Bachelor's Thesis Summer Term 2026
Bachelor's thesis supervision summer term 2026
Before you consider to apply for thesis supervision at the BIM chair, please carefully read the following:
1) Do not write your thesis under our supervision if at the same time you plan to work full time, do an internship, travel the world, or still need to do a large number of other courses! The thesis is an integral part of your study program and, thus, should be in the focus of your attention. You will need all the time to be able to deliver the best package (we fully understand that most of you have a student job and this is perfectly doable). All students who despite our warnings still started a full-time job or internship struggled with finishing their thesis in time and delivering the desired quality. YOUR thesis should be YOUR first priority!
2) Only write your thesis under our supervision if you are commited, motivated, and responsible as well as willing to accept new challenges! If you consider to write your thesis at the BIM chair, you should be well-organized, be able to motivate yourself to achieve your goals, and be willing to independently learn new skills (e.g., learn new analytical approaches largely on your own). Writing your thesis with us inlcudes to go beyond what you have learned in your seminars and lectures. We expect that you are proactive and motivated. Our job is to reduce uncertainty. Be prepared for all meetings and show us that you invest effort and time to solve issues yourself. This is YOUR thesis, work for it!
3) We are not your personal assistant. Our job is to supervise your thesis with respect to the topic and method as well as the general content and process (e.g., literature search, writing, etc.). It is not our job to remind you of deadlines, to fill out your documents, or to replace your own efforts to understand the submission procedure. All this information is publicly available on the website of our faculty, specifically the examination office. We are not your internet search engine substitude. If you schedule a Zoom meeting with your supervisor, it is your responsibility to send him/her a Zoom link from your official OVGU Zoom account (https://ovgu.zoom.us/). This is YOUR thesis, YOU need to organize it!
Registration form Bachelor's thesis: Click here
Submission procedure of your Bachelor's thesis: Click here
General information for your study program (including all information in case of illness): Click here
4) Time problems on your side do not create time pressure on our side! It is part of the mission of the BIM chair to provide students with timely answers to their questions as well as a timely feedback and grading after submission. Time constraints on your side do NOT create time issues on our side. Our aim is to answer questions and requests via e-mail within two working days. We are usually much faster than that, but if you send your question Friday late in the afternoon, you cannot expect an answer on the same day. Organize yourself and try walking in the shoes of the members of the BIM chair. The same applies to the situation once you have submitted your final thesis. If you want to start a job or internship, have visa requirements or travel plans, if you want to/need to move out of your apartment, or if you want to get back your semester fee, this is all your business and your responsibility. We have eight weeks to finish the grading of your thesis (see the study regulations), and while we aim for a much shorter time, it will not always be possible to finalize within two weeks. Each member of the BIM chair at any given point in time during the year is supervising at least five Master's thesis students, five Bachelor's thesis students, seminars, scientific projects, and several internships, etc. We simply cannot take into account all particularities for each and every supervised student, as this would already completely fill our schedule. All submitted theses are graded on a first come, first served basis. If you need your grade as soon as possible, make sure to submit early. YOUR issues, YOUR business!
Please read the following text carefully.
Bachelor's thesis supervision at the BIM chair during summer term 2026 is organized in the following way:
Application: To participate in the Bachelor's Thesis Seminar, please apply via the Office of Study Affairs' registration form and via the E-Learning platform. For more information, click here.
Topic: Once you are assigned to the BIM chair, you will receive an e-mail asking for your most preferred topics. The topic preferences you send us should not be changed, as we will try to assign you to a supervisor considering your first priority.
Cooperations with companies: It is generally possible to write your thesis in cooperation with a company. Before signing any agreements with external partners, please discuss your thesis plans with us. Supervision is only possible if the topic fits and sufficient capacity is available. A signed agreement with a company does not automatically secure supervision.
Supervision approach: An important aspect of the Bachelor's thesis is to work independently on the topic. Individual supervision meetings should not exceed two to three appointments of 30 minutes each (not including a meeting to specify the topic). In the meetings, your supervisor is not a substitute for your own efforts to solve problems. Thesis supervision does not include prior review of parts of the thesis or a "first draft". All thesis supervision meetings take place face-to-face on campus.
The thesis should include a minimum of 25 text pages plus references, tables, and figures, etc. Students provide an overview of their findings in a 15-minute presentation held after submission of the final thesis. We will ask questions and discuss the findings afterwards (about 10 minutes). Depending on the regulations of your specific study programme, you can write the thesis in English or German (check the IBE and IM regulations, respectively). Given that the literature is in English, we recommend to write in English.
