Abstract

The article presents observations of the author about one of the Soviet Union's leading economic institutes. The economic reform of 1965, with its emphasis on management of the national economy, was the impetus for the founding of the Faculty of Industrial Production of the Plekhanov Institute of the National Economy in 1966 at Moscow, Russia. All faculty members had graduate degrees and many had managerial experience. Each program was attended by approximately one hundred managers nominated by the ministries overseeing their sector of the economy. Each program was attended by approximately one hundred managers nominated by the ministries overseeing their sector of the economy. The predominant instructional method was lectures, but they were supplemented by two case studies, known as concrete situations, a simulation of the personnel selection of an enterprise director, an exercise using the in-basket test of managerial abilities, and a questionnaire to assess the personal leadership characteristics of the participants.