Network of Innovation Management and Strategy

What Network of Innovation Management and Strategy does

NIMS (Network of Innovation Management and Strategy) is a non-profit international business student association founded in 2015 and headquartered in Vienna, Austria. It operates as a community of high-performing master's students at five partner European business schools: WU Vienna (Austria), Bocconi University (Italy), NHH (Norway), Kozminski University (Poland), and Católica-Lisbon (Portugal). Its core offering consists of three interconnected programs: Discovery Days (multi-day flagship events with company workshops, case studies, and visits to local innovation ecosystems), the Spring Programme (a one-week internship placement connecting students with partner companies), and NIMS Chats (workshops and skill-sharing sessions with corporate partners). The organization is supported by a corporate partner ecosystem that includes EY Parthenon as Premium Partner alongside HORVATH, WhatAVenture, Startuplab, and VIS, plus the five host universities as Core Partners.

NIMS generates revenue through membership and event fees plus implied corporate sponsorship contributions, with no publicly disclosed pricing. Its go-to-market is community-led and event-driven: members are acquired through university channels, word-of-mouth across chapters, and participation in flagship events, while corporate partners provide workshops, internships, and brand sponsorship. The segment is horizontal across master's students interested in strategy, innovation, and entrepreneurship. There is no proprietary technology platform, no software products, no API surface, and no mobile application; delivery is human-coordinated via in-person events, with marketing conducted primarily through Instagram, LinkedIn, and the nims-global.com website.

The organization operates with 51-100 contributors (predominantly student volunteers across chapters) and has no disclosed funding rounds, parent company, or formal ownership structure. Headcount and revenue are not broken out, and there are no enterprise customers in the conventional sense — the served base is individual students, while corporate partners function as sponsors and program hosts.

Name

Network of Innovation Management and Strategy

Legal name

NIMS Network of Innovation Management and Strategy

Website

https://nims-global.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

NIMS is a non-profit international student association connecting master's students across five European business schools (WU Vienna, Bocconi, NHH, Kozminski, Católica-Lisbon) through flagship events, internships, and workshops with corporate partners including EY Parthenon.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Student Association Services

NAICS

Professional and Management Development Training (61143)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Product & Innovation Summits (Roadmap, Launch Readiness, Innovation Days) (THAHAMAG)

akta.pro secondary industry

Training, Enablement & Talent Development Summits (THAHAMAH)

Keywords

• Student association
• Innovation management
• Business networking events
• Internship programs
• Professional workshops

Headquarters

HQ city

Vienna

HQ country

Austria

HQ region

Europe

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership and Event Fees: NIMS operates as a professional association serving master students and companies. Revenue is generated through membership activities, event fees for programs like Discovery Days and Spring Programme, and potentially sponsorship contributions from corporate partners.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Network of Innovation Management and Strategy (NIMS) is an international business student association that runs three core programs: Discovery Days (multi-day conferences with company workshops and visits), Spring Programme (a one-week internship programme with partner companies), and NIMS Chats (workshops and skill-sharing sessions). The programs are delivered through five university chapters across Europe and serve master's students interested in innovation management and strategy.

Product overview

NIMS (Network of Innovation Management and Strategy) is an international business student association that provides a portfolio of three interconnected programs: Discovery Days (multi-day conferences featuring company workshops and visits), the Spring Programme (one-week internship placements with partner companies), and NIMS Chats (workshops and networking events). These offerings collectively serve to connect master's students with industry leaders, provide hands-on business experience, and foster an international network across four European university chapters.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Discovery Days A multi-day flagship NIMS event where members from all chapters gather in one city to participate in company workshops, company visits, case studies, and startup pitches, exploring local innovation ecosystems. It is designed for master's students interested in innovation management and strategy across NIMS chapters.
• Spring Programme A one-week internship programme connecting partner companies with high-potential students, providing deep insight into company operations through business challenges, case studies, or departmental rotations. First introduced in Vienna in 2018.
• NIMS Chats Events bringing together students from all chapters and high-potentials to discuss, learn, and build relationships through workshops with corporate partners and expert-led skill-sharing sessions.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered premium partner, partner and core partner.

