Solvay Brussels School Economics & Management (SBS-EM)

Advanced Master in Creativity & Marketing


Panayiotis · 2014 - 2015

Published: 15 December 2017 | by Panayiotis

My name is Panayiotis Kotrokois, I’m 23 years old and I come from Athens, Greece. Before applying for the Advanced Master in Creativity & Marketing at Solvay Brussels School of Economics and Management, I was an undergraduate student in Communication and Mass Media at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens.

Why this Advanced Master and this School?

Personally from the first moment I discovered that Solvay offers this new Advanced Master (it’s the second year), I was certain that it was the right choice for my ambitions. Since an early age I was always curious about the intriguing world of Marketing and especially of Advertising. It was the word Creativity that convinced me most of all to apply for the specific, 1 year, programme because it offers you the possibility not only to learn but also to provide creative projects that facilitate the transition from the academic to the professional world. I chose Solvay for two reasons: the first was Solvay’s ranking among the top Business Schools in Europe and secondly Brussels is a crossroad of cultures, politics and businesses.

How did I apply?

The journey begun one year earlier when I applied to the online form of the Advanced Master in Creativity & Marketing. An academic degree, a good level in English and preferably a short job experience were the conditions to be admitted to the programme. As I fulfilled all the criteria that I previously mentioned, the Academic Director Jean-Pierre Baeyens accepted my application. The admission process was composed of three parts: 1) The online application, 2) Two Essays in English and 3) an online interview.

Overall impression

Since the kick-off day on September 15th and from the very beginning I was convinced that I had taken the right decision. The presence of qualified international professors and the perfect organisation of the school eradicate any possible doubts that any student may have for his choice and the impact to his future. During these three months of this exciting academic adventure full of challenges, Solvay never ceases to surprise me and make me more and more confident about my future career steps. The multicultural presence combined with continuous teamwork, a high tech infrastructure and a fast paced and demanding programme are the main ingredients for professional success.

Programme content

The Advanced Master initiated with the Marketing Boot camp class where all the students could rather learn or refresh their knowledge for the fundamentals of Marketing. Our Professor Jean Tondeur was constantly reminding us of Pablo Picasso’s quote: “Learn the rules as a pro, so you can break them as an artist”. The students without any knowledge of Marketing could follow an online and interactive pre-course in August to be able to understand all the theories and notions mentioned during the year.

The following course was DREAM: Creativity Workshop where our professor Mark Raison taught us valuable methods on how to master the creative process and generate ideas that can lead to innovation. During this workshop we learnt to think out of the box and develop unconventional businesses.

SNIFF: Marketing Intelligence was the next course where Professor Claire Gruslin presented the importance of Big Data and the tools to analyse them in the era of the Internet. Nowadays the exponential growth of information can be a powerful “weapon” for marketeers who can spot the market’s needs before their competitors do.

DESIGN: Business models and cultures was the course where our Academic Director and Professor Jean-Pierre Baeyens, helped us understand the Blue Ocean Strategy. He taught us how to complete and design business models canvasses that could lead to a powerful strategy. He presented the value and the neuralgic importance of culture within a business.

In the course SPECULATE: Managing the future, Professor Christian Bluemelhuber, taught us how to design our own board games that can predict future events and trends before they happen. During this class we learnt how to become visionaries and be prepared for the socio-economic changes of the following years.

The last course so far was EXPLORE: Product Experience Workshop, where Professor Nicolas Debray exposed the importance of the Design-Thinking process. Before developing a product or a service it is essential to understand your market and the restrictions or the opportunities of it. During this class we learnt about the capacities of open source hardware/software and the role of prototyping.

As a wiser student of Creativity & Marketing, I confirm that this Advanced Master’s programme is leading me towards a successful career, by providing me the feeling of security and eradicating the uncertainty for the future. If I had again a second choice I would had selected the exact same programme.

Panayiotis Kotrokois

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