“Education has to get in touch with the inner world of human beings!”

Rosemarie Pichler is the General Manager of 42 Vienna. She is guided by her passion for diversity and empowering students.

What do you like the most about your position in 42 Vienna?

I especially love working with the diversity of different people — this refers to our team, the students, the Pisciners and also our partners. Each day is different, each day is exciting and challenging. It’s never boring, I learn something new myself every day — that’s the best thing. I used to work in all- Austrian workspaces. Now, my team is both diverse and international!

What were your previous experiences?

I’ve been working for more than 20 years to enable excellent education and training for employees in companies, networks and associations, as well as to support the development of research and innovation. For the last four years, I was Managing Director of net for future GmbH. I played a key role in driving forward the development of 42 Vienna together with some of our partner companies. In January 2022, I stepped down from this position and took over the management of our campus.

What’s your vision for the future of education?

As technology is rapidly changing the world around us, many people worry that technology will replace human intelligence — but I don’t think so!. Education plays a key role in it. The educational system should not only focus on the external world, it should focus on the talents and abilities, on the biographies, hopes and inspirations of each individual person. It should help people understand the world around them and engage in the world within them. Education has to get in touch with the inner world of human beings.

What 42’s value do you cherish the most?

The most important value for me is the accessibility, the free access for every talent without social hurdles. We have a very conservative education system in Austria. With 42 Vienna, we are able to accept and attract people from unique backgrounds: that is really one of our strengths. For example, during our first Piscines, we had more than 40 different nationalities on the campus!

What’s the thing you like the most about 42 Vienna ?

We want to create future prospects for people and work very hard every day to achieve this. But anyone who knows Austria knows that we also like to laugh and celebrate, which gives us the necessary energy to be among the best. We don’t take ourselves too seriously, being able to laugh at oneself is already the most important path to success!