Professor Christina Günther

Professor Christina Günther studied international economics at the Universität Maastricht (Netherlands) before she joined the Max Planck Institute of Economics in Jena as a research fellow. In her PhD thesis on "Structural dynamics in the German machine tool industry: An empirical investigation of technological, regional and firm-specific developments,” she explored innovative capacities and competitiveness of within the showcase industry of the German Mittelstand. She completed her doctorate at the University of Jena in 2009.

In her current research projects she investigates the challenges in the growth processes of small and medium-sized enterprises as well as the relationship between ownership structure, location, innovation activity and competitiveness.

From 2010 to 2014 Christina Günther worked as assistant professor for ‘Industrial Organization and Economics of Innovation’ at WHU - Otto Beisheim School of Management. Since April 2014, she has held the IHK-Chair for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises. As part of her academic career, she spent several months as a visiting researcher, inter alia, at the Universitat Pompeu Fabra in Barcelona and the Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey (ITESM) in Mexico. For her research, she has been honored with numerous awards internationally.

Christina Günther is a member of the Executive Board of the Academy of Management, Entrepreneurship Division. She has worked for numerous scientific conferences and journals as a consultant and reviewer.