IMWF Institute For Management And Economic Research

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.

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

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

• Media intelligence
• Reputation analysis
• Communications controlling
• Brand valuation
• Corporate research

Headquarters

HQ city

Hamburg

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Others

Revenue model

1. 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.
2. Consulting Services: Continuous consulting, ad-hoc analysis, and development of targeted recommendations for action. Includes accompaniment, workshops, and individual deep-dive analyses.
3. CommTech AG Membership/Events: Revenue from Excellence Forum symposiums - free for members, 1,200 EUR net per conference for non-member guests.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core 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

Named customers12 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability6 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• PER AgencycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIMWF 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)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe 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)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAG 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)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerAssociation 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

Direct 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

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&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