Cultivating trust! Becoming the best version of ourselves to embody the leaders of tomorrow.

Interview with Elisabeth Toth, Director of Skills Development and Training at Grant Thornton

In a constantly evolving professional world where human qualities are increasingly valued, the international audit and consulting firm Grant Thornton has partnered with ESSEC to develop the Master Academy. This visionary initiative aims to cultivate trust at the heart of the company while training the leaders of tomorrow.

Elisabeth Toth, Director of Skills Development and Training at Grant Thornton, shares her experience and passion for this innovative program. "Our ambition is to open new perspectives for our employees to retain them."

"We created the Master Academy to meet the aspirations of the new generations joining our firm. Their motivations differ from those of previous generations," explains Elisabeth Toth. "They have a different understanding of the importance of things, life priorities, and a new way of approaching their relationships with others. With the Master Academy, we offer our employees a proposition that fully meets these evolutions, and even better, nourishes them. The Master Academy is a space where they experience trust, this promise at the core of our employer brand. We encourage each person to reveal themselves to themselves and to others, by tapping into their deepest potential."

The Master Academy stands out for its holistic approach: its pedagogy calls for the personal involvement of employees to articulate "living" and "thinking."

The program includes teaching various humanities disciplines by ESSEC professors and experts, coupled with an internal mobility experience: the GT Journey.

"We put the multidisciplinary nature of our organization at the service of our employees, not just our clients. We let them explore their fields of interest. This approach creates more value than other more prescriptive methods."

The Master Academy project, which germinated in the mind of Grant Thornton's President Robert Dambo, is fully supported by the executive committee. It mirrors Grant Thornton's priorities and CSR policy, validated by an ESSEC certificate.

It spans two years with training sessions every two months, in person, to foster networking and create a break from work time.

Among the highlights of the program is the opening at the Royaumont Abbey, a stay at the Transition Campus, where they experience sobriety and meet researchers and leaders of mission-driven companies, and a seminar at one of the Saint-Cyr Military Academy sites, where they undergo a unique experience on team management and collective action leadership.

The journey concludes with a learning expedition, alternately depending on the cohorts, either in Silicon Valley, the global innovation epicenter, or in another location.

The impact of the Master Academy is felt at all levels of the organization. "Our employees are more confident, more engaged, and better able to project our vision. It's an investment in Grant Thornton's future, as these trained leaders will help transform our firm from within."

Beyond technical and behavioral skills, the Master Academy emphasizes ethical leadership development. "We train leaders who excel not only in their field but do so with integrity and responsibility. This is the key to building a sustainable and resilient company."

The collaboration with ESSEC adds an extra dimension. "We benefit from the academic expertise of one of the world's best business schools. The program with ESSEC confronts them with questions we all face at the beginning of the 21st century: is it possible to reconcile ecological transition, digital transformation, social justice, and economic development? Are we able to develop alternatives to the current economic model? Those of our clients, but also our own?"

By engaging in such an initiative, Grant Thornton also strengthens its brand image and attractiveness as an employer. "Today's talents are looking more than ever for companies that invest in their professional development and personal fulfillment, and that are genuinely committed to current issues. Our partnership with ESSEC allows us to meet this essential demand from young talents in the recruitment market."

The Master Academy is a journey towards excellence, where each step strengthens the commitment to Grant Thornton's priorities.

"Seneca said: 'There is no favorable wind for those who don't know where the port is.' In other words, having a direction is crucial to taking advantage of the opportunities that come our way." "Our employees are encouraged to take a step back, to better know themselves and reveal their full potential. They find positive energy, set new challenges more aligned with their motivations. They are prepared to face these challenges with courage and determination."

"In creating the Master Academy with ESSEC, we really wanted to unleash the energy of our employees, giving them the desire to become the best version of themselves. We are proud of what we have accomplished so far and look forward to seeing the fruits of this investment in the years to come," concludes Elisabeth Toth.

Biography

Elisabeth Toth began her career in auditing at PwC before moving on to training management positions at Deloitte, then at the Compagnie Nationale des Commissaires aux Comptes, and since 2011, at Grant Thornton. Elisabeth bases her approach on the conviction that "we all have an exceptional skill to share." She promotes mentorship, "social learning," and collective intelligence, which are fundamental tools for the skill development of employees. In this spirit, in 2022, in collaboration with Laurent Prost, she launched the Master Academy, a program developed in partnership with ESSEC, aimed at the young employees of the firm. The goal is to support them in expressing the best of themselves while actively participating in the transformation of the company.

Elisabeth Toth, Dir. Formation Grant Thornton