ESSEC Appointments: IFOP, La Poste, Warner Music, LVMH, Choiseul and more

Business leaders in major French and international companies, high-level public officials, a Knight of the Legion of Honour and 8 Choiseul financial experts of tomorrow! Our round-up of recent appointments within the ESSEC network. 

Pierre Ricordeau (E87) has been appointed Chairman of the administrative board for the Caisse d'amortissement de la dette sociale [Social Security Debt Amortisation Fund], a state body in charge of funding and paying off the social debt of the social security system, by issuing loans on financial markets and receiving the Social Debt Repayment Contribution (CRDS). Also a graduate of ENA, he began his career with the General Inspectorate for Social Affairs (IGAS), prior to entering the Ministry for the Economy at the helm of the Forecasting Department. He then spent 10 years with the Social Security Department (DSS). This was followed by the successive roles of Director General of Acoss, the national URSSAF fund, Secretary General to the social sector ministries, and Director General of the Occitania Regional Health Agency.  

Jean-Michel Janoueix (E89) has been appointed Chief Executive Officer of Groupe Ifop, the marketing studies and survey leader. He boasts more than 20 years’ experience in general management in services and B2B, notably with the sector’s top companies in marketing studies and opinion polls: Ipsos, TNS, Millward Brown, and Kantar. He also sits on the boards of pioneering data firms.  

Camille Gehin (EXEC PROG 22) has been appointed Managing Director of La Poste Immobilier [real estate division] following a 7-year position as Director of Development. She began her career by working on architectural projects at the Ile-de-France Air Base Special Unit, before joining the French National Agency for Urban Regeneration (ANRU) as a regional task officer. She was then made Project Manager for the Ile-de-France Public Establishment for University Development (EPAURIF).  

Erik-Marie Bion (E93) has been appointed Deputy Managing Director of Infopro Digital, a leading B2B media manager boasting 35 publications including L’Usine Nouvelle, LSA, L’Argus de l’Assurance and Le Moniteur. He began his career with Pepsi and then Sony Computer Entertainment, prior to taking up general management roles at Lycos, Voyages SNCF and Expedia. He was then successively appointed Chief Operating Officer of Hi-media, the European leader in internet advertising networks and micro-payments; Chief Executive Officer of Inspirational Stores, a group of 9 e-commerce sites; General Manager Advertising & Online of Microsoft France; Managing Director of AOL France, and Vice-President France, Germany, Italy & Spain at Verizon Media. In parallel, he spent 15 years developing the advisory boutique Digital Natives.  

Tony Charlet (EXEC PROG 19) has been appointed CEO of MGI Digital Technology, the leader in printing and digital finishing technologies. He began his career at Konica Minolta, where he spent 30 years and rose to the position of Managing Director. He was then successively appointed Managing Director of the outfitter Köra-Packmat Maschinenbau in Germany and Altix in France. 

Maxime Barbier (E06) has been appointed Managing Director of Bluenove, the pioneer in collective intelligence technology consulting, where he has spent almost 10 years. He began his career as a consultant for Eurogroup, prior to moving to the public sector as an innovation project manager, initially with the Ministry for State Reform, and then the General Secretariat for the modernisation of public action.  

Isabelle Hérault (EXEC M17) has been appointed Deputy Director of Univet, a group encompassing 180 veterinary clinics across France and Belgium. She has spent a large part of her career in human resources, initially in recruitment with Whirlpool Corporation, followed by training with Hertz and Elior Group, before moving into managerial roles at Celio, Les Petits Chaperons Rouges and Lagardère Travel Retail.  

Alexis de Chevron Villette (E06) has been appointed Chief Financial Officer of Looping Group, which manages 14 theme parks, zoos, water parks and aquariums across Europe, attracting 6.5 million visitors annually. He began his career with AXA and JPMorgan, prior to being made Vice-President of acquisition & LBO funding for BNP Paribas in New York. He then took a break for 18 months to travel around the world, crossing 26 countries in 7 continents and alternating between trekking and volunteering. He then moved to Paris, where he held the successive roles of Financial Director at Jerome Dreyfuss and Financial & Administrative Director of Red Luxury Group.  

Charles Jaubert (E09) has been appointed Chief Business Officer of Warner Music France. He began his career in business development with the RTL group, prior to a stint in M&A with Oaklins in Turkey. He then made a definitive return to the media and entertainment sector, initially with M6, where he steered diversification projects, and then as Vice-President in charge of partnership strategy at Deezer. 

Élisabeth Gaillarde (EXEC M17) has been appointed CSR & Compliance Director of Groupe Claire, which specialises in transport and distribution solutions for drinking water and gas. Also an agricultural engineer and Doctor in Socioeconomics, she began her career at the French National Institute for Agricultural Research (INRA) and the Agency for Ecological Transition (ADEME), where she notably developed the first carbon assessment tool. She then worked successively for Veolia, where she rose to the position of Deputy Director for sustainable innovation, and Colas (Bouygues Group), as Sustainable Development Director, prior to being made Senior Advisor ESG at BOWI! Buy Out With Impact. Her next role was CSR Director for the property developer GSE, then in transitional management roles on a part-time basis for various SMEs, via the company Transition & Growth.  

