Three groups, one system: a platform that connects.
Project
The CBS Matchmaker portal
Client
CBS Cologne Business School
Services
App Development
User Interface Design
User Experience

Summary
Fragmented data, parallel systems, three user groups with completely different needs – how do you turn that into a coherent platform? Not with another tool. Matchmaker created a central solution that brings students and companies together in a targeted way, integrates processes into HubSpot, and turns complexity into clarity. For everyone involved. Ensuring the system is accessible and intuitive to use was never an add-on – it was the foundation.
Who really understood this time?


Challenge
Three user groups. Three logics. No shared system.
Students were looking for practical experience, companies were looking for talent – and CBS was looking for a way to orchestrate both. The data landscape was fragmented, processes ran in parallel and disconnected, and the CRM remained outside the loop. The result: manual work, time-consuming processes and limited transparency.
The challenge was not only technical in nature. The task was to bring fundamentally different expectations together in a single, coherent platform, without leaving any group behind.
Solution
Designdialog and IT development partner UniqBit conceived and developed the CBS Matchmaker portal – the central platform where students and companies connect.
End to end: from communications strategy and UX research through to technical implementation – including a seamless interface with HubSpot as the newly introduced CRM system.
Impact
Students and companies now have a shared digital point of contact. Matching processes run in a structured way, and corporate partnerships are built systematically — directly connected to the CBS team’s HubSpot processes.
In operation since 2022 and continuously evolving — the Matchmaker grows with the institution’s requirements. Designdialog and UniqBit are longstanding partners alongside CBS Cologne Business School.
Testimonial
Andrea Kraft
Team Lead Customer Portals & Customer Experience