The Best of Technology Award is presented annually by the Wirtschaftswoche in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research (ISI), the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), and the consulting firm Capgemini. It honors companies for their most innovative IT applications and most disruptive digital solutions across various categories. The non-monetary prize is awarded in nine different categories in total.
Purchase & Supply Chain Management
In the Purchase & Supply Chain Management category, Munich-based startup Blickfeld prevailed. The award-winning solution is based on lidar technology and enables precise real-time inventory capture. The solution can even be used for bulk goods that are difficult to measure with conventional methods. The measurement results are then automatically transmitted to an IoT ecosystem or cloud. The information obtained in this way enables companies in agriculture, construction, and mining to base inventory planning on current data and make their supply chain management more efficient.
Florian Petit, one of the founders and Chief Experience Officer of Blickfeld, says:
“We are very pleased that the award jury has assessed our solution as the most disruptive digital technology for supply chain management in 2023. Many companies still manage their supply chain processes manually, for example using spreadsheet programs, and waste a lot of profit potential through time-consuming and error-prone methods. Easy-to-use technologies like our volume capture solution, which immediately create added value, drive the much-needed digitalization of the supply chain and help users benefit immediately from digitalized, automated processes.”
Legal & Tax
In the Legal & Tax category, Munich-based startup Kertos also prevailed against its competitors. The company offers a data protection and compliance product that automates operational business processes. The solution is designed to automate all previously manually handled data protection processes, from processing data subject requests to implementing deletion concepts to maintaining a record of processing activities. Through the startup’s no-code approach, the solution requires no programming knowledge during implementation.
Via LinkedIn, the startup thanks its team for their commitment and explains:
“This award reminds us that the challenges in the field of data protection are constantly evolving. At Kertos, we are committed to pushing the technical boundaries in this area. Our promise: to empower companies to engage confidently with data protection.”
Finance
The Best of Technology Award also saw another Munich winner in the Finance category: process mining company Celonis convinced the jury. In the finance sector too, it pays to review and optimize a company’s processes. For example, companies can identify and reverse duplicate payments or increase productivity by reducing processing times.
Human resources and IT & Cybersecurity
However, Mentessa and Primary Target did not quite achieve victory. Mentessa placed third in the Human Resources category with its platform that connects employees for learning and collaboration based on skills. And Primary Target, which is dedicated to the IT security of vehicles, achieved third place in the IT & Cybersecurity category.
