Innovation Factory – FERNFH’s Future Skills Incubator
FERNFH's innovative program format transforms students into future leaders in the healthcare sector.
The challenges in the healthcare sector are complex, dynamic, and characterized by uncertainty. Traditional teaching formats reach their limits here: While they impart knowledge, they do not adequately prepare students to act effectively in open and constantly changing contexts.
This is exactly where FERNFH’s Innovation Factory comes in. As a Future Skills Incubator, it creates a learning environment in which students not only acquire knowledge but also apply it to real-world challenges: They independently identify areas for action, develop user-centered solutions, and make decisions in volatile systems—with a real impact on numerous stakeholders. Methodologically, the program is based on a didactic mix of design thinking, challenge-based learning, interdisciplinary teamwork, prototyping, and iterative work. In this way, students gradually evolve from knowledge users to active shapers of the future in the healthcare sector.
Premiere in the 2025/26 semester
As part of the “Digital Health Management” master’s program, the INNOVATION FACTORY celebrated its successful debut. During the program, students developed practical innovations at the intersection of health, digitalization, and sustainability—all within a comprehensive, structured process: From the initial observation to the tested prototype, all teams went through four clearly sequential phases: Understanding, Ideation, Prototyping, and Testing.
The “Twin Transformation” and “Digital Workplace Health Management” tracks produced digital solutions that combine technological innovation with social relevance. What all the teams have in common is that their starting point was always a real-world problem—and their goal was to develop a solution that works for real users.
“For us, design thinking isn’t about creativity for creativity’s sake, but rather consistently working on real-world problems—with real users and a clear focus on impact within the healthcare system,” emphasize course instructors Andrea Grimm and Lukas Küster. Innovation isn’t a matter of chance, but rather the result of a structured process—especially where digitalization and sustainability intersect.
About the Master's Program in Digital Health Management
FERNFH’s master’s program in “Digital Health Management” prepares graduates for careers at the intersection of healthcare, digitalization, and management. While working full-time, students combine expertise in digital health management with systemic thinking, innovation methods, and leadership skills—and teaching formats such as the Innovation Factory allow them to experience firsthand what this means in everyday practice.
You can find more information about the master's program here.
