Why did you join the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities?
The prospect of an interesting role in academia where I could combine my hobby (computer programming) with my profession. Being able to live near the Alps was quite an attraction, too.

As head of Digital humanities, what does your work involve?
Our team advises the Academy’s humanities research projects on their digital strategies. We also implement them, principally by developing the required research software, digital tools and online publication systems. As head of department, I also consider that I have a responsibility for the Academy’s long-term strategic planning in the area of digital humanities. When it comes to the digital world, there’s no way you can afford to stand still. That is why we are investigating new methods and approaches through our research and development. We are focussing on AI in particular right now, and can naturally team up with research institutes like the Centre for Machine Learning at LMU Munich. It is also important to collaborate with other DH teams, for example in the Digital Humanities Munich working group, which I coordinate.

What is it about your work that drives you?
Humanities research at the Academy has long had a reputation for thoroughness and intellectual rigour. I want to emulate this in the digital realm, with our online publications for example, or the publication of research data. I am particularly keen to safeguard the longevity of the digital results of our research projects. Take the Thesaurus Linguae Latinae, which stands at the forefront of intellectual value chains and the contents of which will not become obsolete even after decades or perhaps even centuries. It is obvious therefore that its digital presence must also be preserved. That is not a trivial undertaking and it poses a challenge that is not really seen anywhere else in the software industry.

What role does the BAdW play in your life?
The family-friendly home office policy makes the Academy a good employer when it comes to work-life balance. The Academy’s information and education programme is also very useful for anyone who finds something of interest there. 

How do you explain what the BAdW does to your friends?
I tell them that it is a research institute, but more than that it is science’s spokesperson vis-à-vis the public and a custodian of science’s place in our general culture. As examples of the Academy’s work, I usually refer to the most illustrative digital publications like the Corpus of Baroque Ceiling Painting in Germany, Bayerns Dialekte Online or the media centre. 

How would you describe your working environment?
The Academy offers a very enjoyable working environment. For a start, the premises in the Residenz royal palace in the centre of Munich are stunning. There is also superb support from other departments. When you are organising an event or you need to procure devices, office supplies, video-conferencing equipment, etc., everything is more forthcoming than I remember from previous university positions. At the digital humanities department in particular, we particularly benefit from a top-class IT and server infrastructure courtesy of the Academy’s Leibniz Supercomputing Centre.

Which skills do you need day-to-day but did not learn during your qualification?
Teamwork. That was not really taught in my humanities course.

What do you count as your highlights of working at the BAdW?
Being involved in organising the Coding Da Vinci competition a few years ago was definitely one of the highlights. That was an event designed to promote open cultural data. I also enjoyed the Digital Humanities Summer Schools, which we organised in conjunction with other educational institutions in Munich before this topic gained more widespread attention in German universities. As to the future, I am particularly looking forward to the establishment of the Centre for Digital Lexicography of the German Language, which will involve collaboration between all of Germany’s science academies.

I’ve had a good day at work if …
... I’ve had a day when I can fully devote myself to solving a complex technical problem.