IMWF Institute For Management And Economic Research
IMWF is a Hamburg-based, privately held research institute that uses AI to analyse millions of online mentions for corporate communications and marketing departments, delivering ISO 10668-certified reputation rankings, comms controlling, and benchmarking to enterprise clients across the DACH region.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2004
- HeadquartersHamburg, Germany
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What IMWF Institute For Management And Economic Research does
IMWF Institute for Management and Economic Research (legal entity: IMWF GmbH, Hamburg, HRB 178639) is a privately held German research institute founded in 2004 that builds AI-powered communication intelligence and reputation analytics for enterprise marketing and corporate communications departments. Its core platform analyses millions of online mentions across websites, online media, and social networks to produce tonality and reputation-dimension scores, predictive topic-trend signals, and anomaly/early-crisis detection. The product portfolio is organised around six pillars: Comms Controlling, Content Performance, Media Intelligence, Media Reputation, Brand Value (ISO 10668 certified), and Marktforschung (primary market research), supplemented by a Beratung consulting practice and an 'Excellence Forum' benchmarking community for ~40–50 senior communications managers operating since 2004.
The firm's revenue model blends one-time licensed studies priced at €900 plus VAT, annual-subscription access to the Excellence Forum (free for member companies, €1,200 net per symposium for non-member guests), and bespoke consulting engagements for DAX/MDAX and large-cap enterprise clients. Industry reputation rankings are produced on a recurring basis across insurance, energy suppliers, IT security, and IT system integration verticals, with disclosed study scale ranging from 179,000 to 400,000+ AI-classified statements. Distribution is direct — website PDF sales, sales-team-led consulting, and member-led communities — with no channel or reseller network. Operations span Hamburg (HQ), Berlin, Vienna, and Leipzig, anchored to DACH-region clients such as BASF, Bayer, Covestro, Merck KGaA, Daimler Truck, EnBW, Deutsche Bahn, and Schwarz Group.
Governance rests on three managing directors (Andreas Quest, Justus Becker, Carola Klaus) plus operating managing director Jörg Forthmann, with no disclosed parent, PE, or VC capital. The company is self-funded and rewards scale via IP: ISO 10668 brand-value certification, Austrian Standards certification, bvik association membership, and the Nov 2024 Netty Award (Tech – Best Use of AI in Media) for its evidence-based reputation management platform. Strategic commercial moves concentrate on partnership co-publication with PER Agency, the AG CommTech industry working group, and multi-office DACH geographic buildout.
IMWF Institute For Management And Economic Research firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- IMWF Institute For Management And Economic Research
- Legal name
- IMWF GmbH
- Website
- https://imwf.de
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2004
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- IMWF is a Hamburg-based, privately held research institute that uses AI to analyse millions of online mentions for corporate communications and marketing departments, delivering ISO 10668-certified reputation rankings, comms controlling, and benchmarking to enterprise clients across the DACH region.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
IMWF Institute For Management And Economic Research industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Media Intelligence and Communications Research
- NAICS
- Advertising Agencies (541810), Web Search Portals, Libraries, Archives, and Other Information Services (519)
- SIC
- Services-Advertising Agencies (7311)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Online Reputation Management (ORM) (MPAAAOAB)
Keywords
Where IMWF Institute For Management And Economic Research is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Hamburg
- HQ country
- Germany
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices4 records
Markets served
IMWF Institute For Management And Economic Research business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Others
Revenue model
- Study/Research Reports Sales: Sale of published studies and reputation rankings as downloadable PDFs. Studies are priced at 900,00 EUR plus VAT for B2B customers seeking industry benchmarks.
- Consulting Services: Continuous consulting, ad-hoc analysis, and development of targeted recommendations for action. Includes accompaniment, workshops, and individual deep-dive analyses.
- CommTech AG Membership/Events: Revenue from Excellence Forum symposiums - free for members, 1,200 EUR net per conference for non-member guests.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Insurance Industry Reputation Study 2025 |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Energy Supplier Reputation Study 2025 |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | ITK System Integrators Reputation Study 2025 |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | ITK Security Industry Reputation Study 2025 |
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | Excellence Forum Symposium Attendance - Non-members |
| Subscription | Annual | Excellence Forum Annual Membership |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels6 records
IMWF Institute For Management And Economic Research product offering
Product offeringCore offering
IMWF is a research institute that uses AI to analyze millions of online mentions across websites, online media, and social networks, providing reputation rankings, communications controlling, ISO 10668-certified brand value calculations, and market research for corporate communications and marketing departments. It also sells published industry reputation studies and offers benchmarking community access through the Excellence Forum.
Product overview
IMWF (Institut für Management- und Wirtschaftsforschung) is a research institute providing AI-powered communication intelligence and reputation management solutions. The core portfolio includes Comms Controlling, Content Performance, Media Intelligence, Media Reputation, Brand Value (ISO 10668 certified), and Market Research services. Supporting offerings include Consulting, the Excellence Forum benchmarking community, and published studies. The company analyzes millions of websites using AI to provide reputation rankings and media analysis across industries including energy suppliers, insurance companies, and ITK sectors. Whitepapers and books on AI in communications, crisis management, and communication measurement supplement the research offerings.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Excellence Forum: A confidential benchmarking community for digital communication, founded as a joint project by companies for companies. Promotes exchange and shared learning in digital transformation, data-based management, and evaluation & reporting since 2004.
