Today, the German Federal Government appointed Prof Dr Friederike Welter (IfM Bonn/University of Siegen) and Prof Dr Guido Bünstorf (University of Kassel) to the Commission of Experts for Research and Innovation (EFI). Bünstorf and Welter strengthen EFI's competence, especially in regard to Mittelstand companies, SMEs, and entrepreneurship, as well as regarding the knowledge-based economy, and people-based knowledge transfer.
The two new Commissioners are honoured by their appointment and at the same time confronted with a demanding task, to which they want to contribute with their knowledge and experience. "Research and innovation policy is facing extraordinary challenges given our country's major crises. Research and innovation are key levers to master these challenges, however there is no blueprint for how politic makers should proceed ," said Prof Dr Guido Bünstorf. "Our task as new EFI members is clear," added Prof Dr Friederike Welter. "We want to give the Federal Government orientation for a dynamic research and Innovation policy in times of crisis."
Uwe Cantner, EFI's long-time chairman and professor of economics and microeconomics at Friedrich Schiller University in Jena, welcomes the new commission colleagues and looks forward to working with them. "With Friederike Welter and Guido Bünstorf we gained two excellent experts. Their expertise will enrich our scientific work and provide new, implementation-oriented impulses, especially for the exchange with politics."
IfM President and Siegen professor Friederike Welter works in the Mittelstand and entrepreneurship research. In this context, she researched Mittelstand companies' innovation performance in general and women's innovation activities in particular. Other research interests include the role of context in entrepreneurship and Mittelstand companies' social contribution. She is currently researches the diverse challenges for Mittelstand companies amid the transformation to a social-ecological market economy. For her entrepreneurship and Mittelstand research, she was most recently honoured with admission to the Academia Europaea in 2021 and the 21st Century Entrepreneurship Research Fellows circle in 2020.
Prof Dr Guido Bünstorf heads the Department of Economic Policy, Innovation and Entrepreneurship at the University of Kassel. He is also Executive Vice Director of the International Center for Higher Education Research (INCHER) and spokesperson for the Graduate School in Economic Behavior and Governance.
