ESMT Berlin
Loading the current phase, the actions taken and what is next.
If the school raises recognition, use the reply titled 'If they ask for recognition criteria'.
From: Baptiste Ceresa · Subject: A fifth-Palme review for consideration
Attach: nothing. Offer the criteria; do not invent current deadlines, selection or committee decisions.
Answer any specific question first, then use the matching reply below. These are replies to engagement, not additional unsolicited opening emails. Use the name of the person who actually replied and retain the existing contact route.
Owner: Baptiste Ceresa. Free examples: approved, with no conditions.
Upgrade outlook: 80-100%, corporate estimate for this school. He wrote: "regarding the preselection, it is more a % of chance to be upgraded".
Does payment determine the level? The level of Palmes is determined independently by the International Scientific Committee based on academic and international recognition criteria; the membership fee is simply calculated afterwards according to the level of Palmes awarded.
Eduniversal's licensing price list, sent by Cyrille on October 5, 2026: For a school holding 4 Palmes, Silver is EUR 5,990 per year and Gold is EUR 9,990 per year, excluding taxes, over a three-year license. Platinum is EUR 9,990 per year plus a program promotion pack. All three tiers include the certification widget. Platinum promotion packs: up to 5 programs EUR 13,345; up to 10 EUR 23,290; unlimited EUR 59,800. The pack billing period is not specified; use the formal quotation for that detail.
NYMM's guidance to sellers, membership plan: share only exceptionally, when really required. Do not attach it to routine first messages or free-example notes.
NYMM's guidance to sellers, recognition conversation: If the school raises recognition, use the reply titled 'If they ask for recognition criteria', with the fee and independent decision stated clearly. Keep the recognition text in reserve. Do not describe the school as formally preselected on the basis of this estimate. Keep the estimate in seller guidance; do not present it as an awarded or guaranteed level. The prepared recognition text states a one-time EUR 2,990 priority evaluation fee, separately from membership. That fee is not listed in the licensing price list supplied here.
Your records show no earlier contact with ESMT Berlin. The contact on your list, Prof. Jörg Rocholl, is still in the post. He has been president since July 2011, and his published title is President and Managing Director. We did not find who approves a purchase at ESMT in the pages collected on September 17, 2026. Our reading is that the decision starts with him. Whether a second approval is needed is not something we found. Do not assume either way, and do not raise it unless the school itself asks what comes next.
The school is not short of recognition. It holds the AACSB, AMBA and EQUIS accreditations, its own rankings page shows it first in Germany and 12th in Europe among European business schools (2025), and in 2024 the German Council of Science and Humanities reaccredited it for ten more years without conditions. In an interview published in October 2025 the president said: “Nonetheless, you could say ESMT is still an outlier in terms of top rankings and visibility. That's why we want to do even more to attract students from around the world and show them that this is a great place to study.” The free-example message quotes only the second of those two sentences, the one about attracting students, and gives examples of what AI assistants answered about ESMT.
Two things to know. We found no named accreditation or quality lead in the pages collected on September 17, 2026, so there is no obvious second person to carry this. The Dean of Programs and the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs are named, and either is a possible second contact if the president or his office passes the examples on. And the finance post is listed as interim. Any later conversation about a paid service is a separate matter, opened using the confirmed terms below.
He is the contact on your list and still in the post. Copy no one on the first message or the follow-up.
No contact on file. His published title is President and Managing Director, so our reading is that the decision starts with him. We did not find who approves a purchase, or whether another officer must also sign, in the pages collected on September 17, 2026.
The public record we collected lists him as Interim COO/CFO, a separate seat from the president. The address of the page that lists him was not recorded, so check his title on the school's leadership page before you use it. Our reading is that an invoice would pass through finance. Whether he must approve a purchase is not something we found published. ESMT is a private, non-profit school run as a company. We found no purchasing rules, supplier registration steps or spending thresholds in the pages collected on September 17, 2026.
Free AI examples first. These instructions apply to message 1 under What to send, its note and its timing. Send that first email only. If the school raises recognition, use the reply titled 'If they ask for recognition criteria'.
Free AI examples first. These instructions apply to message 1 under What to send, its note and its timing. Send that first email only. If the school raises recognition, use the reply titled 'If they ask for recognition criteria'.
Free AI examples first. These instructions apply to message 1 under What to send, its note and its timing. Send that first email only. If the school raises recognition, use the reply titled 'If they ask for recognition criteria'.
Subject: What AI assistants answer about ESMT Berlin
When: only once the sender checks are complete, with the short note attached (open it from item 3, then print it or save it as a PDF). First window: to October 9. If the sender checks are not complete by October 9, send from October 26. If they are not released by November 13, send from December 1. If they are not released by December 18, send from January 5, 2027. A free-example message sent after October 18, 2026 needs the questions asked again first. Never send without the note.
When: after ten working days without a reply, and not on October 12 to 16, October 19 to 22, November 14 to 30, or December 19 to January 3, 2027
After this: If there is no reply to the follow-up, stop. Do not write to anyone else at the school.
