WU Vienna, Vienna University of Economics and Business, Business Communication

From oil spills to embezzlement scandals, companies have long relied on communication experts with the necessary skills to manage their crises. This is even more relevant in the digital age, where such crises appear to unfold at lightning speed. Corporations may find themselves criticized on social media, while at the same time they are expected to have an opinion on current world affairs and take a clear position. Consumers want companies to not only contribute to relevant social topics but even to raise them, and to engage in meaningful dialog with different stakeholders on a wide variety of real-word issues.

WU Vienna University of Economics and Business is offering a new English-taught master’s program that addresses all of this and more. Launching in the 2022 winter semester, the new Master’s Program in Business Communication (BizComm) focuses on how global corporations can use communication to achieve business success and live up to their social responsibility at the same time.

With BizComm you will learn how to support key in-house decision-making processes as mediators and manage the dialog between different groups and stakeholders. The program’s hands-on approach allows you to gain practical insights into professional practice and learn key methodological and intercultural skills as well. You will also learn management skills, language comprehension, intercultural skills, and media competence — all of which are necessary in a digitally connected world where communication is a key part of a company’s value creation process. In short, you will learn how to unlock the power of corporate communications for business success, corporate social responsibility, and public awareness of socially relevant topics.

These skills will serve you well in a world with 4.48 billion active users of social media, where 142 minutes are spent per day on social media by the average user, and where 88% of customers would prefer companies that contribute to solving global challenges – for example, by making better use of their public communications. The benefits occur within organizations, too — companies that improve how employees communicate with one another see an increase in productivity of more than 20%.

“Successful companies need more than just interesting products and services. Customers expect companies to give back to the community and to tell stories that inspire,” share academic directors Jens Seiffert-Brockmann and Axel Beer. “We prepare students to become communication managers who can successfully guide companies with their communication strategies – because you have to reach people to be seen and understood.”

What sets WU Vienna apart are its sense of responsibility, international scope, pioneering spirit, and its approach to innovation. All of this has been part of WU’s DNA for over 100 years. As Austria’s only university of business and economics, WU Vienna is well aware of its responsibility towards society and committed to excellence in research and teaching. This explains why all of its master’s programs train students in the versatile skills needed to tackle the economic, social, legal, and ecological challenges of our time.

Source: The Vienna University of Economics and Business

The BizComm master’s program is no different. Students will gain the expertise they need to communicate effectively on all available channels in a digitally connected world. The program focuses on media and intercultural competence as well as diversity, and on how to use these skills strategically in corporate communications.

BizComm also focuses on aspects like open-mindedness, equal opportunities, diversity, and inclusion — factors that are becoming more and more important in today’s globally-connected business world. Unlike other similar programs, WU Vienna’s BizComm program recognizes that business success and sociopolitical engagement are no longer mutually exclusive.

There are also many other reasons why students should choose WU’s BizComm program. The subject is key to making businesses thrive. Its scope cuts across disciplines and cultures. As a BizComm student, you have the opportunity to work at the dynamic interface of communication, culture, and language. Plus, you’ll be navigating business and society through communication not just in theory, but by working on actual cases with real companies. As BizComm faculty member Miya Komori-Glatz says, “Effective communication lies at the heart of business. Researchers have found that without communication, there is no business.”

Source: The Vienna University of Economics and Business

As for its location, it’s hard to find a more ideal city than Vienna to match BizComm’s drive and vitality. Vienna is a multicultural metropolis, home to more than 1.9 million people, and has made many priceless contributions to the world. Ask the locals and there will be no shortage of things to praise about living here. Vienna was ranked the city with the highest quality of living worldwide in 2019 (see the Mercer Quality of Living Ranking).

Campus WU is located in Vienna’s second district, one of Vienna’s hippest areas. Here, you’ll find a vibrant community of 21,000 students and 1,600 teachers and researchers. Surrounded by a cutting-edge campus designed by internationally-renowned architects, students exchange ideas, form meaningful relationships, and make memories that last a lifetime.

The application period for the new English-taught Master’s Program in Business Communication starts on September 1. Don’t wait, apply now!

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