ESSEC-IIES implements its new Philanthropy Chair
Backed by its strategic partner BNP Paribas Wealth Management,
and its associate partners, Fondation de France and KPMG.

For the past several years, philanthropy has grown and become more  international, just as its role in the handling of certain social challenges has been expanding and the tools made available to philanthropists have become more diverse. The highly unique positioning of philanthropy - falling within neither the public sector nor the private, for-profit sector - and its ability to innovate have encouraged experimentation in all areas of general interest that aim to improve the common good (health, education, culture, environment….). Nevertheless, European philanthropy remains poorly  understood and research dedicated to it is fragmented, spread out amongst a number of universities and think tanks.
Based on this observation, ESSEC wanted to set up a research chair, joining forces with BNP Paribas Wealth Management, the first Private Bank to become involved in philanthropy by  providing philanthropic services to its clients and by promoting awareness and exchanges.
Benefiting from initial funding from Fondation de France, the chair is being implemented as a result of thorough analysis with regard to its content and basket funding arranged by ESSEC and three individual co-founders - Jérôme Kohler, Jean-Pierre Scotti and Antoine Vaccaro - soon joined by KPMG, an associate partner of the chair.
Set up within ESSEC's Institut de l’Innovation et de l’Entrepreneuriat Social (Institute of Innovation and Social Entrepreneurship, IIES), the Philanthropy Chair’s mission is to study, enhance and promote knowledge and the role of philanthropy. The chair will especially focus on the challenges associated with the creation, strategic development and management of philanthropic initiatives in order to strengthen the entrepreneurial and managerial competencies of the sector's key players. Capitalising on the efforts of the IIES, the Philanthropy Chair will work in coordination with other benchmark academic institutions on these issues in Europe and elsewhere in the world in order to develop synergies and complementary arrangements.
In order to accomplish these missions, the chair has set itself the following objectives:
• To promote and further an understanding of the role of philanthropy and how it is practised by
individuals and by institutions
• To contribute to theoretical and applied research on philanthropy and social investment whilst meeting
standards of academic excellence
• To address key players in the philanthropic sector, strengthening their capabilities for analysis,
management, and governance
• To facilitate the implementation of university research networks and best practices in philanthropy.
BNP Paribas Wealth Management, Fondation de France and KPMG are also members of the Philanthropy Chair steering committee and, to this end, have contributed to its response strategy and to brainstorming
efforts intended to define research topics.
With regard to the implementation of the chair, François Debiesse, Senior Wealth Advisor for BNP Paribas
Wealth Management, stated that “being a strategic partner of ESSEC's Philanthropy Chair is a natural
extension of BNP Paribas Wealth Management's commitment to the understanding and promotion of
philanthropy.”
Philanthropy Chair Full Professor Anne-Claire Pache recalled that “Most knowledge in the area of philanthropy currently comes from the United States. Yet there are new, unique challenges associated with European philanthropy. Today there's an important need for us to complement this rich American body of knowledge with European academic research. This is what makes the Philanthropy Chair truly relevant.”