With the two “VIA Impulse” events on Monday, September 15, 2025, the campus will be filling up with students again even before the official start of the 2025/2026 winter semester. Two high-profile speakers will show our newcomers how their studies and careers have progressed.

At 10:30 a.m., Professor Markus-Oliver Schwaab welcomes Thomas H. Faller to the Audimax as a speaker for first-year students in German-language bachelor's programs. Faller completed his degree in Purchasing and Logistics at the Pforzheim Business School in 1992 and is now Chief Procurement Officer (CPO) in charge of global procurement at Munich Re. In his role as CPO, he is driving forward the digitalization of processes and the improvement of governance at Munich Re. With his in-depth background in the management of complex procurement processes, Thomas Faller has already held senior positions at multinational companies such as ThyssenKrupp Elevator AG and ABB Group.

For first-year students in English-language bachelor's programs, Philipp Marquardt will talk about his studies and career path at 1:30 p.m. in lecture hall W2.2.01. Marquardt completed his degree in International Business at Pforzheim Business School in 2006 and now works as Global Finance Director (P2P) at Kärcher Global Services in Schwaikheim. Philipp Marquardt first became acquainted with Kärcher during his first internship semester. He gained international experience through a semester abroad at Tec de Monterrey in Mexico, as well as at Robert Bosch GmbH during his second internship semester in Brussels, Belgium, and as part of his diploma thesis in Madrid, Spain. After starting his career at EY in Stuttgart, he worked in international finance at Clariant in Basel, Switzerland, and Jakarta, Indonesia.

The "VIA Impulse" lecture series has been an integral part of the SIC introductory week program for first-semester students on Bachelor's degree courses at the Business School Pforzheim for many years. "VIA" stands for Very Important Alumni: successful graduates give an insight into the course of their studies and their professional careers as part of the event for first-year students and all interested parties. The subsequent panel discussion offers new students the opportunity to ask questions and receive valuable tips and insider information on studying and careers.