TESTIMONIALS

What they say about us

BENJAMIN MASSET

Project Manager Real Estate at Liège Airport

The Open Borders MBA was an amazing experience in various aspects. First of all, from my point of view, executive education is the best way to learn applicable concepts and strategies to develop your work vision. Every weekend was an adventure, a challenge and even more, a lot of fun. The topics that were discussed and developed were wide and always very exciting thanks to the guest experts. Last but not least, I met outstanding people that helped me to understand our world, be ambitious and create my future (projects). This Open Borders MBA is way more than 2 years of hard work and a challenging master’s thesis, it is a way of shaping yourself to grow up.

An Voets

Graduating from the Open Borders MBA was a truly enriching experience. One of the aspects I apprecia merit.

Business Developer in BIOMED at Hasselt University

Raik Rieger

As a former German Army officer, my career path felt rigid and predetermined. I knew I needed a ch merit.

Peter Notermans

There is a saying that you can't teach an old dog new tricks. But yes you can! During my career I ha merit.

Founder and owner of Qualifice BV CPO at Touch Biometrix Ltd

Quentin Vangramberen

This program has immediately sparked my interest as presenting itself in an opportunity I believe I merit.

Protocol Manager at the British Embassy

Dirk Kuyckx

The Open Border MBA is an exciting and intense journey in the professional business landscape. Vis merit.

VP & General Manager at Schumacher EU

François Strykers

I am a man of results and KPIs, so, I will describe first and foremost about the results that the Op merit.

Management Consultant Strykonsult

Gilles Godissart

I was looking for a way to build my business reasoning with a theoretical structure, I found much mo merit.

Sales Manage at C&I Waste

Vincent Servais

It is never too late, definitely! Enrolling in an MBA program has been a lifelong dream of mine and merit.

General Manager at Grafische Groep Matthys

Eddy Mutombo Kalenda

The decision to join an MBA program is often motivated by the new career opportunities it opens. Thi merit.

Retail Director at Arval BNP Paribas Group

Christophe Gaspard

I am very happy that I decided to go back to HEC for my MBA. I had two young children and worked ful merit.

Sourcing Team Lead at ING Luxembourg

Steven Goetstouwers

Entrepreneurs all know the importance of an overall helicopter view of their business and strategy, merit.

CEO/Entrepreneur at Admesy

Sonia Frank

Passionate about the inevitable innovation and digitalisation across the sectors in which I have pro merit.

Secretary-General of the Innovative Pharmaceutical Industry in Luxembourg and the President of the Luxembourg Medicine Verification Organisation

Ersid Lamçaj

The program was composed of very comprehensive courses, with content and information that could be a merit.

Blockchain Solution Architect

Benjamin Masset

The Open Borders MBA was an amazing experience in various aspects. First of all, from my point of vi merit.

Project Manager Real Estate at Liège Airport

Fanny Cuisinet

When I started the Open Border MBA program, I expected to develop my theoretical skills and to be ab merit.

Analyst - Adviser of the Creation Division at Sowalfin

Dirk Roosen

I find the Open Borders MBA a challenging and enriching experience. It gives me the extra tools I ne merit.

General Manager at Verolub

Ann Peters

I am very happy that I decided to take part in the Open Borders MBA course program. Being a directo merit.

General Manager at the Institute of Tropical Medicine

Justyna Dolega

I truly enjoyed the Open Borders MBA program and the investment I made there has changed both my pr merit.

Global Innovation Manager at Armacell Benelux SCS

Bernard Jouan

In an ever more complex environment, companies of all sizes are looking for creative partners, sharp merit.

Director General Retail & Private Banking at BNP Paribas Fortis

Jacques Galloy

Developing knowledge of business realities from Paris to Berlin and from Amsterdam to Luxembourg, th merit.

Former Director & CEO at EVS Broadcast Equipment - Belgium

Georges Hübner

How could an MBA carve its path through a saturated market? I have taken notice of the intelligence merit.

Finance Professor at HEC Liège

Petr Simik

Starting the Open Borders MBA was the best choice I have made from my personal perspective. First, i merit.

