Clermont School of Business Foundation Clermont-Auvergne

A word from the President

“Created in 2016 to help finance Clermont School of Business’s social openness, innovation and development projects, the Foundation has kept its promises thanks to the support and commitment of its donors, corporate sponsors, graduates and individuals.

In four years, the Clermont School of Business has seen a strong growth in the number of students recruited (+20% on average each year), thus demonstrating its attractiveness, thanks in particular to a proactive policy of innovation in teaching (new programmes and specialisations, new teaching methods, quality approach, etc.), the development of research in management sciences, and the strengthening of support for business creation and professional integration.

By strengthening and diversifying the School’s resources and participating in the financing of its projects, the Foundation contributes to the deployment of Clermont School of Business’s strategy, promoting its development and influence, at the service of students, graduates and companies.

It is vital for Clermont School of Business that this formidable lever that is our Foundation remains sustainable. The challenge today is consequent: to maintain the initial momentum linked to the launch and to convince donors to remain loyal and constant in their support.

Thank you all and see you soon”.

Jean-Paul Chiocchetti, Chairman of the Clermont School of Business Foundation Clermont-Auvergne

Governance

Since September 2018, the Foundation has been chaired by JEAN-PAUL CHIOCCHETTI, Director Michelin France, and directed by ROBIN JUND.

It is administered by a 15-member Executive Committee composed of the Colleges below. The Executive Committee meets twice a year to define the Foundation’s strategy and general policy, monitor its implementation, choose the projects to be supported by the Foundation, validate the budgets and approve the activity report and accounts.

Olivier BONNICHON

Director of Communications and Institutional Relations, Groupe Centre France – La Montagne

Samirah DEAT

Director of Risk and Compliance, Banque Populaire Auvergne Rhône Alpes

Nicolas AUQUE

Executive Vice-President, Caisse d’Epargne d’Auvergne et du Limousin

Mélissa MOREL

Human Resources Manager, Babymoov Group

Laurent PICHEYRE

Regional Sales Manager, Société Générale

Matthieu PIGANIOL

(Graduated class of 1999), Chairman and CEO, Maison Piganiol

Muriel CARROLL

Director of Institutional Affairs, Laboratoires Théa

Eric FAIDY

Secretary General Southern Europe Region, Groupe Michelin

Valérie MONSERAT

Director Diversity and Talent Acquisition Group, Groupe Limagrain

Jean-Paul CHIOCCHETTI

Director of the Pistes Cataroux transformation programme, Groupe Michelin

Arnaud COURDESSES

Founder Babymoov Group, President of the Clermont School of Business Foundation from 2016 to 2018

Pierre JAL

Director of the Tourism and World Heritage Mission, Conseil Départemental du Puy-de-Dôme

Célia MORALES

Customer Experience Manager, Sezaam

Anas SAIDI

Innovation Consultant, Accenture

Richard SOPARNOT

Dean, ESC Clermont Business School

Social openness and equal opportunities

The Foundation supports Clermont School of Business in the implementation of its policy of social openness and equal opportunities. The main aim of the action is to remove the financial barriers to access to the Grandes Ecoles. This is a key issue in order to enable high-potential students, whose economic situation is precarious, to finance their studies under the best possible conditions.

From 2016 to 2022, 572 scholarships have been awarded for a total amount of €701,900 (excluding the emergency fund).

The projects funded :

Social Grants

The Social Grants contribute to the partial or total financing of the tuition fees of the School's students, from all the programmes, according to different criteria: financial and social, but also academic and behavioural (attendance, motivation, involvement). One of these scholarships is awarded in honour of Morad Mousli (1976-2016), who graduated from the School in 2002 and is a teacher-researcher with the Clermont School of Business Group.

Sports Scholarships

These scholarships are awarded on social criteria to good and high level sports students who are studying at the Clermont School of Business Group in parallel with their sports activities. They enable them to partially waive their tuition fees and reconcile their studies with their sporting commitment (training and competitions).

Mobility Grants

The Mobility Grants are awarded, on academic and social criteria, to students in the 3rd year of the Master Grande Ecole programme who are going on a double-degree course at an Clermont School of Business partner university abroad in four major destinations: North America, South America, Asia-Oceania and Europe. They aim to encourage and support our students' international experiences.

