28 January 2025

An innovative workshop took place at Nordhausen University of Applied Sciences on 10 January, which confronted mechanical engineering students in their first semester with business management issues. Under the direction of Julian Apel, Marlon Klusmeier and Moritz Münch, accompanied by the supervising lecturer Dr Christoph Brodhun, the participants came together to work on complex topics in a playful way using the creative Lego Serious Play method.

Workshop topics in focus:

• "What does business administration mean in mechanical engineering?"
• "What challenges do engineers and business economists face when working together?"
• "How can mechanical engineering and business administration work better together?"

Lego bricks were used to create visual models and solutions that not only took the collaboration between mechanical engineering and business administration to a new level, but also promoted mutual understanding between the two disciplines.

Objectives and results of the workshop:

• Promoting understanding: bringing mechanical engineering and business administration closer together.
• Creative solutions: Developing innovative models for better collaboration.
• Interdisciplinary cooperation: strengthening the participants' communication and teamwork skills.

A playful method for serious results

The Lego Serious Play method makes it possible to tackle complex issues in an intuitive and visual way. "With this method, we not only promote the creativity and communication of our students, but also show exciting perspectives for interdisciplinary collaboration - a key skill for the challenges of the future," explains Dr Christoph Brodhun.

Above all, the students took away from the workshop a deeper understanding of the importance of business management processes in mechanical engineering. They also improved their ability to put themselves in the shoes of other departments and developed a greater awareness of the challenges and potential of interdisciplinary collaboration. Many participants reported that they would like to integrate the results directly into their day-to-day studies.

The workshop impressively demonstrated how a playful approach can help to promote teamwork and develop innovative solutions. The findings of the workshop offer a promising basis for future collaboration between engineers and business economists - at Nordhausen University of Applied Sciences and beyond.