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Junior Agencies: “It felt like we were working with a real agency.”

Published on 18/09/2026

Over the course of an academic year, students on NEOMA’s Master's in Corporate Communication step into the role of a real communications agency. Their clients? Partner companies. Below we take a look back at the 2025/26 capstone project. 

What is the context?

Every year, a number of NEOMA corporate partners give students on the Master's in Corporate Communication a real-world brief. Participants then work on a concrete challenge until they give the final pitch in June.

Four companies took part in the 2025/26 exercise: Saint-Gobain, Henkel (Adhesives Division), the Commissariat des Armées (French Armed Forces Support Service) and Lindt. 

The Junior Agencies project immerses students in an environment that closely mirrors professional reality as they support clients with high expectations. 

What was the challenge?

Each company brought its own specific problem. 

Saint-Gobain was keen to develop a more coherent group communication strategy that would unite its various business units around a shared identity. 

Henkel asked for an action plan that would boost the visibility of its adhesive solutions among engineering schools. The challenge was twofold: to reach future engineers and the teaching community while staying within a realistic budget.

The Commissariat des Armées tasked the students with designing a communication plan aimed at strengthening its employer brand and recruiting future officers while showcasing the core values of the military environment. 

Lindt sought to convert an already powerful commercial brand into a fully-fledged employer brand, with particular focus on social media platforms.

Across each of the projects, the intended outcome was the same: new angles, ideas the companies wouldn’t have come up with themselves and ready‑to‑use recommendations.

How does the exercise benefit students?

The year‑long format means students can apply all the skills they’ve acquired during their Master's to a hands-on project, from digital and corporate communication to strategy and social networks. The course is built around the brief, giving everything the students learn a clear sense of purpose throughout the year.

For many participants, it is also their first real experience of the world of work, as they learn how to build a communication strategy from A to Z, present it and test it against the practical realities of a company.

What students and partners say about the experience

For Léo Rocher, a part-time MSI student in Corporate Communication, Junior Agencies was “a first major experience”, giving him the chance to learn “how to manage a communication strategy” and face the day‑to‑day realities of “professional life.” 

Ramia Mandran, enrolled in the Master’s in Corporate Communication, highlighted the originality of the Lindt brief: “It's unusual in communication to discuss employer branding,” an angle she thinks is “highly interesting” to explore.

As for the four companies, they expressed unanimous satisfaction following the students’ final presentations. 

Lindt’s Amicie de Homas and Isabelle Fallin summed up the students’ work as “relevant, pragmatic, professional and committed”, even going so far as to say: “We really felt as though we were dealing with agencies.” 

The Commissariat des Armées added that it was “impressed” by the “very comprehensive” presentations and the “highly relevant” vision.

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