For a quarter of a century, the TBM “brand” has been inspiring students at the University  

Anyone familiar with his dynamic and inspiring presence would find it hard to believe: Prof. Dr. Thomas Breyer-Mayländer—usually referred to simply as “TBM” among colleagues—is, at just 55 years old, one of the longest-serving professors at Hochschule Offenburg. And this is how it came to be:

After the Stuttgart native studied Wirtschaftsingenieurwesen for publishing companies at the University of Media in his hometown and information science at the University of Konstanz, he earned his Ph.D. in media economics in the late 1990s at the Institute of Journalism at the University of Dortmund. At the same time, he worked for several years as a consultant at the Federal Association of German Newspaper Publishers (BDZV) in Bonn. After that, he headed back south to be with his family. First, he spent a little over a year as managing director of the Zeitungs Marketing Gesellschaft (ZMG) in Frankfurt am Main, and then, effective September 1, 2001, he became a professor of media management at Hochschule Offenburg —more specifically, to the department of Elektrotechnik/Informationstechnik, where the Media and Information Studies (MI) program, introduced in 1996, was still based at that time.

Since then, this married father of three adult daughters has inspired countless media students with his lectures and presentations on Betriebswirtschaft, leadership, strategy, marketing, and entrepreneurship. From 2002 to 2006, he also served as director of the MI program. To this day, students benefit from his deep insights into the transformation processes of the media industry, which has been profoundly affected by digital and societal change. And the 55-year-old, who already wanted to become a professor while studying in Stuttgart, still takes great pleasure in accompanying students on their journey from their first semester through to their bachelor's degree.

TBM has not only accompanied but also actively shaped the establishment and expansion of the Department of Media, founded in 2002, serving as its vice dean and later dean from 2006 to 2010. He also played a key role in the transformation of Hochschule Offenburg into today’s University of Applied Sciences and in its continued development—for example, from 2011 to 2021 as prorector for marketing and organizational development. In addition, he championed the establishment of the University’s own startup office, held a distinguished professorship in Innovation & Entrepreneurship from 2022 to 2025, and currently heads the University’s Career Center as well as the Center of Lifelong Learning Offenburg (CeLLO).

Because his profession is also his greatest passion, the 55-year-old has written numerous academic books over the past 25 years and has been actively involved in a wide range of volunteer work—for example, as a member of the local council or president of an association in his hometown of Ettenheimmünster, or as spokesperson for the board of the Ortenau Education Region. As a result, the acronym TBM has now become a true trademark.