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As it celebrates its 50th anniversary, IÉSEG CONSEIL Lille looks back at its history, its structure, and the values that drive its success today. Lucie MAXE, Communications Manager for the Junior Enterprise, shares insights into its development strategy and its commitment to students, clients, and partners.

Can you first briefly introduce IÉSEG CONSEIL Lille?

IESEG CONSEIL Lille, the Junior Enterprise of IESEG, is a student association focused on economic objectives. We provide consulting services for companies of all sizes while ensuring the skill development of students. We offer services in market analysis, finance, CSR, communications, customer experience, and more. We are part of the French CNJE (National Confederation of Junior Enterprises), an organization that brings together over 200 structures. Among Junior Enterprises, we support each other significantly to enhance our skills.

We generate approximately €150,000 in annual revenue for 36 projects, with a customer satisfaction rate of 97.5%. We work with Leroy Merlin, Décathlon, SNCF, BNP Paribas, Marque Avenue, and more. We have established partnerships with Medef Hauts-de-France, as well as with EY and BNP Paribas. Our goal for 2027 is to become the leading Junior Enterprise in terms of business development.

How did IÉSEG CONSEIL Lille manage to establish itself among other Junior Entreprises?

Our experience plays a significant role, as does our location in the North, which is home to many corporate headquarters. Innovation is also one of our key strengths. Last year, we launched a new communication strategy by positioning ourselves as an inspiring and educational media outlet. We offered diverse content across multiple platforms to increase our visibility and broaden our target audience. We interviewed inspiring individuals such as Émilien Leclercq, Andrea Tassard, and Théo Rabâche to share their vision of success, which can be found on YouTube.

What key moments or turning points have there been in your history?

I believe it was in 2018 when we joined the L30 (the list of the 30 best startups in France). Since then, we have never left it. It’s a true source of pride for the association.

What are your values and how do they manifest in your daily life?

Excellence, innovation, and commitment. Excellence means enhancing the skills of our students, doing our best, and delivering quality results to our clients. We are constantly innovating and adapting to economic challenges. For instance, we are working on implementing AI into our processes. Regarding commitment, we are deeply involved in the national movement to support other student enterprises and share what we have learned over the years.

Specifically, what do you bring to companies?

We strive to provide solutions to their problems and personalized support. We pay close attention to each case. We really try to be close to our clients, to not overlook anything, and to ask them as many questions as possible to best meet their expectations.

What skills do students develop through the Junior Enterprise?

First, technical skills specific to their roles, which help them become more professional. We also learn to be proactive.They also learn to be proactive—because in a structure like IÉSEG Conseil, you need to stay alert, adapt quickly and react fast. We also learn to communicate better with each other: knowing how to express our choices and decisions, how to negotiate, adapt, and learn to communicate with students from very different backgrounds (and even nationalities).

IÉSEG CONSEIL Lille is celebrating its 50th anniversary in January 2026. What does this represent for you?

It’s really great to be able to participate in this pivotal year, as it’s a very important milestone for IÉSEG CONSEIL Lille – but also for the entire school. It means a lot, it establishes our credibility; 50 years is significant. We will take this opportunity to highlight our partners, our clients, the students who support us throughout the year, and our entire ecosystem.

What have you planned for this anniversary?

Our strategy includes three stages: revisiting our past to explain our identity and how we reached this point; celebrating the present by clarifying our current priorities and our Vision; and most importantly, looking ahead to ensure the long-term success of our strategy.

We will celebrate our 50th anniversary with a major event in January 2026. It will bring together partners, clients, students, and Junior Enterprise alumni. Our evening will focus on the theme of students’ employability and how their involvement in IÉSEG Conseil Lille has contributed to it. There will be roundtable discussions featuring our partners, speeches from former presidents, representatives from the school, and, most importantly, a big dance party to celebrate!

What is the main challenge you will have to face going forward?

The consulting field will be significantly impacted by generative AI—we already see it happening. We want to show that we are a true support and asset for businesses, but that we cannot be replaced by AI. This is a major challenge: we need to demonstrate our added value, and especially show how we can enhance our approach by effectively integrating AI into our activities.

What do you hope to leave behind for the students and the school?

Our goal is for every student who join the Junior Enterprise to leave with real added value and the feeling that they have truly learned and contributed. We want to provide them with the tools for their future and enable them to enter the professional world feeling comfortable with a wide range of skills and knowledge.

We also work a lot with IÉSEG, providing services for the school, and we hope to have a positive impact by delivering quality results. Finally, we know that we are also a factor in the school’s reputation. We want to be a great showcase, demonstrating that we are motivated students, engaged in projects that matter to us, and applying what we learn to benefit our clients and partner companies.