Lead360: A personalised leadership journey at the heart of the EDHEC Global MBA

“To really transition and to transform”

Lead360 was created with a clear intention. As Professor Inge de Clippeleer explains, “we want to help our global MBA participants to really transition and to transform.”

MBA participants arrive to strengthen their expertise in finance, marketing or strategy. They also arrive with a deeper ambition. “If they come to an MBA, they don't only come to really find functional knowledge… They really come to become a different person so to say.”

Lead360 accompanies that evolution. It runs alongside the academic curriculum from start to finish, forming what Professor de Clippeleer describes as “a personalized program to enhance your leadership skills” and “to also help you to self-reflect.” The objective is sustained growth rather than isolated workshops.

The programme sits at the heart of a 10-month MBA structured around strategic foundations, electives, a specialisation track and a tailored MBA project  

Within this framework, Lead360 ensures that leadership development progresses in parallel with business knowledge.

Leadership development woven into every course

Lead360 is not confined to a single module. “We've really carefully made a choice to kind of weave 360 into everything in the program,” says Professor de Clippeleer.

Participants attend dedicated seminars on communication, negotiation, diversity and team effectiveness  

Leadership development is also embedded in core academic moments. Presentations, for instance, are assessed not only on analytical content but on influence and impact. “The faculty involved will give them feedback on their class, the content of it, but we will give feedback on how they presented and how they've sold their story and inspired people.”

This dual lens reflects the demands of contemporary leadership. Clear thinking and compelling delivery operate together. Strategic insight gains traction through presence and persuasion.

For many participants, this integrated approach sharpens emotional intelligence. As one student notes, “Lead 360 helps me grow and deep dive into my emotional quotient… it is helping me develop my emotional intelligence as well.”

A safe space for experimentation and growth

Leadership capacity develops through practice. Lead360 therefore creates an environment where participants can test, adjust and refine their approach. “The lead 360 program, it's a bit like your safe place. It's your playground. So, you can try, you can learn, you can fail. That's actually part of the learning curve.”

Group work provides a practical laboratory. The Global MBA cohort is deliberately international and diverse  

Collaboration becomes both a necessity and a learning opportunity. Within Lead360, participants reflect on how they operate in teams, how they manage disagreement and how they respond to tension. “When we work in a group context, we don't just stick to communications. We have conflicts as well. We have different opinions and perspective.”

This reflection cultivates what one participant describes as the ability to “look into a problem from different lenses” and develop “crosscultural empathy.”

From professional experience to purposeful leadership

Personalisation remains central. “What is crucial to us is that everybody who comes through this door… feels that there's a personalization… and that we guide them along their path from the professional they were to the professional they want to become.”

Many participants use the MBA to prepare a significant transition. “I would like to change industry, change job and perhaps even changing country or continent,” one explains. The programme “really helped me to pause for a moment, self-reflect before taking my next step.”

Lead360 ultimately supports a broader ambition. The goal is to shape “complete professionals, good leaders who try to have that ripple effect on the people around them, on companies, asking the ethical questions, asking the sustainability questions, asking the people questions so that they lead with purpose and with value.”

As Professor de Clippeleer concludes, “it all starts here.”