Centre d'Economie Sociale

What Centre d'Economie Sociale does

Centre d'Economie Sociale (CES) is a non-profit academic research and teaching unit operating within HEC Liège at the Université de Liège in Belgium, established in 1992. Its mission is to develop research and education in social economy, alternative business models, and the transition toward a sustainable economic system. The center engages with social economy enterprises, cooperatives, and non-profits through research partnerships, field engagement, and community dialogue, anchoring its academic work in practitioner realities.

CES delivers an academic product portfolio rather than a technology product. Offerings include a Master en Management des Entreprises Sociales et de la Transition, an inter-university Master de Spécialisation en Économie Sociale co-developed with UCLouvain, an inter-university Certificat en Management des Entreprises d'Économie Sociale delivered jointly with UCLouvain, Université de Mons, and Université libre de Bruxelles (priced at 800 EUR with Walloon Region subsidy), and a doctoral seminar for PhD researchers. Research output is organized around named chairs (Baillet Latour, Postgrowth, W-Alter) and funded projects (ESCAP, SDG Impulse, baSE).

The center operates on a public university funding model supplemented by tuition fees and research grants. Core funding flows from the Université de Liège; tuition revenue comes from the Certificate (800 EUR per student) and Master programs at ULiège-standard rates; research project funding is provided by the Walloon Region. The team is small (8 employees, 4 named faculty, all PhDs from HEC Liège), and distribution is campus-based across partner universities in Liège, Louvain-la-Neuve, and Charleroi. Customer segments span social economy enterprises (research and training clients), graduate students and professionals (degree and certificate buyers), and academic researchers (collaborators). Marketing is conducted through LinkedIn, Facebook, YouTube, email newsletters, and the ULiège institutional website.

Name

Centre d'Economie Sociale

Legal name

Université de Liège

Website

https://ces.uliege.be

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Centre d'Economie Sociale (CES) is an academic research and teaching unit within HEC Liège, Université de Liège, that delivers Master, advanced Master, and inter-university certificate programs in social economy management and runs funded research projects on alternative business models and sustainable economic transition for students, practitioners, and academic collaborators in Belgium and Europe.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Higher Education and Academic Research

NAICS

Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (6113), Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities (541720), Educational Services (611)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700)

akta.pro primary industry

Social Sciences & Public Policy Research Universities (EDAHABAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

International & Comparative Education Policy Organizations (EDADADAL), Higher Education Governance & Quality Policy Research (EDADADAI)

Keywords

• Social economy research
• Higher education programs
• Sustainable business models
• Social enterprise management
• Academic research center

Headquarters

HQ city

Liège

HQ country

Belgium

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. University Public Funding: Core funding from Université de Liège as an academic research unit within HEC Liège. Operating as part of the public university system.
2. Tuition and Registration Fees: Certificate program registration fees (800 euros), Master program tuition fees for specialized programs.
3. Research Grants and Projects: Funding from research projects including ESCAP, SDG Impulse, and Projet baSE, with support from Walloon Region.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Centre d'Economie Sociale is an academic research and teaching center within HEC Liège at the Université de Liège that delivers higher education programs (Master, Advanced Master, Certificate, Doctoral Seminar) and applied research on social economy, alternative business models, and the transition toward a sustainable economic system. Its core commercial offerings are tuition-based degree and certificate programs for graduate students and professionals, accompanied by funded research projects (ESCAP, SDG Impulse, baSE) and named research chairs.

