The leadership journey of emlyon Executive MBA participant Sophie Prévost.
Studying for an Executive MBA is a strategic step in a professional career. It’s particularly strategic during an international public health crisis, when everything changes very quickly. Géraldine Renaud Mairesse and Sébastien Freissinet have recently chosen to study at emlyon business school. They explain their decision.
Pursuing a burgeoning career, following a demanding Master's program, and answering the call of a wife and mother…. such has been the triple-challenge faced by two emlyon alumnae, Marie-Aline Bourdon and Nadia Issad. They recount the highs and lows of their personal, professional, and educational adventure, and suggest ways in which life could be made easier for others having to perform the same juggling act. Q. What prompted you to rise to the challenge and pursue an Executive MBA at emlyon? Marie-Aline: I have a 15-year background in engineering, marketing and communications, but wanted to gain more of a strategic business vision and become stronger in leadership and management. To accomplish this, I felt the need for a label or “stamp” to validate the new skills I was going to acquire and then apply, hence my decision to take the emlyon Fast Track Executive MBA. I was well aware this would involve combining work, studies and home life, but I have always been a firm believer in creating your own luck, not waiting for it to happen. Nadia: I had moved up the ladder in Préfon, a company specializing in retirement, life insurance, and pension plans. But, I felt the need to spread my wings and acquire a more generalist business overview, for which I chose to take the emlyon Executive MBA in part-time mode. This was no small decision as my children were only 4, 6 and 8 at the time. In fact, I was encouraged by my husband to do so, despite the additional working hours I was no doubt going to discover…and did! Q. What were the toughest situations you encountered during your studies and how did you overcome them? Marie-Aline: I arrived in Lyon from Paris knowing no one beyond my husband and kids. Previously, I had tried to combine a maternity leave with a part-time position in aerospace to no avail. This time around, it was full steam ahead with my emlyon studies (not forgetting the children!) but I had to multitask; applying for full-time positions while studying. I now work as the VP in Group Communications and Marketing for CLASQUIN, but the route to get here was demanding. I negotiated with the company to allow me to conduct my Executive MBA strategy project about them, ahead of my joining the company full-time upon graduation. The working hours were tough but it turned out to be the ultimate win-win for all concerned. I familiarized myself with the strategy and values of CLASQUIN in tandem with the Chairman, and they got to know my way of working so I was then able to hit the ground running when I joined, fully equipped with my EMBA. Nadia: I will not lie, there were some difficult nights and I had a period where I struggled to balance managing my youngest child, my highly strategic role at Préfon, and my EMBA teamwork projects, but with the support of my classmates and husband, I was able to succeed in all of my responsibilities! After making my decision, the cohort at emlyon became almost a second family to me. I was the only young mother juggling work and studies, but they were there for me, including times when we were on study trips to Paris and I had to delegate care for my children to my husband. The support from family and classmates was essential. Q. How could things be made easier for working-and-studying mothers in the future? Marie-Aline & Nadia: We are both of the opinion that good managers will recognize the mutual benefits of establishing and understanding a work-life balance. Allowing people to manage their time according to their needs so that they return the gesture by working even harder for the company and remaining faithful employees. Good communication between those in charge and their team members is crucial to making this work. There is no reason why, on the one hand, we cannot plan our hours to avoid clashes with home life but, on the other hand, team leaders cannot organize projects whilst considering individual needs and constraints. Maybe this could be integrated into future EMBA programs, to nurture a new spirit of responsible and understanding management? To be continued. Until then, good luck to all those who find themselves in our recent boat !
In 2018 emlyon business school along with Durham University Business School welcomed the first cohort of the Global Doctorate of Business Administration. Amongst the first students is American Jannies Burlingame, who was born in Taiwan.
With over 15 years of professional experience in the Finance industry in New York, Melissa Cape was looking to expand her career through a post-graduate program, integrating at the same time an international experience. Her undergraduate degree was focused on communications, journalism and languages and she wanted to go back to her passion for learning languages and discovering different cultures but this time in a professional context.
Melissa enrolled in the Executive MBA program at emlyon business school in October 2019 on the Paris campus and is expected to complete the program this year. Find out more about why Melissa chose the Executive MBA at emlyon and about her experience in the program and life in Paris.
Executive MBA participants join the programme for a variety of reasons. Some wish to launch entrepreneurial projects and others are looking for new and exciting challenges. For many participants, their motivation lies in evolving in their current company or exploring a new department within the organisation. If you are ambitious and a talent that your company wishes to help flourish, they may be willing to invest in your goals and support you financially or in other ways.
In a changing, globalised and digital world, new challenges and territories to explore are presented to managers and company directors. Change is now an integral part of a company's daily life.
The CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) Scholarship is merit-based scholarship that is awarded to participants whose, “research topic will focus on enhancing, developing and encouraging responsible (public or private) organizations in their CSR strategies and plans.” CSR is an increasingly hot topic as more and more businesses are being looked at to be held accountable for their social, environmental, and economic impacts. To participate in CSR practices, a business must be taking active measures to operate in ways that positively impact society at large. This may be beneficial for the world and paint the businesses in a better light by the public, but this benevolence does come with a cost to business.
On November 23rd, 2023, the Human Resources consulting firm Emerging, unveiled its 13th annual ranking of the best higher education institutions in terms of employability. emlyon ranks again as #2 of the French business schools and maintains its position in the top 50 worldwide.