TELL ME WHO I AM: Community Based Personal Brand Co-development on the Example of SDSI Master's Students

Author:
Hendrik Nicolai Roscher
Supervisor:
Jan Teevet, Sigmund Abou Chrouch
University:
EKA

Facing a volatile job market, SDSI students, need actionable ways to secure employability. This thesis explores personal branding as a solution, proposing a community-based co-creation workshop. Through literature reviews, industry analysis, and qualitative interviews, gaps were identified, and a workshop leveraging SDSI’s cohort dynamics was designed and tested. The workshop simplifies personal brand development using the Value Stack and Identity Stack concepts, inspired by Scott Adams’ Talent Stack, to help students articulate their unique value and identity. It combines self-reflection and peer feedback, making personal branding accessible, actionable, and community-driven. Tested through prototypes, it addresses diverse student needs while fitting into busy schedules. This approach is novel in its use of community co-creation for personal branding in a student context and offers a promising direction for further research.

Link to full thesis