Product overview

The Centre d'Économie Sociale (CES) operates as an academic research and teaching center within HEC Liège at the University of Liège. Its product portfolio consists primarily of higher education programs: the Master en Management des Entreprises Sociales et de la Transition and the Master de Spécialisation en Économie Sociale (a joint program with UCLouvain) for specialized master's degrees, plus the Certificat en Management des Entreprises d'Économie Sociale (an inter-university certificate with four Belgian universities). These programs are complemented by a doctoral seminar and research activities encompassing chairs, ESCAP, SDG Impulse, and baSE projects. CES does not offer a technology product but rather delivers academic programs focused on social economy, sustainable business models, and ecological transition.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Master in Management of Social Enterprises and Transition (Master en Management des Entreprises Sociales et de la Transition) A master's degree program providing multidisciplinary analysis frameworks and management tools for the management of social enterprises and the transition toward sustainable economic models. Targeted at graduate students and professionals seeking specialization in social enterprise management.
• Advanced Master in Social Economy (Master de Spécialisation en Économie Sociale) An inter-university advanced master's program jointly run with UCLouvain for specializing in social economy and discovering enterprises serving social and ecological transition. Targeted at graduate students and professionals.
• Inter-University Certificate in Management of Social Economy Enterprises (Certificat en Management des Entreprises d'Économie Sociale) An inter-university certificate program (10 ECTS, 1 year) providing theoretical and practical tools for developing projects within social economy enterprises, covering governance, HR management, financing, and social impact assessment. Priced at 800 euros with an advantageous rate supported by the Walloon Region. Targeted at professionals working in or with social economy enterprises.
• Doctoral Seminar (Séminaire Doctoral) A doctoral seminar for PhD researchers in social economy and sustainable entrepreneurship, offered as part of CES's research training activities.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Université de Liège (ULiège)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHome institution of the Centre d'Economie Sociale. CES operates as a research unit within HEC Liège at Université de Liège, receiving institutional support and infrastructure.
• HEC LiègecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBusiness school hosting the CES center. Provides academic framework and management expertise for social economy research and education programs.
• UCLouvain (Université catholique de Louvain)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-developer of inter-university Master and Certificate programs in social economy. Partners include Faculté ouverte de politique économique et sociale.
• Université de MonsmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner university contributing to inter-university Certificate program through its Faculté Warocqué d'Économie et de Gestion.
• Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner university contributing Solvay Brussels School of Economics and Management expertise to inter-university Certificate program.
• Chaire Baillet LatourcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNamed chair in Business Ethics and Philanthropy held by Virginie Xhauflair, providing research focus and funding for ethical business practices in social economy.
• PostgrowthminorOthersResearch chair partner focused on post-growth economic models. Contributes to academic research on alternative economic paradigms.
• W-AlterminorOthersPartner organization contributing to research on alternative economic models and sustainable transition.
• Université de Roskilde (Denmark)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational partner university for Master program exchanges, offering international perspective on social economy studies.
• Université d'Aix-Marseille (France)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational partner university for Master program option on international approach to social economy.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• ESSEC Business School - Chair of Social Innovation and Social Entrepreneurship: ESSEC runs a dedicated academic chair and programs on social innovation and entrepreneurship in France. It overlaps with CES's curriculum on social-economy enterprise management but at a much larger, internationally-oriented French business school.
• ISEAD (Instituto de Estudios de la Empresa y del Desarrollo) / ESADE Business School Social Innovation programs: ESADE runs social-enterprise and impact-focused academic and executive programs in Spain and internationally. As a larger business school offering overlapping social-economy education, it is a broader incumbent peer with a comparable curriculum niche.
• Skoll Centre for Social Entrepreneurship at Oxford Saïd Business School: The Skoll Centre combines research, MBA electives and executive education on social entrepreneurship at Oxford. It is comparable to CES as a university-embedded research-and-teaching hub for social enterprise, though at much larger scale and global reach.
• University of Liège - HEC Liège: HEC Liège is the host business school of CES, offering broader management education and research. While CES sits within it, HEC is the broader institutional incumbent providing infrastructure, branding and degree-granting authority.

Direct peers

• University of Trento - Euricse (European Research Institute on Cooperative and Social Enterprises): Euricse is a leading European research institute dedicated to cooperatives, social enterprises and social economy, combining academic research with practitioner engagement. It is highly comparable to CES in mission, research output, and its role within a host university.
• CIRIEC (International Centre of Research and Information on the Public, Social and Cooperative Economy): CIRIEC is also hosted at Université de Liège and focuses on research on the public, social and cooperative economy. As a sister research center on the same campus and overlapping subject matter, it is one of the most directly comparable organizations to CES.
• EMES International Research Network: EMES is a transnational research network focused on social enterprise and the third sector, conducting comparative research and doctoral training across European universities. It is the closest peer to CES in subject matter (social economy research and education) and operates across similar academic institutional partners.

Regional players

• KU Leuven Centre for Social and Cultural Anthropology / HIVA Research Institute for Work and Society: HIVA is a Belgian university research institute studying work, society and the social economy, with policy-relevant research for the Flemish and federal government. It competes for the same Belgian academic and policy audience as CES, though it operates in the Flemish rather than Walloon ecosystem.
• Université catholique de Louvain (UCLouvain) - Centre de recherche interdisciplinaire sur la famille, l'emploi et la vie sociale / social economy teaching: UCLouvain is a direct partner of CES on the Advanced Master in Social Economy and contributes faculty and students. It is a comparable Belgian academic institution engaging with social economy research and education, making it a regional peer as well as a partner.

Emerging players

• Middlesex University Business School - Centre for Enterprise and Economic Development Research (CEEDR): CEEDR is a UK university research center focused on social enterprise, cooperatives and the social economy. It overlaps with CES in research themes and applied work with social economy actors, though on a different geographic market.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC95tYj3H_BRW-KEJnQFsW3Q
• Facebookfacebook.com/CESulg
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ces-uliege

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 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 Centre d'Economie Sociale