Graduation Ceremony at the First Business School Established in Germany. "HHL Is a Flagship."

[HHL gGmbH - 03.09.2013] Great joy among 132 HHL students from 22 countries: they celebrate the completion of their Master of Science, MBA or doctoral programs at HHL Leipzig Graduate School of Management by throwing their caps in the air and accepting their certificates.

The festive ceremony started on August 31, 2013, with an ecumenical service at Leipzig's St. Thomas Church with a photo call following that.
As the certificates were finally handed out, HHL Dean Prof. Dr. Andreas Pinkwart said, "We congratulate all graduates from the two Master programs M.Sc. and MBA as well as the doctoral candidates for successfully completing their courses at HHL. We are particularly proud of our graduates' different personalities, their ideas and accomplishments with which they made significant contributions to the HHL community over the last few years." Referring to the innovate125 HHL Future Concept, Prof. Dr. Pinkwart drew a positive balance for the work that has been done so far. "Today, we have 50 percent more young and experienced students who chose Leipzig, who chose HHL," says the HHL Dean.
Prof. Dr. Pinkwart expressly thanked Porsche AG, which recently launched the Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG Chair of Strategic Management and Family Business. The HHL Dean also thanked the Deutsche Bank Foundation, Dr. Werner Jackstädt Foundation, the Leipzig Chamber of Industry and Commerce, Sparkasse Leipzig as well as the Alfried Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach Foundation, as representative of many others, for their support of the first private business school established in Germany.

Congratulations to HHL on its 115th anniversary

During her speech, the State Minister for Higher Education, Research and the Arts for the Free State of Saxony, Prof. Dr. Dr. Sabine von Schorlemer, not only congratulated the HHL students on their graduation but also the university itself on its 115th anniversary. Characterizing Germany's first commercial college established in 1898 on the initiative of the Chamber of Industry and Commerce, the City Council of Leipzig and the University of Leipzig, the minister emphasized, "HHL today is an integral part of higher education in Leipzig, in Saxony, in Germany and in the world. When the school was re-established in the 1990s, the Free State of Saxony not only recognized the university but also funded it at a very early stage and rightfully so. HHL has already climbed high up in Germany. Since its re-establishment, it has developed into one of the leading business schools and therefore has become a flagship for higher education in Saxony as well."

"Germany must become more attractive in the global competition for masterminds"

The keynote speech was given by Matthias Müller, President of the Executive Board of Porsche AG. The Executive of the internationally successful automotive company that is rich in tradition said, "Germany must become even more attractive in the global competition for masterminds. While our country has highly productive industry, good working conditions and a high standard of living, we must still compensate for one deficit: German is not a world language. We must even out this language barrier - with cosmopolitanism, tolerance and the continued reduction of bureaucratic hurdles." The boss of approximately 17,500 employees worldwide added, "No matter how tense the situation within the companies and the public budgets is - we must not save on young people's education. If you invest in education today, you invest in the future of companies and therefore in safeguarding of jobs and wealth in our country. We at Porsche are facing this responsibility for the future. This is exactly why we decided to support HHL by funding the new Chair of Strategic Management and Family Business. This commitment has one clear goal: We contribute to the further development of academic research and teaching in the field of leadership in family businesses."

Awards for accomplished students

The 400 guests, among them the graduate's families and friends, members of the Saxon State Parliament as well as the HHL Supervisory Board and Board of Trustees, partner organizations and friends, patrons and sponsors of HHL, not only witnessed the certificates being handed out but also various prizes being awarded during the ceremony. For their outstanding academic performances, their commitment to the students' concerns as well as their exemplary work for off-campus activities, M.Sc. graduate André Vörtler and MBA graduate Martin Jacobitz were named "Schmalenbach Scholars 2013", a prize that comes with a monetary reward of EUR 500. The 2013 DAAD Prize for Best Foreign Student, which comes with a monetary prize of EUR 1,000, was awarded to Chilean MBA student Tomas Labra.
The day ended just as festively as it had started. The great Graduation Ball at the Old Wool Combing Works started at 6:30 pm.

HHL Leipzig Graduate School of Management

HHL is a university-level institution and ranks amongst the leading international business schools. The goal of the oldest business school in German-speaking Europe is to educate effective, responsible and entrepreneurially-minded leaders. In addition to HHL's international focus the combination of theory and practice plays a key role. HHL stands out for its excellent teaching, its clear research focus, its effective knowledge transfer into practice as well as its outstanding student services. www.hhl.de