Nina Mertzbach was awarded the nationwide Materna Graduate Award 2025 for her master's thesis on "Digital pilots as change agents in public administration". She was awarded 1st place and prize money of 3,000 euros at the Smart Government Forum 2025 in Berlin.

The thesis was written under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Fischer and examines the role of social support in promoting employees' willingness to change in the digital transformation of public administration. The results make a valuable contribution to understanding successful change processes in the public sector.

Further information, photos and impressions of the award ceremony can be found in Materna's articles:

• This was the Smart Government Forum 2025
• Digital ideas that make a difference: Three strong entries at the Graduate Award 2025