Vladimir Kvint was born in Krasnoyarsk, Siberia into a family of engineers. He studied in Railroad elementary and junior high school before moving to Norilsk. He began his 14-year career in the non-ferrous metals industry at the age of 14 as a construction and metal worker. Most of Kvint's education was completed in parallel with his professional and athletic activities (boxing). Kvint established himself as the chief economist and vice chairman of a major Russian high-tech company, successfully earned his Ph.D. in economics, and was educated in the fields of mining-electrical engineering and law by the age of 27.[1]
Despite an invitation to work as an associate professor in Moscow, Kvint returned to Norilsk. Between 1975 and 1978, he continued his work in the mining-metallurgical industry. He founded and was Chief of the Department of Organization Management at the Norilsk Mining – Metallurgical Concern, later renamed MMC Norilsk Nickel, which was the largest Russian enterprise (150,000 employees) and still the largest producer worldwide of nickel, cobalt, platinum, palladium and osmium. Under his leadership, the company's first general organizational structure, focusing on the strategic improvement of final products was developed. The theoretical results of his work were published in Moscow in 1976, in The Acceleration of the Industrial-Technical Development. This book received the USSR's Annual Award "Best Popular Scholarly Book of the Year".
Sib Tsvemet Automatica
In 1976, Kvint was promoted to the position of deputy director general and deputy chairman of "Sib Tsvemet Automatica", a scientific-technological company, which automated the non-ferrous metals industry throughout the USSR. He was responsible for economic policy, business planning, the organization of compensation systems, and accounting departments in this company of 5,000 employees. Under Kvint's economic strategy, this company became one of the first self-sufficient firms in the USSR, despite the Soviet command planning system. In addition, he was the Chief of the Forecasting Economics Laboratory of the non-ferrous metals and gold industry, and prepared strategies and forecasts for the non-ferrous precious metals and diamond industries.
In the Academy, Kvint found a lack of accurate empirical statistics and economic information. As a result, many economic studies based on this incorrect information had no practical use. With Kvint's business experience, he recognized this problem and developed the methods of studying economic situations, natural resources, and strategic business opportunities through the organization of complex economic expeditions.
In 1979 the chairman of the Siberian branch of the Academy appointed him to head these expeditions. Several of these major expeditions were unprecedented. For example, in 1980 the academicians ventured across the entire eight seas of the Arctic Seaway by ship, helicopter and SUV. Another economic expedition traveled through three seas along the entire Pacific Coast of Russia to evaluate the area's natural resources and productive forces.[3]
Research at the Russian Academy of Sciences (Moscow)
In 1982, Kvint was elected as a senior researcher and then as the Head of Department and later a leading scholar at the Institute of Economics of the USSR Academy of Sciences. He defined the category of regional scientific-technological policy and the role of this policy in the reduction of poverty and ecological protection. In the late 1980s he came up with the theory of regional and global emerging markets.
In 1986, he wrote the report on the organization of strategic development of scientific-technological process which he brought to the attention of the Council of Ministers of the Soviet Union, explaining that without the activation of these factors and the function of motivation, the Soviet Union would have no economic future. After this predication, Kvint again faced a great deal of pressure from the Soviet power structure.[4]
In 1985, Kvint prepared his second Doctoral dissertation on the "Regional Management of the Scientific-Technological Development of the National Economy". Among the consequences of Kvint's recommendations would have been the decentralization of the Soviet command economy. As a result, he was not allowed to present his dissertation to the Scientific Council until February 1988.[5] In 1989, he received the lifetime title of "Professor of Political Economy". Many years later, in 2011 by decree of the President of the Russian Federation he was awarded with the title of 'Honored professor of Higher Education of the Russian Federation.'[6]
The fundamental ideas of Kvint's theories were explored in his dissertations and books. Since 1989, he has continued his studies in Austria, and then in the United States. However, the development of his theory of the global emerging market has its roots in all of his years of scholarly activity. For these studies, Kvint would later receive international recognition[7][8] Developing his earlier strategic studies he contributed to theory of strategy and came up with his own theory of holistic strategy.[9]
Since 1990, Kvint has lived and worked in the United States where he has been granted citizenship.
Professorship in the United States
Kvint's first professorship was in the international economics department at Babson College in Massachusetts.[10] Following this, from 1990, until the fall of 2004, Kvint was a professor of management systems and international business at Fordham University's Gabelli School of Business.[11] In addition to his professorship at Fordham until 2000, for five years he was an adjunct professor of Business Strategy at the Stern School of Business at New York University.[12] Between 2004 and 2007, he was a professor of international business at the Kogod School of Business of American University in Washington, D.C.[13] During this period, he taught course in the fundamentals of international business, the global marketplace, export-import management, and comparative management systems, and he developed and taught the global emerging market course for Honors Program students. Between 2005-2016 Vladimir Kvint has been an adjunct professor of international business strategy at La Salle University in Pennsylvania.[14][15]
US and European consulting practice and directorship
Kvint's consulting and professorships have continued his studies and research. He was the chairman of the World Economic Development Congress' Summit for Institutional Investors (Washington D.C, 1995); the World Economic Development Congress' Global Risk Management Summit, (Washington D.C, 1996); and the International Banking Congress: US-CIS and Baltics, (NYC, 1997). He was an economic advisor to the president of the United Nations General Assembly. Between 1996 and 2001, Kvint was an economic adviser to Simeon Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, who would become prime minister of Bulgaria. Between 2001 and 2005, Kvint was an advisor to the government of Albania. Between 2006 - 2008, he was Chairman of the Board of Directors of the "Morskoiy Vokzal" seaport terminal in Saint Petersburg, Russia.[17] From 2009 to 2012, he was a consultant at the architectural firm RMJM. From 2012 - 2015, he was a member of the board of directors of the fishing company NBAM, and since 2015, he has been Chairman of the Pacific Investment Group Expert Council.
Awards
In 1992, Kvint was awarded a two-year scholarship by the Wexner Heritage Foundation[18] and in 1993, was presented with the Faculty Scholarship Award by the University of Southern California. In 1997, the New England Center for International and Regional Studies awarded Kvint the title of Honorary Fellow.[19]
In 2001, as a U.S. Fulbright Scholar Award recipient, Kvint conducted studies, lectured at the University of Vlore and the University of Tirana in Albania, and provided consultations to the government of Albania.[20] For these activities, he was given an award by the U.S State Department in 2002. In 2002, Fordham University honored Kvint's professorship with the annual GLOBE Award.
On May 25, 2006 Vladimir Kvint was elected as a Foreign Member (Life time) of the Russian Academy of Sciences.
In 2010 he received International Award - Gold Kondratiev Medal, issuing once in three years "For Achievements in Social Studies"[22] by the International N. D. Kondratieff Foundation and the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences (RAEN). In the same year Vladimir Kvint, was elected as a Fellow of The World Academy of Art and Science. This election acknowledged Vladimir Kvint`s impact on the development of world economic science as well as his fundamental works in the global emerging market and strategic research.
In 2018 Kvint was awarded by Academic Council of Lomonosov Moscow State University with Annual Lomonosov Prize of Highest Degree for “His Studies of Theory of Strategy and Methodology of Strategizing”.
In 2022 Dr. Kvint became a Laureate of the State Prize of the Republic of Uzbekistan in the Field of Science and Technology for the Research Monograph “The Strategic Leadership of Amir Timur: Comments on the Code”.[1]
