KROK Business School has been awarded the Silver Prize in the EFMD Excellence in Practice Awards 2025 in the "Leadership Development" category for its joint case with Credit Agricole Ukraine titled "Managerial School."
The EFMD Excellence in Practice Awards is one of the most prestigious global competitions in the field of management education. Since 2007, it has recognized partnerships between business schools and organizations that demonstrate real impact through learning programs on leadership development, organizational growth, and business transformation.
Winning silver in such a high-level competition highlights the professionalism and maturity of the educational practices implemented by KROK Business School. It also showcases the ability of Ukrainian institutions to create world-class innovative solutions. For the KROK Business School team, this award is more than just recognition—it affirms their contribution to the development of responsible leadership in times of crisis, which is significant not only for business but for society as a whole.
KROK Business School is the only Ukrainian institution among the winners, which include globally recognized schools such as IMD, London Business School, IE, and others.
About the “Managerial School” Program
The program was developed in response to the unprecedented challenges faced by Ukraine’s banking sector during the full-scale war. In collaboration with the HR department of Credit Agricole Ukraine, KROK experts designed an innovative leadership development system that:
- Combined a human-centered approachwith technological solutions (including an AI hackathon)
- Focused on building resilience, emotional intelligence, modern communication, and innovative thinking
- Ensured flexibility and adaptabilityof the learning process amid blackouts, air raids, and extreme participant workloads
- Achieved real business impact—from strengthening internal trust to generating new digital solutions
The 7-month program included:
- 8 offline days
- 5 online webinars
- 3 business visits
- An AI hackathon
- A system of self-directed tasks via Moodle
- Individual coaching support
Key Innovations
- The program was designed based on the Resilient Centricityprinciple—developing leaders capable of adapting, motivating teams, making data-driven decisions, supporting mental health, and driving change.
- For the first time in the bank’s history, participants initiated and implemented an AI hackathon, resulting in digital prototypes now included in the bank’s 2025 project portfolio.
Results
- 95%of participants apply new knowledge at work
- 90%implemented practical tools into operations
- 87%improved stress and conflict management
- Program NPS: 92%
The partnership between KROK Business School and Credit Agricole was evaluated by the EFMD international expert panel across four criteria: challenge definition, collaboration effectiveness, quality of the educational solution, and proven business impact. The program’s balanced approach—deep needs analysis, modern learning design, and tangible organizational outcomes—earned it the silver award among hundreds of global submissions.
EFMD EIP Siver Award confirms the quality and international competitiveness of KROK Business School’s programs. Through a systematic approach to leadership, client-focused flexibility, and educational innovation even during wartime, KROK is becoming one of the flagships of European business education.
More about the award: EFMD Excellence in Practice Award Winners https://www.efmdglobal.org/efmd-awards/eip-excellence-in-practice-awards/efmd-excellence-in-practice-award-winners/
