MESSAGE FROM DEAN SRIKANT DATAR

On February 27, Dean Srikant Datar sent a message to the HBS community regarding the invasion of Ukraine, noting the resources available to those looking to offer support and highlighting learning opportunities available at HBS. “In especially difficult times,” Datar notes, “it is our community that provides us comfort and our values that give us strength.”

Note: Please see this page for guidance on contacting others in the HBS alumni network.

HARVARD RESOURCES

Scholars at Risk (SAR) Program at Harvard
The Scholars at Risk (SAR) Program at Harvard is offering assistance to academics whose work has been impacted by Russia's war on Ukraine. The program, founded in 2001, is dedicated to helping scholars, artists, writers, and public intellectuals from around the world escape persecution and continue their work by providing academic fellowships at Harvard University. For more information, please visit the program's website or reach out to the program director, Jane Unrue.

Negotiating with Vladimir Putin: Video Advice from Five Former U.S. Secretaries of State
HBS professor James K. Sebenius and Harvard Law professor Robert M. Mnookin frame, comment on, and summarize advice and insight on dealing with Vladimir Putin offered by former Secretaries of State Colin Powell, Condoleezza Rice, Hillary Clinton, John Kerry, and Rex Tillerson. This presentation is based on video segments excerpted from in-depth interviews with these men and women as part of Harvard's “American Secretaries of State Project” that Sebenius and Mnookin have co-directed since 2014 with Nicholas Burns (now U.S. Ambassador to the People’s Republic of China).

War in Ukraine: Soaring Gas Prices and the Return of Stagflation?
With nothing left to lose, Russia's invasion of Ukraine will likely intensify, roiling energy markets further and raising questions about the future of globalization, says HBS Professor Rawi Abdelal.

Putin’s iron fist vs. Zelensky’s moral clarity
Historian and HBS professor Nancy Koehn, author of ‘Forged in Crisis,’ compares wartime leaders and the broader messages they send to the world

Ukraine Crisis: Analysis by HBS Professor Deepak Malhotra and Jonathan Powell
At an event held on March 2, 2022, Prof. Deepak Malhotra and Jonathan Powell provide a strategic analysis of the Ukraine crisis and respond to audience questions.
YouTube

“What Happens Next in Ukraine?”
As attack unfolds, escalation, nuclear standoff among Harvard experts’ worst fears
Harvard Gazette

Wide range of possible targets for Russian cyber strikes, from infrastructure to smartphones
Ex-intelligence officer notes role of individuals in defending against attack
Harvard Gazette

How invasion may hit U.S., global economies
[Thomas D. Cabot Professor of Public Policy and Professor of Economics at Harvard] Kenneth Rogoff sees possible fallout in stock, energy markets, worsening of inflation, increase in military spending
Harvard Gazette

Professor Willy Shih, in an interview with NBC-10 Boston, noted the potential economic impacts of the invasion of Ukraine. "We will see it in fuels, natural gas, gasoline, also in food prices," Shih told the channel, noting that natural gas is also used to make fertilizer, which means food prices will also be impacted. The decreased supply of traditional food exports of wheat and corn from Russia and Ukraine will also result in rising prices, Shih said. "You'll pay more for everything that uses wheat and corn and flour.”

Harvard Ukrainian Research Institute: Russia's War on ukraine
Curated collection of news stories and other resources to help put Russia's War on Ukraine in context

Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies
Insights on Russia and Ukraine from Harvard Faculty of Arts & Sciences Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies.

Harvard Kennedy School: How Russian history—and human psychology—can explain the crisis in Ukraine
Q&A with Paul Krobe, director of the Intelligence Project at Harvard Kennedy School's Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs.

COMMUNITY UPDATES

DECEMBER 20

Faculty-founded Company Donates Lifesaving Medical Equipment to Ukraine

Belmont Medical Technologies, cofounded by Regina Herzlinger, the Nancy R. McPherson Professor of Business Administration, and her husband, Dr. George Herzlinger, recently announced that it has donated 100 portable blood and fluid warmers and 20 rapid infusers to Ukraine "to help save the lives of those injured during the ongoing conflict."

"The rapid infusers are truly indispensable in cases of massive blood loss," Olga Berg, Director of Development with the non-profit organization Ukraine Medical Consortium, said in a press release, noting that these devices are used by surgeons treating soldiers on the front lines to save the most seriously wounded.

