V-LINE Managers at Harvard Business School’s Key Executive Program
Cambridge, MA, 01/24/2010
In alignment with a corporate culture committed to lifelong learning and education for all levels of management, four members of the V-LINE executive team from Germany, the United States, and Saudi Arabia gathered at the Harvard Business School (HBS) Campus in January to participate in the school’s bi-annual “Key Executives Program”.
This two week long program is lead by top Harvard faculty and includes active 24/7 involvement from all participants. A mix of lectures, discussions (both in class and group studies), business simulations and negotiating sessions provides a fantastic opportunity for a fresh update on what’s new, hot, and important in today’s business.
Participants of this program are key managers at companies from across the globe, whose owners had previously completed the HBS OPM (Owner/President Management) Program comprising campus resident sessions spanning a three year period. The program, tailored to key executive needs, is based on a core of approximately thirty real-life business cases that are read and prepared nightly for faculty-moderated team problem solving meetings each day. This year the participants were seventy-five in number. The group came from all continents and different areas of management. Their companies were in manufacturing, wholesale, retail and service sectors in industries including high tech, industrial equipment, paper and forest products, mining, plastics, food, agribus, transportation, education and consulting. The program course focuses on skills for becoming a more effective manager and leader. Specific areas of studies include Leadership, Strategy, Marketing, Accounting and Finance, Innovation and Negotiation. Besides examining the value and interrelationships of these key business issues the program also focuses on anticipating, managing and adapting to change. Beyond formal studies this event also includes living on-campus at Harvard for a full two weeks. All participants live and work together in so-called “living groups” and further exchange ideas, learn from and with one another, get to know each other and each different perspective and, of course, also network and socialize. V-LINE Europe Manager of Sales Turgay Temur said “the intensive exchange and interaction with an amazing group of colleagues in this two week ‘boot camp environment’ was for me an outstanding experience”. Peter Knakowski, Chief Operating Officer of V-LINE USA said “the underlying theme ‘How Leadership Differs from Management’ is the takeaway for me as I get back to the office and our day-to-day business”.
“V-LINE strives to emphasize the importance of investment in human resources and highest level of knowledge and education” said Group Managing Director Detlev Daues. “This is our third round at the Harvard leadership development program and I am convinced of the benefits of a common framework and vocabulary to communication and decision making within our business units and across the geographies in which we operate” he said.
About V-LINE
The V-LINE group of companies was founded in 1979 and has its group headquarters in Sehnde near Hanover, Germany. It is one of the most important global providers of original spare parts direct from the manufacturer to industrial plants, working with more than 20,000 suppliers. The use of original parts guarantees optimal handling and the longest possible equipment service life. The use of the innovative E-procurement-solution V-Ware™ ensures considerably less transaction and procurement costs and guaranteed transit times, and regular collective dispatches keep storage needs to a minimum. V-LINE, in addition to Saudi Arabia and the Gulf States, has operations in Japan, China, Mexico, Brazil and the USA. For further information please visit V-LINE’s website at: www.v-line.com or call by phone—Saudi Arabia: +966 (3) 3407940, EMEA: +49 (5138) 7008, USA: +1-732-919-0190, Japan: +81 (66) 675 3001, Brazil: +55 (11) 66712958, China: +86 (10) 84920049, Mexico: +52 (2222) 536396.
