The research focus is on the institutional challenges facing these economies. SITE works to put research results to use, and to share the experience of transition with governments and businesses. The Institute also runs a full programme of meetings and publications to bring together policymakers, business people and academics. An increasingly important part of SITE's mission is to assist transition countries in developing their own centers of research and knowledge and to improve the quality of data. SITE is participating in other capacity-building initiatives in Russia and in the Baltic countries, Ukraine, Central and Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia.
SITE is a private, non-profit foundation.
Additional funding is provided from research and institution-building grants.