Corporate & Business Law LL.M.: Sven Larsen – Instructive Moments
2025-01-07 The industrial engineer will complete his part-time studies at the Leuphana Professional School in the spring. The content from the master's program is particularly helpful to him in making informed decisions as Director of Operations. As Director of Operations, the engineer is responsible for the construction of air conditioning and ventilation systems in ships: “Everything from the delivery of materials to production, commissioning and subsequent service is my responsibility.”
For a ship to float, it must be as watertight as a tin can. Nevertheless, passengers and crew below deck must be able to breathe and the temperatures should be pleasant and regulated. In the part of the ship under water, for example, it is particularly cold. In rooms with a lot of technology, on the other hand, it is very warm. Sven Larsen, among others, ensures ideal conditions on and below deck with his work.
The trained car mechanic and former regular soldier studied industrial engineering at the Technical University of Lübeck and initially worked in the automotive industry as a project manager. Then he switched to shipbuilding. At AERIUS, he now reports directly to the board of directors. The role brought new challenges: “In terms of business, I am well-positioned thanks to my undergraduate degree, but I lacked in-depth knowledge of the law,” describes Sven Larsen.
The native of Hamburg was looking for a suitable advanced training program and came across the part-time Master of Law “Corporate & Business Law” at the Leuphana Professional School. The program in the field of commercial law covers comprehensive content in commercial and corporate law as well as the interdisciplinary link between law and economics. “I could also buy this knowledge and hire a consultant, but it makes my job easier to understand the legal framework myself. I can make better and more informed decisions in my day-to-day business,” explains Sven Larsen. For example, in matters of accounting or tax law: the right answers can save a company a lot of money. Or in personnel matters: in shipbuilding, for example, contracts for work and services play an important role.
In his day-to-day work, Sven Larsen deals with large sums of money: “Depending on the specifications, a budget for a ship's air conditioning and ventilation system can easily run into the tens of millions,” he reports. For smaller companies, it is almost impossible to enter this business alone. “The big players divide up the cake and can influence the market,” the industrial engineer describes. Competition law issues arise. Sven Larsen is currently writing his master's thesis on this topic. He would like to complete his studies at the Leuphana Professional School next spring: “I would recommend the program to anyone who is in a leadership position or would like to take on more professional responsibility later on. There was never a moment when I wasn't learning.”