Information Systems

Business informatics combines business thinking with technological understanding - ideal for anyone who wants to analyse, digitalise and improve processes. Whether SAP consulting, data analysis or digital product development: as interface professionals, business IT specialists are in demand in all industries. At FH Aachen, Prof Dr Christian Drumm, Prof Dr Matthias Eggert and Prof Dr Stephan Jacobs teach students how to use innovative technologies in companies in a practical way. Graduate Fabian Lechner, who now works as Head of AI, has benefited from this.

What is the occupational field of business informatics all about?

As the name suggests, business informatics is the interface between business and computer science. This field is about how business processes and issues can be supported with the help of IT. In other words, how to develop an application or an information system that supports, automates or optimises a specific business process. One example would be recording orders in a database: you enter customer orders and can then track whether they have already been processed, what their status is, whether payment has already been made - and so on.

Are there different areas of activity in the field of business informatics?

In my opinion, the areas of activity in business informatics are extremely diverse - precisely because it is this interface. What you end up doing depends more on your own interests. There are some classic fields, such as consulting. That's also the area I come from - SAP consulting to be precise. There you need both process expertise in business processes and IT knowledge. This is a typical field of work for business IT specialists.

However, you can also work in a company's internal IT department. As a rule, this does not involve pure programming, but rather the interface - i.e. the management and further development of applications. For example, you talk to the users in order to record their requirements. As a business IT specialist, you know both worlds: the language of IT and that of the specialist departments.

What does the labour market for business IT specialists look like at the moment?

Super! I have yet to meet a business informatics graduate who was looking for a job and didn't find anything. It's actually always the case that business informatics graduates are already working in companies before the end of their studies - and then usually join them if they want to. If you look at the job advertisements, you can see that business IT specialists are wanted everywhere: in local SMEs here in Aachen as well as in international corporations.

What skills should you have to be successful in the occupational field?

I think it's really important that you take the interface function between business and IT seriously. On the one hand, this means that you should have technical skills. As a business IT specialist, you should also be able to programme and master the latest technologies. On the other hand, you need a good understanding of business processes. Only the combination of both - technical expertise and business understanding - makes it possible to develop customised solutions. In other words, to consider: Which technologies and applications can I use to optimally support or improve a specific process so that the best possible solution is created for the company?

What is also crucial here is the ability to communicate. The ability to understand the language of users - and to translate these requirements into an IT language so that they can be implemented technically.

You don't have to be the best software developer, the most technically adept person or the most profound business expert. But you should have a sufficient depth of knowledge in all three areas - and above all be able to combine these perspectives. In my view, this is a central competence for being successful in the occupational fields of business informatics.

Are there any modules from other fields that you would recommend in order to be successful in the occupational field?

Of course, I would always recommend modules that deal with SAP. SAP is a qualification for later professional life that you will find in almost every company as a business IT specialist. In addition, I would always advise you to specialise in the area that really interests you - that you are passionate about. There is no point in choosing a module in which you have no real interest. Because only if you are enthusiastic about a subject will you really learn it well and stay motivated in the long term.

Are there any current developments that are having an impact on areas of work in business informatics?

IT is constantly changing. I think as a business IT specialist, you have to realise that your own technical knowledge is likely to become outdated every three to five years. It's an occupational field in which you have to keep learning. Technical progress - as everyone realises first-hand - is incredibly fast. Things that were unimaginable just a few years ago are now part of everyday life, from smartphones to AI applications.

The occupational fields are therefore constantly changing. Nowadays, you sometimes hear that you no longer need to learn computer science or programming because there are AI assistants. I think that's complete nonsense. But of course, tools like these are changing the way we work. These tools already work very well in the software development environment in particular - and therefore have a direct influence on professions such as business informatics.

Another important area is modelling. In my opinion, we are still relatively at the beginning here, but I expect a lot to happen in the next few years. There will be new tools that make it much easier to model and further develop processes.

The only thing that is certain in IT is constant change.