> April 15, 2005 - Yerevan, Armenia

On April 15, 2005, JA Alumni of Armenia, in close cooperation with Junior Achievement of Armenia (JAA), organized its first-ever career awareness day and first large-scale event. Dubbed One-Day Professional, the objective of the initiative was to provide some of the most promising and inspired high school students from across the nation a rare glimpse at the operations and management of leading commercial, social, governmental and international organizations and agencies.

The participants included 50 high school students currently enrolled in JAA’s Applied Economics and Civics courses in Yerevan, the capital, and other regions of Armenia. The students were selected through a highly competitive screening process and were divided into two groups: Applied Economics and Civic Education. Led by Alumni members, each group spent an action-packed day in Yerevan visiting a variety of companies and organizations, learning about their operations, gaining exposure to different work environments, meeting with Armenia’s most prominent business leaders and forging strong networking ties with one another.

“It is a great feeling of accomplishment to see how students with a huge sense of interest visit different entities, ask questions, take notes, listen attentively and think as real professionals,” said Ani Movsisyan, President of JA Alumni of Armenia. “It is gratifying to see how they network with other like-minded people, how smart they look and act, and how shiny and sparkling their eyes become every time they discover a new concept. It is a huge opportunity for us to help them be successful in choosing their future careers and serve as a major drive in motivating them to achieve their goals and dreams.”

The all-day affair culminated with a reception at the Congress Hotel, where JAA Executive Director Armine Hovannisian spoke to the students and alumni.

“I am very proud of the work of JA Alumni of Armenia.  With their organizational skills, their dedication to help improve their communities and their civic activism, they have proven that they are worthy heirs of the JA program,” said Mrs. Hovannisian. Certificates and acknowledgements were then awarded to students and to company representatives.

The overwhelmingly positive feedback offered by both students and company representatives confirmed that
the career day was a tremendous success. The exciting tour could not have been carried out without the comfortable buses graciously provided by Frans Park CJSC.  JA Alumni of Armenia is most grateful to Frans
Park for providing the means of transportation.

Applied Economics Tour

The target companies for the Applied Economics group were the Sil Group Ltd., Grant Thornton Amyot, Akcern Ltd., Cascade Capital Holdings CJSC, SolarEn and H2 ECOnomy, and Jermuk Group CJSC.

The first company that the Applied Economics group visited was SIL Group Ltd. Arman Zargaryan, Executive Director of SIL Group, related the 18-year history of the company. Being one of the largest local companies currently operating in Armenia, SIL Group has been established by the Sukiasyans and is now comprised of 25 private enterprises, including five factories and plants. The SIL is engaged in production, trade, construction, services, maintenance and banking, with a specific focus on developing Armenia's economy and industry standards. By combining the story of SIL Group with Armenia’s economic development strategies, Mr. Zargaryan piqued the participants’ interest and helped them find answers to a variety of questions. For more information, please visit www.sil.am.
A subgroup visited Grant Thornton Amyot’s Armenian affiliate, which was founded in 1994 for the purpose of offering auditing, accounting, legal, tax and management consulting services. Throughout the years, the company has been providing auditing missions, expert advice and in-depth professional consulting services to enterprises and banks in Armenia and other CIS countries including Georgia, Russia, the Ukraine and Belarus. The participants, many of whom would like to start their own businesses in the future, were particularly interested in business plan writing, one of the main services Grant Thornton Amyot provides. For more information, please visit www.gta.am.

A second subgroup went to Akcern Ltd., one of the major real estate agencies in the Armenian market. The tour was guided by Edgar Khachatryan, the company’s Director. For more than 10 years, the company has been operating in the real estate. The main distinction of this company is that it provides various legal services. For more information, please visit www.realakcern.am.

The next company on the agenda was Cascade Capital Holdings CJSC. Our well-informed guides there were Chief Executive Officer Jonathan Stark, Loan Officer Karen Sarkavagyan (a JAA Alumnus), Deputy Executive Director Levon Levonyan, and Credit Analyst Isabella Kagramanian. CCH was founded in 2004 by the Cafesjian Family Foundation. Currently it consists of three main units: Cascade Credit, Cascade Investments and the Cascade Insurance & Reinsurance Company.