4. One page for the president. Only after the first conversation, and only if the contact agrees. Never with the free-example message or the follow-up.Prepared · sender checksOpen
| Person | Part in the decision | What to know | Contact so far |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prof. Jörg RochollPresident and Managing Director, president since July 2011 | You write to him. Our reading: the decision starts with him. | Joined the faculty in 2007. The extension of his contract for five more years was announced on July 4, 2022. Five years from July 2022 would end in 2027. That is our arithmetic: the announcement gives no start date for the new term. We found nothing later about his term in the pages collected on September 17, 2026. Our reading of the excerpts we collected: method, figures and a long horizon matter to him. A question to be ready for, in our judgment: what is Eduniversal, and what is your method? | No contact on file |
| Molly or Martha IhlbrockDirector of Corporate Communications | Not in copy. | Molly on the leadership page, Martha on a May 2026 press release about rankings, where she is the press contact. Do not write to her until the first name is settled. We found no school-wide head of recruitment in the pages collected on September 17, 2026. Program pages name recruitment managers, for example Sira Ruedeeniyomvuth, Recruitment Manager, on the Full-time MBA page. We did not find who handles applicant questions for the school as a whole. A question to be ready for from Communications, in our judgment: is this something schools pay for? | No contact on file |
| Georg GarlichsInterim COO/CFO | Finance. Our reading: an invoice would pass through here. | Listed as Interim COO/CFO in the public record we collected. The address of the page was not recorded, so check his title on the school's leadership page before you use it. We did not find the school's fiscal year or budget months in the pages collected on September 17, 2026. Do not raise budget with the school. If the school asks what comes next, ask whoever it names when the school's own requests are set. | No contact on file |
| Prof. Harald HungenbergDean of Programs | Possible second contact. | His published title is Dean of Programs. Continue with her only if the president brings her in. We did not find what the post covers beyond the title. | No contact on file |
| Valentina WernerAssociate Dean of Academic Affairs | Possible second contact. | Her published title is Associate Dean of Academic Affairs. We found no named accreditation or quality lead in the pages collected on September 17, 2026, and we did not find who owns evaluation and accreditation submissions. Do not assume it is her. | No contact on file |
- EduniversalBaptiste
- Write to · no contact on fileProf. Jörg RochollPresident and Managing Director. Our reading: the decision starts with him.
- Not in copy · no contact on fileM. IhlbrockDirector of Corporate Communications. Her first name differs between two of the school's pages.
- Finance · likely step before payment, our readingGeorg GarlichsInterim COO/CFO. We found no purchasing rules published.
- Not yet involvedProf. Harald HungenbergDean of Programs
- Not yet involvedValentina WernerAssociate Dean of Academic Affairs
- Not found in the school's pagesAccreditation leadDo not assume who owns submissions.
Introductions. No one in your network has yet been matched to President Rocholl. Several of your past wins came through a personal introduction. Share the deans of your member schools, and each will be checked against his career, his boards and his co-authors. Any match appears on this map. Keep members of your committee out of the sales conversation.
Free AI examples first. These instructions apply to message 1 under What to send, its note and its timing. Send that first email only. If the school raises recognition, use the reply titled 'If they ask for recognition criteria'.
A first reply, from him or from his office
Answer whoever writes with the same care. Do not take it as the president's own view or approval unless it says so. Be ready to answer questions about how the examples were obtained.
A short exchange on what the examples show
If ESMT points to a mistake in your comparison, correct it and say so. If ESMT points to a mistake in an assistant's answer, leave the answer as recorded, note that the school says it is wrong, and say so. After a reply, ask one thing: who at the school would use this. Offer the optional call above or continue by email. Do not turn the free examples into an obligation. The one-page brief above goes only after this exchange, and only if the contact agrees.
If the school itself asks what comes next
Only then do budget, purchasing and supplier registration come up. We did not find the fiscal year, the budget months, who approves a purchase, or who owns evaluation and accreditation submissions in the pages collected on September 17, 2026. Ask whoever the school names when the school's own requests are set. If the president or his office names a colleague, work with that person.
Any later conversation about a paid service
Any later conversation about a paid service is a separate matter, opened using the confirmed terms below. The held recognition email offers consideration of an application; it does not claim formal preselection or promise an outcome. If Eduniversal later writes to the school about a paid service, what that letter says about criteria and fees is Eduniversal's to write. Use the direct commercial answer on this page: the prepared recognition text states EUR 2,990 once for evaluation, membership is optional and separately priced in the licensing price list, and Cyrille confirms that the committee determines the Palme level independently. Request written scope or terms only for details not supplied here.
How ESMT buys: we found nothing published
This comes up after the school agrees to discuss a separate paid service. ESMT is private and non-profit, run as ESMT European School of Management and Technology GmbH, with the ESMT Foundation as majority shareholder. We found no purchasing page, supplier registration steps, sole-supplier rules or spending thresholds in the pages collected on September 17, 2026. Public tender notices for campus works name ESMT as purchaser. Those are notices for single projects, not purchasing rules for suppliers. Do not assume a supplier portal exists, and do not assume one does not. The finance post is listed as interim.
