TOM ROZIÈRE

Tom Rozière is a former account manager at Google France and now a growth hacker at Deux.io. He earned his EDHEC International BBA degree in 2017 and an MSc in Data Analytics and Artificial Intelligence in 2018. Here, he shares his experience and his advice on building a career in digital marketing.

EDHEC BUSINESS SCHOOL: AN OBVIOUS POST-BACCALAUREATE CHOICE

From the moment I arrived at the Lycée Privé Mauriece Rondeau in Seine-et-Marne, I knew that I wanted to work in the business sector. It was clear that Economics and Social Sciences was the most judicious academic choice for me in order to meet my goals. Thanks to the excellent teaching staff at the lycée and the options I chose (sport and music), I was able to complete my baccalaureate, with honours.

After spending hours and hours studying the various programmes on offer at thousands of business schools, my choice naturally graduated towards EDHEC’s Bachelor degree programme for three reasons:

1. Its triple accreditation (AACSB, EQUIS and government approved) testifies to the School’s academic credentials both nationally and internationally;
2. The magnitude and modernity of the facilities on its campuses in Lille and Nice; and
3. Its array of student societies, one of the most vibrant in France, which allows you undertake real projects at just 18 years of age (knowing how to manage a budget, get sponsorship, organise an event, etc).

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE OUTSIDE THE NORM (NAMELY, GOOGLE!)

Over the course of my BBA, I had the opportunity to complete a number of internships in the digital arena. The very first was at a Dutch start-up, selling web solutions (creating internet sites, mobile apps, etc) to micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs). I was mainly in charge of commercial prospecting on LinkedIn.

A year later, I returned to the start-up environment in Germany, to an e-commerce company selling sanitaryware (toilets, showers, sinks, etc). This second experience allowed me to start testing the latest digital tools available at the time, such as Google Analytics, Semrush and Zapier, before embarking on my e-commerce specialisation in the fourth year.

Then, to conclude my degree, after much perseverance, I got the opportunity to work as an account manager at Google in Paris. My main job was to support future advertisers, essentially SMEs and start-ups, in adopting Google AdWords, creating strategies that were simultaneously pertinent and profitable. In addition to these tasks, I was a member of a team that took part in an internal competition and won the prize for the “Best HiPo Google France Sales Pitchers Q217” – a rather gratifying prize at just 21 years of age.

A GLOBAL MANAGER CERTIFICATE FROM YONSEI UNIVERSITY THAT MADE ALL THE DIFFERENCE

Academic exchanges are an obligatory part of the EDHEC International BBA programme. I wanted to do an exchange in a country that was a little out of the ordinary and avoid countries such as the USA, England, or even Australia. I, therefore, decided to go to South Korea, the home of all things digital, to earn a Global Manager Certificate from the renowned Yonsei University (top 15 in Asia). Taught 100% in English (and sometimes in Korean), the subjects were resolutely oriented towards team and project management. This exchange has sparked a considerable amount of questioning and curiosity, especially by HR in interviews. Today, I enthusiastically explain the benefits of the certification to them.

Yonsei University

CHOOSING FURTHER STUDY IN KEEPING WITH THE BBA

From the start of my academic education with the EDHEC International BBA, I wanted to study for a Master’s degree to improve my employability. It seemed obvious to me to want to stay within the group and apply for the MSc in Data Analytics and Artificial Intelligence. Having achieved good results over the years meant I was placed on the Dean’s List (notably, as valedictorian of the e-commerce group) and was accepted for this new, ground-breaking Master’s degree.

That last year of my studies was intensive. We were the first graduate class to embark on the new programme, which is rich in mathematics and data analysis. The programme was designed around three main axes:

• Data analysis (data mining, data visualisation, data regulation, etc);
• Coding, learning Python and R; and
• Digital marketing (data and e-commerce, customer analytics, etc).

It was essential for me to choose a specialisation in data analysis, as the new trend in the digital world is and will be artificial intelligence.