Actual group opens the doors of its Parisian campus in La Défense, a new training hub for service sector and digital professions

The campus established by Actual group in the heart of La Défense welcomes ESUP – the École Supérieure de Commerce et de Management – and Holberton School – specializing in digital professions. A showcase that reaffirms Actual's commitment to higher education programs tailored to business needs.

By setting up at the heart of Europe's leading business district, Actual group continues to expand and consolidate its network of campuses across the country. The choice of La Défense reflects a dual goal: to be at the center of the economic activity of the Île-de-France region and to offer a high-quality environment for students. The premises accommodate, under optimal conditions, students from ESUP (numbering 650) and Holberton School (up to 80 for each of the three cohorts spread across a year), two structures that are part of Actual's training ecosystem.

Spanning 4,000 m², the campus features nearly 40 classrooms, an amphitheater, and two outdoor patios. A welcoming and modular setup that helps create an environment conducive to student learning and personal fulfillment. An important criterion aligned with post-Covid trends, marked by a desire to return to in-person learning in a setting that facilitates discussion and collaboration. This fosters the development of essential soft skills—namely students' ability to build connections, integrate into a group, and adapt their communication to be understood by all.

The space has been designed to adapt to the teaching methods of ESUP and Holberton School. ESUP, a training school for service sector professions (banking, sales, communication, management, marketing, etc.), prioritizes in-person learning, the quality of relationships with the teaching team—made up of former professionals and active practitioners—and hands-on corporate experience through work-study programs. These principles are also applied by Holberton School. The tech school, born in Silicon Valley, offers an innovative, experiential teaching method for future developers: no traditional teachers, but practical project-based teamwork instead. Both schools will benefit from state-of-the-art digital equipment (including 4 hybrid audio and video recording rooms) to broadcast educational content, share achievements, and connect with the world.

Easily accessible and ultra-connected, this campus also reflects a commitment to making training accessible to all student profiles, whether they live far from business hubs or face mobility challenges (disabilities or long-term illness). The right to training for all, as a corollary to the right to employment for all, is one of Actual group's core values.

About Actual

Today, as the 5th largest player in the French job and employment market, Actual group is a French company with a resolutely human-centered vision, striving every day to facilitate the right to work for everyone. Organized around 4 business areas—temporary work, recruitment, career support, and training—the group is the #1 provider of integration through work in France. Led by Samuel Tual, a committed entrepreneur, Actual group has developed genuine expertise in supporting individuals into employment across France, as well as in Spain, Portugal, and Switzerland, through employment and skill development solutions. The group also offers a comprehensive suite of HR solutions to support companies and find or create the skills they need. Thanks to its 4,000 employees and more than 600 branches nationwide, Actual group currently supports 33,000 companies and 156,000 job candidates, generating a revenue of 1.5 billion euros in 2024. Its ambition is to build together the working future of women and men, everywhere in France.

About ESUP

ESUP is a network of business and management schools created by Actual Group in 1990. Over three decades, it has trained more than 2,000 students each year and currently operates 6 campuses (Paris, Lyon, Angers, Laval, Rennes, Vannes). ESUP welcomes students in work-study or initial training formats and works with 300 trainers from the corporate world. ESUP's ambition is to build student success and employability by delivering training programs directly aligned with the job market and local employment hubs: sales, marketing, communication, human resources, management, banking, international business…
www.esup.fr/ecole-de-commerce-paris/

About Holberton School

Operating in 20 countries, Holberton School was launched by two French engineers in 2015 in the heart of Silicon Valley. Through a partnership in France with Actual group, a leading French provider of employment solutions, Holberton School aims to democratize access to tech professions and provide a concrete response to the country's talent shortage. Holberton School is based on the principle of peer learning—a 95% practical teaching method that fosters collaboration, teamwork, and collective emulation. The school opens its doors in Lille, Laval, Paris, Toulouse, Thonon-les-Bains, and Bordeaux, aiming to build its growth in close alignment with public training stakeholders and local businesses.www.holbertonschool.fr

Contacts, information, and practical links

Michaël Draï
Actual group Press Office
Tel:06 60 41 86 78
Email:drai@uneidee.com

Guillaume Neron Bancel
Actual group Communications
Email:Guillaume.neronbancel@groupeactual.eu