The winners of the 9th edition of the Open Innovation Challenge organised by KEDGE were welcomed on Tuesday 28 March 2023 on the KEDGE campus in Marseille in the presence of award winning companies and by video conference for the campuses of Bordeaux and Paris.
This year, 420 KEDGE students from the Grande Ecole programme and specialised programmes, MS and MSc in Marseille, Bordeaux and Paris, took part in the Open Innovation Challenge:
- from 23 January to 17 February for the M1 students of the PGE (Programme grande Ecole)
- from 1st to 24th March for the specialised programmes' students
85
teams
53
coaches
62
businesses
The students' performance was outstanding, with 18 teams scoring between 18 and 20, with an overall average of 16.5/20. The evaluation was carried out jointly with the participating companies. The school would also like to congratulate the international students who ended up mostly at the top of the chart.
The Open Innovation Challenge is a unique experience during which our students are asked to solve a complex and innovative problem by calling on collective intelligence. We encourage experimentation, audacity and creativity by developing innovative projects that meet the expectations of companies, from start-ups to large groups.
This one-month project enables the company to innovate in a limited time frame and for the students to leave their comfort zone, and respond to a specific project as they might do in a professional environment. The diversity of companies participating (start-ups, large groups, biotech, etc.) and the impact of our pedagogical innovation on the companies in our region reinforce our "Grow by doing" pedagogical approach and our position as a school of know-how.
AWARD CEREMONY
Given the exceptional quality of the work, we have decided to award 4 additional juror's favourite prizes in addition to the 3 traditional ones:
- 1st prize: Open innovation Challenge Award
- 2nd prize: Innovation Award
- 3rd prize: Collective intelligence Award
JURORS' FAVOURITE
The jury's first favourite was 'the Villages Clubs du Soleil project', which aimed to optimise the company's facilities during off-peak periods.
According to Armelle CIZERON, Production and Sustainable Development Director: "You have proposed a relevant, original and humanistic solution that is in line with our values as well as suggesting a solution scalable for all sites'.
The students involved were : Clara HOTE, Lou Aela PELLEGRIN, Thais PERSONENI, Alexandre VANIN, Cyrian ZICCA.
2nd jury's Favourite was the 'Pool On mission' whose objective was to identify new international markets for an innovation concerning the digitalisation of swimming pools thanks to 3D projectors that transform swimming pools into a real projection screen by offering content adapted to the different cases of use, combining immersive films, educational content and specific training.
According to Caroline VICARIOT, Marketing Director of Pool On, "The rendering was very professional and the students were very involved, we really appreciated that!"
The students involved were : Lucas BREANT, Antoine MARTELLI, Paul PÈRE LAGARESTE, Kenza SQUALLI HOUSAINI, Raoul VILLARD.
3rd jurors' favourite was the 'Ajinomoto mission' whose objective was the entry on the "Medical Health Food" market in Europe.
According to Ornella SILVA, Deputy Director, Strategy and M&A at Ajinomoto EMEA region, "Remarkable work, on a complex subject, for the entry into the "Medical Health Food" market, the international team carried out a work worthy of a consulting firm".
The international students involved were : Faussal BALHAWAN, Xiqian CHEN, Jose Bernardo RUIZ LOZADA, Cyrine TRIKI, Miruna Elena VIZETEU.
The 4th Jury's favourite was a hybrid PGE and MSc ITE team that was honoured on a mission for the startup ITIE from the CEA research centre. The objective of the mission was to develop a market in industry around an Electrical Impedance Tomography device.
According to Olivier PROVITINA, Head of Scientific Partnerships at the CEA: "This was a very valuable piece of work in terms of the amount of information produced, the analyses provided and the projections proposed. Well done for the investment in a very technological subject that is difficult to grasp. The resulting synthesis is relevant and innovative!
The students concerned were : Jacques David MASSUN (PGE), Lisa SIMONET (PGE), Oumaima TAJANI (PGE), Chloé DIRAND (ITE), Hortense ZADRA (ITE), Bertrand VANDEVOORDE (ITE)
According to Paul GIMET, MSc ITE Programme Director (Master of Science MSc Innovation, Transformation and Entrepreneurship at KEDGE): "Faced with a complex challenge proposed by a company, excellence is expected from our students in the posture of Junior Innovation Consultants.
The podium
On the Podium, for the Collective Intelligence Award, the OPINUM mission was rewarded for its subject on the orchestration of energy data for energy players across the value chain. According to Patrick POLGE, Senior Executive Partner at OPINUM, "the team has particularly and favourably distinguished itself by delivering a work rich in information including recommendations that we will exploit".
The students involved were : Camille DAQUO, Chek Moussa, Hugo LEGOUHY, Maxime MIOT, Nicolas YILDIRIM.
For the Innovation Award, the Manpower Life Sciences international team particularly distinguished itself on a mission whose objective was the recruitment of EU and non-EU doctors in France.
For Muriel Fossati Caillol, Manager of the Life Sciences Division in the PACA region, "You have shown real maturity, it's a real consulting job, with an exemplary 'delivery' orientation; the cultural mix of the group with multiple nationalities was an undeniable plus, you have designed valuable tools that we will use again. I had the impression that I wasn't dealing with students, but with professionals with 10 years of experience.
The international students involved were: Xibei LI, Emma LUNTE, Emilio MOUSSI, Thanusha RAVIKUMAR, Madhav SHARMA.
Finally, the 1st Prize of the Open Innovation Challenge was awarded to the hybrid and international team that worked on the ALCASUN Hydrocarbon Project. This project originated directly from a CEA research laboratory, and the objective of the mission was to find a market segment for the bio-sourced hydrocarbon in the industrial sector.
According to Olivier Provittina, Head of Scientific Partnerships at the CEA, "You have solved the impossible, with intelligence and a very interesting consideration of ecological and sustainable development issues. You have demonstrated rigour and unparalleled intellectual honesty and have worked as a team... In short, we were blown away by the results of your work... Well done to all! The team composed of an Italian, a Russian, a German, an Indian and a French student (Clément Montaya) from the Epitech Marseille programme impressed the jury with their complicity and collective intelligence.
The students involved were : Richa Christie ALWIN, Anastasiia BARNCHIKOVA, Eugenia BRUNAZZO, Marie FOHR, Clément MONTAYA.