APRIL 25

Winning the War of the Future: Cyber, Disinformation, and AI
Monday April 25, 2022, 5:30–6:30pm, Virtual program

A discussion on Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the short-term consequences, and what it means for the deterrence and conduct of future hybrid wars. The moderator and panel were introduced by Anastasiya Siro (MBA 2023).
Moderator:
-Evanna Hu, CEO of Omelas; Senior Advisor on Cyber at the International Republican Institute; Non-resident Senior Fellow at Atlantic Council
Panelists:
-Hoan Ton-That, CEO and co-founder of Clearview AI
-Victor Zhora, Chief Digital Transformation Officer at the State Service of Special Communication and Information Protection of Ukraine

APRIL 15

As the reality of the conflict in Ukraine became clear in March, Antoine Leboyer (MBA 1992) went searching for a way to support the refugees fleeing the war. Within a few days, Leboyer was part of a convoy driving 16 refugees (and one dog) from the Polish town of Chelm to host families who would receive them in his hometown of Munich. Read his story of the experience.

APRIL 13

Joel Poznansky (MBA 1986) owns the toy company Wicked Uncle Gifts, and has written about his experience working with a Ukrainian supplier named Rolin Kostya, who continues to make his products under great duress. “The week I spoke to them, there had been a half dozen air raid warnings—and indeed one interrupted the Zoom call—and Rolin and [his wife] Dana sought refuge in a bomb shelter.”
 
In a second article on his experience, Poznansky suggests that sanctions against Russian goods will help—but so will supporting Ukrainian businesses. In addition to continuing to place orders with Rolin’s company, Poznansky is also showcasing his products on his company’s website, with all proceed going to Ukrainian relief funds. (Poznansky also encourages anyone looking to help launch a Buy Ukrainian campaign or who knows of Ukrainian companies exporting goods or services to the USA to contact him at joelpoz@hotmail.com.)
 
“It does not seem like much but, as [Rolin] said, ‘every small step takes us closer to freedom,’” Poznansky writes.

APRIL 12

Corporate Responses to the War in Ukraine
Tuesday April 19, 2022, 5:30pm, Virtual program

How are businesses and business leaders reacting to the war in Ukraine? Senior leaders from three of the world’s foremost companies—ExxonMobil, Johnson & Johnson, and McKinsey and Company—discussed key decisions they have made and how they have approached these decisions. Through concrete examples, we explored the philosophical, ethical, and practical aspects of dealing with this crisis. The event began with remarks from panelists on specific decisions they have made, followed by Q&A.
 
The panel were introduced by Svitlana Repina (MBA 2023). Panelists: Vanessa Broadhurst, Executive Vice President, Global Corporate Affairs, Johnson & Johnson; Liz Hilton Segel, Global Leader, Client Service and Industry Practices, McKinsey & Company; Alice Wells, Senior Director in International Government Relations Europe and Eurasia of Exxon Mobil and former Special Assistant to the U.S. President for Russia and Central Asia; Hubert Joly, Senior Lecturer at HBS and former Chairman and CEO of Best Buy. Hubert was the panel moderator.

MARCH 30

Turmoil in Ukraine: Hear From Ukrainian CEOs on the Ground
Thursday, April 7, 2022, 12pm to 1pm, Virtual program

Ukrainian CEOs are going to extraordinary measures to keep their companies viable and their employees safe, not to mention meeting critical and constantly changing needs of the Ukrainian people. Five CEOs representing pharma, energy, and investment discussed their responses, and those of other corporations, and the critical roles that partnerships and collaboration with US and other non-Ukrainian companies can play in supporting their efforts. Guests included: Serhiy Haydaychuk, CEO of Club Ukraine; Julia Kirynova, CEO of Smart Holding; Volodymyr Kostiuk, Executive Director of Farmak; Andrei Pivovarsky, Managing Director of WOG Holding BV; and Arina Korchmaryov, VP North America Business Group of Cotecna.

MARCH 28

Ukraine: The Humanitarian Catastrophe
Tuesday, March 29, 12-12:30pm, Virtual program

With the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine, a massive humanitarian crisis threatens millions of lives. Michael VanRooyen, director of the Harvard Humanitarian Initiative, discussed with Elana Gordon of The World the greatest humanitarian challenges right now and what can be done to help.

MARCH 25

When Guy Spier (MBA 1993), who lives in Switzerland, read that Ukrainian refugees were streaming into Poland, he and his wife, Lory, reached out to other members of the Jewish community in Zurich to see what relief efforts might be underway. He was connected to a group in need of housing—a mother, her 16-year-old son, and the 16-year-old daughter of friends—who has now moved into his home. Spier notes that he has “received enormous help from the Jewish community, our friends, and colleagues at work” in their efforts to accommodate the family, and the local private high school has already accepted and enrolled the children. “Lory and I agreed that we did not want to look back on this historic moment and to have just been passive observers,” Spier says. “So we had to do something—however insignificant—to show that we did not accept this tragedy. And we are not alone. The response around the planet has been tremendous.” 
 
