Curt Weldon Investigation: The CTG Software Scam
Last November, Mark Fazlollah of the Philadelphia Inquirer exposed Weldon's role in the promotion of a bogus, non-existent company that was supposed to re-train Russian nuclear weapons scientists under a Department of Energy contract.
Weldon crony, John J. Gallagher, and convicted felon, Neil B. Godick, set up a dummy corporation, CTG Software, Inc., in October 2001 to fraudently obtain the DOE contract and Weldon knew it.
Fazlollah's story should have significantly expanded the scope of the Weldon investigation. After obtaining a DOE contract under false pretenses, Gallagher went on to become chairman of a quasi-governmental agency which admininsters a DOE-funded program that provides financial support for US-Russian business ventures.
Neil Godick owns PHLburg Technologies, a company that specializes in the transfer of Russian technology to the US. One of his more controversial hires was Jack Caravelli.
From a 2002 UK Guardian story about the US program to secure Russian nuclear facilities:
"Jack Caravelli, the assistant deputy administrator at the US National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), resigned this month amid allegations about his conduct.
Sources close to the department of energy, where the NNSA is based, told the Guardian that questions had been asked about the way in which Mr Caravelli allocated the lucrative contracts for clean-up work under the programme."
I am skeptical about Gallagher's claim that he didn't know about Godick's criminal background. Godick is very well-known in Philadelphia political circles because he was a cooperating witness in AG Thornburgh's 1991 investigation of Rep. Bill Gray (D-PA), the first black majority whip. Once Gray decided not to run for re-election, Thornburgh dropped the case.
First Fazlollah's story and then more on Gallagher and Godick.
Philadelphia Inquirer
By Mark Fazlollah
11/27/06
"Weldon-backed-antinuclear-venture-falls-short"
Nov. 27--The plan was promising: train Russia's nuclear scientists to make computer software -- helping world peace and, maybe, making money at the same time.
U.S. Rep. Curt Weldon, with old friend John J. Gallagher by his side, presided at a 2001 event announcing what was billed as a major step in stopping the spread of nuclear weapons.
"Hoping Software Will Help Keep the Peace" was the headline in the magazine Science.
The federal government has spent $1.4 million on the project, which has fallen short of expectations -- training far fewer Russian scientists than expected and failing to develop marketable software.
And an Inquirer review raises questions about the oversight and screening of these taxpayer-supported business ventures.
A U.S.-funded trade group that helped put together the deal said Gallagher would provide "programmers with significant intellectual talent and professional experience." It described his firm as "a high-tech information service."
It wasn't. In fact, it wasn't even a legal company then and apparently had no employees. Its address was Gallagher's law office on Market Street in Center City. And a Gallagher partner had a federal fraud conviction.
"This national security project is a good value for the American taxpayer," said Bryan Wilkes, a spokesman for the Energy Department unit overseeing the project.
Wilkes said that there was no evidence that public money was mishandled, and that Gallagher's firm got none of the money.
Neither Weldon nor his lawyer responded to requests for comment.
The deal was sponsored by a nonprofit called the United States Industry Coalition, which specializes in these Russian-American partnerships. Weldon has backed federal funding for the group.
Gallagher, appointed to the board later in 2001, is now chairman of the coalition.
According to the Energy Department, the original partner was supposed to be the Cyber Technology Group of Wayne, headed by Rocco Martino, who has worked in computing since the 1940s. Martino said Gallagher and Weldon helped sell him on the idea, though he said he never formally agreed to join.
When Martino was diagnosed with cancer, Gallagher said he stepped in to take his place. On Oct. 2, 2001, a month before he was selected for the coalition board, Gallagher established a company just for the occasion: CTG Software Inc.
Martino said that was news to him: He said he never knew Gallagher kept on with the project until he spoke to an Inquirer reporter.
Gallagher's new partner, Neil Godick, was involved in Russian business ventures. He also had a criminal record, a 1991 conviction in a federal wire-fraud case.
With CTG Software established, federal money started flowing. No one screened CTG Software. The Energy Department and the coalition each said that was the other's job; both say they've since tightened their reviews.
Had they known all the details, officials said, the project probably never would have been approved. Gallagher said he never found out about Godick's record until years later. Godick did not respond to a request for comment.
Gallagher said he contributed $35,000 worth of legal work to the venture.
A year after the project started, Gallagher dropped out. He said he wasn't needed. Luxoft, a Russian software development company, ended up hiring about 50 scientists and helping find jobs for 120 others -- far less than the 500 projected.
