HEC Paris participates in the 8th edition of the CGECI Academy in Abidjan

On October 14 and 15, the 8th edition of the CGECI Academy, a major economic forum for the private sector held each year in Abidjan, was organized by the General Confederation of Enterprises of Côte d'Ivoire. The HEC office in West and Central Africa was present there in the form of a stand, while Laurence Lehmann-Ortega, a professor affiliated with HEC Paris, presented a masterclass.

The theme of this year's edition of the CGECI Academy was "Business Environment: What Model to Favor for Business Development in Africa?" The West and Central Africa Office of HEC Paris participated along with numerous business leaders, young entrepreneurs, public sector decision-makers and representatives of countries from the sub-Saharan region.

At the official launch, CGECI President Jean-Marie Ackah reminded all in attendance that "these moments are an opportunity to learn about the experiences of countries in the world that have been most successful in developing and implementing an attractive business environment”. The ambition of the CGECI Academy is to identify strategic areas for the structuring of successful models for improving the business climate in Africa and around the world.

The President of Rwanda, HE Paul Kagame, was a guest of honor alongside the President of Côte d'Ivoire, HE Mr. Alassane Ouattara, his Vice-President, HE Mr. Daniel Kablan Duncan, and the Ivorian Minister of Trade, Industry and promotion of SMEs, Diarrassouba Souleymane. Employers' organizations from Cameroon, Senegal, Togo, Cape Verde, Guinea, ECOWAS, Singapore, Mauritius, but also France and the Netherlands were also represented.

On October 14th, at the CGECI Academy, Laurence Lehmann-Ortega, affiliate professor in strategy and corporate policy at HEC Paris gave a masterclass on the following theme: "Do we still need a strategy? "

In front of a large audience, and for nearly an hour and a half, Laurence Lehmann-Ortega explained why today, it is more than ever necessary to determine a company strategy. She developed her masterclass by talking about how to develop strategy taking into account the economic, social and environmental issues faced by companies.

This masterclass was followed by a brief signing session of the last edition of the book Strategor, which celebrated its 30th anniversary and is co-authored by Laurence Lehmann-Ortega.

This event was also an opportunity to present to participants the pan-African program « Lead Campus: Sustainable Leadership in Africa ». This opportunity was maximized thanks to the two academic co-directors of the program, Christelle Bitouzet and Bénédicte Faivre-Tavignot, who were present in Abidjan.

Reportage TV : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o93ya-LzN2s&feature=youtu.be&t=1173