When the full-scale invasion of Ukraine began, hundreds of international companies, including some of the world’s most famous brands, left Russia. Some left because they had to – sanctions made their work in Russia illegal. Some left because they wanted to – working in and paying taxes to an aggressor nation was unacceptable. And some left because it wasn’t worth staying any more – even if your business wasn’t sanctioned, Russia became an extremely difficult business environment. Hundreds more companies stayed; their numbers also included some of the world’s most famous brands.
What’s going to happen when the war is over? How many companies will go back? The answer may surprise you: preparations are already under way for several hundred foreign companies to return to Russia, the minute it becomes legal for them to do so. The companies are in the US, the UK, the EU and Asia.
But why? How is the business community looking at Russia, and how is it looking at the risks of returning? Even though Russia’s re-opening to business may only happen in the distant future, why does it look so attractive, even now?
What lessons have we learned about doing business in Russia and which have we ignored?
Join Charles Hecker, author of the magisterial Zero Sum: The Arc of International Business in Russia (Hurst, 2024), for a discussion and Q&A session about how companies and countries interact, with a specific focus on Russia.
Drawing on his decades of experience working as a journalist and geo-political risk consultant in Russia and the Soviet Union, as well as interviews with senior executives, government officials and academics, Charles will give us an historical overview of the evolution of doing business in Russia, from communism to capitalism to collapse. He will also address some of the other themes dealt with in his book, Zero Sum. Hurst are bringing out a paperback version of Charles Hecker’s book in September, with an updated preface, and copies of the book will be on sale at Pushjin House on 1st October.
Charles Hecker has spent 40 years travelling and working in the Soviet Union and Russia. He has worked as journalist for The Moscow Times and as a reporter for The Miami Herald. Until September, 2024, he was a partner at a geo-political risk consultancy. A fluent Russian speaker, he holds degrees in Russian and Soviet Studies from the University of Pennsylvania and in Soviet Studies from the Russian Research Center at Harvard University.