--- title: Falk Uebernickel url: https://uebernickel.com/ author: Falk Uebernickel description: Falk Uebernickel is a professor at ZHAW and at the University of St.Gallen. He researches and teaches how organisations bring AI into their work while people stay in charge: digital transformation, human-centred design, and humans and AI. --- digital transformation · human-centered design · ai # Humans in charge. *AI at work.* - **Digital transformation** How large organisations change with technology. Since 2005. - **Human-centered design** Design thinking for students, teams and executives. Since 2010. - **Humans and AI** How people stay in charge as AI does more of the work. Today. ![Portrait of Falk Uebernickel, black and white](https://uebernickel.com/img/falk-uebernickel.jpg) I am a professor at [ZHAW](https://www.zhaw.ch/en/university), where I co-direct the [Institute of Marketing Management](https://www.zhaw.ch/en/sml/institutes-centres/imm), and at the [University of St.Gallen](https://www.unisg.ch/), School of Management. I study how organisations bring AI into their work, and how people stay in charge while it does more. Today I do this as a principal investigator with Pattie Maes at the MIT Media Lab; earlier I worked with Larry Leifer at Stanford University in the Hasso Plattner Design Thinking Research Program and the SUGAR network. From 2019 I was professor of Design Thinking and Innovation Management at the Hasso Plattner Institute and the University of Potsdam, and from 2023 head of the [HPI d-school](https://hpi.de/en/d-school/). Before that, I spent almost fifteen years at the University of St.Gallen working on digital transformation and design thinking, led an HSG spin-off for transformation by design, and founded the SUGAR network with Stanford. Most of my time today goes into [executive seminars](https://uebernickel.com/executive-education). [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/falkue/) / [CV](https://uebernickel.com/cv) / [Google Scholar](https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=n71-visAAAAJ) / [ORCID](https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7078-8513) / [Email](https://uebernickel.com/#contact) ## Writing - 2026 Oct: [Humans don’t leave the loop. They move up a level.](https://uebernickel.com/writing/humans-dont-leave-the-loop) [PDF](https://uebernickel.com/papers/Uebernickel_2026_Humans-dont-leave-the-loop.pdf) · [Deutsch](https://uebernickel.com/papers/Uebernickel_2026_Der-Mensch-setzt-die-Regeln_DE.pdf) · [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:ugcPost:7517118724181532673/) - 2026 Oct: [Every task can be AI-supported. The question is how humans stay in charge.](https://uebernickel.com/writing/every-task-can-be-ai-supported) [PDF](https://uebernickel.com/papers/Uebernickel_2026_Every-task-can-be-AI-supported.pdf) · [Deutsch](https://uebernickel.com/papers/Uebernickel_2026_Jede-Aufgabe-laesst-sich-mit-KI-unterstuetzen_DE.pdf) · [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/posts/falkue_aigovernance-itstrategy-humanoversight-activity-7514683548440788995-HBTM) - 2026 Sep: [Synthetic personas: a thinking tool, not a respondent.](https://uebernickel.com/writing/synthetic-personas) [PDF](https://uebernickel.com/papers/Uebernickel_2026_Synthetic-personas.pdf) ## Selected publications - 2025: [Interacting with an AI-generated future self to promote healthy food choices.](https://www.alexandria.unisg.ch/handle/20.500.14171/124092) ECIS. - 2025: [Designing digital health innovation for stigma-affected health conditions.](https://doi.org/10.1080/10447318.2025.2485494) International Journal of Human–Computer Interaction. - 2024: [Building the processes behind the product: How digital ventures create business processes that support their growth.](https://www.alexandria.unisg.ch/handle/20.500.14171/122236) Business & Information Systems Engineering. - 2022: [Loss aversion nudges to improve heating behavior and reduce carbon emissions.](https://doi.org/10.5465/AMBPP.2022.172) Academy of Management. Best Paper. - 2022: [How to turn around: Escalation of commitment in the context of ISD project distress.](https://www.alexandria.unisg.ch/handle/20.500.14171/107985) ICIS. Best Paper in Track. - 2022: [A managerial mental model to drive innovation in the context of digital transformation.](https://www.alexandria.unisg.ch/handle/20.500.14171/109603) Industry and Innovation. - 2020: [Design Thinking: The Handbook.](https://www.alexandria.unisg.ch/handle/20.500.14171/111876) Book. - [More publications](https://uebernickel.com/publications) ## Executive education - 2014 – present: Executive MBA, two CAS programmes, the AI Studio and custom programmes at the University of St.Gallen. - 2023 – 25: Design thinking for the public sector, IDHEAP, University of Lausanne. - 2005 – present: More than 200 talks at companies and scientific conferences. - [More on executive education](https://uebernickel.com/executive-education) For keynotes and workshops, write to me on [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/falkue/) or by email: uebernickel@gmail.com