Benjamin Askenazi knew at least one thing when he left high school: he wanted to do science. That said, traditional engineering schools had little appeal to him. “What mainly interested me was academic research. And I was admitted to the Institut d’Optique Graduate School in Paris, where this dimension was very present. Even if I knew almost nothing about the discipline,” he recalls. He studied there for two years, before doing an exchange at Imperial College in London, England, with which the establishment has a partnership. “I met the most passionate and exciting teachers of my life there,” he assures.
Back in France, he decided to embark on a thesis, with a laboratory at Paris Diderot University. “I loved it. Conducting a thesis provides an incomparable feeling of freedom. The only master of your subject is you. » If research sometimes conveys, in France, the image of scientists cut off from the reality of business, Benjamin Askenazi is convinced of the opposite. “We greatly underestimate the skills that we acquire in a laboratory, which are nevertheless completely transferable in the business world,” he argues. From project management to the recruitment of interns, including the need to bring together disciplines other than your own. And, very often, to fend for yourself, “with your ten fingers”, like an entrepreneur.
Data, AI, virtual reality… for “augmented beauty”
L’Oréal was not mistaken in offering Benjamin the opportunity to join a sector that enthusiasts of quantum physics and electronics like him do not spontaneously think of: beauty. “My first role led me to look at complexion and hair colors. My role was to work on the measurement and instrumentation part, the modeling of the perfect color, up to the product recipe. »
Already complex, the cosmetics industry today speaks of “augmented beauty”. This uses data analysis, artificial intelligence, or even virtual reality, to offer remote try-ons of makeup or hair dyes. “A few years ago, we were looking to find out if this approach combining optical and digital was indeed a way of the future, if it would bring real benefit to our customers. Today we have the answer. » The L’Oréal teams dedicated to augmented beauty have greatly expanded. Pushing the group to meet students with “tech” profiles, who are not always aware of the professions it houses.
Now Head of Augmented Beauty Invention at L’Oréal, Benjamin explores new dimensions with his team: the effects of light on the skin, or even those of sound, which could, in the long term, be used as a complement to products, for example. “The objective is to go ever further in personalization. We want to assure consumers that they will be able to find the most suitable products, whatever the nature of their hair or the specificities of their skin,” he summarizes. So simple in appearance, this quest actually requires a range of skills as precise as they are varied: biotechnologies, data analysis, physics, chemistry… Not forgetting computer engineers. “We will never make better algorithms than Snapchat, but no one knows our products and our customers better than us,” assures Benjamin Askenazi.
Sport everywhere… team spirit infuses all organizations
Graduates specializing in sport also find themselves in various sectors. Some are close and therefore not so surprising – employment with equipment manufacturers or in events, for example. Others are, at first glance, more distant.
“All large companies today have a person who takes care of sport, if not a team,” explains Clara, student of the MROS specialized Master (Responsible management of sports organizations) from Audencia, in Saint-Ouen (Seine-Saint-Denis). She herself is doing her work-study program in the insurance sector, at Allianz France. For good reason, the company is a partner of the IOC (International Olympic Committee) as well as several clubs, notably Stade Toulousain in rugby or Montpellier Handball. “This leads me to carry out extremely varied missions, from communication to hospitality management in our clubs. It’s about leading an entire ecosystem, building loyalty among companies, discussing with federations, finding synergies to set up projects,” says Clara. She admits that she was extremely lucky to follow this course in the middle of the Olympic and Paralympic Games year in Paris.
The specialized Master’s degree in sports management that she chose is one of the oldest. There are students looking for a specialization, but also professionals wishing to progress in their career. “Some already work in the sports sector and come to look for skills: in management, marketing, digital, etc. », explains Olivier Laplanche, director of the MROS Specialized Masters. When others come from different sectors and want to find a position that brings them closer to their passion.
Sport brings together a myriad of actors. “Clubs and equipment manufacturers are the visible part of a much larger galaxy,” explains Olivier Laplanche. Made up of large companies which participate in its financing, event organizers, tourism professionals, local authorities and even associations. A whole world is therefore open to those who do not yet have the chance to be Kylian Mbappé’s agent! “One of the objectives of the Specialized Masters is to show us the extent of the professional opportunities available to us. Every week that passes gives us new ideas,” Clara rejoices.
If some of his classmates do their internships and work-study programs well in traditional sports structures (clubs, federations, etc.), others do so in journalism, banking, insurance, communications, or even, for one of between them, at Aéroports de Paris. “Whatever the sector, we have in common that we are passionate, we understand the complex ecosystem of sport and deploy all our energy to ensure that projects see the light of day,” considers the student.
Hotel profiles, the kings of the customer
Another example of these “specialties without borders” is the hotel and catering industry. A very specialized field of study, then. Even too much, for certain students who fear finding themselves locked in if, later, they wish to take another direction in their career. They are probably unaware that outside of hotels, many companies are interested in these profiles. In particular, those that must offer a high-end experience to their customers: private banks, airlines, shopping centers and, above all, luxury houses. They all look for in these profiles that mixture of interpersonal skills, attention to detail and concern for the customer which distinguishes hospitality professionals.
It is therefore no coincidence that so many hotel and restaurant training courses have changed their name, to display a broader positioning. This is the case of the Vatel schools (which appear as Vatel Hotel and Tourism Business School), the Institut Paul Bocuse (now Institut Lyfe, for Lyon for Excellence) or the École hôtelière de Lausanne (EHL Hospitality Business School ). Translation: here, you will learn the hotel industry, but also all the fundamentals of business.
Their graduates are found, in fact, in all fields. “One of my friends from the Lyfe Institute became a consultant. Another does international trade: he buys things in one place, then resells them in another,” smiles Édouard Eyglunent, former graduate of the Lyfe Institute. He, who dreamed of running a hotel, had a different idea and launched Wecandoo. On this platform, individuals can book activities with artisans in a region such as forging a knife, making cheese, renovating furniture, making a leather belt, etc. “The objective is to get customers to open the door of an artisan, get their hands dirty, discover their know-how and techniques, then leave with their creation. » All for a price ranging from 30 to 200 euros depending on the activities, which many offer as gifts to their loved ones.
For Édouard, the links with the hotel and restaurant industry are numerous. “I don’t have the impression of having changed careers,” assures this business manager who works throughout France, England, Belgium and the Netherlands. “Whether this translates into hotel services, gastronomy or discoveries, we are here to create experiences and human contact”, maintains the founder of Wecandoo who is ready for one of the great peaks of his year, Christmas .