AUEB hosted William & Mary University, Athens 25.4-30.4.24
Thursday 25/04
The visit of the W&M Executive MBA program began with a visit to the main building of the Bank of Greece. There, they first attended a presentation on the Greek economy, focusing on the Greek crisis, the pandemic and the current energy crisis by Dr. Marianthi Anastasatou, Bank of Greece Economist. The baton was taken up by AUEB Professor Nikos Vettas, General Director of IOBE who focused on the business environment, the sectors that contribute to the Greek economy and who also discussed strategic proposals for investment/strengthening specific sectors of the Greek economy that have the potential to give significant boost to growth dynamics.
In the afternoon, students visited the main building of AUEB as well as the building on Troias Street. In the main building, they were welcomed by the Vice-Rector for International Cooperation and Growth, Professor Vassilis Papadakis, who, after a tour of the ceremony hall and the Senate hall, spoke to them about the history of AUEB, its academic distinctions as well as the collaborations with leading international Universities. Afterwards, the students visited the building on Troias street where they were welcomed at the AUEB Entrepreneurship and Innovation Center by Professor Katerina Pramatari. Prof. Pramatari presented the business landscape in Greece for startups. At the same time, she outlined the actions undertaken by Universities, such as AUEB, to encourage students and graduates to move in a more entrepreneurial direction.
Friday 26/04
The Athens Stock Exchange welcomed the W&M Executive MBA students. Students, along with Professor Rajiv Kohli rang the opening bell at ATHEX. The students then attended lectures by Dr. Giannis Krasonikolakis, Head of Applied Research and Analytics at Grant Thornton, Mr. Theodoros Zarros, CTO of Athex Group, regarding the technological developments in the field of stock trading in the era of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the adaptation and transformation of Athex Group in the rapidly changing external environment. Finally they were given a presentation by Ms. Lilian Georgopoulou, Deputy Chief Listings Officer, ATHEXGROUP, on the subject of ESG indicators and how they are applied in the area of stock exchanges. Finally, the students visited the premises where the information systems of the Athens Stock Exchange are hosted.
In the afternoon, students visited the premises of the Ellinikon Experience Center, where together with AUEB Executive MBA students they had the opportunity to visit Lamda Development's investment in Elliniko. After a digital tour of this iconic investment, the students were welcomed by Mr. Tasos Papapostolou, Senior Project Manager for Infrastructure Projects, as well as Mrs. Natalia Kivotidi, who answered questions from the students regarding the progress and future of investment but also its potential contribution to the Greek economy.
Saturday 27/04
On Saturday, W&M students went on a field trip to Delphi, which lasted until the afternoon. During the visit the students walked the entire length of the archaeological site, learned about the history of the ancient oracle while having lunch in Arachova.
Monday 29/04
PeopleCert welcomed students of the Executive MBA of the University of William & Mary together with students of the Executive MBA from AUEB at its facilities in the center of Athens. PeopleCert develops and manages globally recognized educational certifications and exams and is a company with a capitalization of more than 1 billion Euros. On behalf of PeopleCert, Ms. Dimitra Karakosta, VP for People and Culture at PeopleCert, Mr. Giorgos Sofronas, VP of Technology, and Mr. Konstantinos Koukouleas, Head of AI and & Digital Transformation, presented to the students the vision, the development of the company and opportunities arising from the use of new digital technologies.
In the afternoon, W&M students together with AUEB Executive MBA students visited the main building of the Greek Telecommunications company, OTE, where they had the opportunity to attend speeches by Mr. Gavrielidis Panagiotis, Chief Marketing Officer, Mr. Vichos Pavlos, Strategy and Business Development Director and Mr. Sarsentis Evryviadis Mergers, Acquisitions and Investor Relations Director. The three executives, with the contribution of a large group of senior executives of the OTE Group, presented the transformation program of the Organization during the last fifteen years. The students had done relevant preliminary work by reading about this transformation in relation to a Harvard Business School case study co-created by OTE CEO Mr. Chamaz. The challenges faced by the organization, and the organization's vision for the future were analyzed.
Tuesday 30/04
On Tuesday morning, W&M students along with AUEB Executive MBA students visited the COSCO facilities at the Port of Piraeus. After initially being given a tour of the port piers, the students joined the COSCO conference room where they were welcomed by Mr. Tasos Vamvakidis, Commercial Director of COSCO, and Mr. Panagiotis Zerefos, CFO of Piraeus Container Terminal S.A. who gave a presentation about COSCO's investment in the port of Piraeus, and the use of digital technologies for the management of the port, which is the most important southern gateway to Europe and one of the largest and most modern European ports.
In the afternoon, the Ministry of Digital Governance welcomed the AUEB Vice-Rector for International Cooperation and Growth, Professor V. Papadakis, W&M Professor Rajiv Kohli, as well as W&M students. Students had the opportunity to discuss with the Secretary General of the Ministry, Professor Mr. Demosthenes Anagnostopoulos, who presented the Ministry's vision for the digital transformation of the country. The baton was received by Ms. Anthi Goussiou and Menia Hatzikou, advisors of the Ministry of Digital Governance, who analyzed the strategy for realizing this vision and focused on some of the main services offered to citizens. Finally, they discussed with the students the challenges that the Ministry faces in this effort.