• EY Parthenonpremium partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerEY Parthenon is a Premium Partner of NIMS, supporting the organization's vision of fostering innovation and creativity worldwide. Together they connect students and professionals in innovation management and strategy, building a global network of future leaders.
• HORVATHpartnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerHORVATH is a partner of NIMS, contributing to the organization's ecosystem of corporate relationships that provide opportunities for student members.
• WhatAVenturepartnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerWhatAVenture is a partner of NIMS, supporting the organization's innovation-focused mission and providing connections to the venture ecosystem.
• StartuplabpartnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerStartuplab is a Norwegian startup incubator that NIMS visited during Discovery Days 2024 in Bergen. The partnership provides students exposure to the Norwegian startup ecosystem.
• VISpartnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerVIS is a Norwegian startup incubator visited during NIMS Discovery Days 2024 in Bergen, providing students insights into local innovation infrastructure.
• WU Viennacore partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerVienna University of Economics and Business (WU) hosts the WU Chapter of NIMS. The chapter is associated with the MSc in Strategy, Innovation and Management Control program, contributing high-performing students to the network.
• Bocconi Universitycore partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerBocconi University hosts the Bocconi Chapter of NIMS. Associated with BSI (Build Sustainable Innovation), a student-run association at Bocconi focusing on innovation and technology impact.
• Norwegian School of Economics (NHH)core partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerNHH hosts the NHH Chapter of NIMS, associated with Start NHH - an interest group promoting innovation and entrepreneurship. Discovery Days 2024 were held in Bergen at NHH.
• Kozminski Universitycore partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerKozminski University in Warsaw hosts the Kozminski Chapter of NIMS, associated with Strategy & Innovation Management students. Discovery Days 2025 will be held in Warsaw.
• Católica-Lisbon School of Business & Economicscore partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerCatólica-Lisbon hosts the Católica Chapter of NIMS, associated with Católica Consulting Linked (CCL), the official Junior Enterprise of the school.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• AIESEC: Global youth-led network running leadership, internship, and cross-border exchange programs for university students. Highly comparable to NIMS as an international, student-run professional-development association funded by corporate partnerships.
• Erasmus Student Network (ESN): Largest European student association, with local chapters at universities across Europe. Comparable to NIMS as a multi-chapter, pan-European student-run membership organization delivering events and cross-border programming.
• 180 Degrees Consulting: International student-led pro-bono consulting organization with university branches. Comparable to NIMS as a student-run association delivering structured business engagements and corporate-partner events for master's-level talent.
• ESTIEM – European Students of Industrial Engineering and Management: European-wide student-run association for a specific management/engineering niche, with local groups at leading universities. Comparable to NIMS as a thematically-narrow, multi-chapter European student network with corporate partner programs.
• JADE – European Federation of Junior Enterprises: Federation of student-run consulting firms ('Junior Enterprises') at European universities. Comparable to NIMS as a similar European student-led association structure operating at top business schools and engaging with corporate clients.
• ELSA – European Law Students' Association: International professional student association with local/national chapters across Europe delivering events, competitions, and partner-sponsored programs. Directly comparable structure to NIMS.

Emerging players

• Build Sustainable Innovation (BSI) Bocconi: Bocconi University's student-run innovation and technology impact association. Directly comparable — even noted as Bocconi's NIMS chapter affiliate in the source data.
• Start NHH: NHH's interest group promoting innovation and entrepreneurship among students. Comparable student-run innovation community; explicitly affiliated with NIMS's NHH chapter.
• Católica Consulting Linked (CCL): Official Junior Enterprise at Católica-Lisbon, delivering corporate consulting and event programs. Peer student-run professional organization at one of NIMS's partner universities.

Regional players

• European Business School Student Associations (collective): Network of student-led consulting/innovation associations across European business schools (e.g., WHU, HEC Paris, LBS, St. Gallen) — adjacent regional peer set serving similar master-level audiences with event and corporate-partnership formats.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/nims---network-of-innovation-management-and-strategy/?viewAsMember=true
• Instagraminstagram.com/nims.global

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 Network of Innovation Management and Strategy