Middle management education program; final report

Final contractor report covers the period 2/79-11/79 and is based on participant interviews and analysis of management standardized test scores and of questionnaires administered to the participants. All objectives were achieved on time and in proposed amounts. General objectives were the maintenance of an Executive Office in Egypt for the duration of the project, selection of 100 participants (96 actually completed training), and construction of eight case studies in international business. Training included English-language training (2 weeks in Egypt), classroom instruction coordinated with internships (12 weeks at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale and with 192 U.S. firms), and review and evaluation (1 week in Egypt). Classroom curriculum included business policy formation, planning, accounting, management systems, marketing with international emphasis, and international business policy and administration. The most successful training was the development of specific management skills via experiential learning. The pilot program proves the feasibility of the program given the following modifications. The position of U.S. coordinator should be full-time. Training should be: extended from 15 to 19 weeks to allow the basic management training to take place in Egypt; held in English and, to diminish participants" preoccupations with family problems, in residence; and shortened for managers with a business education background. The U.S. phase should be increased from 12 to 14 weeks to allow proper classroom coverage of advanced management techniques, while internship time should be flexible -- 1 to 6 weeks. The size of U.S. host firms was not considered relevant. Follow-up -- through meetings between graduates and their supervisors, ongoing communications between the contractor and graduates, and support for the project"s alumni association -- is considered crucial for maintaining enthusiasm in the program. The program generated invaluable good will towards the United States, and, more importantly, established a cadre of Egyptian middle managers capable of operating within the American free enterprise system, thus laying a basis for improved productivity by Egyptian firms.