“Management for Engineers” A Training Course for Business Organizations Held Within the Framework of the ReINNOVA Project

A pilot series of the training course “Management for Engineers” was held at the Georgian Technical University in collaboration with Keele University (Great Britain) within the framework of the project “Research and Innovation Support Program for Stimulating and Improving Cooperation with Manufacturing Businesses in Engineering Education – ReINNOVA”. 

The training was held in three stages at the “Thinking Laboratory” of the Faculty of Transportation Systems and Mechanical Engineering and included theoretical discussion of various management topics, as well as practical activities and work on cases.

Representatives of 6 business organizations “Mshenebeli 80”, “Autobahn”, “Progress Project”, “Force”, Lion Trans and “Greenway Georgia”, attended the training course and were awarded relevant certificates after completing it. 

As the Dean of the Faculty of Transportation Systems and Mechanical Engineering notes, a short-term training course “Management for Engineers” was created at the Georgian Technical University within the framework of the ReINNOVA project to develop close cooperation with the business sector.

According to Professor Boris Githolendia, the course is intended for the representatives of the business sector who plan to introduce and develop a new product or service or are directly in the process of creating it.

“The project action plan envisaged the preparation of a short pilot training course with the involvement of the academic staff of the Georgian Technical University. Accordingly, we decided to develop a training course “Management for Engineers” at the first stage, which we offered to partner business organizations under the auspices of the Reinnova.gtu.ge platform. We are pleased to have received positive feedback from them.

Similar practices have been implemented in several leading Western universities, and we have a desire to offer such initiatives, at certain intervals, to Georgian business organizations or other interested parties.

The offer of the Georgian Technical University is based on the best British practice, and it is noteworthy that the possibility of its actual implementation for the first time became possible within the framework of the ReINNOVA project, using the specially created university platform Reinnova.gtu.ge.

In addition, in the future, to develop sustainable cooperation with industrial businesses, we plan to prepare and offer various innovative educational products, which, in the context of a long-term partnership between the university and business, will ensure the consideration of mutual interests,” says the Dean. 

“Research and Innovation Support Program to Stimulate and Improve Cooperation with Industrial Businesses in Engineering Education – ReINNOVA” is a university project funded based on a grant application, which is implemented with the funding of the Ministry of Education, Science, and Youth of Georgia, the Competitive Innovation Fund of Georgia (CIF) and the financial support of the World Bank.

The project partner is Keele University (Great Britain). The project is authored and led by the Rector of the Georgian Technical University, Academician David Gurgenidze.

It is coordinated by the GTU Technology and Grant Projects Office, and the project pilot activities are being implemented at the Faculties of Transportation Systems and Mechanical Engineering and Construction.

ReINNOVA’s goals are to strengthen connections between GTU and entrepreneurial business industries, ensure the involvement of employers in the education process, and promote the preparation of competitive and qualified personnel for the labor market by improving the results of students’ learning practices.