A new DePaul University program will offer Chicago-area executives a chance to travel abroad to gain practical knowledge from experts in the region about doing business in foreign countries.

The International Business Seminar Series will be launched this fall by DePaul’s Driehaus Center for International Business with a $160,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Education. The series consists of three types of seminars: a Survey Series (providing a general exposure to business in the region), an Industry-Focused Series and a Customized Series. Six seminars are currently scheduled:

• A survey seminar to Malaysia from Nov. 28 to Dec. 5

• A program on venture capital and high growth companies in Europe that will visit Munich and Paris from March 18 to March 25

• A survey program to South Korea from April 30 to May 7

• A plastics and precision tool industries program to the Czech Republic in spring 2000

• A European banking and monetary integration program to Frankfort and London in summer 2000

• A program on European Union (EU)/U.S. trade, focusing on issues and opportunities provided by EU expansion in Eastern Europe, to Brussels in September 2000.

"The seminars will give area business executives valuable firsthand experience with the business and cultural environments of other countries," said Mark Sullivan, a DePaul Kellstadt Graduate School of Business professor and director of the program. "The trips will be led by DePaul faculty members and others who are recognized authorities in various areas of business and who also have served as executive officers, chief financial officers, partners, controllers, internal auditors and consultants for major organizations throughout the world."

The Survey Series seminars offer participants broad exposure to the business and cultural environment of a foreign country through meetings with area business leaders, government officials and a United Nations representative. DePaul will work with the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Gold Key Program to arrange private business meetings with contacts in participants’ industries.

The Industry-Focused Series delves into a distinct industry’s business operations within a targeted foreign area. These seminars are ideal for people who are acquainted with a country’s cultural and commercial climate and want in-depth exposure to the operations of a particular industry abroad.

The Customized Series offers specialized seminars that are created to address an organization's specific objectives. The location, duration and timetable of these seminars can be scheduled according to a company's needs. "Recently, DePaul’s College of Commerce provided tailored international professional development programs for groups of Brazilian educators, Polish bankers and executives from Hong Kong and Thailand," Sullivan said. "We can arrange similar seminars for Chicago-area executives in virtually any region of the world."

All seminars will feature discussions of the region’s history and culture, industries of interest to participants and recent economic and political developments. Participants will have opportunities to interact with United Nations representatives through video conferences and will spend four or five days meeting industry leaders in the region they visit. Cultural and entertainment events are included.

Seminar groups will typically leave on a Saturday and return on the Sunday of the following week, ensuring that participants only miss five workdays. The groups will be kept small to allow a high degree of interaction and personal attention. Tuition varies depending on the destination and type of seminar. DePaul’s co-sponsors include The United Nations Ambassadors’ Club and The International Trade Association of Greater Chicago.

For more information on seminar enrollment, call DePaul’s International Business Seminar Series (IBSS) office at 312/362-8474 or see the IBSS web page: www.depaul.edu/ibss.