Beginnings

Svetlana Smirnova called me last evening at about 7:30. She’s the Director of Communications for Alfa Bank, and the real overseer of the Alfa Fellowship Program here in Moscow. She invited me to meet the head of Alfa Capital the next morning. The folks there wanted to meet me since I had been allotted to them when the work assignment phase begins in October.

We met just outside the Chistie Prudy Metro stop at 9:40. Well, we were supposed to meet at 9:40. I went with the assumption that Svetlana, a diminutive, proper lady wasn’t the kind of person who takes the more common Russian attitude toward meeting times. Good thing. As I got off the subway train at 9:20, my phone rang. She was already waiting for me.

We walked together toward the office, up Myasnitskaya toward the Garden Ring (Sadovoye Koltso). She filled me in on the history of the firm, and some of the personalities that currently run it. The great thing about Svetlana is that she only speaks Russian. That is to say, her English is truly excellent but she insists on speaking only Russian to me. I love that.

I met with Bernie Sucher, the head of the firm. He gave a little overview on what they do, and how they have been doing it. Then he invited me to sit in on their weekly investment committee meeting.

I joined the investment staff in the conference room, and observed while they reviewed fund performance and mulled over buys and sells. It was a great discussion – very open and honest. And they weren’t afraid of asking each other tough questions.

It was a standard investment committee meeting. What made it really Russian, however, were some of the questions that they asked.
“Who really owns this company?”
“How much money is management stealing?”
“Who is the political patron of this business?”
“Who are the real financial backers of this concern?”

After the meeting, Svetlana returned and we headed off to lunch at Na Melnitse on the Koltso – just steps away from the office. It’s a beautiful restaurant made up to look like a country mill – that’s what the name means. Staff in traditional dress, traditional Russian food, and heavy rustic wooden furniture – I had the okroshka and pirogi. I have a serious addiction to okroshka – a vegetable soup made from kvas, a fermented (non-alcoholic) bread drink, and served cold. It’s a perfect remedy for steamy Moscow afternoons.

Anyway, we talked over the program, his goals for the firm, my goals in the program and in life in general. It was a great conversation that was thought-provoking and introspective. As we headed back to the office, he expressed his excitement at having me join them – and invited me to start work part-time while the language training program is still in progress. I jumped at the chance.

Back at the office, he showed me where he wants me to sit. Just outside the CIO’s office on the desk where the analysts and portfolio managers sit.

We decided that I should begin on Tuesday afternoon.