Registration: For the thesis registration, please check (a) again whether you fulfill all the requirements to register for the Bachelor's thesis before sending us the registration form and (b) then send us your current transcript of records together with the registration form via e-mail. If it becomes apparent after the reading period has begun that you do not meet the requirements (for example, because you have failed a course for which you had not yet received a grade), please let us know IMMEDIATELY.
Defenses: All thesis defenses take place tba (15 minutes presentation of your thesis and 10 minutes questions - the ppt slides do not need to be submitted earlier) - about 45 to 60 minutes in total to have time for feedback.
Questions: Please read the above carefully. If you have any questions not answered by the above information, contact Ida-Anna Thiele (ida-anna.thiele@ovgu.de).
Important dates summary:
Issue of topics: April 7th-April 16th 2026 (usually, students can work on their first preference; start of the two-week reading period is the day after)
Mandatory kick-off meeting on campus: tba (probably in the first week of the lecture period)
First meeting with supervisor: Until April 30th 2026
Registration of the thesis by students: Until May 20th 2026
Thesis submission: Latest by June 26th 2026
Thesis defenses: tba (probably in the second half of August 2026)
Bachelor's thesis topics in summer term 2026
Below, you can find an initial draft of the current list of topics. These are broad topics and they need to be specified in the individual meetings with your supervisor. Own research ideas are very welcome, but also need to be discussed sufficiently in advance. Usually, all students can work on their first priority. This is not the complete list of topics. More topics will be added until the second week of February.
Topic 1: The association between organizational learning capability and firm performance: A systematic literature review and critical analysis
Organizational learning capability (OLC) refers to managerial practices that facilitate organizational learning, or the conditions and enablers that can help an organization become a learning organization. However, the OLC-firm performance relationship is under-researched and the extent to which OLC influences economic outcomes varies across studies. The objective of this bachelor’s thesis is to provide an overview of the current state of knowledge and expand the understanding of OLC’s role (including corresponding dimensions) in firm performance through a systematic literature review. The thesis includes a comprehensive critical review of the most common definitions, conceptualizations, and measurements of OLC and firm performance. The thesis should further include an abstract, an introduction to the topic (including a short summary of the results), a detailed and replicable description of the literature search and review process, the results of the literature review, a vote-counting of outcomes (if applicable), and a discussion of the findings and their implications for the field. The systematic literature review requires a thorough literature search, coding, and analysis of articles on the role of OLC for firm performance (i.e., conceptual articles, qualitative studies, and quantitative studies). The literature search involves the use of a variety of databases and should be guided by predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria. The identified studies will be critically evaluated and analyzed to extract and synthesize the main findings. If a sufficient number of quantitative empirical studies have examined the relationships between OLC and firm performance, a vote-counting approach should be applied (i.e., a minimum of five studies for a relationship). The vote-counting approach refers to counting the number of studies that support or refute a particular hypothesis on an association (e.g., OLC is positively associated with firm performance) to provide a quantitative assessment of the current state of the literature and would help to identify areas of agreement and disagreement among the studies. The literature review aims to identify gaps in the current research and suggests areas and methodological approaches for future study.
Starting literature
Do, T. T., & Mai, N. K. (2022). Organizational learning and firm performance: A systematic review. International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management, 71(4), 1230-1253.
Lin, Y., & Wu, L. Y. (2014). Exploring the role of dynamic capabilities in firm performance under the resource-based view framework. Journal of Business Research, 67(3), 407-413.
Migdadi, M. M. (2021). Organizational learning capability, innovation and organizational performance. European Journal of Innovation Management, 24(1), 151-172.