Order form and invoice
Only if the school itself decides to buy a paid service, and using the confirmed terms below, ask in one message for: the exact contracting entity and its address, the VAT identification number, whether a purchase order number must appear on the invoice, the invoice recipient, whether German-language documents are required, payment terms, and whether an internal approval threshold applies.
| Dates | Why | |
|---|---|---|
| Now to October 9 | Good | First window for the free-example message, once the sender checks are complete. The school's dates in this table come from the Master term dates on the school's exchange page. The school says Master's and MBA students have different academic dates. The Master autumn term began September 14. No classes October 3, the Day of German Unity. A first email sent after October 18, 2026 needs the questions asked again first. |
| October 12 to 16 | Avoid | Our judgment, not the calendar. These are ordinary class days, but it is the week before the Berlin Global Dialogue. |
| October 19 to 22 | Avoid | The school's calendar shows no classes on these days for the Berlin Global Dialogue. |
| October 26 to November 13 | Good | Second window for the free-example message if the sender checks are not complete by October 9. A free-example message sent after October 18, 2026 needs the questions asked again first. Otherwise, the short exchange on what the examples show. |
| November 14 to 30 | Avoid | Your own World Convention in Biarritz and the days after it. We have November 16 to 20 as its dates. Please confirm them. |
| December 1 to 18 | Good | In term. The Master autumn term ends December 18. Third window for the free-example message if the sender checks are not complete by November 13. A free-example message sent after October 18, 2026 needs the questions asked again first. |
| December 19 to January 3, 2027 | Avoid | Between terms. The autumn term ends December 18. Spring orientation is January 4. |
| January 5 to March 25, 2027 | Good | The Master spring term on the school's calendar, which marks the March 25 end date with an asterisk. MBA dates differ, and we did not find the MBA spring dates. Fourth window for the free-example message if the sender checks are not complete by December 18. A free-example message sent after October 18, 2026 needs the questions asked again first. No classes March 8. |
| Fiscal year and budget months | Not found in the pages collected on September 17, 2026. Do not raise them first. If the school asks what comes next, ask whoever it names when the school's own requests are set. |
Free AI examples first. These instructions apply to message 1 under What to send, its note and its timing. Send that first email only. If the school raises recognition, use the reply titled 'If they ask for recognition criteria'.
| Item | Why it matters here |
|---|---|
| When, if at all, Eduniversal wants a conversation with ESMT about a paid service | Any later conversation about a paid service is a separate matter, opened using the confirmed terms below. Recognition stays out of the free-example drafts. The corporate figure is an estimate, not a formal preselection. The recognition message offers the criteria and review steps and does not say the school is preselected. |
| ESMT's standing against its national peers in your own data, with the peer schools named | We found no school named as a rival in the pages collected on September 17, 2026. The examples name only the schools an assistant itself named. Any other comparison of ESMT with other schools has to come from your data. |
| Your own wording on the limits of the examples | Be ready to answer a question about how the examples were obtained. That AI answers change has to be said in Eduniversal's words, in the note, before anyone at ESMT says it. |
| Confirmation of the dates of your World Convention in Biarritz (we have November 16 to 20) | The timing table keeps messages away from those days. They are your dates, not the school's. |
| ESMT's level today (we show 4 Palmes, from your priority list), and one line on who Eduniversal is | The current level comes from your priority list. The recognition message offers a fifth-Palme review without promising an upgrade. The one line is for the seller's answer when the president asks what Eduniversal is. |
| Baptiste Ceresa's title and contact details, and whether he writes as a member of Eduniversal's staff | The free-example message opens by saying he is writing from Eduniversal, and it is signed with his name, then Eduniversal. Both have to be true of him on the day it is sent. |
| Whether the president may be invited to the World Convention or to your vote among deans, who would send it, and whether it costs ESMT anything | We do not know, so no message on this page mentions either. Any invitation is sent by Eduniversal separately, using the confirmed terms below, and is never presented as a step toward a rating. |
| Whether Eduniversal is sending similar examples to other schools, and what a seller may say if asked | Communications may ask who else has received examples. The seller says only what you have approved. |
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Level today | 4 Palmes (from your priority list) |
| Upgrade outlook | 80-100% (corporate estimate; not a formal preselection; no guarantee) |
| Owner at Eduniversal | Baptiste Ceresa |
| Write to | Prof. Jörg Rocholl. Copy no one. |
| Decides | Prof. Jörg Rocholl, President and Managing Director (our reading; the same person as on your list; who approves a purchase was not found in the pages collected) |
| Route | Directly to the president, alone. We found no named accreditation lead. |
| Purchasing | Private, non-profit. We found no published purchasing rules, supplier steps or thresholds. |
| Quoted so far | Nothing. Your records show no fee discussed with ESMT. |
| Status | Prepared, nothing sent |