The Emergency Reserve Fund

The purpose of this reserve fund is to provide exceptional assistance to students suddenly confronted with emergency situations.

Obtaining a “sports scholarship” from the Foundation last year has had several important advantages for me: it has allowed me to supplement my income as a sportsman without having to borrow money or find a student job (incompatible with my schedule). It is also the recognition of my efforts and a proof of consideration for my career as a sportsman, which encourages me in my double project. It has given me great confidence for a year 2018-2019 that promises to be very busy.

Léonard Nalliod, Master Grande Ecole student Professional hockey player at Les Sangliers Arvernes

Entrepreneurial dynamics

Les compétences entrepreneuriales sont aujourd’hui unanimement recherchées, tout aussi bien par les étudiants – près d’un sur deux songe déjà à créer sa propre activité alors qu’il n’a pas fini ses études — que par les entreprises. C’est pour cela que la Fondation soutient l’Ecole pour faire naître et cultiver la fibre entrepreneuriale, en lien étroit avec l’incubateur SquareLab.

Startup Grants (€21,000 each year)

Since the creation of the Startup Grants, 25 projects have been supported by the Foundation, in connection with the SquareLab incubator and by associating each year innovation players from the region to the jury.

In 2018, among the four projects supported by the Foundation, the company projects A’caz (creation of home-made cereal bars, by Mathieu Rodrigues and Willy Trussardi) and Capillum (first hair enhancement industry, created by Clément Baldellou and James Taylor) have since become much more attractive and well-known. They have received numerous innovation awards on a regional and national scale… In full development, these two responsible projects are today effectively created companies and are proof of the soundness of the exchange, which enables a step or a stage to be reached, often at a critical time, for all those who benefit from it.

In 2019, startup grants supported the most mature projects to help them move from the project stage to actual creation. The three winning projects are:

Nametag/ Jérémie VILLENEUVE and Pierre MAGERAND – Development of technical clothing and accessories to improve the performance of pro and amateur es-port players
Velokit/ Guillaume GASPARIN – Kit to electrify “old” bikes at low cost and with style.
Ary technology / Alexandre REY – Design of light and compact stretchers

Since then, 6 to 8 projects a year have been supported by the Foundation. In addition to the grants offered to project leaders to help with their living expenses, the Foundation also provides interest-free loans (repayable three years after the business is launched) and can act as guarantor for bank loans.

Territorial solidarity

This area, created in 2023, shows how the Clermont School of Business Foundation is evolving to meet the needs of its region. The aim is to support initiatives led by associations, groups, students and employees of the School, with a view to supporting the social, environmental and economic development of the region.

For example, the Foundation has provided €5,000 to the Esope63 grocery shop (set up by the Banque Alimentaire), which supports the most disadvantaged students in the Clermont-Ferrand area.

The Foundation also worked with the OTECI association to organise video pitches for IAE Master’s students, IAE Grande École Master’s students and doctoral students from the Doctoral School of Human Sciences, to help them find employment.

The Foundation’s previous initiatives

Since its creation, the Clermont School of Business Foundation has supported two other initiatives.

Educational innovations and applied research

The Foundation supports Clermont School of Business in the implementation of its innovation and research policy. Designing new training programmes and experimenting with new pedagogical methods for a better acquisition of skills useful for students’ professional future, on the one hand, and promoting research for the benefit of companies and teaching, on the other hand, were the challenges of this axis.

The projects funded: The new training programmes, E-learning course modules, The Creativity Workshop, The GraphLab, The Learning Lab, Research

Vocational integration

The Foundation aims to strengthen – in collaboration with Clermont School of Business – the support of students towards employment: to help them define their professional project, identify and develop their skills, prepare them to look for internships, work-study programmes and then access their first job.

The Foundation’s support for integration is important in my opinion because it complements the work of the School’s corporate relations team. The team regularly sends us offers by e-mail, makes itself available to help us obtain relevant appointments and gives us access to tools for our job searches. This is invaluable in building our network and our various professional experiences!

Marine JARRIGE Master Grande Ecole

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