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Every year, IÉSEG organizes inspiring conferences open to all its students, faculty and administrative teams. These events aim to bring the School’s Vision to life while inspiring participants both professionally and personally, fostering dialogue and exploration of diverse perspectives on current issues.

On Thursday, November 28, IÉSEG and La Capsule* welcomed Toussaint AKPWEH, coach of the French Blind Football Team and Olympic Champion at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games, to the Lille campus. He began by sharing his remarkable sports journey (under his leadership, the French team also won the silver medal at the London 2012 Paralympic Games, the 2011 World Championships, and three European Championship titles in 2009, 2011, and 2022) and his impressions of the enthusiasm that accompanied the team throughout the Olympic competition.

However, his visit was above all an opportunity to share his vision of management and leadership. How do you select a team? What skills do we look for, and how do we assess them? How can a leader successfully motivate a team to achieve such high levels of performance? How can the emotional dimension in the workplace be better addressed, whether as a colleague or a manager?

Finally, Toussaint AKPWEH addressed the challenges of inclusion following the Paralympic Games: how can the momentum from the Paralympics be sustained? How can societal perceptions of people with disabilities be changed? With a powerful message: we have all experienced, at least once in our professional lives, a moment when we were unable to use 100% of our abilities (due to fatigue, stress, personal issues…) and thus found ourselves in a “situation of disability.” Therefore, we must change how we view individuals with disabilities and see them first and foremost as “bearers of skills and competencies.” To meet the challenge of inclusion post-Olympics, the first hurdle to overcome is education, with all the transformations this entails in teaching methods, infrastructure, and the programs schools offer.

Through his Olympic experience and the parallels he drew between the worlds of sports and business, Toussaint AKPWEH captivated the students, leaving them with valuable insights for their future professional lives.

*La Capsule IÉSEG is a student association at IÉSEG that aims to foster students’ development by sharing ideas, promoting culture, and encouraging personal growth through interviews and conferences.