The next stops were at SolarEn and H2 ECOnomy. SolarEn Director Victor Afyan and the H2 Economy Head of Engineering Robert Brown conducted this tour. They discussed the critical problem of scarce, non-renewable energy resources, a topic that today’s generation must be made more aware of. Established in 2000, the mission of SolarEn is to develop a new use of alternative energy resources in Armenia, thus increasing the country’s energy independence. Today it is the only company in Armenia which is engaged in conducting research, making designs and creating innovative approaches for developing Armenia’s energy sector. For more information, please visit www.solaren.com. H2 ECOnomy was established in 2000 by Mr. Gerard Cafesjian with the goal of developing energy resources and investigating fuel cell technologies. It is the only enterprise in Armenia dealing with proton exchange membrane hydrogen fuel cells. For more information, please visit www.h2economy.com.
The final stop of the Applied Economics group’s day-long tour was Jermuk Group CJSC, which has made a name for itself in Armenia and abroad due to the high quality of its mineral water and other beverage products. The group met with Adviser to the President of Jermuk Group Edgar Ghazaryan and Head of Marketing Edik Alaverdyan who explained the successful history of the company. Founded in 1999, the company’s products are exported to the www.jermukgroup.am/eng/statistics.html -USA, Russia, Germany, Czech Republic, United Arab Emirates, Latvia, the Ukraine, Moldova and Belarus. For more information, please visit www.jermukgroup.am.

Civic Education Tour

The target companies for the Civics Education group were the Cafesjian Museum Foundation, the United Nations, CS Media CJSC, Elite Hygiene, and the legal consulting office of Arlex International.

The Cafesjian Museum Foundation (CMF) was co-founded in 2002 by the Republic of Armenia and the Cafesjian Museum Foundation of America. The purpose of the foundation is to develop a world-class international museum of contemporary art as well as a cultural center for Yerevan. Madlene Minassian, the Director of the Public Relations and Events Department of the CMF, gave a short introduction covering the Foundation’s accomplishments and future activities, and escorted the group to the Cascade. She conveyed important advice about how to succeed as a manager and professional in this highly competitive world by bringing examples from her personal experience.

"The day that the JA Alumni of Armenia came to visit the Cafesjian Museum Foundation I was in a pessimistic and somber mood. Nothing could have turned me around 360 degrees like the young adults that I met. They inspired me and filled me with such hope and optimism about our future that I was elated all day. Although they came to learn from me, I learned something much more valuable from them: that the future is secure with a passionate and brilliant group such as JA Alumni of Armenia learning leadership and management skills,” said Madlene Minassian, Director of the PR & Events Department of the Cafesjian Museum Foundation. For more information, please visit www.cmf.am.

At CS Media CJSC, participants got a peak into the magical world of media. Ruben Hovhannisyan led the group on a tour of a variety of television studios. The JAA visitors learned how TV programs are produced and how material is prepared and presented to the audience. The participants had the exclusive opportunity to meet and ask various questions to CS Media Director Artem Sarkisian and Presenter Alina Khachatryan. Founded in 2004, CS Media City is the largest private media group in the Caucasus. Also the CNN licensee for Armenia, CS Media City provides the Armenian population with the most up-to-the-minute breaking news in English.
The students enjoyed warm hospitality at Elite Hygiene, which produces high-quality personal hygiene products. Founded three years ago by a group of foreign investors, it is one of the few companies incorporated through foreign direct investment in Armenia. Director Norayr Melkomian guided the students through the production process and discussed typical problems the company faces, its future plans, and prospects in the consumer market.
For more information, please visit
www.elitehygiene.com.

The final stop was at Arlex, a law firm specializing in international transactions, dispute resolution and public interest work, with partners in Europe and the United States. The “Junior Achievers” were educated about the difficulties that exist in Armenia’s law sphere. For more information, please visit www.arlex.am.

A comment from one of the JAA participants captures
the day’s experience:
“This project opened our eyes and enabled us to choose our future profession. Each company we visited had something important to offer which, in my opinion, benefited all participants.”