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Posted 11/26/97
CLEVELAND -- A vice president of the state-owned energy company, the head of a large public relations firm, and the vice-chancellor of the Higher School of Economics at Moscow State University are among six Russians who have recently begun an intensive, month-long course of study at the Weatherhead School of Management of Case Western Reserve University.
The Russians have come to Cleveland as the first fellows of the Coca-Cola/CWRU World Leadership Program, which was recently established with a $50,000 grant from the Coca-Cola Foundation. The fellows arrived November 5 and will be here through December 6. Their stay will include a two-day visit to the Coca-Cola Company's headquarters in Atlanta.
"We are delighted to inaugurate this progam by hosting such a highly skilled group of individuals," said Robert Hisrich, the program's director and the A. Malachi Mixon III Professor of Entrepreneurial Studies at Weatherhead. "Not only will the fellows better understand the workings of a free market economy, but the knowledge they gain here will help them globalize the curriculum of management schools in Russia, and speed the process of integrating Russia into the international economy."
The fellows are:
The Russians say they were drawn to the program by the desire to strengthen their entrepreneurial skills, and by Weatherhead faculty's reputation. "Professor Hisrich has written several books and has lectured in Russia and is well known there," Karpukhina said. "So we weren't coming into something unknown. We knew what we were getting here."
Ageev says Russian business is often hectic and short-term-oriented. Coming to Weatherhead "gives me a chance to recharge my batteries, and step back to look at the long term," he said.
"This is one of the leading U.S. schools of business," he added. "For us it is a great honor to be here."
Gratchev said that the relationship with CWRU and the Weatherhead School "is not just a one-way street. Our being here helps facilitate the Weatherhead School's entrepreneurial spirit, and provides them with ideas for strengthening the school's ties with Eastern Europe."
The group plans to take advantage of the city's cultural and tourist attractions, including visits to the Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland Orchestra, and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum.
The fellows' academic program at Weatherhead will cover such areas as money and banking (including starting and running a mutual fund), marketing, strategic planning, and personal development. The group also will visit the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, the Greater Cleveland Growth Association's Council of Smaller Enterprises (COSE), the Cleveland Coca-Cola Bottling Company plant, and Inventure Place in Akron. They also will attend the Weatherhead 100 awards dinner December 4.
Weatherhead has become a leader among U.S. business schools in developing ties with Eastern European nations and those that comprised the former Soviet Union. The school has the most links with Hungarian universities of any American business school, and it is among the top U.S. schools in ties with educational institutions in Russia, the Ukraine, and Slovenia.
Weatherhead also operates training programs in free-market economics for secondary school teachers with the Moscow College of Business Administration and Chuvash State University in Russia. In addition, the school has a joint institute of entrepreneurship and management with Chuvash State University.
Fellows for the Coca-Cola/CWRU World Leadership Program were selected by a committee comprised of representatives from CWRU and Russian economic and business leaders.
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