From October 5–9, 2025, we hosted our first Winter School on “Business Ethics – Normative Arguments and Practical Implications” in Wittenberg.
The week-long program brought together an international group of early-career researchers from around the world to explore how normative approaches in business ethics can inform and inspire both theory and practice.
Renowned scholars, including Nien-he Hsieh (Harvard Business School), Bart Wilson (Chapman University), Andreas Suchanek (HHL), Tobey Scharding (Rutgers Business School), Dorothea Kübler (WZB), Florian Krause (Leibnitz Universität Hannover) and Christian Kroll (Universität Münster) guided our participants through topics ranging from the foundations of normative reasoning and the “Wittenberg Approach” to practical aspects such as effective research communication. Interactive workshops encouraged participants to refine their research questions, design compelling academic posters, and reflect on how to translate theoretical work into societal value.
The program culminated in participants’ engagement with the international conference “The Is & Ought of Business Ethics”, where they presented their own work in a poster session and connected with leading scholars and practitioners in the field. Alongside academic sessions, the Winter School fostered community through shared meals, informal discussions, and cultural activities such as a guided city tour of Wittenberg.
By the end of the week, participants left not only with new knowledge and perspectives but also with a strengthened network of peers and mentors dedicated to advancing ethical reflection in business and society.
The Winter School marked an important milestone in WCGE’s mission to promote interdisciplinary and practice-oriented research in business ethics and will become a cornerstone of our Doctoral Academy „Business and Leadership Ethics“, funded by the Karl Schlecht Foundation (KSG). The program is a joint initiative by the WCGE and the BEMA Chair of Business Ethics & Management Accounting of the Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg.
For further information about the program and upcoming events, please contact