IMS 7v53-595 COURSE SYLLABUS

School of Management, UT Dallas

Course: IMS 7v53-595 (Area Study: Eastern Europe

Semester: Fall 2006
Instructor: Habte G. Woldu
E-mail: wolduh@utdallas.edu; Tel. 972-883-6357
Web: www.utdllas.edu/~wolduh
Office: SOM 4.805
Office Hrs: T, R 11:00 – 12:00 am and F 4:30 – 5:45 pm by appointment

Course information

Course pre-requisite: the course is designed for graduate and senior undergraduate students who have
already taken international business, international marketing or global business. In the absence of such
requirement, students need to contact the instructor before registering for the course.

Course Description

This course is designed to help students understand the changes that have been taking place in Central
East European Countries (CEEC) and the former Soviet territories known as Commonwealth
Independent Satellite countries (CIS). The course covers issues related to historical, socio-economic,
Political and environmental analysis of the countries belonging to CEEC and CIS regions However,
the course focuses mainly on Poland and Estonia, as a foreign study trip to both countries is planned
during the spring brake of 2007. Participants in this course will be exposed to various literatures
dealing with the recent economic transformations and political changes that have been taking place
since 1989. Guest speakers from the two regions will be invited to have discussion with students and
to answer questions.

Required Textbook

Sachs, Jeffrey, Poland’s Jump to Capitalist System, The MIT Press, 1993

Recommended Book

Geib, Peter and Pfaff, Lucie (1999) strategic Management in Central and Eastern Europe, International
Business Press, New York

Required Articles:

The Winners and Losers from Discipline and Encouragement in the First Ten Years: Analysis and Less
for Eastern Europe and the Former Soviet Union,
http://www.lnweb18.worldbank.org/ECA/eca.nsf/Attachments/Transition5/$File/part3.pdf

Wilczynski, Waslaw (2001) Third Ways and Economics, Economic Review, Vol. 1 no.1, pp 105-119

Mickiewicz, Radosevic, Verblane, “The Value of diversity: Foreign direct investment and
Employment in central Europe during economy Recovery, Tatru University Press, 2000
Sikorski, Raked (2004) Europe (Almost) Whole and Free: EU Enlargement and Its Implications,
American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research, Mau-June, 2004

http://www.aei.org/docLib/20040422_MayJuneEuropeanOutlook.pdf

Central and East Europe and the Commonwealth of independent States, “The State of Food and
Agriculture 2001

Course Syllabus Page 1

 Jasmand and Stiller, Capital Cities in the New EU States-Economic Status Quo and Current Trends,
Inter-economics, September/October 2005

Torm, Nina, The Nexus of Economic Growth, Employment and Poverty during economic transition:
An analysis of Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, Discussing
Paper, October 2003

Suuatari, Vesa, Problems Faced by Western Expatriate Managers in Eastern Europe: Evidence
provided by Finish Expatriates in Russia and Estonia, JEEMS 3/1998, pp.240-266

Woldu, H. et al. (2006) A cross-national comparison of cultural value orientations of Indian, Polish,
Russian and American employees, International Journals of Human Resource Management 17:6
(1076-1094

Student Learning Objectives/Outcomes

A) Students will recognize the historical and cultural background of Central East European
Countries with a focus on Estonia and Poland.

B) Students will understand the opportunities and challenges of conducting businesses in

economically transforming countries.

C) Students will develop competency in oral and written communications by presenting in class
the outcome of their research on the various business environments

Course Syllabus Page 2

Course outline

Week one

An Introduction to East European Countries

-Video Clip: Poland’s Reform-International Monetary Fund: Poland in pre-transition period

Week two

The impact of changes on the ordinary people

-The new rich
-The people of the old system

Week three

CEECs Joining European Union

-Accession of CEECs in 2004
-A documentary film on the process of accession
-Guest speaker: “Estonia’s Rapid Economic Development”

Week four

- The cultural differences between East and West

-An attempt to measure the value system of CEECs
-The experience of Western expatriates in Estonia
-Guest Speaker: Professor Wojtek Kiedzielski

Week five

Evaluating the impact of economic transformation

-industrial products growth
-conditions in the agricultural sector
-services
-export and import growth

