From Apprenticeship to Permanent Contract: Titouan Boyard’s Path in Internal Audit at Carrefour

Armed with a bachelor’s degree, Titouan Boyard joined Carrefour’s internal audit department while enrolling in a specialised master’s programme at SKEMA. From the outset, he discovered a demanding and cross-functional profession, closely connected to strategic challenges.

He soon chose to continue the experience through an apprenticeship. “When I arrived at Carrefour, I loved it straight away. The job, the team, the subjects. I could really see myself there. I still had a great deal to learn and I wanted to stay within that professional momentum,” he explains. Building on this first experience, he then joined SKEMA’s Mastère Spécialisé® Expert in Management Control, Audit & Information Systems Management, with a clear objective: strengthen his expertise while remaining fully immersed in the corporate environment.

Bridging professional experience and academic teaching

“We are very proud of the distinction awarded to Titouan Boyard for the quality of his work on internal audit and cyber risk, recognised by IFACI, with which SKEMA is a partner. In this regard, we thank IFACI, which encourages our students to submit their work as part of the IFACI Student Award. This recognition illustrates the programme’s core objective: to maintain a constant dialogue between professional experience and academic teaching. 

Students confront their professional assignments with the methodological frameworks and tools explored during the programme, enabling them to address highly concrete issues closely aligned with organisational practices,” explains Marie Paulus, programme director.

A demanding rhythm designed for companies

The rhythm is structured: three weeks in the company, one week in class. A shared schedule, established at the beginning of the year, allows teams to anticipate periods of absence. “I already had the practical side thanks to the company. What SKEMA gave me was the theoretical framework.”

“Officially it was three weeks, one week. But sometimes we had two weeks of classes in a row. You had to organise yourself. Audit assignments last around two months, so some teaching weeks fell right in the middle of busy periods.” Apprenticeship in internal audit requires strong organisation. The profession operates in cycles, structured around assignments and key phases. “I had to prepare my departures, anticipate deliverables, and catch up when I returned,” he explains. “It’s not a job with a constant flow of activity. There are moments when things accelerate very quickly. So I made sure to prepare as much as possible before leaving for classes, then catch up once I was back.”

Strategic immersion within a major group

Over the course of his assignments, Titouan explored a wide range of fields: operational store audits, IT projects, cybersecurity, regulatory issues and strategic topics. “What I like about internal audit is that you never get bored. In the morning you might work with a director who sits on the executive committee, and in the afternoon be in a store talking with department managers or cashiers. There’s real transversal exposure and close contact with the field, which I value a lot,” says the student, now employed on a permanent contract.

The value of the academic framework

The programme helps structure this immersion. “I already had the practical experience through the company. What SKEMA brought me was the theoretical framework: understanding how the internal audit function connects with top management, committees and governance.”

This academic foundation reshapes professional posture. For Titouan, professionalisation through apprenticeship appeared the natural path forward. “The apprenticeship creates a very smooth transition to a permanent contract. You don’t arrive as a junior discovering everything. You already know the methods, the stakeholders and the expectations.”

Rapid growth in responsibilities

One week after the end of his apprenticeship, Titouan signed a permanent contract within the same team. “There was no real break. I simply changed status. But expectations increased. More is expected from you, so you take on greater responsibilities.”

He now acts as a deputy mission lead, supervises more junior profiles, supports interns and contributes to strategic debriefings.

Professional recognition

Written in partnership with Violette Blanchard, his thesis on cybersecurity and internal audit earned the award granted by IFACI. Although his classmate did not apply to the competition, Titouan emphasises the collective nature of the work: “The aim was not to win a prize. Violette and I wanted to produce solid work. The award came afterwards.”

A distinction that crowns a path built through apprenticeship, between immersion in a CAC 40 group and rapid progression in responsibilities.