Mehdi Majidi

From September 26-28, in Evian, Mehdi Majidi moderated an evening of reflection entitled “Spirituality and Sustainable Development.” To a full house, Professor Majidi and the panelists, Tampalawela Dhammaratana (Hon. Vice-President, World Buddhist Union, WFB Liaison Officer, UNESCO), René Gutman (Chief Rabbi, Bas-Rhin Jewish Community), Khaled Bentounes (Cheikh Spiritual Guide of the ‘Alawiyya Sufi Brotherhood), Marc Stenger (Bishop of Troyes), and Jacques Varet (Member of the Church and Society Commission, French Protestant Federation) discussed the relationship of humanity to sustainability. Focusing on ethics, the panelists had a dialogue about how their teachings relate to humanities' relationship to nature and the purpose of life, and how to teach global citizenship. Overall, the conference focused on the issues of sustainability, centering on the challenges the world is currently facing and the role of stakeholder, including the private, public, governmental, and academic sector and civil society.  From October 12-14, in Chantilly, Professor Majidi moderated a session, “Shaping Talent for Tomorrow’s Innovation,” with panelists Sven Otto Littorin (Advisor with Giban Associates) and Kyung Yoon (CEO at TalentAge). The focus was on how best to prepare the next generations with the skills needed for the sustainable development area where entrepreneurs, small business owners and individuals are internationally active in innovation, technology, and socioeconomic and environmental initiatives. The general consensus of the discussion was a need to move away from the knowledge-feeding academic models and instead train generalists who can specialize in a field. A stronger focus on teaching how to learn will better equip the up and coming generation to make impactful change. Recommendations from this conference were submitted as a proposal to the B20 (Business Summit) which will be meeting in Cannes at the beginning of November.  AUP's MA in Cross-cultural and Sustainable Business Management graduate students actively participated in both of these conferences. 

Dr. Majidi is a university faculty and an international consultant with more than 25 years experience in private and public management and international business. His key expertise and knowledge lie in the areas of international business strategy, cross-cultural management, and engaging the private sector in socioeconomic development. He is especially skilled in strategic planning and the implementation of international mergers, acquisitions, and alliances (IMAAs). In this area, he focuses on cultural differences as a decisive factor in addition to financial and economic considerations.

His consulting projects include industrial development, workforce development, implementation of information technology in education, and the design of a solution to measure, monitor, and evaluate the dynamics of the socioeconomic progress of a country based on international standards indexes. He has consulted for the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), the U.S. Department of Education (ED), and the World Bank.

Dr. Majidi won the French Entrepreneurs National Award. He has worked in different countries and speaks several languages.

Cultural Factors in International Mergers and Acquisitions: When and Where Culture Matters; the International Journal of Knowledge, Culture and Change Management, Vol. 6, 2006.

The Strategic Value of Cross-cultural Expertise; Working papers, the Faculty Research Forum of the Washington Consortium of Business Schools, 2004.

The Information Communication Technology (ICT) Penetration and Skills Gap Analysis (SGA). Co-authored; a report for the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Egyptian government to assess the use of ICT in industries and educational systems and recommend policies and actions to respond to immediate inquiries for ICT skills covering the local, regional, and global markets, 2003.

Going Global: Global Fix Management Consulting Services Global Induction Version 3.0, PriceWaterhouseCoopers LLP July (1998): 1-24.

  Download  »