Facility & Real Estate Management

- Introduction to building and structure typology
- Systematics and classification of buildings (residential, administrative, commercial, industrial, and special-purpose buildings)
- Spatial organization, circulation principles, building geometry
- The relationship between building type, use, and technical infrastructure
- Fundamentals of functional, building-physics, and regulatory requirements
- Analysis and interpretation of planning documents for selected building types

- Properties, classification, and testing of construction and engineering materials (concrete, steel, timber, glass, plastics)
- Fundamentals of structural theory (forces, stresses, structural systems)
- Building-physics fundamentals: thermal, acoustic, and moisture protection
- Typical damage patterns, root-cause analysis, and preventive measures
- Standards, environmental aspects, and sustainability criteria in construction
- Practical examples: material selection, construction, and maintenance

- Introduction to digital tools and data management
- Introduction to programming and databases
- Data quality, error detection, and data cleansing
- Cloud and collaboration tools for data projects
- Data protection, data security, and ethical aspects of data processing
- Transferring the digital fundamentals covered to specific operational questions in each participant's company environment
- Analysis and optimization of existing digital processes and system landscapes in facility and real estate management
- Practice-based reflection on integrating new digital solutions into ongoing work processes, taking organizational conditions into account
- Sharing experiences and discussing best practices for digital transformation projects from the participants' professional contexts
- Development of small, practice-oriented implementation projects directly related to participants' own work environments

- Fundamentals, definitions, and objective systems of construction project management
- Project participants, roles, and responsibilities
- Project structuring, workflow and schedule planning
- Cost planning and tracking, construction controlling
- Quality management and documentation in the construction process
- Risk and opportunity management
- Communication and decision-making processes within the project
- Introduction to digital tools

- Fundamentals of computer-aided design and modeling (2D & 3D)
- Operating logic and functions of common CAD software
- Structure, layer organization, and management of digital models
- Creation of technical drawings (floor plans, sections, elevations)
- Scales, symbols, dimensioning, and drawing layout
- Data management, file formats, and interfaces
- Introduction to model-based working
- Visualization and presentation of simple building models

- Fundamentals of building services engineering
- Systematics and components of heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and plumbing systems
- Principles of heat and cold generation, distribution, and delivery
- Ventilation and air conditioning concepts
- Drinking water, wastewater, and fire protection installations
- Energy assessment and efficiency indicators
- Standards and guidelines
- Digitalization and smart-building approaches
- Interface management between architecture, building services, and facility management

- Fundamentals of electrical building services
- Power supply, energy distribution, and load management
- Lighting systems and intelligent control concepts
- Security, communication, and fire protection systems
- Vertical and horizontal transportation systems: elevators, escalators, and moving walkways,
passenger and goods conveying technology, accessibility, and evacuation systems
- Integration into building control systems
- Digitalization and monitoring: predictive maintenance, IoT sensor technology

- Fundamentals, terminology, and systematics of real estate and facility management
- The real estate life cycle (planning, use, maintenance, disposal)
- Structures and stakeholder landscape: owners, operators, users, service providers
- Areas of responsibility in facility management (technical, infrastructural, commercial)
- Interfaces between real estate management and facility management

- Fundamentals of law: legal sources, legal systematics, contract law
- Private law foundations
- Real estate law: ownership, acquisition, encumbrances, land register
- Building and planning law, public building law, neighbor law
- Types of contracts relevant to facility management
- Liability, warranty, insurance, and operator responsibility in real estate and building operation
- Overview of national and European legal standards

- Overview of the real estate development process
- Understanding of stakeholders and roles
- Location and use analysis: framework conditions, synergies, land potential
- Fundamentals of project costing and viability assessment
- Introduction to project control and approval processes
- Preparation of an initial rough concept
- Diversity and inclusion factors in project development
- Visualization with CAD tools and presentation of concepts
- Linking market, valuation, and financing aspects

- Fundamentals of infrastructural facility management
- Service level agreements and key performance indicators
- Quality and service-level agreements in cleaning and building services
- Service specifications, tenders, and procurement strategies
- Control systems and audits
- Sustainability and occupational safety in facility services
- Communication and interface management between clients, users, and service providers

- Advanced phases of real estate project development
- Viability, risk, and sensitivity analyses
- ESG and sustainability requirements in project development
- Location, building-law, and approval strategies
- Investor communication, project marketing, and stakeholder management
- Digital tools and BIM/CAD interfaces in development planning
- Preparation of a feasibility study, including development and financing strategy as well as diversity and inclusion factors
- Presentation and defense of the project concept