When disaster strikes, Spiers says, there are only two kinds of people in the aftermath: survivors and victims. “It is incumbent on those who survive to help the victims—because this is how we heal the world,” he says. “Most of us can’t do anything to stop the death and destruction, but we can help the victims. Help them to feel human—and in the process to heal them, ourselves and, hopefully, the world.”

MARCH 23

Dr. Herbert Bleier (AMP 109, 1991), who lives in Austria, is working with his professional networks in Poland, Slovakia, Romania, Moldavia, and Hungary to help spot and address the needs of Ukrainian refugees. Bleier has used to network to find a family with two young children, who are being housed at his home in Vienna. “It's a small help, but we must especially support these hundreds of thousands of children already traumatized, hungry, and freezing—both already outside and still suffering inside Ukraine,” says Bleier. “At this time, the priority in Austria is to provide accommodation, register the people arriving to provide working permit, arrange medical and financial aid, prepare schooling and support on clothing, toys, etc. I plan to connect with Ukrainian local community to help me with identifying students who may be interested and qualify for advanced curriculum and potentially distant learning or other means to advance their studies in spite of the war.” For readers seeking a connection in Austria to link to Ukrainian family or friends passing through Austria., you can reach Herbert at hbleier@icloud.com.

MARCH 22

Event: BGIE Faculty Perspectives on the War in Ukraine
Monday, March 24, 5:00-6:00pm, Virtual program

Three faculty experts from the Business, Government, and International Economy (BGIE) Unit shared their latest thinking on the war in Ukraine—how the world got here and where we might go next. Financial sanctions, business actions, and the role of China are likely areas of focus. The event began with remarks from the panelists on current events in Ukraine, followed by a Q&A session.

Panelists included:

-Rawi E. Abdelal (Herbert F. Johnson Professor of International Management) – Professor Abdelal is the director of Harvard’s Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies. His primary expertise is in international political economy.

-Jeremy S. Friedman (Martin Bower Associate Professor) – Professor Friedman devotes his research to the history of the Left and its struggle to end economic and social inequality. He studies how this struggle evolved, its various cultural contexts, and what paths have been tried and rejected. He is an expert on Russia, China, and Cold War history.

-Dante Roscini (MBA Class of 1952 Professor of Management Practice in Business Administration) – Professor Roscini’s research focuses on sovereign debt, monetary policy, central banking, and international investment. He has had two decades of leadership experience at Goldman Sachs, Merrill Lynch, and Morgan Stanley.

MARCH 17

A recent article in The Financial Times highlights the efforts of Dan Pasko (MBA 2010) and Dennis Kogan (MBA 2011) to organize humanitarian relief efforts with the Harvard Club of Ukraine. “Supply chains have broken down because of the fighting and there is an urgent need to get healthcare supplies to people under siege,” Pasko, whose Diligent Capital Partners is based in Kyiv, told the Times. The article alsonotes that Pasko “is liaising with healthcare vendors, logistics companies and Ukraine’s government to source and distribute supplies.”

The Times goes on to note that Ukraine’s health department reached out to the Harvard Club of Ukraine for assistance sourcing medical supplies, including everything from oxygen and blood to syringes and bandages. “We are using our private equity connections with local trucking, logistics and healthcare vendors companies to get supplies in as fast as possible before the blockades get worse,” Kogan told the Times.

MARCH 9

Ask Me Anything (AMA): Expert Panel on the War in Ukraine and Candlelight Vigil

A student-organized panel discussion focusing on Ukraine was held on March 10, featuring alumni and staff from across Harvard sharing their insights and expertise on current events in the country today and answered questions from attendees. The event was followed by a candlelight vigil on Schwartz Common.

Thursday March 10, 2022, 5:30PM – 7:00PM, Klarman Hall and online. The candlelight vigil was an in-person event held on Schwartz Common.

Guests included Natalie Jaresko (Harvard Kennedy School, MPP 1989), Ukraine's Minister of Finance (2014-16); Oleh Khalayim (Harvard Kennedy School, MPA 2004), Portfolio Officer at the World Bank, Vice President at Harvard Club of Ukraine, currently fighting in Ukraine; Dr. Oleh Kotsyuba, Manager of Publications at the Ukrainian Research Institute; Nataliya Bugayova (Harvard Kennedy School, MPP 2012), Director of Strategic Insights at Vertical Knowledge, Russian Research Fellow at Institute for the Study of War; Daniel Baer (Harvard College, AB 2000), Acting Director of the Europe Program, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace; and Svitlana Repina (HBS, MBA 2023), panel moderator.

