Meet Bastien Liebgott, former student at the Ecole Grand Jean who graduated from the FEDE European Master’s in Business Management and Strategy. Constantly drawn to new challenges, he wanted to broaden his field of expertise. His technical IT skills together with his marketing profile enabled him to set up his own company, WEBAST, which combines the two sectors.

Can you tell us about your studies and career so far?    

When I enrolled at the Ecole Grandjean, where I got my FEDE degree, I already had a BTS in IT (network management).
At the time I didn’t have a lot of knowledge of areas over than IT and I wanted to add a commercial/marketing/sales dimension to my profile. So I enrolled at the Ecole Grandjean to do a European Master’s in Business Management and Strategy.
When I started applying for jobs, I was able to emphasise that I had both technical IT skills and the business knowledge I’d gained at Grandjean.
I worked for four years as account manager at Bechtle (an IT distributor based in Molsheim). This was a commercial position: I was in charge of managing a large portfolio of clients. My managers quickly learnt to trust me and I advanced very quickly within the company.

What is your current situation?

In 2019 I went to Canada. I was keen for a new challenge and to advance my career in a new direction.
I took courses in SEO (natural indexing), SEM (paid indexing) and website creation. I then found a post as an SEO strategist.
I went on to create an individual business in 2020 (https://agence-webast.fr) I offer web, SEO, SEM and tailor-made website creation services. This is possible thanks to my dual technical (IT) and marketing profile. The business is going well: in one year, over 10 clients have decided to use my services (projects and subscriptions in my field are big ones).
I’m currently both working as SEO strategist and running my business on the side.

Why did you choose the Ecole Grandjean to study for your FEDE degree? 

A friend of mine had told me that the Ecole Grandjean was a really nice place to study. I wanted to study marketing and commerce, but I was reluctant to enrol at one of the leading business schools [the French grandes écoles] because I associate them with an arrogant attitude. I prefer a simple, family-like atmosphere that you can find in a smaller, friendly institution like Grandjean. I have no regrets!

How has your FEDE degree advanced your career?    

The knowledge of marketing and commerce that I acquired in studying for my FEDE degree were a springboard and have allowed me to develop my career to the full. Indeed, have ended up doing marketing within IT – SEO/SEM.
The marketing course content, and the simple and realistic approach taken by the programme, helped me to acquire the knowledge needed for my current job role and my business.

What is your fondest memory of your time at the Ecole Grandjean ?

I remember friendly relations with the teachers, who would sometimes have a drink with us and who let us into their professional worlds so that we could understand how everything worked.
Another thing I’d mention is the lack of competition: all of the students helped one another and were keen to learn. There was no sense of competition between us.

What would be your advice to the Ecole Grandjean’s current students?      

Believe in yourself and you’ll have lots of dreams! You just need to be patient, work hard, study and apply what you learn!