[TRAVEL LOG] SKODA AND PROGRAM WRAP-UP

Our final full day in Prague came soon.  It was hard to believe this was the “final hurrah” for the program.  Unfortunately, it started off a little down with the loss that the Bearcats had sustained that morning.  A few from our group found themselves up at 2:30 am to watch the game in the hotel lobby.  I was going to join them, but slept right through my alarm.  No Elite Eight this year, but watch out for March Madness 2013!  Best of luck to our other Ohio teams as they move forward.

At 9:00 am, we rolled out of the hotel via bus to Skoda Auto Manufacturer.  This was our final company visit of the trip.  We arrived at the visitor center and museum at around 10:00 am and started our visit with a brief overview of Skoda’s history.  They began as early as 1895 when two gentlemen by the names of Laurin and Klement decided to begin a bicycle repair shop after a poor experience of their own in another bike shop.  From there, they began to build motorcycles and eventually their one-of-a-kind automobiles.  The name changed to Skoda, later on when the Laurin and Klement brand was coupled with the Skoda name from an auto manufacturer just south of Prague.  Through World War II, this company, like many others in that region of Europe, began producing vehicles and equipment for the war.  After the war, the company was nationalized.  In 1991, the Czech state decided that they needed a good investor to take charge of the company.  That same year, they chose Volkswagen from a number of bidding car companies to take the Skoda name and help make the company an even bigger success.

Today the plant employs over 26,000 locally and is a major supporting industry in the Czech Republic. It is one of four companies that make up the German company, Volkswagen Group. In fact, according to our Czech hosting professor, this is the single largest supporter of the country’s economy.

After the video introduction, we did a brief tour of the company’s museum where we were able to see some of the older model vehicles. Our guide walked us through those years of production and then led us to the showroom where the company’s latest car models were being showcased. The company produces cars for the European market, primarily. If you’ve never heard of Skoda before, it is probably because they do not sell cars in the States.

Original Plant and Current Museum

First Bicycles by Laurin and Klement

The Skoda attempt at a "JEEP"

 The early afternoon was taken up by a tour of the plant and some of its workshops.  We were able to see welding, body assembly, motor and gearbox assembly, as well as car final assembly and inspection. Unfortunately we were not able to meet with any major company corporate managers on this visit.  Despite that, we still did learn a lot.  Since I am using this company as my project’s key focus, I will be describing some of my observation in more detail in a separate blog post.

We ate lunch that day at their cafeteria.  Luckily, there was one non-meat dish available for all of us practicing abstinence from meat during lent.  It was tough not selecting one of the other traditional meat dishes though.  The Czech food is simply amazing!  I would have paid the chefs a compliment, but I didn’t know any Czech and they didn’t know any English.  Unfortunately, I ended up breaking my dishes at the tray return instead.  I a typically a clumsy person, but this was rather embarrassing.  Cultural dilemma #341:  What to do when you break something, but don’t know how to day “Sorry!” or “I’ll pay for it!”  I attempted to pick up the pieces and showed an expression of apology.  I think it communicated well enough.

Cafeteria Meal Options

We arrived back in Prague around 3:00 pm. At this time, our Czech host, Professor Milan Maly, gave a presentation on the Prague University of Economics (where he teaches), the Czech Republic’s economy, the European Union, and the relationship between both. It was enlightening to see just how each E.U. country’s economic state was in relation to what the E.U. standards are for entering countries. Very few of the current members fit their own economic requirements! It was also interesting to hear that not all E.U. members are a part of the monetary union which uses the Euro. In this way, the Czech Republic is a member of the European Union, but does not yet use the Euro as its main form of currency. It has stayed with the Czech koruna (pronounced “crown”) and will continue to stay with this monetary unit they can gain a better idea of where the stability of the Euro is going.

It was at the end of this lecture that we officially ended the graduate seminar and program. Final thank-you’s were given to our hosts and our instructors. Again, it was hard to believe how quickly the seminar went, but it was certainly a great success. We were able see quite a bit of culture, business, and language while in Europe.

Professor Milan Maly

Prague University of Economics

After we were back at the hotel, I split with the group because of another site I wanted to see before heading back to America the next day.  Following up on a recommendation from my aunt, I went to visit the Infant Jesus of Prague located in the Church of Our Lady Victorious in “Lesser Prague”.  This statue is said to have belonged to St. Teresa of Avila in the 16^th century.  I made it there just before six o’clock and was fortunate enough to attend mass at that time in the church.  One of my favorite parts of the Catholic mass is its universality.  I did not understand Czech, but I understood what was happening in the mass.  It was a blessing to pray there.  Another great surprise was to see some younger people attending.  Normally, while in Europe, I would see primarily elderly at mass.  Seeing a decent gathering of parishioners under the age of 40 was encouraging.

Church of Our Lady Victorious

Infant Jesus of Prague

St. Nicholas Church

Later that evening, I met back up with the guys and we found dinner at a local Czech establishment.  It was funny and surprising to hear the place playing a Johnny Cash CD at the time.  The dinner went well until we had our next set of cultural experiences.  Three of us had ordered the baked fish.  This was the first time I had ever eaten what was basically a whole fish (meat still on bones).  It was quite good; however, what was supposed to be a 162 koruna fish was actually 162 koruna per 100 grams.  The bill was a bit higher than expected!  Along with a few other miscommunications with the bill, we were quick to leave after paying.  We ended the night in an American bar where we, by chance, ran into the rest of the MBA cohort celebrating their final evening in Prague.  I made it back to the hotel with a small group before 11:30pm.  We had an early flight the next day.

Final Dinner in Prague: Baked Fish

At 8:00 am on Saturday morning, those of us with an 11:30 am flight from Prague departed from the hotel.  The flight was a bit more crowded than the one we took on the way over, but it went quickly.  I always find it easier traveling back to the USA since we actually gain those five hours back.  We had a long layover in New York, but did finally land back in Cincinnati safely around 11:00 pm that night.

MBA Graduate Seminar Study Abroad Trip = Grand Success

A big thank-you goes out to our instructors, Prof. BJ Zirger and Prof. Larry Gales for their organization of the trip.  Also, a big thank-you goes out to our primary hosts, Professors Evelyne Glaser and Milan Maly.  THANK YOU!