From 16 December 2024 to 10 January 2025, the Second Winter Business School “Youth & Business: EU and Ukrainian Experience” was held online. The event aimed to provide participants with knowledge of the core principles and values of running a business in the EU and Ukraine and to develop practical entrepreneurial skills.
Nearly 60 participants took part in the Business School, including university and college students, high school pupils and other young people from Sumy, Poltava, Ternopil, Konotop, Shostka, Nedryhailiv, Lypova Dolyna and other Ukrainian cities and communities.
This year, the Business School was delivered in a new two-part format. The first part consisted of a two-day lecture programme combining teaching sessions with meetings with entrepreneurs. This format enabled participants to connect theoretical knowledge with entrepreneurial practice and to compare Ukrainian business-support instruments with relevant EU practices and opportunities. Guest speakers included Ukrainian entrepreneurs with experience of developing businesses in EU countries, particularly Germany and Poland, who shared practical insights into operating and developing a business in the European context.
The second part was organised as a series of structured group tutorials for participants who wished to develop their own business models. Participants worked individually and in teams on their business ideas, analysed customers and competitors, developed value propositions and business models, created MVPs and prototypes, explored opportunities for attracting finance in Ukraine and the European Union, and considered appropriate forms of business registration.
At the final stage of the programme, participants developing their own business projects received mentoring support from entrepreneurs and business experts, enabling them to refine their ideas and strengthen their business models.
The organisers, lecturers and moderators of the Winter Business School were members of the Jean Monnet Module team – Dr Bohdan Kovalov, Prof. Oleksandr Kubatko, Dr Iryna Ushchapovska and Vladyslav Piven, lecturers and researchers at Sumy State University.
The event took place within the framework of the implementation of the European Commission project – the Jean Monnet Module “Youth & Business: EU Practices for Cooperation” (101126538-YouthBEU-ERASMUS-JMO-2023-HEI-TCH-RSCH).
