We were fortunate to win Ansgar for the panel of academic mentors through our link in the CEMS university network between Rotterdam School of Management and University of St. Gallen. Ansgar is Dean of Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University (RSM). He is a professor of Corporate Strategy, Organisation and Governance. His research interests are at the interface of strategy, organisation and governance: dynamic capabilities, organisational design, incentives, ownership and justice in organisations, and the strategy and structure of professional service firms. Ansgar received his PhD from London School of Economics (LSE). Ansgar’s list of former employers include McKinsey & Company, EBS Business School, Liverpool Management School, and Surrey Business School.

While discussing the experience of the final academic project, Ansgar shared perspectives of encouragement and empowerment with us. One of the many insightful ideas he illustrated was the likeness of students and supervisors - despite all differences: "both are, in fact, students". This resonated particularly well with our take on the supervisor as an advanced peer. Ansgar pointed to the opportunities of rediscovering and leveraging the potential of the final project for students, but also for the contribution that universities can make through actively fostering student research output. Many further notable thoughts deal with the value of working with primary data, with finding a topic that feels purposeful, and knowing the audience for your project.