INSEAD officially wound down its largest fundraising campaign ever, the Force for Good Campaign, with results that far surpassed its initial targets across the board. The end of the campaign in August coincided with the end of Dean Ilian Mihov’s administration, whose leadership helped transform the top-ranked business school’s image and reach.
INSEAD launched the Force for Good Campaign in 2013 with an initial target of €200 million, but at its conclusion, it fundraised €310 million, largely thanks to the 52 percent of alumni and students who participated in the campaign. Alumni giving represents 93 percent of overall funds received. The campaign’s long-term goals, however, extended beyond fundraising and served to advance the school’s global influence and positive impact on business and industry: building a culture of philanthropy, addressing global challenges, fostering research and innovation, championing diversity and scholarships, and expanding reach and influence.
“Being at the helm of INSEAD and witnessing the school’s remarkable growth over the past decade has been an incredibly rewarding experience,” Mihov was quoted in the school’s press release. “The challenges of recent years have united our global community, fostering resilience, passion, and entrepreneurial spirit. I am confident that the school will achieve even greater heights under the leadership of Dean Francisco Veloso due to the remarkable capabilities of this community. The Force for Good campaign serves as a powerful testament to our collective potential.”
The Force for Good Campaign’s Impact on INSEAD and Beyond
The campaign addressed global challenges through initiatives like the Hoffmann Global Institute for Business and Society, which works to integrate sustainability across teaching, research, and operations at INSEAD. The school committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions 67 percent by 2035 and has become actively involved at Davos, ChangeNOW, UNPRME, the Business Schools for Climate Leadership alliance, and other climate change organizations and global events. INSEAD recently overhauled its flagship MBA program to incorporate sustainable development into its core courses and features a new capstone emphasizing sustainable business practices.
The Force for Good Campaign also supported research and innovation at INSEAD, allowing Professors W. Chan Kim and Renée Mauborgne, renowned co-authors of the global bestseller Blue Ocean Strategy, to advance their “nondisruptive creation” approach to business growth, recently honored in Harvard Business Review‘s 100th-anniversary celebration. Other research and development benefiting from the campaign includes gender dynamics and the causes and consequences of gender imbalances, digital disruption, and leadership education. Throughout the campaign, 58 million euros were allocated to merit and diversity scholarships. In 2023, 304 scholarships were awarded, with 72 percent of recipients coming to INSEAD from emerging countries and nearly half — 48 percent — being women. INSEAD also celebrated the legacy of Claude Janssen, one of its founders, through the Claude and Tuulikki Janssen Endowed Scholarship launched in 2022.
Dedicated campaign funds enabled INSEAD to launch the Hoffmann Global Institute in 2018, the Stone Centre for the Study of Wealth Inequality in 2016, and its Sustainable Business Initiative, connecting academics and real-world practice through these new institutions and initiatives.
While the Fontainebleau campus undergoes the Europe Campus Renewal project, INSEAD’s footprint has grown with a newly expanded Singapore campus and the San Francisco Hub for Business Innovation.
Overall, INSEAD’s Force For Good Campaign wrapped up a rousing success, demonstrating the school’s strengths, growing its influence, and demonstrating its commitment to teaching excellence, sustainability, and a truly global experience.
