Attracting talent: the Aix-Marseille-Provence approach at SIMI

Back to the round table of 11 December 2019

At the 2019 edition of the major corporate real estate trade show in Paris, four prominent figures gave a presentation on Aix-Marseille-Provence and its projects and plans to attract and ‒ more importantly ‒ retain talent. Philippe Stéfanini, director of the economic promotional agency for the Aix-Marseille-Provence metropolitain area, moderated a panel discussion that highlighted several projects: the International Academic Campus and Rue de la République in Marseille, thecamp in Aix-en-Provence and details on the successful relocation of Ceva Logistics, which was supported by the agency.

Relocating families: Ceva Logistics case study

CMA CGM faced the huge challenge of relocating 200 families to the region from all over the world in record time. Back in April 2019, the Marseille-based titan of international logistics had just finalized its acquisition of the Swiss firm CEVA Logistics. As part of the process of relocating the world headquarters to Marseille, the group turned to local authorities and to Provence Promotion for help. The objective was to help the new employees overcome their misgivings about the change and to answer the questions asked most frequently in response to a move, especially to another country... Will there be work for my spouse? Will my child be able to enroll in school? Will the lifestyle and location be suitable for my family?

France's second-largest city confirmed its appeal, in particular with a system set up with the Aix-Marseille-Provence local government and Provence Promotion. Informational meetings, field visits around Provence and individual responses to inquiries. In just six months, some 70 families had already taken the leap and settled in Marseille. The decision-making tool developed by Provence Promotion, "Living and Working in Provence", helped with the initiative.

The International Academic Campus, the flagship of a high-quality educational offering

Schools are an integral factor when developing a region. For Christophe Gargot, Director of International Inter-institution Relations, Aix-Marseille Nice, schools are living creatures which are highly organic and must constantly adapt to changes in our society, economic stakes and urban planning considerations. "In the academic district of Provence-Alps Côte d'Azur, we believe that the educational opportunities must reflect the reality of our globalized world," explained Christophe Gargot. "This International Academic Campus, where children will be able to learn from primary school to college prep, with a heavy dose of foreign language, is the cornerstone of an even bigger plan which consists in offering schools that are considered somewhat exceptional, but which should one day become the standard."

After analyzing sociological data about families already living in the region to understand the natural extent of bilingualism and the hiring needs of companies vis-à-vis tomorrow's leaders, English, Spanish, Chinese, German and Arabic emerged as priority languages. This academic campus for the Mediterranean, Europe and the Levant will meet all these expectations.

Designing a neighborhood for active young people

In 2014, Daniel While, Research and Development Director at Primonial, felt a wave was sweeping over the city of Marseille and that it was time to give it a true downtown. The need for a neighborhood for an active young population quickly became obvious and Rue de la République was the right choice with its perfect location between the Old Port, the city's birthplace, and La Joliette at the heart of the Euroméditerranée business district.

"We believe that the transformation of Rue de la République must come through retail. Rue de la République is not an open-air shopping mall. We must attract service companies, go for domestic businesses and restaurants to create a more vibrant neighborhood that is better suited to the demographics of Marseille."

Primonial's plan for Rue de la République swiftly turned into a pilot project for the entire city, which is drawing more and more talented workers and students and, in their wake, new coworking offers.

Provide a base camp for the upstarts changing the world

"The world is flat," exclaims Catherine Gall, CEO of thecamp, parroting the word of Thomas Friedman about our globalized world with its increasingly blurred borders. thecamp was born out of the desire to bring together people with different visions, but with the shared goal of inventing the world of tomorrow, helping cities become sustainable and finding solutions off the beaten path by working together.

Such is the case, for example, of the American start-up Bovlabs, which spent six months at thecamp in Aix-en-Provence developing its green energy sharing project based on electric vehicles and blockchain technology. The solution it put in place at the TGV station in Aix-en-Provence (and soon to be deployed to the Euroméditerranée smart city in Marseille) demonstrates the region's ability to drive change.

"The value of innovation is that we dream of a different world. When you pitch a call for projects and it has a positive, lasting impact, you get more and more calls and expressions of interest from all over the world."