Research at the heart of IÉSEG’s Vision and Mission
Research and international collaboration has been part of IÉSEG’s DNA since its creation in 1964. The School attracts international researchers from around the world who publish the results of their work in top-tier scientific journals worldwide. Many of them are also members of Lille Economie & Management, UMR CNRS 9221, a research center supported by the French government, through its research agency CNRS (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique).
The School also looks to prepare the researchers of tomorrow, notably through a joint PhD program run with KU Leuven in Belgium and by welcoming doctoral candidates in a variety of disciplines each year. IÉSEG, one of the three institutions that finance and supervise the LEM research laboratory (“Lille Economie Management”), welcomes PhD students of the SESAM Doctoral School (University of Lille) in the context of a 3-year program.
These research activities are in line with the School’s vision to be ‘a unique international hub empowering changemakers for a better society’, and its mission:
- To educate managers to be inspiring, intercultural and ethical pioneers of change;
- To create knowledge that nurtures innovative leaders;
- To promote creative solutions for and with responsible organizations.
IÉSEG fundamentally believes that both teaching and research nurture each other because research regularly enriches and gives new perspectives to the knowledge taught, and allows the School to reinforce interactions with companies and other stakeholders. IÉSEG’s permanent professors therefore conduct both research and teaching activities, and the high quality of their research and publications, combined with the international character of the School, contribute to IÉSEG’s reputation.
Creating and disseminating knowledge to address societal challenges
IÉSEG’s research focuses on developing new knowledge which is necessary for innovation and creating solutions for organizations across different sectors. Innovation is notably key to addressing the grand challenges that society currently faces including climate change, global health, sustainability, or digital transformation etc.
The School’s research is shared and disseminated as broadly as possible to all key stakeholders (via websites, newsletters, the media, social media etc) and is also a central element of teaching courses with our students and executive education participants.
Impactful and virtuous circle between research and teaching
By sharing this knowledge with future and current managers, the School aims to contribute to understanding and solving the issues and challenges that organizations are facing and will continue to identify relevant research topics for the years to come. The aim is therefore to have an impactful and virtuous circle between research and teaching which contributes to educating responsible individuals equipped with solid academic knowledge, critical and analytical thinking, and the ability to innovate and work in multicultural teams. IÉSEG students will therefore be well placed to become tomorrow’s changemakers in their organisations, working for a better society and a better world.
Centers of Excellence and Research
IÉSEG recognizes that many of the challenges facing organisations and society are complex and solutions often require an interdisciplinary approach combining many different fields of expertise. This is why IÉSEG has developed a number of Centers of excellence, that bring together international researchers and experts from different disciplines and fields to study and provide answers and solutions to important questions for companies and organisations everywhere.
All of these centers aim to ensure there is a bridge between fundamental and applied research, the school’s teaching activities (through courses and programs and executive training) and ensuring this knowledge and expertise reaches key stakeholders including professionals, policymakers, NGOs and other organisations.
Centers of Excellence
- IÉSEG Center of Excellence for Organizational Responsibility (ICOR) aims to create and spread conceptual knowledge and practice-oriented tools in the fields of social responsibility, sustainability and business and society relationships for professionals and their organizations, researchers and students.
- IÉSEG Center of Excellence for Intercultural Engagement (ICIE) aims to develop knowledge and practices around the notion of intercultural dynamics and the development of cultural intelligence and its applications within different organizations.
- IÉSEG Center of Excellence on Negotiation (ICON) aims to create relevant, practice-oriented knowledge by means of precise, systematic and robust research methods and provide applications for students, professionals and organizations.
- IÉSEG Center of Excellence on Marketing Analytics (ICMA) is a knowledge hub formed by a team of academic experts with a proven track record in the fields of marketing analytics, customer relationship marketing (CRM) and database marketing that aims to support teaching, research and business projects.
Research Centers
The School has also developed several research centers that enable groups of international researchers to collaborate closely and to take forward the Schools activities in a number of key fields:
- IÉSEG Research Center on Risk and Uncertainty (IRisk) works to better understand and improve decisions about environmental, health, wealth, and other risks through impartial economic research.
- IÉSEG Research Center on Family, Labor and Migration Economics (IFlame) promotes research activities at the frontier of this cross-disciplinary field in economics, which studies the microeconomic determinants of individual labor supply and family outcomes.
- IÉSEG Research Center on Leadership & Development works to develop research and other activities relating to leadership and personal development.
- IÉSEG Research Center on Quantitative Finance (iℚuant) works to carry out and disseminate cutting-edge research activities in quantitative finance, which refers to use of different mathematical and statistical methods and techniques to analyze financial instruments.
Chairs and research projects – supporting companies and organisations with applied research
The School also runs different types of applied research projects, including Chairs, which are developed in the framework of a partnership with a company/organisation. Faculty members share their research expertise and work in collaboration with the partner on a series of defined topics, challenges or questions.
Such collaborations can include:
- The recruitment of a PhD student from the School to carry out applied research related to company issues or challenges.
- The development of new knowledge and tools via the publication of scientific and professional articles.
- Exchanges on best practices: IÉSEG organizes meetings and events that bring together experts and members of the company to share and define best practice in different fields.
- The creation of customized executive training programs.
- The development of new knowledge and tools via the publication of scientific and professional articles.