Yves Mény has taught at several universities and grand école in France (Rennes, Paris II, Sciences Po Paris) and abroad (in particular, Madrid, Bologna, Rome, Catania, Washington University, Seattle, New York University). He created and directed the Robert Schuman Center at the European University Institute in Florence from 1993 to 2001 before becoming President of the Institute (European University Institute) from 2002 to 2009.

From January 2014 to July 2018 he was chairman of the board of the Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna in Pisa, a position in which he succeeded Giuliano Amato. He has been a member of numerous scientific boards of research centres including the Max Planck Institut in Cologne and of scientific journals (Revue Française de Science Politique, Revue Suisse de Science Politique, West European Politics, Journal of Common Market Studies, Pouvoirs, Revue Française de Sciences politiques, Federal and Regional Studies, Journal of Public Policy, Stato e Mercato etc.).

His research activity has focused on the evolution of public institutions, the reform and modernisation of the State and the crisis of the traditional Jacobin model, under the impetus of decentralisation and the development of European institutions. His publications (in French, English, Italian or other languages) include books on corruption in France (Fayard) or in Europe (in collaboration with Donatella della Porta, French, Italian and Portuguese editions) or, with Yves Surel, on populism (Par le peuple, pour le peuple - Populisme et démocratie, Paris, Fayard, 2002 - translated in Italian by Il Mulino).

He has also published text-books of comparative politics (translated in English, Italian, Greek) and with J-C Thoenig of Politiques Publiques (translated in Italian and Spanish). His most recent publications include contributions on the political crisis in Europe (West European Politics, 2014), conflicts of interest (Pouvoirs, 2013) and forthcoming (2015) articles in State and Market and Pouvoirs.