Meet Hager Jemel-Fornetty, a Professor determined to change perceptions about inclusion and diversity

Today's Hager is the product of a personal and family history that began on the Tunisian shores of the Mediterranean, in Sfax. Country's second largest economic hub, this port city was the backdrop for the early adventures of a young girl steeped in her hometown. ‘Sfax is a crossroads,’ she explains. ‘It's a city with an entrepreneurial spirit and a strong work ethic. Education is also very important here, with the highest number of honours in the country's baccalaureate exams. It's a city with strong values.’

These values are also embodied within the walls of the family home. Hager is the youngest sibling and the only girl.

Her father was self-taught and embodied the idea of rising through hard work: hired at the age of 16 as a courier in a large French company (editor's note: Tunisia was then under French protectorate), he climbed the corporate ladder one rung at a time to become managing director.

Her mother, who was more educated than his father, regretted her decision to put her career on hold for her husband and encouraged all her children to seize every opportunity and fight against injustice.

‘This family history is the foundation of my journey,’ explains Hager. ‘I now realise how incredibly lucky I was to have access to education and the same opportunities as my brothers, to have grown up in a family that worked hard to get ahead and passed on these fundamental values to us.’

A brilliant student, she completed her entire education at a state school, opting for a science stream without ever touching economics. But on the eve of choosing her higher education, while spending the weekend at a friend's house, a discussion with her friend's uncle, a finance professor, turned everything upside down. Convinced that this was the path for her, the girl who, 24 hours earlier, still saw herself as a botanist or agronomist, ticked the ‘business school’ box. And the wheels were set in motion.

She obtained a Master's degree in Management in Sfax in 2002 before turning to research. A single application sent to the IAE in Lille opened the doors to a Master's 2 research programme.

Having discovered the world of crisis management a few months earlier during an internship, she arrived in the northern metropolis with the idea of starting work in strategy and organisation. There she discovered a new perspective, different teaching methods and subjects she had never explored before, including sociology and epistemology. It was a revelation.

The next mountain to climb is a PhD. For this adventure, Hager changes subject and chooses to work on the consideration of ESG (environmental, social and governance) criteria in company valuation. At the time, research on the subject was still in its infancy, with little academic literature available. It was virtually uncharted territory, where she could combine her interest in finance with her social commitment. To finance her thesis at the IAE in Lille, she found a position as a research assistant at an institution she was not yet familiar with: EDHEC Business School.

This experience would prove to be much more formative than she had anticipated. Not content with opening academic doors, she became interested in the world of education itself. Her thesis, entitled ‘Societal information and the financial valuation of company securities,’ earned her honours in 2010.

With a PhD in management, she first joined ESC Amiens as a Professor before moving on to executive roles: director of the Grande Ecole Programme and then of the educational innovation department. There, she carried out in-depth work to understand the factors that lead to failure, improve student support and rethink the educational offering.

Returning to EDHEC in 2016, she joined the Diversity & Inclusion Chair and the Management and Humanities department as an Associate professor. Since then, she has continued to develop teaching approaches, notably as head of the Pre-Master's programme from 2017 to 2023, where she has thoroughly reformed the support provided to the 700 students involved in this pivotal year, including the introduction of a condensed four-day week. Within a collective driven by excellence, the contribution of these developments is clear: the Grande Ecole programme has consistently ranked fourth in the SIGEM rankings since 2020. But Hager is not chasing numbers. ‘I measure my success by my impact on students,’ she says. ‘Every person I have been able to touch in one way or another is an endless source of motivation and pride.’

This contribution takes many forms at EDHEC. Her courses in change management and leadership, taught at the pre-Master's, Master's and Bachelor's levels, leave a lasting impression, but it is on inclusion and diversity that she has made the strongest mark. ‘Since I took over as chair in 2017, it has been repositioned to focus more on disseminating research and knowledge through educational initiatives that help to better integrate these issues into the curriculum.’ The project on gender-based and sexual violence is a perfect illustration of this: an innovative card game that has trained 9,000 students and will soon be rolled out in companies.

Her research, which is often collaborative and multidisciplinary, has led to joint publications such as one on gender stereotypes in video games (1) and another on the under-representation of female artists and directors in museums (2) with Guergana Guintcheva, also a Professor at EDHEC. Hager has also initiated new teaching formats: her Tremplin Diversité & Inclusion, for example, offers students the opportunity to work with companies and associations that have a strong social impact.

‘I would like future generations to be able to grow up in a more equal and fairer world,’ she sums up. This aspiration is perfectly in line with EDHEC's Generations 2050 strategic plan. ‘With every seminar, course or conference, we try to sow seeds, provide impetus and raise awareness that will, we hope, contribute to positive change.’

But Hager does not intend to stop there. In February 2025, she took a new turn by becoming Associate Dean for Undegraduate studies. This role opens a new chapter, resolutely focused on action and transformation. ‘Working closely with the teams, one of my priority missions will be to train committed and responsible citizens and professionals who are capable of contributing positively to society and supporting its transformation,’ she explains.

All these projects have been driven by the same militant energy and the same demand for meaning that have marked her entire career. It's a safe bet that the next time Hager looks back, she won't just see her own path, but all the trajectories she has helped to chart and all the futures she has yet to invent.

Key dates

Since 2025 : Associate Dean for EDHEC Undergraduate studies

Since 2016 : Associate Professor and Director of the Diversity & Inclusion Chair, EDHEC Business School

2008-2015 : ESC Amiens - France Business School, Amiens

2013-2015 : Director of the pedagogical innovation department

2012-2015 : Director of the Graduate Program

2008-2015 : Professor in Management

2004-2010 : PhD in Management, IAE, Lille

2008-2010 : Research Assistant, IAE, Lille

2004-2006 : Research Assistant, EDHEC Business School, Lille

2002-2003 : Master 2 Research (DEA) in Strategy & Organisation, Institut d’Administration des Entreprises (IAE), Lille

2002 : Master's Degree in Management, École Supérieure de Commerce, Sfax, Tunisia

To know more about Hager Jemel-Fornetty

• See her webpage on edhec.edu
• Visit her personal Linkedin profile
• Discover the Diversity & Inclusion Chair and/or the Undergraduate studies webpages

References

(1) Napoleon vs Marie-Antoinette: Gender Stereotypes in Video Games Consumption and Their Reproduction in Game Narratives (2023) International Journal of Arts Management - https://www.researchgate.net/publication/374170745_Napoleon_vs_Marie-Antoinette_Gender_Stereotypes_in_Video_Games_Consumption_and_Their_Reproduction_in_Game_Narratives

Hager Jemel-Fornetty : « Our test assesses sexism in video games for the first time: the results are indisputable » (2023) EDHEC Vox - https://www.edhec.edu/en/research-and-faculty/edhec-vox/hager-jemel-fornetty-test-assessing-sexism-video-games-results-indisputable

Gender stereotypes in video game narratives (2022) EDHEC Vox / The Conversation - https://www.edhec.edu/en/research-and-faculty/edhec-vox/gender-stereotypes-in-video-game-narratives

See the project 'Video games put to the test of parity' - https://www.edhec.edu/en/recherche-et-faculte/centres-et-chaires/chaire-diversite-inclusion/publications/le-gaming-a-l-epreuve-de-la-parite

(2) Where are the women in museum collections and in positions of responsibility? (2024) EDHEC Vox / The Conversation - https://www.edhec.edu/en/research-and-faculty/edhec-vox/where-are-women-in-museum-collections-and-positions-responsibility-art