MARCH 8

Alumni Perspective: Mark Iwashko (MBA 1991)
 
In a recent message to his MBA 1991 sectionmates, longtime Kyiv resident Mark Iwashko (MBA 1991) shared his perspective on the events unfolding in Ukraine. Iwashko, who manages private equity funds, discusses how he has spent the last 25 years watching the country’s economy overcome everything from organized crime to systematic corruption. “Today, Ukraine has a thriving economy built on the backs of a new generation of truly talented entrepreneurs who are creating an agricultural and IT powerhouse that is attracting the attention of the rest of the world, while corruption has been replaced with reforms and business deregulation that the West would be envious of,” he writes.
 
With his wife, Katia, Iwashko raised his two US-born sons in Ukraine although their sons returned to the US for university and to begin their careers. “We’ve built an incredibly rich network of Ukrainian friends and have bonded with expats from all over the world who, like me, initially came to Ukraine for a visit but fell in love with the country and its people and, like us, put down roots there,” Iwashko writes. “The (Ukrainian) people are proud, hardworking, and peace loving, but will fight to the end to protect their homeland.”

Iwashko was on a visit to the US with his family when the Russian invasion began and is now “watching my friends and colleagues at home fight for their lives and their future on CNN.” “I know many people on the ground, in harm’s way; they are civilians, men and women, young and old, turning empty beer bottles into Molotov cocktails and arming themselves with whatever weapon they can find in support of the vastly outnumbered but highly motivated professional army in an effort to protect their cities and homes,” Iwashko writes.

Iwashko goes on to underline the impact of the events underway. “Not to be overly dramatic, but I do believe we are witnessing a very important geopolitical moment here. While this conflict is in Ukraine, it is not about Ukraine itself; it is about what rules the rest of the world will live by for the foreseeable future.”

MARCH 7

Harvard Community to Help Ukraine
The Harvard Club of Ukraine is serving as a point of contact for the Harvard alumni community in Ukraine and to support the people of Ukraine. Contact harvardclubofukraine@gmail.com to receive the latest updates on the current situation, links to resources, and ways in which you can help with relief and aid efforts.  

Current MBA students are organizing to support community members who are from Ukraine or have family in Ukraine. Svitlana Repina (MBA 2023) (srepina@mba2023.hbs.edu) is the contact for the student group.

MARCH 2

A Message from Konstantin Fominykh (MBA 1999)

Unthinkable, unimaginable madness is unfolding across Ukraine, hurting people of all nationalities there.

Having lived in Ukraine for 7 years as a kid, I am deeply familiar with Ukrainian culture, and I speak decent Ukrainian. I have my mother and my brother in Ukraine and numerous friends there (safe now). Almost half of my company's employees are based there (running a FinTech company using brilliant minds of talented Ukrainians).
 
Keeping a daily conversation with all of them and supporting them financially, I am intimately familiar with the daily fears, dangers, and challenges that these people face. People facing bombings and fire, sleeping in bomb shelters with their kids and elderly parents. ...We all are deeply inspired by their bravery, courage, selflessness and dedication to higher values.

Yet, we have to do something!
 
I wanted to respectfully suggest to the 87,000-strong HBS community globally how to support Ukraine:

• I have specific suggestions on how and where to offer support - reliable global or Ukrainian charities. Please email me at: kfominykh@tenviz.com
• We also need to stop the harassment and indiscriminate backlash against innocent Russian-speakers in Europe and in North America who are guilty by association with these atrocious actions by the Russian government. Stories of little Russian kids being bullied at elementary schools in the States are real and are profoundly disturbing...
• I welcome connecting with other concerned HBS alumni and hearing your ideas.

Thank you all for taking the time and your thoughts.

Peace to the Earth!

Konstantin Fominykh (MBA 1999)

FEBRUARY 27

An article in The Japan Times highlights a ¥1 billion ($8.7 million) donation from Hiroshi Mikitani (MBA 1993) for “humanitarian activities to help people in Ukraine who are victims of the violence.” In a letter addressed to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Mikitani also noted that he believes “that the trampling of a peaceful and democratic Ukraine by unjustified force is a challenge to democracy,” and hopes “that Russia and Ukraine can resolve this issue peacefully and that Ukraine people can have peace again as soon as possible.”

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