Cologne Institute for Economic Research


The German Economic Institute is a private economic research institute in Germany, which promotes a liberal economic and social order. The German Economic Institute is based in Cologne, Germany, with additional offices in Berlin, Germany, and Brussels, Belgium.
The IW compiles analyses on economic and social policy issues. As a think tank, it combines research, consultancy and communication services. The research is based on empirical principles and sound scientific methodology. It stands for a socially responsible free market economy in German for the benefit of society as a whole. The institute’s long term goal is to support a liberal economic and social order in Germany and beyond and to improve understanding of how business and society function and interact..
The institute was founded in 1951 under the auspices of the Confederation of German Employers' Associations and the :de:Bundesverband der Deutschen Industrie|Federation of German Industries. The German Economic Institute is a registered association. Its membership consists of some 110 German business and employers' associations as well as a number of individual companies. Membership fees finance the regular scientific research and advocacy. Additionally, the institute conducts research projects and carries out numerous studies financed by third parties, such as public institutions, foundations and businesses.

IW Group and Governance Structures

The German Economic Institute has four subsidiaries which together constitute the IW Group. The Group is composed of the core research department, a commercial research consultancy, a publishing house, the German operator of the Junior Achievement Programme and an academy.
Through the organization’s decision-making bodies members contribute to the institute’s general orientation without having any specific influence on the contents of conducts research and the subsidiaries’ daily business. The annual general meeting of the executive board of the German Economic Institute elected Arndt Günter Kirchhoff, CEO of KIRCHHOFF Holding GmbH & Co. KG, as its honorary president.

IW Research

Prof. Dr. Michael Hüther is the Director of the German Economic Institute and head of its management board. The management board consists of the Director, his Deputy Dr. Hans-Peter Fröhlich and the Heads of Research Dr. Hubertus Bardt and Dr. Hans-Peter Klös.
The Berlin Office is led by Dr. Knut Bergmann and the Brussels Office by Sandra Parthie.
The institute’s research department itself is subdivided into eleven research units.

Research Units

Additionally to the eleven research units there are two cross functional research groups staffed by researchers working on the following two issues:
The IW Consult carries out research, development and knowledge-transfer projects in cooperation with companies, employers' associations, government ministries, foundations and other institutions. IW Consult also runs the office of “ecl@ss”, a digital product standard.

IW Medien

Institut der deutschen Wirtschaft Köln Medien GmbH, the media arm of the German Economic Institute, provides publicity-oriented packaging of economic information. The weekly newsletter, Informationsdienst des Instituts der deutschen Wirtschaft Köln, carries articles on economics, society, and social policy, as well as analyses and economic data.

IW Junior

The Institut der deutschen Wirtschaft Köln JUNIOR gGmbH is the German operator of the Junior Achievement Programme. It gives school students practical insights into the world of commerce based on the concept of ”learning by doing”.

IW Akademie

The IW Akademie conducts seminars in the field of executive education based on its research. The aim is to demonstrate how potential conflicts between the profit motive and personal conscience can be resolved. Additionally, the IW Academy offers a Master’s programme "Behavioral Ethics, Economics and Psychology " in collaboration with the University of Cologne, the Cologne University of Applied Sciences and Bonn-Rhine-Sieg University.

Brussels Office

The IW's EU-Office located in Brussels was established in July 2015. The key areas of research expertise regarding the European Union include: