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TRAINING WITH SABIT
by Padraic Sweeney

Once a business venture has been established in the Newly Independent States
(NIS) of the former Soviet Union, there's much to do to make it operational.  New
co-workers must get to know one another; NIS personnel must learn how to run a
profitable business, and detailed plans must be made for the new venture. 
Westinghouse Electric Corporation is one of the many U.S. companies that make
use of the Special Business Internship Training Program (SABIT) of the U.S.
Department of Commerce to help fund these activities.

GAINING A FOOTHOLD

Westinghouse gained an important foothold in the NIS civilian nuclear power
industry when it established its Westron joint venture last year in Ukraine. 
Hartron, Westinghouse's partner, is one of Ukraine's leading defense enterprises,
and was once a major supplier of electronic guidance and control systems for
Soviet military aircraft.  The new venture will provide process control systems to
NIS nuclear power plants and other facilities. Westron has already signed its first
contract, to install a computer monitoring system at a nuclear power station in
southern Ukraine.

Three senior managers from Hartron recently completed 10-week hands-on
internships in the United States with support from SABIT.  Westinghouse was able
to familiarize the Ukrainian managers with its U.S. operations, provide them with
intensive business management training, and conduct detailed planning for
Westron.  In Ukraine the trainees are expected to be responsible for Westron's
financial, marketing, human resources, quality assurance, and public affairs
operations.  

TIMELY SUPPORT

With SABIT support, the trainees toured Westinghouse facilities and met with
senior corporate management in Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania; underwent
intensive training in business management; and drafted financial, marketing, human
resources, quality-assurance, and public relations plans for Westron.  According to
training coordinator Chuck Roman, of Westinghouse Electric's Process Control
Division, "We're trying to organize all the business aspects of our joint venture,
[and] the timing on this training program was excellent."  As a result of this
SABIT-funded training, he went on, the Ukrainian managers "are taking back with
them a detailed knowledge of how our business works" that would be impossible
to impart with a shorter, less intensive training program.  Vladimir Gorokhov, a
senior Hartron financial manager and one of the SABIT interns, echoed Roman's
comments: "It was great to stay here for a longer time and communicate.  Now
we understand each other better."

SHARING KNOWLEDGE

The Ukrainian trainees stressed that they would share their knowledge and
experience with their colleagues when they returned home.  Since Hartron is one
of the first defense enterprises to be privatized in Ukraine, they said, their
experience in establishing a new business venture with a major U.S. company
would be widely studied.  Intern Yevgeniy Galken, who is responsible for Hartron
public affairs, told BISNIS Bulletin that "Hartron was chosen as a pilot project for
privatization of the Ukrainian military industry.  The privatization plan was formed
in [Ukrainian] President Kuchma's office.  Our experience will be spread to other
Ukrainian defense enterprises."  

SABIT is gaining high-level exposure in Ukraine as a result of the Westinghouse/
Hartron experience.  U.S. companies exploring opportunities there should keep this
exposure in mind, along with the other benefits SABIT assistance can offer, when
addressing a new venture's training needs.  For more information on SABIT, call
(202) 482-0073.
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