The MANAGIDITH Winter School uniquely combines international education with practical corporate collaboration. This five-day intensive event brings together approximately 100 healthcare professionals from 15 different countries to solve real challenges presented by companies. The program provides health technology companies with access to an international pool of experts, fresh perspectives, and concrete innovation solutions.
What is the MANAGIDITH Winter School and who is it intended for? The MANAGIDITH Winter School is a cornerstone event of the MANAGIDITH master’s program, held from 26–30 January 2026 at Laurea University of Applied Sciences’ Otaniemi Campus in Espoo, Finland. This five-day intensive training program focuses on leading digital transformation in healthcare, combining expert lectures, interactive workshops, and team-based innovation challenges.
The event is primarily aimed at companies and professionals working in health technology who wish to develop their products or services through international collaboration. Participants represent a broad range of healthcare professional groups, including physicians, nurses, engineers, and other healthcare experts. This multidisciplinary composition enables health technology challenges to be approached from multiple perspectives.
The program addresses critical topics such as the ethical adoption of artificial intelligence in healthcare, cross-border health data sharing, and emerging technologies in healthcare services. The event offers a rare opportunity for the entire international student cohort to meet in person and work intensively together, as the master’s program typically operates in a distributed manner across partner organizations.
How does the MANAGIDITH Winter School support the development of health technology companies? The MANAGIDITH Winter School supports health technology companies’ development by providing access to an international and multidisciplinary expert group that develops tailored solutions for the challenges presented by companies. The program offers three key benefits: fresh perspectives from international and multidisciplinary teams, innovative concepts and prototypes for the company’s challenge, and increased visibility as an innovative organization committed to co-creation.
Participating companies can submit a real challenge related to healthcare product or service development. Challenges may address topics such as internationalization strategies, reaching new target groups, or improving sustainability practices in healthcare operations. A contact person from the MANAGIDITH program assists companies in refining and formulating the challenge to fit the five-day timeframe and maximize the value of participants’ contributions.
The program addresses the specific challenges of the health technology sector by combining clinical expertise with technical capabilities and business understanding. The international composition of participants ensures that the developed solutions incorporate diverse cultural perspectives on healthcare services, regulation, and patient needs across different healthcare systems. This diversity strengthens the innovation process and produces practical, implementable solutions grounded in real healthcare expertise.
What collaboration opportunities does the MANAGIDITH Winter School offer? The MANAGIDITH Winter School serves as a corporate collaboration platform that brings together healthcare professionals, MANAGIDITH master’s program experts and teachers, and other participating companies to form a shared healthcare innovation ecosystem. The event creates networking opportunities and potential partnerships that extend beyond immediate challenge solutions.
Participating companies commit to two mandatory on-site sessions at Laurea Otaniemi Campus. On Tuesday, 27 January, from 10:00–17:00, company representatives present their challenge to all participants in a short 5–10 minute pitch. Following the presentation, companies engage in face-to-face sessions with students for the rest of the day, providing clarifications and guidance on the challenge requirements.
On Friday, 30 January, from 10:00–14:00, companies attend the final presentations, where student teams showcase the developed concepts and prototypes. These sessions enable evaluation of solutions, provision of feedback, and identification of potential implementations. Face-to-face interaction ensures that participants fully understand the challenge context and that companies gain a deep understanding of the developed solutions.
The international network provides access to diverse expertise and cultural perspectives, which are particularly valuable for health technology companies planning internationalization or entry into new markets. The intensive bootcamp format accelerates learning and relationship-building among the international group while addressing real industry challenges. This lays the foundation for long-term partnerships and ongoing innovation collaboration in the health technology sector.