Team Leader of electric, instrumentation and Automation at John Cockerill

Geoffrey Prevot

The Open Borders MBA was an amazing experience that surpassed all of my expectations. While startin merit.

Senior sourcing officer at IBA

Charlemagne Noukoua

Born and raised in Cameroun, I arrived in Belgium after high school to continue university studies i merit.

Radiologist at CHU Liège

Peter Ghelen

Developing the potential of people and organizations has always been my passion. Building organizati merit.

Head of the Learning Department at Agentschap integratie en inburgering

Kerstin Rauw

I really recommend the Open Borders MBA program also to people working in smaller structures .The p merit.

CEO at ATS Rauw

Karin Walravens

The Open Borders MBA was a journey to a better me. That’s how I can best summarize the experience. merit.

Training programs Designer & Sales Academy Coordinator at HEC Liège - Executive Education

Laureline Renson

Most of the people I tell that I followed the Open Borders MBA program ask me what I learned, as I a merit.

Investment Manager at Ostbelgieninvest

Benjamin Muller-Schulten

Besides the content, the major benefit that I took out of the program was working together with expe merit.

Department Head Operational Excellence Management/ Production System at Chocoladefabriken Lindt & Sprüngli

Dirk Jenear

I started the Open Borders MBA program in 2017, while I was sales Director at Pami. I felt and still merit.

CEO at Arjemo

Abderrahmane Mikou

I strongly believe that it was one of the greatest decisions I have made regarding the future develo merit.

Senior Software Developer at Ingenieurgruppe

Marc Linder

The first question that comes to people's mind when I tell them about the executive MBA I did, is: w merit.

Global Distributor Service Manager at Boston Scientific International

Nico Wolff

I was able to restructure the whole WolffGroup into one ecosystem around the customer, starting from merit.

CEO at Wolff Group

Karin Willio

I obtained the MBA degree in 2017. It was not a classroom experience at all! The intensive progra merit.

Chief Financial Officer at VINCI Facilities Belgium, VINCI Energies

Emmanuel Kongolo

I think that the Open Borders MBA is even more than a high-level academic program! Through its high merit.

Regional sales manager at Citizen Systems Europe

Peter Piccard

The most appealing thing for me about the Open Borders MBA is the fact that, during the courses of merit.

Co-founder of Engenius & Owner of Piccard Engineering

Peter Timmermans

The unique possibility to combine the Open Borders MBA with a Master in Management Sciences convince merit.

Process manager, responsible for maintenance and reliability at Arcelor Mittal Geel

Martine Daenen

The Open Borders MBA was very valuable to me for various reasons. The different languages emphasize merit.

Director Secure Consultancy & Safety Solutions BeNeLux at G4S

Annabelle Mockel

Initially , I chose to do an MBA with the objective of acquiring the necessary knowledge to give mys merit.

CEO at MOCKEL AG

Steven Van Hellemont

As a Senior Solutions Consultant for the outsourcing of operations, I have had to deal with several merit.

Business Planning and Optimisation Manager at BICS

Frank Conrads

I enrolled in The Open Borders MBA in order to gain knowledge in economics to complement my technica merit.

