Between the end of 1996 and the end of 2001, France pulled off a record job creation and unemployment cutting performance, with 2.1 million new jobs created and unemployment cut by 750,000. What were the underlying engines of this performance? Who benefited from the improvements? Did the jobs that were created enhance the overall quality of the job mix? How did people's activity profiles develop as a result? We analyse the underlying causes and outcomes of this development.