15 January 2007

Cosmetics giant L’Oréal has commissioned a series of groundbreaking new executive programmes from Oxford University’s Saïd Business School focusing on the theme of “Leading Today - the Art of Creating New Worlds”. L’Oréal, with its 19 international megabrands, including Giorgio Armani, Shu Uemura and Maybelline NY, is noted for placing its talented young employees in demanding positions around the world early on in their careers.

The aim of the programmes, each of which will last two and a half days, is to open up thinking and reflection in areas such as leadership, innovation, conceptualization, imagination, communication and creativity. Participants will be drawn from a group totalling some 200 country directors, brand managers and other senior executives, but each programme will only involve a small group of some 12 – 15 participants, who will be further subdivided into four groups, each assigned its own Oxford tutor. The programmes, which will be directed by Associate Fellow, Tracey Camilleri, will start in summer 2007.

“That a leading innovative company such as L’Oréal will be coming to us for a programme to stimulate creativity is both a tribute and an exciting challenge,” says Camilleri, “but it is a challenge that I am confident that we can meet successfully, acting as a conduit for a range of new approaches and thinking from the university and beyond.”