The ICV celebrated a successful premiere with the “students|spaces” event in October 2026. More than 300 people registered for the free event in the metaverse—designed specifically for students in the fields of finance and controlling—where participants met as avatars. The event featured six presentations on current controlling topics, a keynote address, and insights into the work of the finalists for the 2026 ICV – Péter Horváth Newcomer Award.

The students|spaces event was organized and carried out under the leadership of the ICV Executive Advisor for Higher Education, Prof. Dr. Björn Baltzer, and Hilal Öntürk of DATEV. Prof. Dr. Utz Schäffer (WHU) opened the event with the keynote address “What Skills Do Controllers Actually Need—Today and Tomorrow?”

Throughout the afternoon, experts from academia, industry, and consulting firms gave presentations on the following topics:

• Florian Ponnath (Siemens Healthineers): AI in Controlling—Expectations, Reality, and Future Prospects
• Stefan Drees (Welser Profile): Role-Based Organization—The Controlling Organization of the Future?
• Prof. Dr. Andreas Seufert (HWG Ludwigshafen): How AI Is Changing the Rules of the Game in Controlling
• Prof. Dr. Christoph Eisl (University of Applied Sciences Upper Austria): How Well Can AI Handle Controlling Tasks?
• Niko Hofmann (Horváth): Current Topics in Controlling Consulting
• Prof. Dr. Avo Schönbohm (HWR Berlin): Gamification in Controlling—How Key Metrics Create Leeway, Guide Behavior, and Shape Reality

The gamification aspect was also well represented with contests in which book prizes were raffled off.

The event concluded with the presentation of the 2026 ICV – Péter Horváth Newcomer Award. ICV Board Member Pia Burkarth (ICV) delivered the laudatory speech for the award, which comes with a total prize of 12,000 euros.

Moritz Fischer Wins the 2026 ICV – Péter Horváth Newcomer Award

Moritz Fischer is the winner of the 2026 ICV – Péter Horváth Newcomer Award. He was honored for his master’s thesis, “How to Enhance Scenario Analysis Within SAP’s Financial Forecasting Process to Provide More Insightful Steering Information.” The thesis was supervised by Prof. Dr. Utz Schäffer (WHU – Otto Beisheim School of Management).

1st Place: Scenario Analysis in Financial Forecasting (Moritz Fischer)

Moritz Fischer has examined how the scenario analysis process in SAP’s financial forecasting can be systematically refined. The starting point is the trend toward replacing traditional point forecasts with range forecasts. To this end, he scrutinized the common practice of summing pessimistic, realistic, and optimistic scenarios for income statement items. Based on an actual forecasting process at the DAX-listed company SAP, he developed a solution architecture, while also acknowledging the limitations of the case studies.

In his work, Moritz Fischer combines empirical process analysis, qualitative expert interviews, a quantitative evaluation of historical forecast data, and a literature review. Suggested improvements include Monte Carlo simulations to aggregate more realistic ranges, the structured expansion of range forecasting to the entire income statement, and recommendations for governance and documentation standards. The thesis introduces Forecast Value Added (FVA) as a performance metric. It also incorporates insights from behavioral finance on overconfidence and algorithm aversion to explain why even good models can fail in practice.

Pia Burkarth, who delivered the laudatory speech, is convinced: “The key insight—that the greatest leverage lies not in better individual forecasts, but in smarter aggregation and a more conscious approach to uncertainty—is both original and directly actionable.”

2nd Place: Forecast Stability in Infrastructure Projects (Hagen Fellmann & Jan Gawehn)

Second place goes to the duo Hagen Fellmann and Jan Gawehn for their paper “Analysis of Forecast Stability in DB InfraGO AG Infrastructure Projects: Initial Analysis, Root Cause Analysis, and Recommendations for Action to Improve Cost Forecast Stability in Existing Network Projects—A Case Study-Based Investigation.” The analysis covers approximately 88,000 project data records spanning ten years and is supplemented by qualitative interviews and workshops. The thesis distinguishes between causes in day-to-day project operations, in the planning and control processes, and in the overall organization, and derives recommendations for action, particularly for risk management. This thesis was also supervised by Prof. Dr. Utz Schäffer.

Pia Burkarth praises the work as “an example of how a master’s thesis can be not only an academic achievement but also a valuable catalyst for the further development of real-world organizations.”

3rd Place: Focus on Greenhouse Gas Emissions (Linn Inga Denning)

Linn Inga Denning took third place with her master’s thesis, “Practical Feasibility of the Proposed Greenhouse Gas Protocol Revision for Scope 2 Carbon Accounting: A Multiple Case Study of Publicly Traded Companies in Germany.” The thesis analyzes the practical feasibility of the draft revision to the measurement and reporting of Scope 2 emissions, which was presented in October 2025. It was supervised by Prof. Dr. Maximilian Blaschke of the Technical University of Munich.

Pia Burkarth, who delivered the laudatory speech, thanked the award recipient for pointing out “that while the planned revision is intended to create greater transparency, it also poses significant challenges in terms of practical implementation—particularly when it comes to green electricity and new procurement mechanisms.”

A Relaxed Atmosphere in the Virtual Space

The event in the metaverse created a relaxed atmosphere. The participants had a lot of fun and explored the spaces with curiosity using their individually designed avatars, including the ICV lobby as a launch area, the amphitheater, and the Smart Island, Blue Beach, and Yellow Beach areas. Event director Björn Baltzer expressed his complete satisfaction at the conclusion: “The ‘chill & learn’ theme for the premiere of our students|spaces was spot-on, because as avatars, everyone was truly able to follow the exciting presentations in a relaxed atmosphere.” A continuation of the students|spaces event series is planned.