Recruiters Meet for an Exchange at WHU’s Campus in Düsseldorf

The MBA Recruiters Roundtable made its debut on June 15, 2023, bringing together recruiters from different companies to the Düsseldorf campus of WHU – Otto Beisheim School of Management. The school’s MBA Career Center was pleased to welcome 15 representatives from the fields of recruiting and human resources for an inspiring, all-encompassing exchange with their contemporaries and WHU MBA stakeholders.

Professor Miriam Müthel of WHU’s Chair for Organizational Behavior kicked the day off with a keynote on “failing forward.” Taking Gareth Southgate, a former footballer turned prominent manager of the English national team, as an example of this future-focused trajectory, she educated her audience on why it is so crucial to embrace failure. She also discussed how top managers can implement a positive failing forward culture in the workplace.

This session was followed by a brief introduction to the entire cycle of the MBA program: the selection and admissions process, the academic journey of successful candidates, finding and landing a job in today’s labor market, and, finally, becoming a member of the school’s alumni association In Praxi. The structured and professional approach made an impression on the company representatives present and led to a continued exchange among participants between presentations.

Three current enrollees in the program later shared their own experiences at WHU. They spoke of their backgrounds and gave an insight into the driving forces behind their decision to pursue an MBA—and what they hope to achieve in their future after graduating. Indeed, the future was a hot topic at the event, with participants aware of how digital transformation increasingly shapes the modern workplace, something that has also led to a change in traditional roles. What followed was an exchange that compared and considered everyone’s different perspectives on the future and a discussion on “future skills” (i.e., the skills needed to ensure success later in one’s career)—including agility, curiosity, versatility, ownership, problem-solving skills, and passion. This then tidily flowed back into the event’s overarching themes, with the conversation steered toward the task of best preparing students to stand out in a crowded job market.

Before the event let out, participants learned during a panel on “Health and Wellbeing at the Workplace” about the practical tools available to ensure one’s sense of fulfillment both professionally and at home. Participants also discussed the importance of prioritizing mental health at the workplace, both to prevent employee burnout and to save the company from any corresponding lost costs.

With the first iteration of the event having earned a positive reception, the WHU Career Center has announced plans to offer this format annually.