- Fundamentals of real estate property management
- Owner and user structures, stakeholder management
- Operating and maintenance strategies
- Rental administration, service charge accounting, tenant communication
- Special features of non-profit housing in Austria and Germany
- Digitalization and reporting in real estate property management
- Interfaces with facility services, energy, and sustainability management

- Fundamentals and areas of responsibility in maintenance management
- Legal and regulatory foundations
- Maintenance strategies: corrective, preventive, condition-based, predictive
- Maintenance and inspection planning, spare parts and resource management
- Controlling instruments and key indicators
- Life cycle costs, total cost of ownership, life cycle costing
- Digitalization in maintenance
- Interfaces with facility services and energy management

- Fundamentals and objective systems of workplace management
- Analysis of work and communication processes
- Space and area strategies
- Planning and evaluation of modern workplace concepts
- Integration of sustainability, health, ergonomics, and energy efficiency
- Digitalization and sensor technology in workplace management
- Change management and employee participation in transformation processes
- Legal framework conditions

- Project work on real-world case studies, taking economics and ESG criteria into account
- Teamwork in interdisciplinary and intercultural groups
- Development and presentation of an innovative project concept

- Fundamentals of the real estate market and capital investment
- Investment appraisal using static and dynamic methods
- Return, risk, and liquidity analysis
- Forms of financing in the real estate sector
- Banks, capital markets, and alternative financing instruments
- The impact of macroeconomic factors and interest rate developments
- Sustainable and ESG-compliant investment strategies

Introduction to business administration:
- Definition and objectives of business administration
- Legal and organizational forms of companies
- Management functions: planning, organizing, leading, controlling
- Fundamentals of corporate governance and business ethics
Marketing & sales:
- Fundamentals of marketing and market segmentation
- Marketing mix: product, price, distribution, communication
- Market research and consumer behavior
Human resource management:
- Workforce planning, recruitment, and staff development
- Motivation and leadership theories
- Performance appraisal and compensation
Procurement, production, logistics:
- Fundamentals of supply chain management
- Procurement and sourcing strategies
- Production systems and inventory management
Fundamentals of economics:
- Microeconomics: supply, demand, and market equilibrium
- Elasticities, cost and production theory
- Macroeconomics: GDP, inflation, unemployment, fiscal and monetary policy
- Economic systems and world trade
Accounting and financial management:
- Introduction to double-entry bookkeeping
- Balance sheet, income statement, and cash flow statement
- Cost and management accounting (cost types, cost centers, cost units)
- Investment appraisal (static and dynamic methods)
- Financing: equity and debt financing, capital structure

- Fundamentals of real estate marketing: markets, target groups, positioning
- Market and location analysis (macro and micro factors)
- Marketing instruments in the real estate industry (product, price, communication, distribution)
- Corporate identity, branding, and digital communication
- Fundamentals of business planning and control
- Financial planning: budgeting, investment, and liquidity planning
- SWOT analyses, business plan, and success factors in the real estate context

- Fundamentals of valuation, valuation occasions, and legal frameworks
- Overview of valuation guidelines
- Introduction to the comparative, income, and cost approaches
- Data collection and preparation
- Fundamentals of preparing appraisals and structuring a valuation report
- Application of simple valuation examples
- Introduction to valuation software and digital valuation databases

- Advanced application of the comparative, income, and cost approaches with complex case studies
- Dynamic valuation methods
- Valuation of special-purpose properties
- Sensitivity and scenario analyses, risk assessment, and plausibility checks
- International valuation standards and comparison of national regulatory frameworks
- ESG criteria and sustainability assessment of real estate
- Structure, design, and documentation of professional appraisals

- Fundamentals of intercultural communication
- Communication styles, value orientations, and dealing with misunderstandings
- Team roles and decision-making processes in culturally diverse groups
- Intercultural conflict patterns and resolution strategies
- Building trust, empathy, and perspective-taking in international contexts
- Diversity, inclusion, and the ethical dimensions of collaboration
- Reflecting on one's own cultural background and communication preferences
- Models and methods for analyzing stress and resources (work-life balance)
- Mechanisms of gender roles, bias, and structural disadvantage, along with practical approaches to gender-inclusive design of work and learning environments
- Practical exercises for team building and collaboration in international settings
- Learning strategies and methods of self-directed learning, plus techniques for acquiring and retaining knowledge effectively
- The importance and concepts of lifelong learning in a professional context, including strategies for continuous skills development and reflective handling of feedback

B2 – Independent language use
Can communicate the main points of complex texts on concrete and abstract topics in academic and business contexts; can take part in specialist discussions in one's own field of specialization. Can interact with a degree of spontaneity and fluency that makes normal conversation with native speakers quite possible without strain for either party. Can express oneself clearly and in detail on a wide range of subjects, explain a viewpoint on a topical issue, and give the advantages and disadvantages of various options.

