The Wendisch lab started in 1999 at the Institute of Biotechnology, Research Center Juelich performing Genome-wide expression analysis using DNA microarrays. From 2005-2009 Volker F. Wendisch was Professor for Metabolic Engineering at the Institute of Molecular Microbiology and Biotechnology at the Westphalian Wilhelms University Münster. In October 2009 the Wendisch Lab moved from Münster to Bielefeld accepting the new Chair of Genetics of Prokaryotes.
The Wendisch lab is a member of the Faculty of Biology and of the CeBiTec at Bielefeld University. Volker F. Wendisch is Deputy Scientific Director of CeBiTec and member of the board of CLIB2021. From 2016-2019, Volker F. Wendisch was Vice-Dean and Dean of the of the Faculty of Biology. Volker F. Wendisch coordinated the BMBF collaborative research network "Genome reduction" from 2011-2014, was vice president of the CLIB2021 graduate cluster from 2013 - 2016. He is coordinating the collaborative research network "CLIB Competence Center Biotechnology" since 2018.