European Foundation for Management Development
The European Foundation for Management Development is an international not-for-profit association based in Brussels, Belgium. It is Europe's largest network association in the field of management development with over 990 member organizations from academia, business, public service and consultancy in 95 countries. EFMD provides a forum for networking in management development.
EFMD operates the EFMD Quality Improvement System, which is one of the major international systems of quality assessment, improvement, and accreditation of higher education institutions in management and business administration. It is comparable to its American equivalent Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business and provides a forum for information, research, networking and debate on innovation and best practice in management development.
The foundation also runs other accreditations and certifications for business schools, including the EFMD Programme Accreditation System for individual programmes, the EFMD Deans Across Frontiers development programme, and the Business School Impact System. For corporate learning functions, it offers the Corporate Learning Improvement Process accreditation and the Learning Impact for Today and Tomorrow certification.
History
EFMD was established in 1972 as the result of the merger of two earlier initiatives: the European Association of Management Training Centres, founded in 1959, and the International University Contact for Management Education, created in 1952. From the outset, its aim was to strengthen management education and development in Europe and beyond, and to build bridges between academia and business practice. The first meeting of deans and directors took place in 1973, and by then EFMD had already reached 193 members. In 1980, EFMD launched its first international project in China, which led to the creation of the China Europe International Business School in 1994.The organization expanded in the following decades. It introduced the Case Writing Awards in 1989 and the EFMD Quality Improvement System in 1997. The Corporate Learning Improvement Process followed in 2003. EPAS, launched in 2005, evolved into EFMD Accredited in 2020.
In the 2010s, EFMD created the EFMD Deans Across Frontiers programme and established the EFMD Global Network, with offices in Hong Kong, Miami, Geneva, and Prague. New regional projects were developed in Latin America and Africa. The Business School Impact System was launched in 2014. Online Course Certification System followed in 2016, while the Executive Academy was created in 2017. EFMD celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2022.
Activities
EFMD’s activities connect academia, business, and policy to improve management education globally.Membership
Membership began with around 193 European member institutions in 1973. By 2025, its membership had grown to approximately 990 organisations across 95 countries. Membership categories are tailored to academic institutions, corporations, and other organisations, and provide access to accreditation, events, research, and knowledge sharing.Governance
EFMD is governed by a Board of Directors, elected from its membership, which defines the organization's general policy and strategy. It includes a Chair, Vice-Chairs, and members from academia and business sectors across the globe.Day-to-day operations are led by the President of EFMD Global, Eric Cornuel, who has held the position since 2000.