It is 2050. Lithuania is honouring the people who helped close the education gap between its regions, extend healthy lifespans and create new opportunities through cooperation between the state and business. These awards and their recipients do not yet exist. A symbolic awards ceremony held in Vilnius on 29 September offered a reminder: if we want to celebrate such achievements in the future, we need to agree on the future we want and invest in it today.
The ceremony marked the launch of BEYOND, an endowment fund being established by BMI Executive Institute and its alumni. Its founders aim to invest in the people whose decisions shape how public institutions work: strengthening the management and leadership skills of public sector leaders and bringing representatives of the state and business together to find solutions for Lithuania.
“Business often says what it expects from the state. But expectations and criticism alone are not enough. If we care about the Lithuania we will live in twenty years from now, we must help the people who lead its institutions every day to grow. A strong leader can transform one institution. Strong leaders across the public sector could change the direction of the country,” says Rolandas Valiūnas, one of the fund’s founders, Managing Partner of the law firm Ellex Valiūnas and Chair of the Board of BMI Executive Institute.
The idea behind the fund is simple: change in healthcare, education and other areas is delivered by people. They are where the country’s progress begins.
First initiative: eight scholarships
“In capital markets, we invest money so that capital can grow. Here, we want to invest so that people can grow,” says the fund’s director, Mantvidas Žėkas. “Behind every reform is a person who has to make decisions, bring a team together and deliver results. We want talented people in the public sector to have access to the same strong leadership tools and learning opportunities that we offer business leaders.”
BEYOND plans to award eight scholarships to selected public sector professionals to attend the Board Leadership and Corporate Governance programme delivered by BMI Executive Institute in collaboration with Copenhagen Business School. The four-day programme will take place in Copenhagen and Vilnius. The first scholarships are expected to give public sector leaders the opportunity to participate as early as next year.
The fund will also build a community of public sector and business leaders. It plans to hold regular strategic sessions where participants can examine specific challenges facing the country, exchange experience and work with BMI Executive Institute’s faculty of practitioners. At later stages, the fund plans to support research, develop new programmes for public sector leaders and consider seed funding for BMI alumni initiatives that advance Lithuania.
The fund’s support will be directed towards leaders of public institutions and their departments, career civil servants and emerging leaders. Its resources will not be used to finance political or party activity.
The fund is being established by BMI Executive Institute together with seven of its alumni: Rolandas Valiūnas, Junona Bumelytė, Vaidas Barakauskas, Marius Svidinskas, Paulius Grigas, Arūnas Babrauskas and Andrius Samaitis.
Initially, BEYOND – the BMI Endowment Fund – will operate as a charitable foundation. It subsequently plans to build an endowment that will provide sustained funding for its initiatives over the long term. Its first fundraising target is €1 million.
At the Beyond Awards ceremony, Vytautas Šilinskas, head of Investors’ Forum; Laura Tilvytė, head of Švietimas #1; and Dr Eglė Pavydė, a regenerative medicine scientist and science communicator specialising in longevity, invited guests to imagine Lithuania’s achievements in 2050. All three are already working to drive progress in their respective fields. The themes they presented — an innovative state, education without regional divides and longer, healthier lives — showed how many areas can be shaped by decisions made today.
BEYOND invites businesses, alumni and everyone who cares about Lithuania’s future to help it reach its first €1 million target. People can also contribute ideas, offer their time as mentors or share their professional expertise.
For more information:
Mantvidas Žėkas
Director, BEYOND – BMI Endowment Fund
Tel. +370 607 30689
mantvidas@beyondfund.lt