My competencies

Business Developent Engineer - Imagining the business of tomorrow

All through my education and work life so far I have chosen to focus on business development and innovation, with all that it encompasses. This direction has given me a broad set of competences and an ability to talk in several of the different “languages” used in business today. My primary area of competence is focused around the front end of innovation and to increase the level of innovativeness both strategically and practically. Below you can read a bit more about both my bachelor's degree and the master's degree I am currently doing.

Graphic (c) Kristoffer Kjaer

2005-2008: B.Sc. in Business Development Engineering

In August 2005 I got enrolled in the B.Sc. in Business Development Engineering Programme (BDE) at Aarhus University, Institute of Business and Technology (AU-IBT). BDE is an interdisciplinary study programme focusing equally on three subject areas being 1) engineering, 2) business, and 3) personal competence development and leadership. The purpose of this study programme is to educate the students to be an innovative change agent with the ability to function as a liaison between the technologically focused engineering staff and the economically focused marketing and sales staff.

It demands a wide set of competences to master the language of both sides, which means that studying BDE has made me into a generalist with insight into the many different disciplines of business development.

The wide set of competences is attained through the following courses (Danish grade/int’l. grade):
1st semester: B2C Marketing (10/A), Mathematics (passed), Statistics (passed).
2nd semester: Concept Development (10/A), Physics and Statics (12), 3D CAD Modeling (passed).
3rd semester: Product Development (10/A), Materials and Production Methods (passed), Dynamics (10/A), 3D CAD/CAM Modelling and Calculations (passed).
4th semester: Strategic Innovation Management (10/A), Systematic Creativity (passed), Information Technology (passed).
5th semester: Strategic Management (12/A+), Business Economics (10/A), Management and Organizational Theory (12/A+).
6th semester: B2B Marketing (10/A), Sourcing and Supply Chain Management (10/A).

Furthermore a semester project was conducted on each semester in a six man group, changing the members for each semester, to improve the ability to manage and function in project work groups.

2008-2010: M.Sc. in Engineering (Technology Based Business Development)

In September 2008 I continued my education at the M.Sc. in Engineering (Technology Based Business Development and Innovation), also at AU-IBT. The M.Sc. is focused on technology as the driver of organizational innovation, and treats this subject from different perspectives, ranging from Technology Roadmapping and Screening to implementation of processes to improve the ability to conduct increasingly successful New Product or Service Development.

The subject areas are as follows (Danish grade/int’l. grade):
1st semester: Strategic Management of Technology (10/A), Scientific Method (12/A+), Technology Specialization I - RFID (passed), Company Project I (12/A+).
2nd semester: Strategic Management and Innovation (12/A+), HRM and Organizational Development (10/A), Technology Specialization II - RFID (passed), Company Project II.
3rd semester: Exchange student at the MBA in International Business at Thammasat University, Bangkok, Thailand.
4th semester: Master's Thesis.

The M.Sc. is carried out in cooperation with my so called Mentor Company, APC Denmark, Kolding, with whom I will write my Company Projects as well as my Master’s Thesis at the end of the programme.

Links:
B.Sc. Business Development Engineering - Official website of the Business Development Engineer study programme (in Danish)
www.bde.dk - Website maintained by the BDE Association consisting of former and current BDE students (in Danish)
Brochure about BDE - Brochure that we made at Jessen&Kjær Media about BDE.
M.Sc. In Engineering (Technology Based Business Development) - Official website of the master's programme.
APC Denmark ApS - Website of my mentor company