Plant Manager at Aryzta

INTERVIEWS

"REVOLUTION IN THE CLEANING INDUSTRY"
- Martin Schoonbroodt
- Probiotic Group
The first time I discussed probiotics with Martin was in 2015 at HEC on the day of his defense for the Open Borders MBA final thesis - a program in which he is now playing the role of an expert. He wa... then Program Manager at PFSweb. His dissertation, a market study which aimed at marketing cleaning and hygiene products, was the starting point of a new entrepreneurial adventure with his father. Let's focus on this biotech start-up that has already become a family success story! In November 2020, it is in Beiler, a small village in the north of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, that I met Martin, now co-founder, shareholder, and Chief Commercial Officer at Probiotic Group. The story began in 2015 in an incubator in the Netherlands, where Martin and his father launched Probiotic Group and developed a prototype of an innovative surface cleaner in partnership with the University of Eindhoven. The start-up moved to the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, a few kilometers away from the German-speaking community where Martin and his father comes from. The Schoonbroodts decided to offer a range of cleaning, hygiene, and care products from their newly born brand Provilan. To support their R&D and their implantation on the territory, the Ministry of Economy of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg put at their disposal 3.6 million Euros and researchers thanks to a partnership with the University of Luxembourg (LCSB) on the one hand and the Luxembourg Institute of science and technology (LIST) on the other hand. A valuable tripartite collaboration that will enable the development of the brand's innovative products. It is in the probiotic formula that stands the trademark and innovation of Provilan's products that use probiotics as active agents. At a time when the World Health Organization (WHO) is warning of the increase in the number of multi-resistant pathogenic bacteria, linked to our over-consumption of antiseptics, antibiotics, and disinfectants among other things, probiotic solutions are emerging as a natural and sustainable alternative to fight against a public health problem that could be at the heart of the 21st century's concerns. Unlike conventional disinfectants, which eradicate bacteria indiscriminately by sanitizing surfaces, the use of probiotics acts on pathogenic bacteria while preserving commensal (non-pathogenic) bacteria to ensure their reproduction and thus restore healthy biological flora. The probiotic solution, therefore, proves to be eco-responsible and sustainable. Today, the company offers a range of 80 products, from allergenic pet sprays to soil removers and sanitary cleaners. These products ensure the cleaning, hygiene, and care in the area of pets and horses, in domestic cleaning, in the area of sport, fitness, and wellness, in the agricultural sector, and the industrial sector. In terms of application, a partnership with the equine veterinary clinic of the University of Liège is set to develop a cleaning protocol to fight against the proliferation, in particular, of Staphylococcus aureus (publication to be published in 2021-2022). The development possibilities are enormous and allow to predict a good future for the start-up, already in discussion with large cleaning groups to integrate their formula into their products. The next pallets containing the valuable micro-organisms will be sent to Denmark and the USA. Today, the start-up has no less than 10 employees, half of whom are microbiologists, laboratory technicians, and bioinformaticians. Probiotic group serves 1,500 customers (in Germany, Great Britain, Italy, Benelux, Switzerland, and the United States), including 1,000 from the European German-speaking community (Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and of course Ostbelgian). Its customers, doctors, veterinarians, pharmacists, gym managers, organic stores, and other convinced ambassadors generally become distributors of probiotic products through an eCommerce platform developed for multi-level sales. Probiotic Group is thus one of the few companies that will have benefited from the health crisis, with a 300% increase in turnover (to almost one million euros in 2020) and the launch last April of a hygiene spray for reusable masks that will have sold no less than 150,000 units. We, therefore, salute this father-son duo which we will certainly hear about and who are planning a fundraising campaign in 2021 to support their growth. Investors, you are informed! Say "cheese" The Schoonbroodt father-son partnership does not stop there in terms of innovation. Martin, with his first training as an IT consultant, also contributed to the development of iSmile, one of Martin Schoonbroodt Senior's companies, an innovative dental care practice bringing together dentists and orthodontists in Eupen and Saint Vith. Innovation and digitalization are at the heart of iSmile's way of working, which includes the high-tech equipment of the practice, digital consultations, remote follow-up of the evolution of the treatment, the use of artificial intelligence, 3D scanning and Invisalign 3D printing for the realization of custom-made transparent aligners. iSmile was also the subject of a showcase by Microsoft Belgium with the participation of Echo/De Tijd.

