Developing and disseminating top-notch knowledge and positively impacting organizations and society. That is what AMS and NSX are all about. AMS realizes this ambition through management education underpinned by state-of-the-art research. NSX, a UAntwerp spin-off, does so through research into, and valorization of, the innovative Normalized Systems technology. Both organizations are committed to step up their cooperation in the fields of Business & IT and digital transformation. A win-win for both parties and especially for the industry.

NSX, located at the Science Park in Niel, was founded in 2011 as a spin-off from the University of Antwerp. In this VUCA world, where everything and everyone is evolving at a rapid pace, products and services need to be highly adaptable. Digitization can make this happen, but only if digital systems themselves are flexible enough to support change, which is not always the case today. Based on the Normalized Systems Theory, NSX designs highly structured modular software that enables change (and therefore innovation) in a seamless way. The applications vary from the manufacturing industry and IoT applications in the energy industry to administrative applications in the public sector.

This future proof theory and high-level technology are a perfect match for the leading role of AMS in strategically driving and managing digital transformation. AMS and NSX therefore signed a Memorandum of Understanding in early 2021 to work together on education and research in Business & IT and on digital transformation challenges. This collaboration has already been put to practice during the 2020-2021 academic year. Thus, an NSX employee is following the AMS Master Program in Enterprise IT Architecture. In addition, AMS and NSX organized a Startup Sprint Competition this spring for the AMS Master students in Innovation & Entrepreneurship. Winners of this edition are Ruth De Vits, Sébastien Devlies and Pauline Salez.

Thanks to this collaboration, AMS can stay on top of the Normalized Systems Theory, while NSX gains access to the latest management insights into business & IT and digital transformation and the Master students are being introduced to top technology. The winning students will also be supported by NSX worth 20,000 euros. The Memorandum of Understanding thus stands for a strategic collaboration resulting in concrete results for AMS, NSX and the students.

Steven De Haes, Dean of AMS: "Through this partnership, we can even better provide impactful answers to digital transformation challenges, both from a business and management perspective and from innovative technology perspectives."

Jan Verelst, Co-founder of NSX: "For NSX, this collaboration provides the opportunity to combine expertise on new, science-based forms of evolvability in IT systems with state-of-the-art innovations developed at AMS."

Robin De Cock, Academic Director Master in Innovation & Entrepreneurship (MIE): "The collaboration with NSX takes the many start-up ideas of our MIE students to the next level when it comes to software. In this way, the students can materialize their innovative ideas and increase their chances of finding external funding and fully launching their start-up."

The winning students of the Startup Sprint Competition 2020 Ruth De Vits, Sébastien Devlies and Pauline Salez:

“We are very grateful for and excited by this opportunity! Together with NSX, we are ready to make a positive impact on society through innovation!"