Center for Entrepreneurial and Financial Studies, TU München

What Center for Entrepreneurial and Financial Studies, TU München does

The Center for Entrepreneurial and Financial Studies (CEFS) is an academic research center within the Department of Finance & Accounting at the TUM School of Management, Technische Universität München. It operates alongside the Chair of Management Accounting (Lehrstuhl für Controlling), currently led by Prof. Dr. Gunther Friedl (on sabbatical) and Prof. Dr. Maximilian Blaschke. The unit conducts research and teaching in controlling, management accounting, cost accounting, corporate governance, executive compensation, and energy economics, and it supervises theses, project studies, and seminars for TUM students.

Its core outputs are research-driven rather than commercial: an annual DSW/TUM Executive Compensation Study series covering DAX and MDAX board remuneration since 2007, established textbooks on controlling and cost accounting, AI-themed academic work (including ProcessLLM, a large language model specialized in business process interpretation and optimization published in 2025), and project studies applying predictive AI models to corporate finance dashboards. The unit functions through direct engagement with corporate partners (DSW, KPMG, BearingPoint, prevero AG) via guest lectures, sponsored seminars, research cooperations, and the TUMfast elite scholarship program, which connects top students with employers through exclusive job ads, company events, and an annual party. The alumni association TUM Fördergesellschaft Controlling e.V. sustains a network among students, alumni, faculty, and enterprises.

Because CEFS is a public academic department within TUM (a public-law corporation under the Bavarian Higher Education Innovation Act), it does not operate a commercial revenue model. Resources come from Bavarian state funding, regulated tuition, third-party research grants, and corporate partnerships; no commercial pricing, investors, or revenue figures are disclosed. Customer exposure is split horizontally between corporate partners (research and talent acquisition) and TUM students (theses, project studies, internships, awards), with no paid product offering at the consumer level.

Name

Center for Entrepreneurial and Financial Studies, TU München

Legal name

Technische Universität München

Website

https://fa.mgt.tum.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1868

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Center for Entrepreneurial and Financial Studies is a research and teaching unit within TUM School of Management's Department of Finance & Accounting, conducting research in controlling, management accounting, executive compensation, and corporate governance, and serving corporate partners and TUM students through research projects, the TUMfast scholarship program, and annual DSW/TUM executive compensation studies.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Academic Management Accounting Research and Education

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940), Securities, Commodity Contracts, and Other Financial Investments and Related Activities (523)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282), Finance Services (6199)

akta.pro primary industry

Business & Management Research Universities (EDAHABAE)

akta.pro secondary industry

Finance, Accounting & Risk (CFA/CPA/FRM) Certifications (EDAAANAD)

Keywords

• Management accounting research
• Executive compensation studies
• Corporate governance education
• Controlling and cost accounting
• Entrepreneurial finance

Headquarters

HQ city

Munich

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

The Center for Entrepreneurial and Financial Studies (CEFS), together with the Chair of Management Accounting (Lehrstuhl für Controlling), is an academic research and teaching unit within TUM School of Management. It conducts research in controlling, management accounting, cost accounting, corporate governance, executive compensation, and entrepreneurial finance; delivers university teaching through TUM degree programs; produces annual executive compensation studies in partnership with DSW; runs the TUMfast elite scholarship program linking top students with corporate partners; and publishes academic textbooks used in German-speaking universities.

Product overview

The Chair of Management Accounting (Lehrstuhl für Controlling) at TUM School of Management operates as an academic research and teaching unit rather than a commercial product company. Its offerings consist of educational programs (project studies, theses, seminars), research outputs (executive compensation studies, journal publications, books), and talent development initiatives (TUMfast elite scholarship, prevero award). The research focus areas include controlling, cost accounting, management accounting, executive compensation, and digital transformation in controlling. The chair collaborates with industry partners through guest lectures, company-sponsored seminars, and practical project studies, while maintaining an alumni network (TUM Fördergesellschaft Controlling e.V.) for ongoing industry-academia connections.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• TUMfast — TUM Finance and Accounting Selected Talents
• prevero Award
• DSW/TUM Executive Compensation Studies
• Project Studies Program
• Academic Publications (Books)
• TUM Fördergesellschaft Controlling e.V.

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability5 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Deutsche Schutzvereinigung für Wertpapierbesitz (DSW)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAnnual co-publication of DSW/TUM Executive Compensation Studies examining board remuneration in DAX and MDAX companies. Partnership spans from 2007 to present, covering compensation components, total amounts, structures, and international comparisons.
• KPMGminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerDr. Bernd Grottel from KPMG delivers guest lectures on auditing (Wirtschaftsprüfung) for students at the Chair.
• BearingPointminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerBearingPoint contributes to teaching through guest lectures on Management Accounting with SAP.
• TUM Fördergesellschaft Controlling e.V.coreOthersAlumni association of the chair that builds networks between students, alumni, faculty, and companies. Supports teaching and research, organizes events, and facilitates knowledge transfer between academia and practice.
• prevero AGminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAwards the best thesis at the Chair of Management Accounting with €500.00. Theses must be submitted by September 30th each year.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Frankfurt School of Finance & Management: German business school with a comparable finance/accounting research profile, corporate partnerships, and degree programmes — direct competitor for talent, faculty, and German corporate-sponsored research in the same Rhein-Main/Bavaria corridor.
• ESMT Berlin: Berlin-based German business school founded by corporate partners, with finance and management-accounting research and strong DAX-company ties — comparable mix of academic research and corporate-cooperation revenue.
• WHU – Otto Beisheim School of Management: Top-tier German private business school with strong finance and controlling research, similar in operating model (academic chairs, corporate partnerships, executive compensation and corporate governance research) and competing for the same DAX/MDAX corporate relationships.
• Mannheim Business School: Affiliated with the University of Mannheim, with strong accounting and finance research output and corporate cooperation programmes; closely comparable to TUM in scale, public-university affiliation, and focus on German-speaking executive education.
• HHL Leipzig Graduate School of Management: German private business school with finance and accounting research chairs, corporate project studies, and elite-scholarship-style programmes — a direct structural analogue for the CEFS/Chair of Management Accounting operating model.

Regional players

• Copenhagen Business School: Northern Europe's leading business school with active controlling/management-accounting research groups. Comparable in public-university status, research intensity, and corporate-partnership programmes but in a different national market.
• University of St. Gallen (HSG): Switzerland's leading business school with comparable management-accounting, controlling, and corporate-governance research. Regional peer serving DACH-region companies but operating under Swiss law and academic framework.
• Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University: Major European business school with a strong accounting and management-control research group, comparable corporate-research cooperation model, but serving primarily a Benelux/Dutch corporate base.

Broad incumbents

• London Business School: Top global business school with finance and accounting faculty producing governance and executive-compensation research; broader portfolio and global brand, competing for the same international executive-education and corporate-partnership budgets.
• INSEAD: Global business school with broad finance, accounting, and governance research — broader scope and international footprint than CEFS, but a competitor for the same multinational corporate research and recruitment spend.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/center-for-entrepreneurial-and-financial-studies-tu-m-nchen

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 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 Center for Entrepreneurial and Financial Studies, TU München