Exploring the MERIT Summit 2025: knowledge, connection, and recognition
In an era where professional growth and continuous learning are increasingly essential, platforms that foster dialogue, collaboration, and recognition take on particular importance. The MERIT Summit, held on 5-6 June 2025 at emlyon business school’s innovation-driven campus in Lyon, brings together leaders from education, business, and talent development. The event provides a space to explore new ideas, connect with global experts, and engage with the future of executive education and entrepreneurship.
With a program that includes conferences, workshops, and networking, the summit bridges academic insights and practical application. This year, about 100 participants—mainly HR and Learning & Development directors—and 30 representatives from leading European business schools attended. Forty-six speakers contributed over a focused one-and-a-half-day seminar, creating a dynamic forum for exchange.
Understanding the MERIT Summit: purpose and scope
The MERIT Summit is a gathering that centers on leadership development, corporate learning, and innovation in education. It creates a space for corporate learning professionals, executives, and academics to discuss evolving needs in talent development and leadership practices. The event places special emphasis on collaboration between companies and business schools, enabling both sectors to learn from one another and develop solutions that address current and future challenges.
Participants come from various backgrounds, including human resources, learning and development, business school faculty, and executive education providers. This diversity supports an exchange of ideas that spans theory and practice and fosters new partnerships. Beyond its content, the Merit Summit also serves as a networking platform, allowing attendees to build connections that extend beyond the event itself.
The MERIT Summit is a unique opportunity for international business schools and Corporate Human Resources Directors to share practices of corporate learning and transformation. The topic “Strategy-People-Organisation: The Never-Ending Transformation Cycle” is strongly embedded in the current polycrisis the world is facing now. Beyond sharing and advancing practices, the MERIT Summit is a fantastic international community of passionate professionals driven by the will and the capability to shape the future of corporate transformation. emlyon is proud to have hosted this Summit!
Inside the program
The structure of the MERIT Summit program is designed to balance inspiration with practical application. Spanning two days, the schedule includes keynote speeches, interactive panel discussions, breakout workshop sessions, and case study presentations. Each component serves a specific purpose: to inform, to challenge assumptions, and to explore new ideas.
Networking is integrated throughout the schedule, with dedicated breaks and social events designed to encourage informal conversations and relationship building. The program’s design aims to foster both knowledge exchange and practical application.
Highlights from the conferences and workshops
The Merit Summit began with Welcome and Opening Notes delivered by Dr. Nicolas Péjout, Executive Vice-President at emlyon business school. This year's edition of the Merit Summit addressed a range of timely topics, from the integration of AI in leadership development to the evolving role of empathy in corporate cultures. Speakers included senior executives from multinational companies, academic leaders from global business schools, and specialists in organizational behavior and learning science.
One of the notable keynote sessions was The Future Directory: an antidote to the strategic void, presented by Thomas Gauthier, Professor and Associate Dean for Anthropocene at emlyon business school. Gauthier introduced the ambitious Repertoire of Futures project — a collection of thousands of prospective scenarios developed over several years. This initiative supports more than 250 companies in rediscovering new possibilities for action in an increasingly complex and fast-changing world. Rather than traditional strategic planning, this project encourages organizations to undertake “learning expeditions” that explore new possible futures and offer fresh perspectives on current challenges.
On the other hand, workshops invited attendees to take a more active role. Dr. Tessa Melkonian, Professor of Management and Organizational Behavior and Head of the Leadership Academy for New Futures at emlyon business school, facilitated the workshop Preserving Personal Ecology: an Imperative for Corporate Leaders. Her session focused on the critical importance of energy management and attention allocation for leaders. Drawing on her latest research on energy balance and human sustainability at work, Dr. Melkonian guided participants through strategies to enhance personal ecology. This approach supports leaders in maintaining sustainable energy levels that enable them to balance prospective thinking with the demands of day-to-day corporate challenges.
The MERIT Awards: celebrating excellence in learning and development
Concluding the summit was the MERIT Awards ceremony, which recognized outstanding contributions in the fields of executive education and corporate learning. Designed to spotlight excellence and innovation, the awards are given to organizations that have demonstrated impact, creativity, and commitment to development.
The selection process is based on a combination of peer review, jury evaluation, and criteria such as relevance, originality, and measurable results. Awards are given in categories such as Organizational Development, People Development, Leadership Development and Innovation in Higher Education & Learning.
The MERIT Summit continues to offer a valuable platform for discussion, connection, and recognition in the evolving landscape of leadership and learning. By combining a forward-looking program with the celebration of concrete achievements, the summit not only informs but also motivates. As organizations navigate complex challenges, spaces like the MERIT Summit—where ideas are exchanged and accomplishments acknowledged—play an important role in shaping the future of work and education.