The Wharton Infosys Business Transformation Awards

Mindful of the dramatic changes taking place in global workplaces in the opening years of the Twenty-First Century, Wharton has joined forces with one of the world's leading software development firms, Infosys Technologies Ltd., to create an award that recognizes leaders in digital transformation.

Since 2002, the Wharton Infosys Business Transformation Awards have recognized companies, governments and individuals which have transformed their businesses, their industries or the world through the creative application of technology.

In 2004, the third series of awards will be made in Moscow, Shanghai, New York City and Mexico City. In Moscow, these awards will be made at lunch on Friday, May 21, 2004.

For more information, please visit the WIBTA website. Nominations from alumni are welcome and information on making nominations is also available on the WIBTA website.

The Lauder Institute/Alfa Bank Award for Excellence in Foreign Investment in Russia

The Award for Excellence in Foreign Investment in Russia was established by the Alfa Bank, the largest privately-owned bank in Russia , in collaboration with the Lauder Institute at the University of Pennsylvania . This award was established to honor a foreign firm that is conducting business successfully in Russia, while at the same time contributing to a broader improvement of Russia 's business culture and society as a whole.  The Alfa Bank hopes that the award will help raise standards of corporate conduct in Russia and send a message to the market place that it is possible to run a business in Russia in a socially responsible way. Alfa Bank invited the Lauder Institute to be its international partner in the award because of the Institute's longstanding commitment to Russia. The Lauder Institute has educated future business leaders in its Russian language program since it was founded twenty years ago. Today Lauder alumni are among the most prominent business leaders in Russia.

The Award was presented last year to Procter & Gamble, one of the leading international investors in the Russian market, has established an impressive business record and an equally impressive record on social issues, training and education. John Pepper, who served as Procter & Gamble's President and CEO from 1986 to 2000, accepted the Award at a ceremony in the House of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The Honorable Igor Ivanov, Foreign Minister of Russia, presided over the ceremony. Peter Aven and Mikhail Fridman represented Alfa Bank and the Honorable Ronald Lauder represented the Lauder Institute.

Alfa Bank Chairman Mikhail Fridman, in his opening remarks, emphasized the broader rationale for the Award: “We hope that this award will not just draw attention to the outstanding performance of the winner, but also help to convince companies worldwide that Russia is an increasingly attractive market in which to invest.”

The Honorable Ronald S. Lauder, Chairman, Estée Lauder International, said that the Institute's “participation in this Award is a sign not just of our commitment to Russia , but also of our commitment to promoting the highest standards of corporate conduct.”

Procter & Gamble was selected by a distinguished jury appointed by Alfa Bank and the Lauder Institute. Members of the jury for the 2003 Award were: Peter Aven (President of Alfa Bank), Richard Burt (Former US Ambassador to Germany), Yegor Gaidar (Director, Institute for the Economy in Transition), Richard Herring (Director of the Lauder Institute), Shiv Khemka (Director, SUN Group and Board of Governors, Lauder Institute), Paul Fribourg (Chairman and CEO, ContiGroup of Companies, Inc. and Board of Governors, Lauder Institute), Leonard Lauder (Chairman, Estée Lauder Companies and Board of Governors, Lauder Institute), Raf Shakirov (Editor in Chief, Gazeta Newspaper), Bernie Sucher (Chairman, Alfa Capital).

About The Lauder Institute

The Joseph H. Lauder Institute of Management and International Studies provides a unique, joint-degree program, integrating the power of a Wharton MBA with the breadth of a Masters degree in International Studies from the School of Arts and Sciences at Penn. Students may specialize in one of four areas: East Asia , Europe , Latin America or the Middle East . During the 24-month program students can spend 25 percent of their time abroad. Prior to the start of their Wharton classes, they begin with courses on campus and then a cultural immersion program through which they learn about the local, the regional, and the global perspective of doing business internationally. During the second summer, students typically do a summer internship with a company requiring extensive use of their target language.

The Lauder Institute was founded in 1983 by Leonard A. Lauder and The Honorable Ronald S. Lauder in honor of their father, Joseph H. Lauder, co-founder of Estée Lauder Inc. The mission of the Institute is to develop global leaders who speak the languages of business, culture and politics.

For information on The Joseph H. Lauder Institute, go to: http://lauder.wharton.upenn.edu