We are ESDES

After completing a double degree at Napier University (Edinburgh, UK), she discovered the profession of FX Sales during her final year internship.

Recruited by UBS AG, she became FX Sales Trader for companies in the French-speaking part of Switzerland.

After only a few months, she was promoted to Associate Director and now covers companies of all sizes and all sectors (multinationals, SMEs, international organizations, commodity traders…).

Huiyi GAO grew up in China. Prior to her PhD from the University of Lyon, she worked as a CFO for the Chinese branch of a Japanese firm. Her academic areas are international strategic management, focusing on the practices of French multinationals and on the penetration of Chinese firms in Europe. Her publications bridge Western and Eastern strategic thinking, identifying the characteristics of a new generation of Chinese business leaders.

I’ve been concerned about environmental issues for a long time. In high school, I was already involved in several associations within my community and at school. Being from the Ardèche region, protecting nature and its fragile balance is important to me. That’s why I came to ESDES – to develop these values and this sense of involvement. With The New Locals, I have been able to take concrete action to develop eco-friendly practices on campus.

Alice is from Lyon and is passionate about the advertising business. So she naturally chose to specialize in marketing when the time came to choose her Master’s degree at ESDES.

I have always been interested in law and legal matters. The Bachelor in Law and Management is the only course that offers a dual curriculum from the first year. When I was younger, I wanted to become a lawyer. However, when I graduated from high school, I opted for a business school to broaden my career choices and job opportunities, without specializing too early. Today, with ESDES and the Faculty of Law, I can fulfill my ambitions while at the same time shaping a different outlook on the world, and am developing a wider range of skills and a profile that really stands out.

We are trying to basically prove why the information and make the students familiar with the international business is really important for the future of these students. Maybe, they are going to work in international companies or they are interested in being entrepreneur and basically doing business with other countries. So, this would be like the basic and the first step for them. There are a lot of potential and opportunities especially because of the current situation of the world, with the inflation and everything after post-covid. And a lot of markets, for example what I’m speaking about, emerging markets, they have opportunities for growth and for doing business which would be very important for the future of Europe if they want to basically avoid any sort of stagnation and recession.

I chose Esdes over other business schools in France, for an MSc in Circular Economy, because after reviewing each school’s courses, Esdes was the only school that provides a 360° view of sustainability and Circular Economy

After my degree, I can confirm the program provided essential analytical skills for navigating the volatile business world, emphasizing cultural impact on decision-making and cross-border expansion. Taught by qualified professors and a supportive coordinator, it’s the only Lyon Catholic University and Esdes program with a truly multicultural class. After three years, I’ve made friends on every continent.

Montabert has been committed for several years now in a circular economy scheme, such as the creation of an internal department for the “remanufacturing” of its own products, in Lyon and for Montabert in the United States. The MSc Circular Economy and Sustainable innovation will allow our teams to consolidate their achievements but also to widen their knowledge. 

From my point of view, as a HR Manager, it’s a great advantage to hire candidates with this additional education, given our new ecological and economic stakes.

From her time at ESDES, Victoire remembers…

The taste for teamwork and the spirit of cooperation: she remembers Fabienne Gautrot and Laura Servant Volquin who knew how to share their passion for marketing. Now she uses the project management and teamwork skills she first experienced in class at ESDES on a daily basis.