https://www.linkedin.com/company/probiotic-group/
"DEVELOPING MY STRATEGIC VISION AND NETWORK"
- Karin Willio
- Financial controller VINCI energies Belgium Alumni Cohort 4 - (2015-2017)
she became a business controller when Cegelec took over ABB. When Cegelec was integrated with the VINCI Group, she joined the ... Human Resources department as an HR Compensation & Benefits manager. It is on the advice of the Human Resources Director, Eddy Vandersmissen, also a graduate of Open Borders MBA, and with the financial support of the VINCI Group, that she joined the cohort 4 of the program in 2015. For two years, Karin worked as a financial controller at VINCI Energies Belgium while in parallel attending monthly MBA seminars. At the end of the program, Karin wished to implement the assets of its training at the international level within the VINCI Group. Her involvement with the Open Borders MBA has also enabled VINCI Energies to become one of the favourite partners of the Smart City Institute of HEC Liège.
"BORDERS AS MEETING POINTS, RATHER THAN DIVIDING LINES?"
- Daniel Niessen
- Project manager for the development of regional marketing in the German-speaking community Alumni Cohort 2 (2013-2015)
Determined to join the European Commission and aware of the importance of languages for the achievement of his objective, Daniel Niessen decided to go on exchange to Mexico with the Rotary to learn Sp... nish after secondary school. Later, he got a degree in translation (FR/NL/EN) in Brussels and learned Polish during evening classes. Highly motivated to realize his dream, he obtained an additional master's degree at the KUL in comparative and international politics that allowed him to intern at the European Commission's "blue book". Nevertheless, Daniel realized that he wanted to get involved at the Community level, more precisely in his region of origin; the German-speaking community. Therefore, he applied to work at the office of Minister-President Karl-Heinz Lambertz, who proposed to him the position of press secretary. Back then, the German-speaking community also participated in the construction of the Open Borders MBA program, an academic project built between regional academic institutions. While preparing for the press conference with HEC Liège, UHasselt and the FHAchen for the launching of that program, Daniel found out about it. A year later, he signed up with the support of the German-speaking community and chose as a theme for its final work: the deployment of the brand Ostbelgien and its regional marketing.
"DON'T WAIT TO DO WHAT YOU LIKE" FROM THE INSULIN PUMP TO THE ROYAL COFFEE CLUB!
- Charlotte Bauwens
- Founder and general manager at the Royal Coffee Club Alumni Cohort 2 (2013-2015)
Charlotte Bauwens, 38 years old, is now the founder and manager of the Royal Coffee Club in Herve. After obtaining a degree in general and international management at HEC Liège, she started her caree... as a medical delegate at Innovex, then at Johnson & Johnson. Later on, she then joined the company Medtronic Belgium that financed her Open Borders MBA after only 6 months of service. As expected, the program was a real professional springboard for her. Indeed, after her graduation she became head of a business unit at the European level in Medtronic Switzerland. Enriched by both her MBA and this prestigious professional experience, Charlotte decided in 2017 to give a new direction to her personal career by realizing her own entrepreneurial project: the Royal Coffee Club in Herve, with the motto 'eat local, healthy, tasty and comfy'! Thoughtful, rigorous and ambitious, her objective is to expand her activities and open franchises.

Feel like a stop at the Royal Coffee Club? Go to Outre-cour 118C - 4651 Battice-Herve
"DELIGHTED TO ANNOUNCE THE BIRTH OF ... XPRIENCE !"
- Edouard Bokuetenge
- Co-founder of Xperience Alumni cohort 3 (2014-2016)
After a career of nearly 20 years as an international executive in the financial sector in Luxembourg and London, Edouard Bokuetenge, Open Border MBA 2016 class (OBMBA), decided to take on a new chall... nge by launching Xprience, his startup Consulting & Interim Management company based in the region of Liège. "We founded Xprience in June 2018, with my business partner Jean-François Thissen, because we wanted to provide a concrete, reliable and structured response to the current talent war. Access to qualified experienced profiles on an ad hoc basis or over a fixed period is often difficult. The best are very much sought after. At the same time, many companies are facing urgent challenges for which they do not have the necessary in-house skills. For them, Xprience represents a solution offering a very strong value proposition. The Open Borders MBA was an important turning point in my professional life. This training gave me the audacity I needed to dare to undertake. The key words over these two years were: hard work, healthy competition and a spirit of friendship. The Open Borders MBA also enabled me to reconnect to my home region, to appreciate its evolution and to definitively convince myself of its enormous development potential. Through this project, we, as a whole new generation of young entrepreneurs, want to demonstrate our commitment to Wallonia

For more information on the startup, please go to: www.xprience.be