New Platform Strategies
New Platform Strategies
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A platform is a form of organisation designed to facilitate value-creating interactions between external providers and customers.
It offers an open and participatory infrastructure for these interactions and establishes the conditions to regulate them. The main objective of a platform is to connect participants by enabling the exchange of goods or services, in order to generate value for everyone involved.
The New Platform Strategies Chair enriches corporate thinking through applicable research in this field.
Its objective is to develop knowledge on platform strategies, disseminate this knowledge between research and the business world, and raise awareness among future leaders.
A few words from
Jérémie Profeta
Chief Transformation Officer & President Sonepar International Services
“Through this partnership with ESCP, Sonepar aims to broaden and co-build its vision on marketplace alongside the work of students and researcher-teachers.
Together, we will explore key concepts of B2B marketplaces, define value creation opportunities for all actors in the Construction Industry and create new dynamics for them. We will also identify the key stakes of managing such platforms and therefore shape the future of this industry.
Our objective is to adopt a collaborative approach with partners and ESCP students, while also attracting young talents to Sonepar.”
A few words from
Frédéric Fréry
Professor at ESCP Business School
Scientific Director of the New Platform Strategies Chair
“I have been working on platform-related issues for many years, both in my research and in my teaching, and I am delighted that Sonepar has joined ESCP Business School in creating this Chair. Much academic work has been dedicated to online commerce for the end consumer. The Sonepar/ESCP Chair "New Platform Strategies" allows us to direct our thinking towards still relatively unexplored areas, such as B2B and omnichannel distribution. This opens up absolutely fascinating perspectives!”
Sonepar is an independent family-owned group, world leader in the distribution of electrical equipment, solutions and related services to professionals.
In 2023, Sonepar generated sales of 33.3 billion euros. Present in 40 countries and with a vast network of distribution banners, the Group is leading an ambitious transformation to make life easier for its customers by offering them an omnichannel experience and a selection of sustainable solutions in the industrial, building and energy markets.
Objectives of the chair
The Sonepar/ESCP Chair of New Platform Strategies aims to enhance corporate thinking on platforms—with particular emphasis on BtoB formats and omnichannel approaches—, while ensuring that this research remains relevant to businesses. It seeks to help companies better align their platformization practices with original academic research.
In this context, the Chair's ambition is threefold:
- To contribute to the development of knowledge on platform strategies (by funding research contracts, proposing dissertation topics, and writing academic case studies)
- To ensure the transfer of this knowledge between research and business (notably through the organization of conferences)
- To reinforce the visibility of these issues among students (through course participation, best dissertation awards, etc.)
Three areas of activity
- Research projects
- Articles
- Bachelor, master and doctoral theses
- Guest lectures
- Case studies
- Supporting theses
- Best Thesis Award
- Conferences
- Workshops
“We are very proud to create this new chair with the prestigious Sonepar Group, a leading distributor of electrical solutions and equipment for professionals. This chair will enable our researchers to work on a cutting-edge strategic subject, revolutionizing B2B distribution business models. It will also give our students the opportunity to discover an eminently cross-disciplinary issue, touching on all the transformation challenges facing a major international company and its ecosystem.”
Pascale Pernet, Director of chairs and corporate sponsorship
ppernet@escp.eu