Real-world challenges. Tangible impact. Award-winning outcomes.

At E&I, we believe that innovation thrives through collaboration. For over 20 years, we've connected leading companies, start-ups, research institutions, and NGOs with top-tier students and academic experts to tackle pressing real-world business challenges - bridging the gap between cutting-edge research and practical application by turning ideas into actionable solutions.

Why partner with E&I?

• Proven Track Record: Our students have successfully worked on over 1,200 real-life challenges across diverse industries, delivering high-quality solutions that consistently exceed expectations. 

• Diverse Partner Network: Over 300 organizations, ranging from early-stage start-ups and SMEs to global corporations and research institutions, have already partnered with us. Many return year after year. Are you next?

• Award-Winning Project Courses: Our flagship courses, such as Industry & Innovation (powered by eXplore!), Digital Strategy Lab (powered by FESTO), and E&I Consulting have been recognized for their excellence, impact, and quality.

• Access to Exceptional Talent: Meet and work with our highly motivated, top-tier students, who offer new perspectives and out-of-the-box thinking. Many companies later hire students they first met in our project courses.

What to expect

In our project-based courses, student teams tackle real innovation challenges over the course of one semester.

• Teams of 4-6 students work intensively on your business question.

• Each project is supported by our experienced E&I faculty and professional external coaches (e.g., from BCG, Accenture, Kearney).

• We conduct a detailed scoping call in advance to align expectations and ensure a strong link to entrepreneurship and innovation.

• You’ll receive a comprehensive final deliverable - directly applicable strategic recommendations tailored to your challenge.

Which questions can we help you with?

Our projects are ideal for organizations seeking innovative input on complex challenges, such as:

• Identifying new business areas, products, or services

• Finding promising applications for existing technologies

• Developing business models or writing a business plan

• Exploring social entrepreneurship or scaling a social enterprise

• Reimagining your offering with an interdisciplinary innovation lens

• Getting strategic feedback on entrepreneurial ideas

• Engaging young talent in early-stage venture development

Whether you’re looking for fresh market insights, business strategy development, or innovation concepts - our students will deliver. Check out past projects to get an idea of what is possible here. 

Research-Backed & Practice-Oriented

Our students draw on:

• Primary data collection: interviews, surveys, field work

• Secondary data from top-tier WU databases and academic sources

• A broad method toolkit tailored to your challenge – from ideation and design thinking to business model development and validation

We address innovation challenges across all phases - from idea generation to market entry - and understand the nuances of working with start-ups, corporates, NGOs, and research-driven partners alike.

What our project partners say

3rd Party Funding

Apart from our collaboration on a project basis, we are always happy to deepen relations. Check out our current and previous 3rd Party Funding for more information.