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IAE AIX-Marseille: An Institute Steeped In Heritage Having Deep Connections With The Business World

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Antonin Ricard,DeanIAE Aix Marseille ­ one of the oldest French business schools with the new ranking of 60 in the world and 13 in france-was founded back in 1955 is an institute marked by strong values built on a deep heritage of strong connection with the business world. For decades, IAE Aix Marseille has led numerous innovations in the landscape of French management education. The institute instills a humanistic leadership approach to learning, shaping the future management leaders through innovative pedagogy that relies heavily on project-based learning, in-company workshops, and e-learning platforms.

Since its inception, the institute has always strived to expand its reach internationally. And today, IAE Aix- Marseille has 60 collabo-ration agreements with international partners. Students from across 50 nationalities are currently present on the campus. IAE Aix-Marseille champions diversity, and over the years, has built up an enormous network of 20.000 graduates who hold key positions in France and across the globe. IAE Aix-Marseille also holds the 42nd rank worldwide in the prestigious FT ranking, which makes it the 8th ranked business school in France, making it one of the best business management institutes in the world.

Recently, the Editorial Team of SI Education Magazine got an opportunity to get in touch with Antonin Ricard, Dean of Aix-Marseille Graduate School of Management-IAE. In the ensuing conversation that followed, Antonin took us through some of the aspects that make IAE Aix-Marseille one of the best modern & inclusive institutes for pursuing industry-relevant courses in business management studies.

Excerpts from the interaction:
As You Follow Innovative And World-Class Learning Methodologies With A Vision To Elevate Education From Mediocre To Professional, How Do Students Excel In Such Programs?
Our school is highly selective. We recruit students who excel in their previous studies. To bring them higher, we favor three types of diversity: international (30 percent of our students are international), background (we recruit engineers, scientists, artists, lawyers, and more), and social background. All these diversities bring great richness in learning for our students.
Today, Extra Curriculum Activities Are Considered An Essential Aspect Of The Overall Development Of A Successful Career. Enlighten Us About The Various Additional Curriculum Activities Offered By Your Institution.
I would like to answer that question in three dimensions.

First, our students participate in numerous courses that hold a hybrid position between classical courses and job experience. For instance, all of our programs include in-company workshops with real companies that come into the classroom.

Second, all of our students experience diversity by working in the field in charitable associations, and this helps to reinforce the adaptability and the collective intelligence of the students.

We are currently rethinking the whole integration of the students to make it more inclusive and more engaging. We also strive to reinforce interactions between alumni and students.

What Strategies Do You Engage To Keep The Workforce Intact? What Criteria Are Adhered To While Deploying Teachers Who Can Adapt And Excel In The Teaching Segment?
Professors are attached to the quality of life at IAE. We are located close to an amazing landscape, with many unique tourist sites in the world. Professors are also attached to the quality of the students, their involvement, and the reputation of the school.

What Is The Future Roadmap Envisioned For IAE AIX-Marseille Graduate School Of Management?
The environment of higher education structures, and more specifically of management schools, is changing rapidly. Digitalization, artificial intelligence, and blockchain are disrupting the service sector. As a high value-added service, higher education will be strongly impacted by these technological changes.

Our ambitions for IAE Aix-Marseille are anchored in this context. We are obsessed with best preparing our participants for the future. I have developed my program around three pillars.

The first pillar is based on the principle that we will only conquer artificial intelligence by cultivating our emotional intelligence, as Jack Ma reminded us at the world eco-nomic forum in 2018. Therefore, we have set up an evolutionary program that aims to develop a human leadership based on empathy, openness, and adaptability of our students.

IAE AIX-Marseille champions diversity, and over the years, has built up an enormous network of 20.000 graduates


The second pillar aims to revolutionize & rewire the posture of the student and the teacher. Anne-Marie Guérin, Valérie Mathieu, and I have imagined the i3 lab. The laboratory aims to design and put into practice devices to train students in the skills of the future. We are currently developing a new pedagogical model based on entrepreneurship. In line with what our Minister Frédérique Vidal has said, I believe that education must involve developing the situational intelligence of our participants.

The third pillar is both the engine and the link between the two previous ones. We at IAE Aix-Marseille are preparing for these changes by digitizing processes, accelerating dematerialization, developing its network of partners, and promoting innovation. I propose to change wealth by resource `development of the human resource of IAE Aix-Marseille', but I'm not very familiar with Indian-English.