TomTom vs Google Maps, Plastic Pollution and Endangered Species...ESSEC in the News

Leaders of major groups, experts and engaged citizens; ESSEC is making the headlines in all fields! Press review

Leaders

Les Échos devoted a feature to Corinne Vigreux (BBA 87), co-founder of TomTom, the Dutch GPS pioneer and leader in traffic information. ‘At the helm of a group employing some 4000 people and with a turnover of €536 million in 2022, her aim is to counter Google Maps, which dominates the localisation service sector.’ The article also praises her philanthropic engagements, in particular for the education initiative, Forward College, launched by fellow alumnus Boris Walbaum (E94).
Read an extract (in French)

Le Figaro invited Éléonore Baudry (E95), CEO of Figaret Paris, to its ‘Talk Décideurs’ to discuss her brand’s latest actions, i.e., the development of a casual range, internationalisation and a partnership with the publishing house Éditions Gallimard.
See the video (in French) 

In Le Moniteur, Nicolas Godet (E02), Managing Director of Point.P, emphasised his goal to ‘move  from pollution to solution’ by speeding up the energy renovation of his stores, in addition to reducing the firm’s waste and the carbon footprint of its transport and offer. He is banking on the spillover effect in his ecosystem as players opt for more responsible materials.
Read the article (in French)

In Business Immo, Bérengère Oster (E05), Managing Director of Wüest Partner France, explained how she hopes to double staff numbers and increase turnover fivefold to make this Swiss group, specialised in real estate assessment, sustainable property consulting and digital tools, a leader in the French market.
Read an extract (in French)

On Radio Classique, Agop Ashjian (E10), Chief Executive Officer of Shipup, highlighted the growing importance of post-purchase communication to strengthen customer satisfaction and loyalty. ‘Each delivery step must be transformed into a positive and memorable action. Transparency and real-time tracking are just the start.’ 
See the programme (in French)

Engagement

BFM TV and RMC listed Pascal Damois (BBA 99) among the winners of the PME RMC 2023 Trophies, for the zoo he has been developing for 10 years (Parc Animalier d'Auvergne). ‘More than 80% of the species we house are part of European reproduction programmes (EEP). This unique proportion on the continent makes us the zoo with the highest number of endangered species compared to the overall total of species housed here. We are the ambassadors for endangered biodiversity, and our role is to preserve, educate, and further research in animal well-being.’ Read the article. (in French)

On France Inter, Sabine Roux de Bézieux (E86), President of the Fondation de la Mer [for the protection of oceans], shared her take on the negotiations for the International Plastic Pollution Treaty: ‘Plastic use has multiplied by 40 since the 1960s. We need a comprehensive approach to the plastic lifecycle, and not only waste, of which 22% ends up in nature and just 9% is recycled. France must oppose the countries who refuse to consider producing less. This is the only way we will succeed.’ See the programme (in French)

On France Inter, Emmanuelle Ledoux (M93), Managing Director of the French National Institute for the Circular Economy, warned: ‘The linear model basically operates on over-stock. We often point to consumers, expecting them to change the game, but if you take the textile sector for instance, a huge proportion of the clothing in landfills has never been used, bought or worn. It’s primarily up to the big brands to regulate themselves. Hyper-availability currently encourages mass production on one side of the world, to be thrown away on the other, which is a crazy system.’ Listen to the programme (in French)

On RTL, environmental economist Esther Crauser-Delbourg (E09) warned: ‘To understand and anticipate water issues in spring 2024, now is the time to start looking! While water tables are refilling, some land is so waterlogged that autumn crops cannot be sown, which means putting back sowing for 6 months, to precisely the period of highest demand on water tables. Listen to the programme (in French).

Les Échos devoted an article to Benjamin de Molliens (M12), aka ‘Ben Expedition Zero’ on the social networks, who takes up low-carbon challenges to raise awareness of climate issues. ‘He sets off on an average of three adventures per year, which are more or less long and physical, and follow a ‘Three 0 Rule’, i.e., zero waste, zero new equipment and a carbon footprint as close to zero as possible.’ 
Read the article (in French). 

