MCI professorship to Aleksander Groth

In recognition of his outstanding achievements in research and teaching and his exemplary contributions to the further development of the Entrepreneurial School^®, the MCI recently awarded the professorship to Aleksander Groth from the department of Management, Communication & IT. In the presence of family, friends, and colleagues, he was presented with his certificates by MCI Rector Andreas Altmann and Head of the Academic Council Franz Pegger, before giving fascinating insights into his research areas in his subsequent inaugural lecture.

Aleksander Groth holds a diploma in Business Management with a focus on Strategic Management and Tourism & Service Management and a PhD in Organization Studies, both from the University of Innsbruck. Since 2016, he has been teaching at MCI, focusing on User Experience & Interaction Design, Digital Behavior, applied projects with corporate partners, and methodological courses such as Applied Statistics or Research Design.

In particular, his research deals with the forms of expression and modes of action of digital technologies in the context of human habits and customs. This includes the integration and use of technologies within personal environments on the one hand and collective actions in online communities as a form of communicative expression (e.g. Firestorms as a collective voice) on the other. There is a particular emphasis on video games as a socio-cultural form of expression (collective identity, eSports, etc.).

His inaugural lecture entitled "Communicative Chain Reactions on Reddit - How a Firestorm Ignites Online" also revolved around this exciting area of research, focusing on the constitution of a digital counter-reaction of an online community to an announcement by a game developer.