“Research must have an impact on all the stakeholders in the ecosystem”

In September 2023, Serge Da Motta Veiga took the reins of the NEOMA Research department. One year later, he is appointed Associate Dean for Faculty. He offers his assessment and shares with us his perspectives on the school’s major projects.

You took the position of head of research at NEOMA Business School in September 2023. What have been your major projects over the past year?

Since I have come to the school, the objective has been to continue to give more public value to the school’s research and academic excellence, particularly through our publications. That is very important to us. We have also optimised the operational process to facilitate the research activities of our faculty. And above all, our biggest project is the impact of our research, not only on the students at the school but also on all the stakeholders in our ecosystem.

Let’s start with increasing the accessibility to the research. What are your goals?

We’ve identified a significant number of quality publications. My ambition is to emphasise the publications that are in line with our strategy, particularly those on subjects such as sustainable development, sustainable finance, sustainable supply chain and artificial intelligence. These fields are a central component of our recent recruitments.

Making research accessible to the general public is important to you. What are some of the means used to do that?

 At NEOMA, our commitment to the dissemination of research involves a media coverage strategy organised by our scientific mediation committee. We publish articles on our website that can be widely understood, encourage our faculty to engage with different forms of media and we cooperate with key partners such at the FNEGE and The Conversation. To optimise this effort, we recruited a research dissemination director whose mission, among other things, is to map out the different areas of expertise of our faculty, which has the largest number among French business schools. This comprehensive approach aims to make our research more accessible to the general public, thus contributing to enriching societal discussions and strengthening the link between our institution and society as a whole.

Your second major objective is to improve the impact of the research. What does that mean?

 Our professors conduct various research projects, but once their articles have been published, the project is over. But publication should not be considered as an end in itself. Having their research results more widely known, defining the communication strategy is also a part of the researcher’s work. The impact should no longer just be academic but societal. It should no longer only be measured by indicators such as its quotation rate. It’s about making sure that the research activities and their results have a positive impact on society as a whole, beyond just academia. For example, we want to see this research have an impact at the school and on the students. To do this, we are working increasingly on creating a link with the courses.

We are also seeking to create synergies with all the stakeholders in the school’s ecosystem. Since November 2023, we have organised with companies “NEOMAtinées “ talks that give researchers and these companies the opportunity to discuss and start up collaborations. The goal is for our professors to provide the companies with solutions to their problems. We have focused one talk on supply chain, one on sustainable finance, one on inclusive leadership and one on third places.

This year we have already planned three symposiums on important subjects for the school such as artificial intelligence, healthcare, and the bioeconomy. It’s still too early to talk about concrete plans, but we started thinking about organising these events. And we want to speed up the process, organise bigger events and establish research chairs.

Is NEOMA trying to establish connections with other major economic players and public institutions?

 Absolutely. It’s important to have professors designated as experts in major public institutions. For example, Gilbert Cette is president of the Pensioner Orientation Council. We also have strengthened our partnerships with local municipalities (the Normandy Region, the Rouen Normandy Metropole, the Grand Est Region, and the Grand Reims) who financially support many of our projects. We even recruited a new person to monitor these partnerships on our Reims campus.