International Master's Thesis Research
Technical University of Munich — TUM School of Management
This study explores how leaders and organizations respond to uncertainty, risk, and the possibility of failure, and how those responses shape exploratory innovation.
How it works
The full research experience takes roughly 20–30 minutes. Each step remains voluntary.
Today · about 2 minutes
Provide your name, company, and a LinkedIn profile, or enter the essential professional details manually.
Prepared by the researcher · AI-assisted
Publicly available sources are used to prepare the basic information for you, so you do not have to enter it again. You review and correct the draft in the questionnaire.
About 8–10 minutes
Describe your organizational environment: strategic allocation, experimentation, governance, learning, and issue-surfacing practices.
Remote · about 10–20 minutes
Explore your responses to known risk, ambiguity, and failure, along with the organizational context behind strategic choices.
Research-based feedback
The questionnaire supports your organizational-environment snapshot; completing the interview enables your individual research profile.
Who should take part
The study is designed for people with direct exposure to decisions made under organizational uncertainty.
What you'll receive
The feedback describes patterns in your responses. Where the sample permits, it may also show relevant aggregate averages. It does not rank you or your organization, compare individual companies, or prescribe what should change.
Based on the interview and failure-appraisal questions, this profile describes your responses to known risk, ambiguity, and the anticipated consequences of failure. Where enough comparable responses are available, it also shows your position alongside the overall study average and a relevant peer-group average.
Questionnaire + interview requiredBased mainly on the questionnaire, this view describes the balance between core improvement and exploration, along with the practices surrounding experimentation, learning, and early issue-surfacing.
Questionnaire requiredMultiple participants are especially valuable
When several people participate from the same company, division, or program, their responses can provide a richer aggregate view of that shared environment, including where perspectives align and where they differ. Individual responses remain confidential.
Research setting
Independent master's thesis research shaped by executive experience and situated within TUM's international innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem.
Academic institution
Technische Universität München
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Academic supervision
Professor of Economics of Innovation · TUM School of Management
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Program
A joint TUM–UnternehmerTUM program combining academic management education with hands-on innovation and venture creation.
Explore the programThis is an independently conducted master's thesis. These references describe its academic setting and supervision; they do not imply institutional or employer endorsement.
Practical questions
The organization questionnaire is designed for approximately 8–10 minutes. The remote interview is intended to take approximately 10–20 minutes. No special preparation is required.
The questionnaire supports an organizational-environment snapshot. Participants who also complete the interview receive an individual research profile describing their responses to known risk, ambiguity, and failure appraisal. Both are descriptive research feedback, not diagnoses, rankings, or consulting recommendations.
No. Every step remains voluntary. However, the individual research profile depends on measures collected during the interview; questionnaire-only participation supports the organizational-environment snapshot.
Yes. This is encouraged. With sufficient participation from the same company, division, or program, the study may provide a more detailed aggregate view of that shared environment while preserving individual confidentiality.
Your individual responses and profile will not be shared with any third party. Research findings will be reported only in aggregate or anonymized form.
No. This is independently conducted master's thesis research. The feedback is part of the research exchange, not a consulting assessment or sales offer.
First step · about 2 minutes
Start with a brief introduction. A LinkedIn profile is the fastest route; if you do not use LinkedIn, you can enter the essential details manually.
Register your interest
This is not yet consent to participate in the full study.
Your information
This form collects the details needed to assess study fit, contact you, and, with your separate permission, prepare a draft profile from public sources such as LinkedIn, company websites, and annual reports.
Your individual registration details, questionnaire responses, interview responses, and research profile will not be shared with third parties. Research findings will be reported only in aggregate or anonymized form. Registering interest is not consent to the full study, and you may ask for this record to be corrected or deleted.
Researcher: Matthew Schwind · Master's thesis research supervised by Prof. Dr. Hanna Hottenrott at TUM School of Management, Technische Universität München. Final contact details and the complete participant information will be added before public recruitment begins.