Always on the Run, in Life and on the Job

THREE YEARS AFTER GRADUATION, TERESA WALLENBERGER IS PRODUCT OWNER AT ADIDAS RUNTASTIC


Teresa Wallenberger runs all the time, both in her spare time and in her career. The 27-year-old, who graduated from Bocconi in 2016 with a CEMS Master in International Management after an undergraduate degree in Business Administration in her native Vienna, has become product owner at Adidas Runtastic, the leading fitness tracking app which has more than 150 million registered users.

As told by the Austrian alumna, "I chose Bocconi not only for its excellent programs, but also for the chance to do a master's degree abroad, first in Milan and then in Chile for a semester. Since I had already spent 6 months in the United States during my bachelor’s degree, I wanted to repeat an experience abroad that would further enrich me, not only professionally and academically, but also personally."

After graduating from Bocconi, and thanks to a first contact through the University Mentoring Program, Teresa joined Mastercard’s consulting division. «But after two years, I wanted to change, perhaps by combining my skills as officially registered sports instructor. I was very attracted by the startup environment and when I had the opportunity to work in product management in one of Austria’s most successful startups, Runtastic, I didn't miss my chance. Among other things, I was a user of the app as I went running or cycling ".
Founded in Austria in 2009 and purchased by Adidas for €220 million in 2015, the company has just renamed its two main apps, which are now called Adidas Running and Adidas Training by Runtastic. In her Vienna office, Teresa works on product strategy and coordinates a team of designers and developers, focusing on developing new features for the tracking apps. «Here the way of working is very agile. We work on 14-day cycles. It's great to see that is such a short time new functionalities can be implemented. When I have the time, I also like to personally test the new features before they are launched." Teresa is in fact a great athlete; she has run several half-marathons and plans to complete a triathlon next year.

«I consider myself very lucky to have the opportunity to work both for a large multinational company and a company which was born as a startup. This way, I can see the different job cultures and different ways of working."
 

by Tomaso Eridani
Translated by Alex Foti