Hickmann was a professor at the University of Applied Arts Vienna from 2001 to 2007, before taking over the professorship in Graphic Design in the Berlin University of the Arts Faculty of Design in 2007.[2] Previously, he had taught at the Universities of Essen and Dortmund, and gave lectures and seminars in, among other places, London, Ljubliana, Istanbul, Beijing and Shanghai. He is an appointed member of the Type Directors Club of New York and the Art Directors Club Germany, as well as of the Alliance Graphique Internationale.[4]
Hickmann and his colleagues promoted the initiative "11 Designers for Germany" which tried to bring a consciousness of graphic design into the public sphere. The group received wide media attention for their effort to prevent the adoption of an embarrassing logo for the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany.[5]
Hickmann and his studio were invited to exhibit at the opening of Museum of the Image (MOTI) in the Netherlands, the world's first graphic design museum. The exhibition, European Championship of Graphic Design was opened by Queen Beatrix in June 2008.[6][7]
The Neubad Plakat - A Contemporary Design Phenomenon.Erich Brechbühl, Fons Hickmann, Lea Hinrichs, Sam Steiner, Sven Lindhorst-Emme (Hrsg.) slanted publisher 2023 ISBN 978-3-948440-49-7
Morgen und davor – 100 Arbeiten aus 10 Jahren Klasse Hickmann. Pascal Kress, Fons Hickmann (Hrsg.) Verlag Hermann Schmidt 2017, ISBN 978-3-87439-888-6
Das beste Spiel aller Zeiten! (2014) (with Markus Büsges and Oliver Gehrs). Kein & Aber. ISBN9783036957005
Von erfolgreichen Designern lernen (2014) (with Boris Kochan, Rolf Mehnert, Daniel Rothaug, Raban Ruddigkeit, and Jochen Theurer). Galileo Design. ISBN978-3836225403