Another day in Irkutsk

Today was awesome! I was much more energized than I was yesterday, so teaching was a lot of fun.  The students are so friendly here and so willing to learn.  The first case that I taught today was about an innovative product to prevent foot infections in dairy cows.  The students had a great debate on whether the product would be marketable in Russia.  Then we let them work on their business plans, and finally I gave a lecture on balance sheets/income statements/cashflow.  The lecture stressed how even though a business is profitable, it may not be in a good cash position.  We also discussed ways of strengthening your cash position by making various adjustments to your business, ie reduce costs, increase prices, shorten A/R or lengthen A/P.  I straightened out the common misconception that holding inventory is a good thing.  I cannot believe I was able to successfully deliver this lesson - it really shows me how much I have learned in my MBA.

The weather he was beautiful today, surprisingly! It was bright until around 9:30 PM, and the weather after school was around 15C. We walked around town and took pictures of the sites.  Pictures are below! Tomorrow there is a "planned emergency" - all the water is shut down in the area that we live in.  Classes are cancelled, so we are taking a trip to Baikal Lake.  On Saturday our students are showing us around town.  Can't wait!