Products and services
- Comms Controlling
Quantifiable outcome
- 18% higher share price for 1% better reputation (based on study of 160 DAX, MDAX and SDAX companies)
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use IMWF Institute For Management And Economic Research
Customer profileNamed customers12 records
Segments1 record
Ideal customer profiles2 records
IMWF Institute For Management And Economic Research technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability6 records
Feature5 records
IMWF Institute For Management And Economic Research partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- PER AgencycoreIMWF and PER Agency publish a series of studies on the use of social media in Germany together. This is an ongoing publishing partnership producing industry research.
- Excellence Forum (Joint Project)coreThe Excellence Forum is described as 'a confidential benchmarking community for digital communication' founded as 'a joint project by companies for companies'. IMWF founded and manages this community promoting exchange and shared learning in digital transformation and data-based management since 2004.
- AG CommTech (CommTech Working Group)coreAG CommTech is an initiative/working group focused on digital transformation of corporate communications. IMWF participates in this industry consortium working on standards and best practices for CommTech adoption.
- Bundesverband Industrie Kommunikation e.V. (bvik)minorAssociation member of the German Industrial Communication Association (Bundesverband Industrie Kommunikation e.V.), an industry association for B2B marketing and communication professionals.
Scale indicators7 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
IMWF Institute For Management And Economic Research competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Talkwalker: AI-powered consumer intelligence and reputation analytics platform — direct competitor in AI-driven sentiment and brand-reputation analysis for global enterprise customers.
- Cision: PR and communications technology platform providing media monitoring, analytics and reputation management — competes head-to-head for the same corporate communications buyer as IMWF.
- Meltwater: Global SaaS leader in media intelligence and social listening, offering sentiment analysis, reputation tracking and comms measurement for enterprise PR teams — directly overlapping with IMWF's Media Intelligence and Media Reputation products.
- Brandwatch (now part of Cision): Consumer intelligence and social listening platform with strong reputation analytics; overlaps with IMWF's media and reputation analytics across online and social sources.
Regional players
- Ubermetrics Technologies: Berlin-based AI media monitoring and analysis provider serving PR, communications and brand-reputation use cases in the DACH market — closest regional AI-native competitor to IMWF.
- echobot (now mentionity): German-headquartered media and market intelligence platform offering AI-based media monitoring and analysis; competes most directly in IMWF's home DACH market with German-language coverage.
Broad incumbents
- Ipsos (Corporate Reputation): Global research firm with a corporate reputation practice (e.g., Reputation Center), competing for the same enterprise budget on multi-country reputation studies and brand-value work that IMWF serves in DACH.
- Kantar (Reputation & Brand): Global market research leader with a dedicated corporate reputation and brand-equity practice — offers ISO-aligned brand valuation and reputation studies that overlap with IMWF's Brand Value and reputation ranking offerings.
- LexisNexis (Corporate Intelligence / Nexis): Large incumbent offering media monitoring, news analytics and corporate intelligence solutions; broader portfolio but competes for the same corporate comms and brand-value research budget.
Emerging players
- Pressedok / DPA press monitoring services: German-language press monitoring and clipping service serving PR teams; partial overlap with IMWF's media intelligence offering but at a narrower scope and lower price point.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
IMWF Institute For Management And Economic Research compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
IMWF Institute For Management And Economic Research financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
IMWF Institute For Management And Economic Research leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles4 records
IMWF Institute For Management And Economic Research funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
IMWF Institute For Management And Economic Research M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about IMWF Institute For Management And Economic Research
What does IMWF Institute For Management And Economic Research do?
IMWF is a research institute that uses AI to analyze millions of online mentions across websites, online media, and social networks, providing reputation rankings, communications controlling, ISO 10668-certified brand value calculations, and market research for corporate communications and marketing departments. It also sells published industry reputation studies and offers benchmarking community access through the Excellence Forum.
Is IMWF Institute For Management And Economic Research a public or private company?
IMWF Institute For Management And Economic Research is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was IMWF Institute For Management And Economic Research founded?
IMWF Institute For Management And Economic Research was founded in 2004. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is IMWF Institute For Management And Economic Research based?
IMWF Institute For Management And Economic Research is headquartered in Hamburg, Germany, in the Europe region.
How does IMWF Institute For Management And Economic Research make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Study/Research Reports Sales are the primary driver. The others are consulting Services and commTech AG Membership/Events.
Who are IMWF Institute For Management And Economic Research's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Talkwalker, Cision, Meltwater and Brandwatch (now part of Cision). Regional players are Ubermetrics Technologies and echobot (now mentionity). Broad incumbents are Ipsos (Corporate Reputation), Kantar (Reputation & Brand) and LexisNexis (Corporate Intelligence / Nexis). Pressedok / DPA press monitoring services is listed as an emerging player.
Does IMWF Institute For Management And Economic Research have an API?
No public API is recorded for IMWF Institute For Management And Economic Research.
What industry is IMWF Institute For Management And Economic Research in?
IMWF Institute For Management And Economic Research's product category is Media Intelligence and Communications Research. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAAAOAB, Online Reputation Management (ORM). Its NAICS code is 541810 and its SIC code is 7311.