What IAE Lyon School of Management does

IAE Lyon School of Management is a French public higher education institution specializing in management and business education, founded in 1956 and operating as a constituent school of Université Jean Moulin Lyon 3. The institution serves approximately 7,000 students through undergraduate, master's, doctoral, and executive education programs, supported by 165 permanent teaching-research faculty, 60 doctoral students, and roughly 1,000 adjunct professional speakers drawn from industry. It holds the international "triple crown" of business school accreditations (AACSB, EFMD) plus the French QUALIOPI certification, and has been ranked in the QS World University Rankings for six consecutive years with 40 masters featured in the 2026 EDUNIVERSAL ranking.

The school's academic product portfolio spans initial degree programs, continuing education (Validation des Acquis de l'Expérience), apprenticeship-track masters, and dedicated research output produced through the Magellan research laboratory and the LAB'iaelyon innovation lab. Notable recent additions include a professional certification in AI applied to marketing (2025), the GR3 research group on reshoring and reindustrialization (2025), and a healthcare-values research chair. Revenue is generated through a diversified model combining tuition fees for initial training, fees from continuing and executive education, apprenticeship contracts, and corporate partnership funding including sponsored research chairs.

The institution serves three customer segments: individual degree-seeking students (B2C), corporate clients purchasing executive education and apprenticeship pathways, and organizational partners sponsoring research chairs and recruitment pipelines. Named corporate partners include Crédit Agricole, Jacquet Brossard, UCB Pharma, and Alliade Habitat, spanning banking, food processing, pharmaceuticals, and social housing. The school is connected to roughly 2,000 socio-economic partners, 150 international academic partnerships (with programs delivered in 12 countries), and a 70,000-strong alumni network.

Name

IAE Lyon School of Management

Legal name

iaelyon School of Management - Université Jean Moulin Lyon 3

Website

https://iae.univ-lyon3.fr

Company type

Public

Founded year

1956

Operating status

Operating

Short description

IAE Lyon School of Management is a French public business school founded in 1956, part of Université Jean Moulin Lyon 3, serving 7,000 students across degree, executive, and apprenticeship programs with 165 faculty and 70,000 alumni.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Higher Education (Management)

NAICS

Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (6113), Professional and Management Development Training (61143)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Foundational PM & Delivery Methods (Waterfall/Agile/Hybrid) (EDABAHAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Project, Process & Quality Certification Prep (PMP, PRINCE2, Lean Six Sigma, ITIL) (EDANAIAE)

Keywords

• Management education
• Continuing education programs
• Executive business school
• Professional certification training
• Management research

Headquarters

HQ city

Lyon

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Tuition fees - Initial training: Degree programs for students including Bachelor's (Licence) and Master's levels with tuition fees based on enrollment status
2. Tuition fees - Continuing education: Part-time Masters, Diplôme Universitaire programs, and short certificating courses for professionals including Executive MBA
3. Apprenticeship contracts: Revenue from companies sponsoring apprenticeship and professionalization contracts for students
4. Partnership funding: Corporate partnerships, chair sponsorships, and research grants from regional and national organizations
5. Professional training (VAE): Validation des Acquis de l'Expérience services for professional certification

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

iaelyon is a French public management school that delivers higher education programs from Licence (Bachelor) through Doctorate, including the DCG and DSCG accounting certifications, professional Licences, Master degrees, an Executive MBA, and continuing education diplomas. It sells tuition-based initial training to individual students, continuing education and customized training programs to working professionals and companies, and apprenticeship contracts integrated with employer partners. Applied management research is conducted through the Laboratoire Magellan laboratory and is offered alongside teaching as a core service to corporate and academic partners.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Laboratoire Magellan: Research laboratory for management sciences covering finance, HR, strategy, marketing, and information systems
• LAB'iaelyon
• Chaire Valeurs du soin
• Chaire Valorisation des modèles coopératifs et mutualistes
• Chaire Expertise et conseils des TPE/PME

Products and services

• Licence (Bachelor) Programs Undergraduate management degree programs including general Licences and Professional Licences, designed for French and international high school graduates seeking a foundational management credential.
• Master Degree Programs Specialized graduate degree programs (40 in total) covering finance, marketing, HR, strategy, accounting, entrepreneurship, and other management disciplines, offered in initial training and apprenticeship tracks.
• Expertise Comptable: DCG and DSCG Professional accounting certifications (DCG and DSCG) preparing students for the French chartered accountancy pathway, delivered in partnership with the Ordre des Experts-Comptables Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes.
• Doctorate (PhD) Programs Doctoral research degrees in management sciences through the Laboratoire Magellan and partner EDSEG graduate school, designed for students pursuing academic or applied research careers.
• Executive MBA and Part-Time Masters Executive-level part-time Master degrees and Executive MBA program for working professionals seeking advanced management credentials while continuing employment.
• Diplôme Universitaire (DU) and Certificate Programs Specialized university diplomas and certificate programs covering targeted management disciplines, offered part-time for working professionals through the Formation Continue division.
• AI in Service of Marketing Certification 21-hour short certification program on AI applied to marketing, covering machine learning, deep learning, reinforcement learning, transformers, and NLP for marketing use cases; CPF-eligible.
• Customized Intra-Enterprise Training (Formations sur-mesure) Bespoke training programs designed and delivered for individual companies, addressing specific organizational development needs under the Formation Continue division.
• Validation des Acquis de l'Expérience (VAE) French VAE process that validates professional experience toward formal management credentials, provided to working professionals seeking certification of prior learning.
• Apprenticeship (Alternance) Programs Work-study programs (under apprentissage and professionalisation contracts) combining classroom instruction with salaried employment at sponsoring companies, open to Licence and Master candidates.
• Delocalized and International Programs iaelyon degree programs delivered abroad (in 12 countries) through partner universities, including double degrees and the Winter Program for international students.
• LAB'iaelyon Behavioral Analysis Research Services Applied research services and technical platform for behavioral analysis using eye-tracking and related methodologies, serving academic research and corporate clients in marketing, finance, HR, and strategy.
• Laboratoire Magellan Research Services Management sciences research through the Magellan laboratory and its eight research centers and four institutes (CREATE, IA, MOCOO, Performance Durable) producing publications, doctoral training, and corporate research collaborations.
• Clinique du Management Management consulting service offering applied student-and-faculty expertise to companies for the analysis and resolution of business problems.
• Recruitment Services (U3e Job Board) Career services and the U3e job board that connect iaelyon students and 70,000 alumni with company employers for internships, apprenticeships, and graduate positions.