Mélanie Bouvier (E03) has been appointed E-commerce Director at the LVMH Group. She began her career in the UK, initially with Renault and Nissan Motor in the automotive sector, before becoming a consultant at Cap Gemini. She moved into the luxury sector and Louis Vuitton, where she spent more than 15 years in CRM and digital roles, rising to the position of Director of Multi-Channel Operations. 

Jérémy Haddak (E09) has been appointed Managing Director Infrastructure Private Equity at Ardian, a capital investment firm boasting more than $100 billion in assets and a portfolio of 150 companies. He began his career with Goldman Sachs in London, prior to joining BNP Paribas CIP and then Lazard, where he rose to the position of Vice President. He then moved to Morgan Stanley, where he was made Executive Director.  

Emmanuel Papadacci-Stephanopoli (EXEC M16) has been appointed Deputy CEO / Mayor of Village by CA Paris, Europe’s largest accelerator serving regional economies, and Managing Director of CorpoLab, Village by CA Paris’ incorporated consultancy, which accelerates the transformation of major companies. He accumulates these new roles with that of Vice-President of the Fintech Observatory. Also the holder of a PhD in Mathematics & Computer Science from Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne University, he began his career in banking, as a management consultant at CSC (ex KPMG Peat Marwick), then Head of Innovation for the Fédération Nationale du Crédit Agricole, and Head of Internet and Mobile Marketing at LCL. He was next appointed Strategy & Marketing Director of KPMG, where he worked with the banking and fintech sectors, before moving to the Casino group as Assignment Manager for digital, banking & fintech. Prior to this most recent appointment, he was Director of the start-up studio of La Fabrique by CA.  

Claire Bayet (E14) has been appointed Director of the new Climate Studio, launched by the AXA Climate subsidiary devoted to climate and environmental adaptation. She began her career with Ogilvy Paris and Publicis Conseil. She then joined BETC, where she rose to the position of Strategic Director, working alongside EDF, SNCF, Bouygues Télécom, Deezer and E. Leclerc, in addition to Santé Publique France Tabac, the French High Council for Gender Equality, the Red Cross and UN Women. 

Noémie Claret (E06) has been appointed deputy Chief of Staff to the Minister for Sports, Youth & Community Life. She began her career with Havas, as Brand Director within the Paris 2024 bidding committee. She then joined Sport dans la Ville as Director of Communication & 2024 Legacy, before taking the helm of Global Sports Weeks. Prior to this most recent appointment, she was Director of EMEA partnerships for the Olympic & Paralympic Games at Salesforce. She is also the voluntary head of the Sport Business Club. 

Élise Albenque (E04) has been appointed Director of Economic, Institutional & International Development at Palais de la Porte Dorée, a Parisian institution comprising a historical monument built for the 1931 Colonial Exhibition, the National Museum of Immigration History and the Tropical Aquarium. She began her career in publishing with Nathan and Gallimard, before joining the Palace of Versailles, where she rose to the position of Head of the Marketing & Partnership department. She then held similar roles at the Centre Pompidou, prior to being appointed Deputy Director of publishing, licensing and retail. 

Olivier Marchal (E81) has been awarded the Knight of the Legion of Honour. He began his career with Cogema in Gabon, before moving to the First National Bank of Boston. He then joined Bain & Company, where he spent 40 years between Paris, Brussels and London, rising to his current position of CEO France. 

8 alumni have made it onto the Choiseul Finance de Demain 2025 list, which shines a light on talented individuals under 40 who are on the rise and shaking things up in M&A, finance, private equity, asset & wealth management, and fintech: Paul Assaël (BBA 13 & M14), Executive Director - Head of Debt Advisory at Edmond de Rothschild; Hélèna Charrier (E13), Head of RSI solutions at La Banque Postale Asset Management; Julien Chartier (E13), financial inspector; Raphaëlle d’Ornano (E09), founder of D’Ornano + Co.; Max Greggory (E16), M&A Director at Oddo BHF; Mounir Laggoune (BBA 13), CEO of Finary; Céline Maronne (E11), ESG Director for the infrastructure line of the investment firm 3i, and Cyrielle Villepelet (E11), Managing Director of Téthys Invest. 

Quentin Bordet (E14) features among the 35 positive impact leaders under the age of 35 listed in the this year's edition of Top 35, a ranking by Les Échos and the NGO Positiv, founded and presided over by Jacques Attali. Previously employed by BCG, where he spent 10 years and launched the GoGreen initiative with 150 co-workers to reduce the environmental impact of the Paris office, he currently presides over Les Collectifs, a network of professionals acting to accelerate the environmental & social transition of companies from the inside. He is also a member of the Mouvement Impact France administrative board.

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