Week six

The shift of foreign direct investment from west to East

-identifying visible investors by country and companies
-forms of entry
a) wholly-owned
b) joint venture

Week Seven

The competitive advantage CEECs

-Economic performance among EEC, CIS and EU countries
-Guest Speaker: “The Benefit of Restructuring East European Countries as I See It”

Week eight

Land Ownership and the Challenges of Land Privatization

-privatization
-real estate under the table
-unequal start of foreign and local land buyers

Course Syllabus Page 3

 Course Schedule

dates Lecture/topics Discussion Assignment/Activities/Reading

10/13 Watch IMF Video
An Introduction: 1. Discuss the economic Pre-transition Poland
An overview of East conditions in Poland
European countries during the command
2. Poland and Estonia economic system

10/20 1-The impact of

socio-economic What are the factors that
changes on the help Estonia to be the fastest
ordinary people growing country among
CEECs? Suuatari, Vesa,
2-Guest speakers: Problems Faced by Western
Mr. Amr and Mrs. Expatriate Managers in
Tarje Hambazaza on Eastern Europe: Evidence
“Estonia’s Rapid provided by Finish
Economic Expatriates in Russia and
Development Estonia, JEEMS 3/1998,
pp.240-266
10/27 The process of .1 Discuss the challenges of
joining EU by expatriates in emerging
CEECs economies such as Estonia
and Poland
1 Mickiewicz, Radosevic, Verblane,
“The Value of diversity: FDI and
Employment in CEECs during
economic Recovery, Tatru
University Press, 2000
Writing a reflection paper on the
guest speakers’ presentation
Assignment 1
2 Sachs, Jeffrey, Poland’s jump to
capitalism, “What is to be done” pp2-
34

2.How can firms prepare

expatriates in order to
lessen frustrations and
failure in their assignments
? (Satuuri).
11/03 The cultural Guest Speaker: Professor Woldu, H. et al. (2006) A cross-
differences between Wojtek Kiedzielski on the national comparison of cultural
East and West changes of value system value orientations of Indian,
of the Polish people as a Polish, Russian and American
result of new capitalist employees, International Journals of
system. Human Resource Management 17:6
(1076-1094)
a). write a one page reflection
paper on the guest speakers
lecture
b)write a one page summary on the
article
Assignment 2 and 3
11/10 Jeffrey Sachs, Poland’s jump to
The uniqueness of Discussion based on the capitalism, “Poland’s Big Bang” pp.
the ex-communist article: Jasmand and Stiller, 35-78
countries . Capital Cities in the New
EU States-Economic Status
Quo and Current Trends,
Intereconomics,
September/October 2005

Wilczynski, Waslaw
(2001) Third Ways and
Economics, Economic
Review, Vol. 1 no.1, pp
Midterm 105119

Course Syllabus Page 4

 11/17 The shift of foreign Jeffrey Sachs, Poland’s jump to
direct investment Mickiewicz, Radosevic, capitalism, “The return of Poland
from West to East Verblane, “The Value of to Europe” pp. 80-114
diversity: Foreign direct
investment and
Employment in central
Europe during economy
Recovery, Tatru
University Press, 2000

11/24 The competitive Economic performance among

advantage of entering -Evaluate the labor force
CEECs factor in CEECS
-has socialism brought
gender equality?
EEC, CIS and EU countries
Woldu and et al, Gender based
cultural differences among the ex-
communist countries

The Unfinished Research output discussion Group Presentations on:

Reforms: on the progress of rural -identity of Polish and Estonian
-Land Ownership and restructuring program national cultures
the Challenges of
Land Privatization -foreign direct investment analysis
-Dual monetary
system -measuring the state of globalization
of the CEECs
12/01 Final examination

Grading System:

• Participation in class discussion on all assigned reading materials (20%)

• Summary on articles (15% )
• Short essay reflection papers on guest speakers lecture (15%)
• Midterm: include Jeffrey Sachs, Poland’s jump to capitalism, “The return of Poland to
Europe” and Satuuri’s article on Estonia (25%)
• Final: includes Sachs, Jeffrey Sachs, Poland’s jump to capitalism, “Poland’s Big Bang”
(25%)

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Course Syllabus Page 7

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