Topic 2: A systematic literature review and critical analysis of the association between organizational learning capability and firm innovativeness
Organizational learning capability (OLC) refers to managerial practices that facilitate organizational learning, or the conditions and enablers that can help an organization become a learning organization. Innovations within organizations are perceived as a process of individual and collective learning and a key instrument for finding alternative methods for problem solving. The main requirement for an environment in which innovation can occur efficiently is the communication of acquired knowledge as well as the interaction between individuals within the organization. The objective of this bachelor’s thesis is to provide an overview of the current state of knowledge and expand the understanding of OLC’s role (including corresponding dimensions) in firm innovativeness through a systematic literature review. The thesis includes a comprehensive critical review of the most common definitions, conceptualizations, and measurements of OLC and firm innovativeness. The thesis should further include an abstract, an introduction to the topic (including a short summary of the results), a detailed and replicable description of the literature search and review process, the results of the literature review, a vote-counting of outcomes (if applicable), and a discussion of the findings and their implications for the field. The systematic literature review requires a thorough literature search, coding, and analysis of articles on the role of OLC for firm innovativeness (i.e., conceptual articles, qualitative studies, and quantitative studies). The literature search involves the use of a variety of databases and should be guided by predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria. The identified studies will be critically evaluated and analyzed to extract and synthesize the main findings. If a sufficient number of quantitative empirical studies have examined the relationships between OLC and firm innovativeness, a vote-counting approach should be applied (i.e., a minimum of five studies for a relationship). The vote-counting approach refers to counting the number of studies that support or refute a particular hypothesis on an association (e.g., OLC is positively associated with firm innovativeness) to provide a quantitative assessment of the current state of the literature and would help to identify areas of agreement and disagreement among the studies. The literature review aims to identify gaps in the current research and suggests areas and methodological approaches for future study.
Starting literature
Akgün, A. E., Ince, H., Imamoglu, S. Z., Keskin, H., & Kocoglu, İ. (2014). The mediator role of learning capability and business innovativeness between total quality management and financial performance. International Journal of Production Research, 52(3), 888-901.
Migdadi, M. M. (2021). Organizational learning capability, innovation and organizational performance. European Journal of Innovation Management, 24(1), 151-172.
Tambosi, S. S. V., Gomes, G., & Amal, M. (2020). Organisational learning capability and innovation: Study on companies located in regional cluster. International Journal of Innovation Management, 24(06), 2050057.
Tohidi, H., Mohsen Seyedaliakbar, S., & Mandegari, M. (2012). Organizational learning measurement and the effect on firm innovation. Journal of Enterprise Information Management, 25(3), 219-245.
Topic 3: IT capabilities and knowledge management capabilities: A systematic literature review
IT capabilities, simply defined, refer to a firm’s ability to use IT-based resources and are predominantly researched as a multi-dimensional construct. While IT capabilities have been studied extensively in relation to firm-level outcomes (e.g., firm performance, organizational agility) in the past, their direct relation to further firm capabilities, such as knowledge management capabilities, has received less attention. Knowledge management capabilities refer to a firm’s ability to identify, acquire, and exploit knowledge. The objective of this bachelor’s thesis is to provide an overview of the previous research investigating the relationship between IT capabilities and knowledge management capabilities through a systematic literature review. The thesis includes a comprehensive critical review of the most common definitions, conceptualizations, and measurements of IT capabilities and knowledge management capabilities. The thesis should further include an abstract, an introduction to the topic (including a short summary of the results), a detailed and replicable description of the literature search and review process, the results of the literature review, a vote-counting of outcomes (if applicable), and a discussion of the findings and their implications for the field. The systematic literature review requires a thorough literature search, coding, and analysis of articles on the role of IT capabilities for firms’ knowledge management capabilities (i.e., conceptual articles, qualitative studies, and quantitative studies). The literature search involves the use of a variety of databases and should be guided by predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria. The identified studies will be critically evaluated and analyzed to extract and synthesize the main findings. If a sufficient number of quantitative empirical studies have examined the relationships between IT capabilities and knowledge management capabilities, a vote-counting approach should be applied (i.e., a minimum of five studies for a relationship). The vote-counting approach refers to counting the number of studies that support or refute a particular hypothesis on an association (e.g., IT capabilities are positively associated with knowledge management capabilities) to provide a quantitative assessment of the current state of the literature and would help to identify areas of agreement and disagreement among the studies. The literature review aims to identify gaps in the current research and suggests areas and methodological approaches for future study.
Starting literature
Gold, A. H., Malhotra, A., & Segars, A. H. (2001). Knowledge management: An organizational capabilities perspective. Journal of Management Information Systems, 18(1), 185-214.
Mao, H., Liu, S., Zhang, J., & Deng, Z. (2016). Information technology resource, knowledge management capability, and competitive advantage: The moderating role of resource commitment. International Journal of Information Management, 36(6), 1062-1074.
Marchiori, D. M., Rodrigues, R. J. D. A. G., Mainardes, E. W., & Popadiuk, S. (2024). Information technology capabilities: A bibliometric vision of the conceptual and intellectual structures and the past and future research directions. VINE Journal of Information and Knowledge Management Systems, ahead of print.
Turulja, L., & Bajgoric, N. (2018). Information technology, knowledge management and human resource management: Investigating mutual interactions towards better organizational performance. VINE Journal of Information and Knowledge Management Systems, 48(2), 255-276.