Shaping the Future with Data: AXRO Supports Talents in the BADS Master’s Program

Why did you decide to support a student in the new BADS Master’s program through a corporate sponsorship?

Jonathan Spielberg: As a forward-looking company, we recognize the value of talent in today’s job market, especially in Business Analytics and Data Science. We believe that the smart integration of theory and practice delivers the best results - for both companies and students.

With this sponsorship, we aim to actively support young talents early on and provide them with practical development opportunities. At the same time, we see this as a chance to engage in dialogue with motivated students, gain fresh perspectives, and help shape a data-driven future together.

From your perspective, what are the benefits of working closely with talented students? What might such collaboration look like?

Spielberg: Close collaboration with talented students offers many benefits - for both sides. For students, it means the chance to apply what they’ve learned directly in practice, deepening their understanding of the material. Theories and models become tangible through real-life use cases. At the same time, students see where theoretical models reach their limits and how to handle those productively.

For us as a company, this collaboration is also highly valuable. New ways of thinking meet established structures - this enables shifts in perspective, challenges routines, and opens up new ways of working. While long-term employees understandably work within set patterns, students bring fresh ideas and the courage to question the status quo.

In practice, we envision the collaboration like this: students first get to know our work environment, data structures, and business challenges. Based on that, they work independently on a real use case from our company. They are guided by a mentor from our team who provides regular feedback and supports their progress. This way, we connect academic learning with hands-on experience - creating real value for everyone involved.

How do you decide which students to support through the sponsorship? What qualities are particularly important to you?

Spielberg: In addition to subject-specific skills, we value curiosity, intrinsic motivation, and the ability to question things. We’re excited by candidates who don’t just complete tasks but want to understand why something is done a certain way - and whether it could be done better.

What matters most to us is an ownership mindset: those who take on a task should identify with it. Only those who take full responsibility and stand behind what they do will achieve meaningful results - and grow through the process. These are the kinds of learning experiences people look back on with pride.

The Business Analytics & Data Science Master’s program is strongly practice-oriented. Which skills or topics taught in the program are most relevant for you as an employer?

Spielberg: For us, data literacy and analytical thinking are especially important, along with interest and ability in Machine Learning and Data Science, as we increasingly work with Robotic Process Automation (RPA).

But here’s the key - blind automation leads only to fast inefficiency. We’re looking for people who not only create transparency and automate but also challenge and improve systems. This kind of analytical, solution-oriented mindset is what we truly value.

What role will Business Analytics and Data Science play for AXRO—and the broader industry—in the coming years?

Spielberg: At AXRO, we realized early on that data is not just a supplement to intuition, but a key competitive factor. That’s why we established Business Analytics as a dedicated department. The output of this team feeds directly into strategic and operational decisions across all business units.

In a dynamic market environment, data is essential for transparency. Companies that don’t invest in analytics today risk losing touch with the reality of their own business in the medium term. Even if the benefits aren’t always immediately visible, the absence of such competencies is a clear disadvantage.
 

What long-term career opportunities do graduates of the BADS Master’s program have—at AXRO and in the industry in general?

Spielberg: At AXRO, there are many opportunities to design and take ownership of your own projects. As a family-owned business with flat hierarchies, decision-making paths are short: those with good ideas and the willingness to take responsibility quickly get the chance to do so.

Beyond our company, BADS graduates will find countless doors open, whether in consulting, controlling, strategy, or data science. Demand for analytically minded professionals has never been higher. The combination of technical skill and business acumen makes these profiles highly sought-after across nearly all industries.