C1 – Proficient language use
Can understand a wide range of demanding, longer texts and grasp implicit meaning. Can use the language effectively and flexibly in academic and business contexts, and express oneself spontaneously and fluently without much obvious searching for words. Can produce clear, well-structured, and detailed text on complex subjects, using various cohesive devices appropriately.

C2 – Near-native language proficiency
Effortless communication in all language situations. Can summarize information from various written and spoken sources, reconstructing arguments and explanations in a coherent presentation. Can express oneself spontaneously, very fluently, and precisely, conveying finer shades of meaning even in more complex situations.

B2 – Independent language use
Can communicate the main points of complex texts on concrete and abstract topics in academic and business contexts; can take part in specialist discussions in one's own field of specialization. Can interact with a degree of spontaneity and fluency that makes normal conversation with native speakers quite possible without strain for either party. Can express oneself clearly and in detail on a wide range of subjects, explain a viewpoint on a topical issue, and give the advantages and disadvantages of various options.

C1 – Proficient language use
Can understand a wide range of demanding, longer texts and grasp implicit meaning. Can use the language effectively and flexibly in academic and business contexts, and express oneself spontaneously and fluently without much obvious searching for words. Can produce clear, well-structured, and detailed text on complex subjects, using various cohesive devices appropriately.

C2 – Near-native language proficiency
Effortless communication in all language situations. Can summarize information from various written and spoken sources, reconstructing arguments and explanations in a coherent presentation. Can express oneself spontaneously, very fluently, and precisely, conveying finer shades of meaning even in more complex situations.

- Preparation for the study trip: thematic and organizational planning
- Introduction to international facility & real estate management
- Visits to companies, real estate projects, trade fairs, or universities in the destination country
- Expert discussions with practitioners, authorities, developers, or research institutions
- Observation of international management and sustainability strategies
- Intercultural communication and professional conduct in an international context
- Follow-up: presentation of results, reflection, and transfer into the study program

Within this module, students independently prepare their bachelor's thesis. They work autonomously on a clearly defined research question using appropriate scientific methods, systematically evaluate the findings obtained, and document the results in the form of an academic paper that meets the formal and content-related standards of the study program.

Working independently in small groups, students carry out a project amounting to 4 ECTS = 100 hours. It is based on a predefined objective. Planning, coordination, budgeting, monitoring, communication, and reporting, as well as finding solutions, are the responsibility of the students. The role of the course instructor focuses on coaching the students.

- Fundamentals of academic work and the principles of good academic practice
- Copyright, citation rules, and plagiarism avoidance
- Structure of academic texts and the research process
- Introduction to empirical methods: qualitative and quantitative approaches
- Descriptive statistics and simple data analyses
- Use of digital tools and assistance systems
- Data visualization and documentation of results

Working independently in small groups, students carry out a project amounting to 4 ECTS = 100 hours. It is based on a predefined objective. Planning, coordination, budgeting, monitoring, communication, and reporting, as well as finding solutions, are the responsibility of the students. The role of the course instructor focuses on coaching the students.

Students gain insights into current topics, developments, and research findings in facility and real estate management. Various experts from academia, industry, and research provide practice-oriented input on questions of innovation and transfer. The content is explored in greater depth through moderated discussions, fireside chats, or field trips and is reflected upon in terms of its relevance to professional practice.

Topics covered include:
- current innovation and research trends in the industry
- examples of successful corporate and research collaborations
- approaches to knowledge and technology transfer
- sustainable and digital transformation processes in the real estate industry
- reflection on one's own learning and transfer processes in a professional context

- Professional practical work in a relevant company or organization
- Application of professional, methodological, and social skills in practice, including the use of individual work-life balance strategies and inclusive behaviors in the work environment
- Insights into operational processes, project management, and decision-making structures
- Reflection on professional profiles, roles, and expectations in facility and real estate management, including engagement with role models, diversity aspects, and inclusive collaboration
- Preparation of a placement and reflection report that also documents personal insights into work-life balance and diversity in a real work context

- Independent work on a bachelor's thesis
- Accompanying research seminar with peer feedback and presentations
- Discussion of research design, choice of methods, and interpretation of results
- Reflection on practical relevance, transfer, and the limitations of the work
- Preparation for the final presentation & final examination