A unique partnership project is being launched in Armenia – “Matena” International School of Leadership and Professional Development. Matena’s mission is to contribute to the development of professional skills and leadership qualities through collecting and sharing advanced knowledge and the leading world practices for those who permanently seek improvement and excellence in their professional fields. The initiators and founders of “Matena” are Ruben Vardanyan, the founding partner of “SKOLKOVO” Moscow School of Management and “UWC Dilijan” international school, and Ruben Hayrapetyan, doctor of sciences in economics, professor.
“Matena” will introduce an entirely new quality and form of education having already collected a large database of both international and local experts, as well as combining their experience and collaborating with reputable international organizations. The school has an ambitious vision to gain a leading position not only in Armenia, but also in the region, that will contribute to the gradual reforms of the system through a ripple effect.
Moscow School of Management “SKOLKOVO” is among Matena’s key partners. In collaboration with “SKOLKOVO”, “Matena” has developed and will deliver the initial education programs for middle and high-level executives, as well as for entrepreneurs. The International Advisory Board and International Academic Board of the school comprise reputable representatives of academic and business communities, famous social and political actors, including Pierre Gurjian, the longtime “Mckinsey” Managing Partner of the Belgium-Luxemburg office, the President of the Advisory board of Free University of Brussels; Hovhannes Avoyan, the co-founder and CEO of “Picsart”; Tigran Khudaverdyan, the managing director of “Yandex”; Ruben Enikolopov, the rector of New Economic School; Vladimir Mau, the rector of Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration, Mikayel Poghosyan, the rector of Moscow Aviation Institute; Karl Johansson, the longtime head of “Earnst & Young” in CIS countries; Imangali Tasmagambetov, former Prime Minister of Kazakhstan; Marta Albert, managing principal of “QG Family Office”, and others.
“Matena’s” first program will be launched in the first quarter of 2022. The possible participants of the programs will be the citizens of Armenia as well as participants from diaspora and abroad, including the countries of Eurasian Economic Union. In addition, free open courses will be organized for the youth and students, as well as for the wider community through the huge network of international and local experts. “Matena’s” courses will be in three languages, Armenian, Russian, and English, and will be held not only in Armenia (Yerevan, Dilijan, etc.) but also abroad in collaboration with international partners. In the meantime, a new academic base for “Matena” is planned to be built.
“Matena” will also contribute to the 15 strategic goals of the “Future Armenian” public initiative, in particular, to the implementation of “Education excellence: prioritize education as the highest societal value for Armenians worldwide”.
“Over the 20 years of implementing numerous projects in Armenia, I have encountered four main challenges: a lack of qualified managers, a lack of large-scale and multipurpose projects that would have caused a chain reaction of positive changes, a lack of financial resources for the implementation of those projects, as well as the absence of favorable and stimulating environment for their implementation. All these challenges are interconnected, but the major one, in my opinion, is the first one, and if we could find an answer to it, it would become the key to solving all the other problems”, emphasized Ruben Vardanyan. “That is why we are establishing a center for the development of leadership and management competencies for representatives of both the private and public sectors. Since the programs of our school are also intended for public officials, we do hope that we will be able to build effective cooperation with the state”.
“We have always had high-quality specialists in Armenia, however the process of their preparation has been fragmented, chaotic and mostly formal. Currently, there is a significant shortage of people, who would be ready to lead the crucial reforms of various systems both in the private and in public sectors through their professional knowledge, experience and permanent personal growth. Obviously, the current circumstances in Armenia require the development of a fundamentally new culture of professional education in Armenia, especially in preparing leaders-professionals, which is one of the necessary prerequisites for the development of our country. In fact, everything is very simple: we create a platform of professional excellence through “Matena”, where we combine the best practices of the world’s outstanding professionals, leaders, as well as the best local experts, and we gradually promote it in Armenia in order to generate tangible outcome for our country”, – noted Ruben Hayrapetyan.
With the determination to contribute to the implementation of this important mission, “Matena” International School has been founded in Armenia. The initial package of the programs will be announced soon, in the meantime you can follow the news and be informed about the opportunities of joining the international community of “Matena”.