On Mediapart, Benjamin Brice (E07)  offered a video summary of his latest work, L’Impasse de la compétitivité [The Competitive Dead-End] (published by Les liens qui libèrent): ‘Without even mentioning resilience, ecology and social consequence, our competitiveness policies are a failure at present. Why? Because by focusing exclusively on exports, we lose sight of the core of our trade deficit, i.e., imports. The problem is that we produce less and less the items we use every day [...]. This is why I believe it would be wiser to approach the problem from the opposite angle, by combining the collective efforts for material sobriety (including breakdown as a key factor) with industrial relocation policies (in particular for basic industries). 
See and extract (in French)

On Maddyness, Isabelle Drault Gallo (E10) announced she has joined Sista Fund, the investment fund of the eponymous collective which strives to reduce the financial gap between male and female entrepreneurs. ‘I want to show that diversity is a guarantee of performance.’ Read the article (in French)

In Le Monde, Sabine Sevaistre (E27), Yasmine Bayed (E27) and Augustin Payard (BBA 27) shared their ‘field experience’: a month-long work placement during which the 1st-year Master in Management and 2nd-year BBA students were immersed in workers’, educational or social structures, and experienced work hardship and diversity first-hand. ‘Physical experience of these working conditions can only help us to implement more humane management later.’ Read an extract (in French)

Experts

ESSEC professor Bernard Leca (PHD 10) published an op-ed in Le Monde with his counterpart Chrystelle Richard, in which both authors rejected Emmanuel Faber’s criticism of the European directive on environmental reporting: ‘Our duty is to support the growth of sufficiently comprehensive standards enabling companies and investors to act for the planet.’
Read an extract (in French)

On BFM TV, Clara Moley (E13), podcaster and conference speaker for gender equality, urged listeners not to succumb to ‘gender fatigue’ with regard to the feminist cause. ‘Just because we’re seeing a vast awakening and a lot of media coverage doesn’t mean that the problem is solved. This is a fundamental issue which will take generations to overcome.’ See the programme (in French)

Sud Ouest featured the work Landes Atlantique Sud à l’épreuve de la sobriété [Sufficiency in the South Atlantic Landes Region] co-written by Edouard Dequeker (E12), a teacher at ESSEC. ‘We aim to show that the constraints resulting from the law on zero net artificialisation (ZAN) represent an opportunity for regions to rethink planning and governance methods.’ Read an extract (in French)

In Le Journal des Entreprises, Virginie Saks (E09), ambassador of the Forces Françaises de l’Industrie, shared her recommendations for the successful neo-industrialisation of French regions. Her suggestions include: ‘Substitute the ground-level plant for a dense, vertical, planted factory, and rethink economic attractiveness criteria in line with environmental transition.’ Read the article (in French)

On Maddyness, Romaric Servajean-Hilst (E99), associate professor at Kedge Business School and research fellow at the Ecole Polytechnique, called on major groups to remove the hurdles and misgivings hindering their collaboration with start-ups, and thus kill two birds with one stone: benefit from start-ups’ innovations, and help them to boost their turnover, as the boom in funding is petering out with the fall in capital raisings (-50% in 2023) and the rise in lending rates.
Read the article (in French)

In Les Échos, Fabien Traventhal (E16) took readers behind the scenes of the data sector, where you need a strong ability to adapt and learn, given the speed at which professions are evolving to keep up with technological innovations. ‘In 6 years, I’ve had seven different job titles.’ Read the article (in French)

Sarah Riddel (E26), the highest-scoring candidate in the post-preparatory entrance exam to the Master in Management, offered her tips for success: revise with friends, make note cards on all exercises, target your weak points and do sport, etc.
Read the article (in French)

Did you spot other alumni in the news recently? Let us know!

Do you want more quality content about the ESSEC community? Join us now!

Image : © AdobeStock