EMBA at ENPC: Alumni Interview

Jean Caron completed his EMBA at the ENPC International School of Management in 2008. He speaks with Dawn Bournand about why he chose to pursue an EMBA.

Jean Caron describes the Executive MBA as ‘a management toolbox providing global vision of a firm’s environment.’ 

From January 2007 through to December 2008, Jean Caron spent his time in the Executive MBA classroom at the ENPC (Ecole Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées) International School of Management. The Cost Reduction and Global Sourcing Program Manager for PSA Peugeot Citroen decided to pursue an EMBA to accelerate his career: “as my job was already European, I especially wanted to get more responsibilities in international issues,” he says.

EMBA opportunities

Based in Paris, Jean is responsible for deploying new management methods and improving the process of financial and human efficiency, something he doesn’t believe he would be doing without his EMBA. “I certainly wouldn’t have had this opportunity so quickly, and not in a global scope if it had not been for my Executive MBA degree,” he says.

Jean’s firm encouraged and helped him to make the decision of enrolling in an EMBA and he believes the impact his EMBA has had on his career first began while he was still studying. “After each lesson, the tools learned during the “three days per month” were immediately useable in my job. The relatively small number of students and their large international background created real opportunities for professional discussions and idea confrontations. “It has benefited my day to day management and I’ve gained more responsibility for new activities in China, Eastern Europe and India. One of the best parts of the EMBA program was the lessons with professors from all over the world – they were always a pleasure,” Jean says.

Alumni network

For many alumni, another benefit of an EMBA degree is the network they are able to form during the program. Jean is no exception. “The network is a real added value. In term of business efficiency, you can always find somebody to answer a question or find a good contact to solve a professional issue. On the last Tuesday of every month, we get in touch during an informal meeting for a cocktail in a Parisian Hotel.”

After more than five years as an expatriate in different European countries with Banque PSA Peugeot Citroën Finance, Jean moved into his current division where he says in a global business world, he thinks it is important to stay at the best level possible: “I had already thought about the MBA, but it was essential not to perturb my career with one or two years of full time curriculum.

“An EMBA is the way to acquire the best up to date practices in terms of management, and to exchange with other students about a large scope of professional experience, success, difficulty and solution. The two years of the ENPC EMBA generated a lot of added value in my career and in my personal development. It is the time to question oneself,” he says.