ISTHIA

Institut Supérieur du Tourisme de l'hôtellerie et de l'Alimentation

By Juliane Boistel, on 01/17/2025

 

The « MARC COMBES Challenge » :

Three Days of Strategic Challenges and Multicultural Exchange for Master’s Students in Tourism and Hospitality at ISTHIA-UT2J.

 

January 14-16, 2025 – ISTHIA (Higher Institute of Tourism, Hospitality, and Food Studies) is hosting the 37th edition of the “MARC COMBES Challenge” this week on the Mirail campus in Toulouse. Established in the 1990s by Marc Combes, a former Economics and Management professor at CETIA, this event combines strategic planning exercises, innovative teaching methods, and intercultural interactions in a context of a serious game focused on developing a virtual business.

 

 

Over three days, more than 80 second-year Master’s students from ISTHIA—enrolled in five courses (MIT, MHR, TD, TIC ADTT, and THFS)—will work on a challenge: creating, developing, and managing a restaurant in a competitive virtual environment, entirely in English. Divided into 12 multidisciplinary teams, each group will include students from all five courses. Together, they will design and operate their establishment, covering tasks such as choosing a market segment and marketing concept, developing a growth strategy, managing human resources, and handling financial and operational aspects.

The exercise simulates four years of business development. At the end of each simulated year, the teams will present performance reports and explain their strategic decisions, showcasing their ability to analyze results and refine their strategies. Teams are free to divide responsibilities among members, using individual expertise and specialties to meet the challenge.

The performance of the virtual businesses will depend on the quality of the teams’ strategic choices. Each decision will affect their market share in the virtual environment. To guide them, three faculty members—Paul Pichon and Denis Borie, both marketing lecturers, and Moufida Thouiri, an economics and management instructor—will act as advisors, virtual bankers, and evaluators under the banner of the Business Center. Their role is to assist teams in adjusting their strategies and evaluating the relevance of their decisions.

Communication is another aspect of the challenge. Students are tasked with developing a strategic communication plan, including digital communication, and creating a promotional poster for their restaurant. As a creative addition, they can also produce a “funny video” to promote their management game. This exercise combines creativity, strategy, and project development.

Discover some Funny videos on our YouTube channel.

 

Over the years, the “MARC COMBES Challenge” has continued to adapt. Its latest change involves the complete digitization of the game. Now hosted on the IRIS platform of the University of Toulouse Jean Jaurès (UT2J), all resources and instructions are provided digitally, aligning the challenge with current technological practices.

In addition to its interactive format, the “MARC COMBES Challenge” is also an academic assessment. The exercise is graded as part of the second semester’s professionalization module and contributes to the final evaluation of the Master’s program.

 

This event is an important step in the students’ academic path, marking their transition to the final semester before internships and the start of their professional careers. Former participants often reflect on the experience, highlighting the intensity of teamwork, the intercultural exchanges, and the connections built during the challenge.

The “MARC COMBES Challenge” continues to be a key part of the Master’s program at ISTHIA, providing students with a structured, practical experience to prepare them for their professional futures.

ISTHIA

Site de Toulouse

Campus du Mirail

5 Allées Antonio Machado, 31058 Toulouse Cedex 09

05 61 50 23 68

Site de Foix

Centre Universitaire de l'Ariège Robert Naudi

4 Rue Raoul Lafagette, 09000 Foix

Plan du site de Foix

05 61 02 19 74

Site de Cahors

Centre Universitaire Maurice Faure

273 Av. Henri Martin, 46000 Cahors

05 65 23 46 04

Université de Toulouse

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