MIM Kyiv’s Max Goltsberg says that Ukrainian-trained MBAs are different from their Russian or Western counterparts because they “paint with a broader brush”
Max Goltsberg is the prorector of MIMKyiv International Management Institute.
He began is his career in the Soviet period after receiving a doctorate degree in economics. In 1990 Goltsberg joined International Management Institute, IMI-Kyiv – at that time the first and only business school in the former Soviet Union. It was launched as a classic business school by the International Management Institute in Geneva (currently known as IMD or Institute for Management Development in Lausanne, Switzerland) and the Ukrainian Academy of Sciences.
After joining MIM-Kyiv Goltsberg “refocused” his interests, as business education called for expertise that was drastically different from his academic experience. He completed a number of Executive Programs in Harvard, Wharton (USA), IMD, and other business schools.
While doing so Goltsberg taught at MIM-Kyiv, developed MBA programs together with his colleagues and provided consulting services to different businesses.
MIM-Kyiv was the first to offer an MBA program based on internationalstandards to post-Soviet managers in 1990. It has since remained one of the leaders of business education in Ukraine.
KP: Please describe some major trends currently being observed in business education in Ukraine.
MG: I am optimistic about the current trends as they provide bright perspectives for our business. Managerial expertise is in high demand. The number of schools is growing as is the number of managerial programs. The numbers of applicants and students grow with each passing year.
Another major trend is internationalization. The number of joint business education programs is growing all over the world, and Ukraine is no exception. Quite a number of top Western business schools such as Chicago Business School, IMD, Harvard Business School, Rotterdam School of Management and so on, are active on the Ukrainian market. They are looking to attract students from Ukraine or to establish joint programs and projects with Kyiv-based schools.
MIM-Kyiv runs such projects. Top international schools participate in the international MBA Fairs which have become an annual event since 2004.
Russian schools are trying their hardest to enter the Ukrainian market by attracting students through their regular MBA fairs that have been held twice a year since 2005. From the very beginning MIM-Kyiv has been an international venture and so it is very easy to adapt to international trends. We have joint IT programs with Carnegie Mellon University, the Tepper School of Business, and research projects on competitiveness with the Harvard Business School and IMD. International study tours for MBA participants have always been an integral part of MIM-Kyiv’s programs. This year our participants went to China in addition to traditional destinations like the US and Western Europe.
The third major trend is that companies working in Ukraine require tailor-made products aimed at human resource development as a tool to increase their competitiveness. Corporate programs are probably the most dynamic and fastest growing areas in Ukraine’s business education.
KP: What are the main factors driving the development of business education development in Ukraine today?
MG: The growth in business education is attributable to Ukraine’s economic buoyancy. Although the current political crisis has had a limited impact on the economy and the markets, output performance, though decelerating, remains strong. In the first five months of this year, real GDP posted a 7.9 percent year-on-year growth, with retail trade, construction and manufacturing leading the way with double digit growth. Industrial production grew by more than 12 percent, boosted by machine building and iron and steel industries. Investment demand is running high.
In turn, the key factor underlying Ukraine’s economic buoyancy has been the growing influx of foreign capital. In addition to the multinational giants, a number of smaller international companies are actively entering Ukrainian markets.
Capital is also brought into the country via IPOs: by mid-2007, six Ukrainian companies had listed with European stock exchanges in London and Warsaw. At least two more have announced decisions to offer IPOs by the end of this year. Up to nine companies are forecasted to conduct IPOs in 2008–2009.
Every year the amount of foreign tourists and business people visiting Ukraine increases: 15 million foreigners visited Ukraine in 2004 compared to nearly 20 million from more than 170 countries in 2005.
In early 2007 Ukraine won the right to co-host the European Football Championship in 2012. On game days an estimated 200,000 tourists will descend upon every city where a game is held and they will be spending more than $400 per tourist per day. Moreover, EURO 2012 requires investments to update and develop infrastructure that will boost construction.
Currently in Ukraine there are over 4,500 hotels, motels and resorts with more than 620,000 places for tourists. Austrian company Sparkassen Immobilien AG recently announced plans to build five hotels in Ukraine by 2010 to be managed by Marriott chain.
KP: How has business education in Ukraine changed over the last several years? What are you current priorities as a school?
MG: The fast growth of business education is the most vivid tendency. At MIM we are seeing the near doubling of the number of MBAs and PMDs – programs for management development, mid-term managerial education programs. As mentioned, internationalization and increased demand for corporate programs are the second and third performance indices for business education in Ukraine.
