Part of the Johannes Kepler University’s mission is to shape the future by conducting outstanding research and through modern education, allowing science to create new solutions to address the problems of our times. Researchers at the JKU work toward these goals on a daily basis. Inaugural lectures are a tradition at the JKU, giving new faculty members an opportunity to talk about their respective areas of research to the public and in laymen’s terms. The Faculty of Social Sciences, Economics & Business was pleased to introduce Univ. Prof. Dr. Uli Meyer (Institute for Sociology) and Univ. Prof. Dr. Christoph Teller (Institute for Retailing, Sales and Marketing).

Prof. Meyer’s humorous presentation titled "Gesellschaftliche Herausforderungen der Digitalisierung" outlined the challenges digitization brings. He emphasized that this is a social process that should not be left to technology alone. We not only need machine learning, but also machine education to incorporate our values and standards.

Prof. Teller’s presentation titled "Totgesagte leben länger – der innerstädtische Handel im Onlinezeitalter" focused on inner-city business in an age of online services. His findings revealed that a lack of service at stationary businesses drives customers to buy more online. More service, but also co-opetition (meaning cooperation despite competition) still offers opportunities for conventional retail.

About Prof. Meyer and Prof. Teller

Before his appointment at the JKU in 2019, Prof. Meyer was a visiting professor at Ruhr University Bochum and research group leader at the Technical University in Munich. He has worked at the Technical University of Berlin and the Social Science Research Center Berlin. As was a guest researcher at Stanford University and at the University of Bologna.

Prof. Teller has conducted researched and taught at the Vienna University of Economics and Business Administration, Copenhagen Business School (Denmark), University of Stirling (Scotland), and the University of Surrey (England). Christoph Teller’s research focuses on shopping behavior and selected aspects of retail logistics.

About the Faculty of Social Sciences, Economics & Business

The Faculty of Social Sciences, Business & Economics (Dean: Helmut Pernsteiner) is the JKU’s second largest faculty and has over 6,800 enrolled students. There are currently 30 academic degree programs during 2019, the Faculty had over 700 publications. A new area of research and teaching focuses on ongoing digitalization and its impact on society and business.