30 Years as a Professor at TU Dresden

On April 1, 2024, Prof. Dr. Thomas Günther celebrated 30 years of service as a professor at TUD Dresden University of Technology. He initially joined the university in April 1994 with a conditional appointment to the Chair of Management Accounting and Control and received his permanent appointment in December 1996.

He is grateful to have had the opportunity to educate over 3,000 controllers. Among his former Ph.D. students, 12 have gone on to become professors at German and European universities and universities of applied sciences.

"The early years were marked by an incredibly positive and inspiring spirit of rebuilding at TU Dresden following the political reunification. We created many new things, and the students were open-minded, academically curious, and eager to engage. A seminar on Saturday or a lecture after 8 pm was no problem. That’s no longer something we can take for granted today."

Prof. Günther’s research focuses on the measurement, evaluation, and management of non-financials — that is, everything not captured in traditional financial statements, such as sustainability, human capital, or innovation. To date, he has published nine A-level and over 25 B-level papers in academic journals.

"I have always gained a lot for both my research and teaching through practical experience. I found the exchange with practitioners to be very inspiring."

Prof. Günther has led numerous seminars for renowned companies such as Porsche, Siemens, and Deutsche Post, and has served as a management trainer for the Mannheim Business School, the Austrian Controller Institute (ÖCI), and the European Business School. He has also been actively involved in working groups of the Schmalenbach Society, the German Engineering Federation (VDMA), and the International Controller Association (ICV). Since 2011, he has been the Managing Editor of the Journal of Management Control, which he has worked to internationalize and develop academically in collaboration with his colleagues.