Quantifiable outcome

• 40 Masters ranked in EDUNIVERSAL 2026 with 27 in top 10 and 12 in Top 5
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability6 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• ANACT (Agence Nationale pour l'Amélioration des Conditions de Travail)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025PROMETHEE 5.0 research project on reindustrialization and sustainable work, responding to ANACT 2025 call for projects (12 months, Dec 2025-Nov 2026).
• Tribune de LyoncoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 October 2024Media partner for DEMAIN C'EST BIEN series of discussions on innovative business models, impact, CSR and transforming companies. Co-hosting events with iaelyon experts.
• Alliade HabitatminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 October 2024Corporate partner participating in Tribune de Lyon events on Gen Z expectations and meaning at work, bringing HR perspective from housing sector.
• CPME Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes (Confédération des Petites et Moyennes Entreprises)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2024Formalized partnership in June 2024 to strengthen links between SMEs, teaching researchers, and students. Joint META.MORPH.OSE events and collaborative projects producing white papers on SME transformation challenges.
• Ordre des Experts-Comptables Auvergne-Rhône-AlpescoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Supporting partner of Chaire Expertise et conseils des TPE / PME (created 2022) developing training and research on SME support and consulting, especially in sustainability matters.
• UCB PharmacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2016Founding partner of Chaire Valeurs du soin (created 2016) analyzing evaluation, efficiency, and value concepts in healthcare with critical, multidisciplinary approach.
• Crédit Agricole Centre EstcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2012Co-founding partner of Chaire Valorisation des modèles coopératifs et mutualistes (created 2012) addressing cooperative and mutualist business models as alternatives to classical shareholder models.
• Jacquet BrossardcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2012Co-founding partner of Chaire Valorisation des modèles coopératifs et mutualistes addressing cooperative and mutualist business models.
• Ecole Doctorale Sciences Economiques et de Gestion (EDSEG)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGraduate school partnership for doctoral training and thesis supervision across management sciences.
• Université de LyoncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMember of ComUE Université de Lyon, a community of 11 universities and institutions plus 19 associates and 5 research organizations across Lyon and Saint-Étienne.
• relocalisations.fr think-tankminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAssociated member Carine Guillaud is President-founder of relocalisations.fr think-tank and F-2049 strategy consulting firm.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• IESEG School of Management: Lille/Paris-based school within Université Catholique de Lille, sharing the IAE-network management school structure (university-affiliated management school) with similar Licence-to-Master/Grande École Programme offerings and AACSB/Equis accreditations.
• EMLYON Business School: Lyon-based French Grande École offering Licence-to-Doctorate management programs, executive education, and applied research. Closest geographic and structural peer to iaelyon, with overlapping corporate partner ecosystem in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes.
• ESSEC Business School: French Grande École offering Grande École Programme, MBA, and executive education with strong AACSB/Equis/Triple-Crown accreditations. Comparable in degree portfolio and accreditation tier, but with a larger international footprint and higher tuition positioning.
• KEDGE Business School: Marseille/Bordeaux-based school formed from Euromed and Bordeaux management school, with Triple-Crown accreditation and broad program portfolio. Comparable in size, public-institution heritage, and continuing education offering.
• EDHEC Business School: Lille/Nice-based French Grande École with strong AACSB/Equis credentials, significant research output, and substantial executive education division. Comparable in research-orientation and triple-accreditation positioning to iaelyon.
• Audencia: Nantes-based French business school with AACSB/Equis/AMBA accreditations offering Bachelor, Master, MBA, and executive education. Comparable in scale, program breadth, and target student segments, with similar positioning in Eduniversal rankings.
• NEOMA Business School: Reims/Rouen-based French school with Triple-Crown accreditation and Bachelor-to-Doctorate portfolio. Comparable in scale and program structure, with similar continuing education and apprenticeship revenue models.
• SKEMA Business School: Multi-campus French school (Lille, Paris, Sophia Antipolis, international) with Triple-Crown accreditation and strong research output. Comparable in scale and program breadth, but with a more aggressive owned-campus international model.
• TBS Education: Toulouse-based French school (formerly Toulouse Business School) with AACSB/Equis/AMBA accreditation and programs from Bachelor to Doctorate. Comparable in scale, structure, and target student segments within the French non-Paris Grande École segment.

Broad incumbents

• HEC Paris: France's flagship Grande École with the strongest international brand in French management education. Operates the same degree range ( Licence/Master/MBA/Doctorate) but at substantially higher scale, brand premium, and tuition, serving as the upper-bound benchmark for iaelyon's competitive set.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeiae.univ-lyon3.fr/youtube
• Facebookiae.univ-lyon3.fr/facebook
• LinkedIniae.univ-lyon3.fr/linkedin
• Instagramiae.univ-lyon3.fr/instagram

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Subsidiaries8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about IAE Lyon School of Management