How Caroline drives entrepreneurial mindset at ETAS

Caroline's fascination with innovation ignited early, during her university studies where she delved into User Experience, new technologies, and emerging trends. A pivotal moment came during her student role in Innovation Management at Bosch Car Multimedia, where she directly applied theoretical knowledge to practice. This early immersion led to her dissertation, focusing on optimizing user acceptance and engagement with vehicle infotainment systems. "That period was defined by exciting user interviews, testing, and generating multiple invention disclosures," Caroline explains. This unwavering dedication to user and customer focus has remained a constant thread throughout her career.

Her journey also saw her at the forefront of agile adoption. As a Certified Scrum Product Owner in one of the first agile teams at Bosch in 2012, she experienced its transformative power firsthand. "What truly excited me was the inherent team autonomy," she emphasizes. "We made decisions directly, tested them rapidly, and discarded them if necessary – without waiting for endless approvals. This made our work so much more tangible, pragmatic, and impactful."

Caroline's academic background in International Information Management and her PhD in Psychology have profoundly shaped her approach to innovation. "Innovation is never solely about technology; it's always about the people who develop and use it, and, of course, its business potential," she asserts.

Her deep understanding of human behavior is invaluable: "My background helps me to grasp team dynamics, build psychological safety for creativity to flourish, and analyze user needs with genuine depth." Beyond psychology, she also gained fundamental knowledge in development (e.g., Java, web development) and business administration, coupled with a structured approach to problem-solving. This unique combination has equipped her with crucial insights into the working styles of developers, testers, and architects, which she considers vital for effective idea generation and leadership.

Her vision for innovation at ETAS in five years is ambitious: "I want to stand for the idea that what we are building today with ETAS.NEXT as an Accelerator becomes the DNA of the entire company: a natural innovation culture where everyone enthusiastically contributes ideas and knows how to validate them," she envisions. "My vision is an ETAS that bravely explores new business areas by consistently making fast, market- and customer-driven decisions. The focus always lies on the three crucial pillars: real customer benefit, business potential, and technical feasibility."