The excellence of ESSEC faculty, students and alumni continued to receive national and international acclaim with the awarding of several academic prizes in recent months.

Professor Joël Le Bon (assistant professor, Marketing Department) created a first when he received the 2007 Prentice Hall’s Solomon-Marshall-Stuart Award for Innovative Excellence in Marketing Education. In so doing, he became the first ever professor from a university or business school outside of North America to be awarded this accolade. The criteria for selection of the annual winner are based on both teaching philosophy and methods.

ESSEC alumnus Jérôme Adam (E00) was the proud recipient of the “Coup de Coeur” prize for entrepreneurial publications at the Advancia-CCIP ceremony in January. The award was given in recognition of his book, “Entreprendre avec sa difference”, which tells of his personal business adventure at the age of 23 and the additional stakes for entrepreneurs who have to cope with disabilities (in this instance, loss of vision).

At student level, Libéra Flahaut (Specialized Master’s in International Business Law and Management) was awarded one of the 12 prizes on offer for Best Economics and Finance Dissertation.
Attributed by the Centre des Professions Financières 2007 “Mémoires de L'Economie et de la Finance” adjudication panel, Libéra was selected from 171 entrants.

More good news for ESSEC students came recently in the shape of success in two competitions.
The national final of the L’Oréal e-Strat Challenge was won by an ESSEC team comprising Pierrick Roland, Raphaël Lorin and Alexis Campionnet.
Contested by a total of 16 500 teams, this business simulation game tests the marketing and management skills of participants via the creation, presentation and promotion of an original business plan.
The success of ESSEC’s team was all the more remarkable for the fact that all three entrants are still in their Initial Period (the competition normally being open to students as of MBA Period) and won by a near-record margin.
They will go on to compete in the world final of the largest corporate strategy simulation competition next year.

Professor Simon Nyeck was in charge of ESSEC MBA students Qingqing Li, Charlotte Duffour and Francesca Galibert who finished second out of a grand total of 1 500 teams in the world final of Brandstorm on June 14, having emerged victorious at the national final on May 11.
This marketing-oriented competition run by L’Oréal is open to university-level students from 35 different countries, who are assigned the task of making innovative changes to one of L’Oréal’s existing international brands.