Special attention should be drawn to the shift towards the integration of knowledge that is currently being observed in managerial education programs. People want more than just accounting or just marketing or just HR. They need a combination of knowledge and skills that will allow them to manage and resolve complex issues rather than being bogged down in complex calculations.
I would say that so-called “soft skills” in leadership and communication have become a priority in business education. Business is not about numbers, business is about people. They need motivation, they need leadership and they need satisfaction from their jobs. Top managers, in turn, need a team that can perform at its best. Soft skills are crucial in meeting both sides’ demands.
Integration is the focus of business education internationally. A lot of schools are providing joint degree programs in management of certain industries like engineering, medical care, sports and recreation activities. At MIM we are considering launching certain industry-oriented PMD programs.
KP: What are the most popular programs in business education today? Besides MBAs, are there any other programs growing in popularity?
MG: All decent-quality integrated programs enjoy popularity. At MIM we have doubled the number of participants in our Senior Executive MBA programs and the participants are becoming more sophisticated and demanding. MBA programs are also in high demand, but MBA students tend to be more diverse in terms of their activities. Earlier we had more top and senior managers and fewer entrepreneurs among our students. All management levels are currently represented among our participants, with a growing number of entrepreneurs. They choose PMD programs if they lack time or ambition, or MBA programs if they strive for higher achievements.
KP: Has the number of students attending business schools grown?
MG: Our institute set an all-time record for the number of students enrolled in 2005: the number of our MBA students doubled and we had 180 persons enrolled in our MBA and Senior MBA programs. In 2006 we had the same number of students but the proportion changed: the number of Senior Executive MBAs doubled. Our PMD programs are seeing 80 percent growth in participants. And the number of corporate clients is growing by 30 percent every year.
KP: What is the outlook for business school graduates in Ukraine today? Where do they usually plan to work – locally or abroad?
MG: As everywhere in the world, business school graduates in Ukraine look at the bigger picture both in terms of better income, better position and better perspectives. Our clients also look to establish a wider network of contacts as that is probably the best tool for developing business. It would be fair to say that our participants are not restricted geographically – most of our clients do not seem to care where they work and live. Some of them are considering the Russian market, some of them are interested in European countries and all of them are interested in career prospects and improved lifestyles. Currently, nearly 10 percent are working abroad and the rest live in Ukraine and work for domestic and international businesses.
KP: Can you gauge the level of interest from companies looking to hire business school graduates? Which companies or industries most frequently turn to business schools in search of potential employees?
MG: Domestic companies are slowly growing accustomed to the idea of looking for MBAs to fill in executive positions. Compared to 2006, the number of executive positions that specified MBA degrees as job requirements increased this year by 5 percent.
Companies are constantly turning to MIM-Kyiv for recruitment, both officially and unofficially. Unlike Western schools – where investment and consulting are the primary recipients of MBA graduates – here in Ukraine practically all industries are hunting for talented MBAs to fill executive positions.
KP: How does the level of knowledge provided by business schools in Ukraine differ from that offered by West European or US business schools? What about schools in former-Soviet countries, like Russia?
MG: I would say that we are not worse, we are not better – but we are different. Our participants and graduates are “painting with a broader brush” than their Western colleagues. In that respect we are very much similar to our Russian colleagues. Business education seems to boom in countries with robust economies.
Also, it is the alumni community that defines the business education experience. A larger alumni community means a more effective educational program.
KP: What are the major challenges that business schools in Ukraine face today?
MG: We have our own specific problems related to political instability that shakes the legal framework from time to time, but these are not earth-shattering. We have the same problem shared by every business on the planet, namely with faculty.
Be it Harvard, IMD, London Business School or MIM-Kyiv – we all lack a full-time faculty that can combine the features of being good businessmen and being good teachers at the same time. Working as a business school professor is very demanding and the job often has considerably lower compensation than working as an industry executive, for example.
All other problems are part of daily life and do not impede with the development of business education.
KP: What is your forecast for business school development in Ukraine for the short term?
MG: The prospects are bright. But we will soon face tougher competition from Russian and international business schools. Their markets are nearly saturated and they will definitely try to grab a share of the Ukrainian market for themselves. Our advantages in this context is our knowledge of the local mentality, good contacts within the local business community and better understanding of local needs combined with our international expertise.
