will AI influence business competition?
• How should companies respond?

He emphasised that the technology will be adopted very quickly, as no complex infrastructure needs to be set up. This will lead to strong growth in the use of AI. Prof Kreuzbauer explained that new technologies require new skills and this leads to a new pecking order in companies.

He also gave insights into effective management and how the economic core for performance and growth can be supported by tools such as ChatGPT and Excel. As part of his presentation, he introduced business analytics through ChatGPT, including specific prompts, and how these can help improve management effectiveness.

Another important point of his presentation was the combination of education (economic core for managers) and experimentation (implementation and testing in the organisation).

Summary

Prof. Kreuzbauer summarised that new technologies will fundamentally change organisations and management. He warned of the risk of overinvestment in technology and underinvestment in organisation and management. He sees the greatest growth potential in the reskilling of management in the economic core and in AI, for example through the use of ChatGPT.

The 17th Karl Vodrazka Colloquium was an inspiring and informative event that once again showed how important the dialogue between science and practice is in order to successfully meet the challenges of the future.