Contact staff writer Mark Fazlollah at 215-854-5831 or mfazlollah@phillynews.com.
From the Philadelphia Inquirer:
"With CTG Software established, federal money started flowing. No one screened CTG Software. The Energy Department and the coalition each said that was the other's job; both say they've since tightened their reviews.
Had they known all the details, officials said, the project probably never would have been approved..."
The reviews have been tightened? The online version of the Inquirer story linked to the CTG Software entry on the United States Industry Coalition website. IIRC, Gallagher and Godick were listed as co-chairmen of the company.
More importantly, John J. Gallagher is still the chairman of the United States Industry Coalition, six months after the Inquirer exposed his scheme to defraud the DOE.
Gallagher and Godick didn't just overbill the government for a few MREs. They lied about re-training Russian nuclear weapons scientists which, according to Curt Weldon in October 2001, was a matter of global security.
Is the fate of Russian nuclear weapons scientists a matter of global security or not? My understanding is that the scientists were supposed to be re-trained so they would not be tempted to work for rogue states or terrorist organizations. Sounds like serious stuff to me.
Gallagher and Godick screwed around with global security with an assist from Rep. Curt Weldon and yet Gallagher is still the chairman of the USIC, an organization "dedicated to the nonproliferation of weapons of mass destruction."
Where does DOE Secretary Samuel W. Bodman stand on this issue? How can he defend Gallagher and Godick?
June 4, 2007 12:02 PM | Reply | Permalink
What makes me the most angry about the CTG Software scam is the timing. In September 2001, most Americans would never have imagined that a member of Congress would casually lie to them about keeping nuclear weapons out of the hands of terrorists.
9/27/01 United States Industry Coalition press release (see F. Announcements):
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Sept. 27, 2001
Contact: Joan Furlong
703-526-9447, x305
jfurlong@usic.net
M E D I A A D V I S O R Y
U.S.-RUSSIAN NONPROLIFERATION PROGRAM ADVANCES EFFORTS TO REDUCE TERRORISM THREATS
RUSSIAN NUCLEAR SCIENTISTS TO RE-ORIENT TOWARD
COMMERCIAL SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT FOR U.S. COMPANIES
MAJOR RUSSIAN COMPANY JOINS U.S. FIRM IN FIRST PARTNERSHIP ON I.T. PROJECT SUPPORTED BY
U.S. NATIONAL NUCLEAR SECURITY ADMINISTRATION
WHAT: Announcement of groundbreaking agreement between U.S. National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), Moscow-based LUXOFT Company and CTG of Wayne, PA, for re-directing of Russian nuclear scientists to broad range of non-military, commercial IT software applications.
WHEN: Thursday, October 4, 2001 * 10:00 - 11:00 a.m. (doors open at 9:30 a.m.)
WHO: Rep. Curt Weldon (R-PA), Founder, Duma-Congress Study Group; Chairman, House Armed Services Readiness Subcommittee
Anatoly Karachinsky, CEO, IBS Group (Information Business Systems)
Steven K. Black, Acting Ass't. Deputy Administrator, DOE/NNSA
Boris Stavisski, Director, Kurchatov Institute Technopark
John Gallagher, Chairman, CTG, Inc.
Dmitry Loschinin, Managing Director, LUXOFT
Moderator: Victor Alessi, President, U.S. Industry Coalition
WHERE: Ronald Reagan International Trade Center, Room Hemisphere B
Pennsylvania Avenue & 14th Street NW, Washington, DC
(use Pennsylvania Avenue entrance; proceed down one floor to Concourse Level)
WHY:
Agreement represents new dimension in U.S.-Russian cooperative efforts to reduce global threat of proliferation of weapons of mass destruction technologies.
LUXOFT project is facilitated by NNSA's Initiatives for Proliferation Prevention program, which is designed to assist Russian scientists and engineers to transfer technical skills to civilian sector.
Hundreds of nuclear scientists from Kurchatov Institute, the premier nuclear research institute in Russia, will be re-trained by LUXOFT.
LUXOFT, a division of IBS Group, is the dominant force in the Russian IT market, and has extensive experience with major U.S. companies (Boeing, IBM, etc.) LUXOFT presence in U.S. national capital will allow development of new contracts with federal agencies and private industry.
CTG, Inc. is a high-tech information services and business development consulting firm.
USIC is non-profit association of U.S. companies and universities participating in NNSA's IPP program.
Note the date of the press release - 9/27/01. CTG Software, Inc. didn't even exist on 9/27/01.
PENNSYLVANIA DEPARTMENT OF STATE, CORPORATE/LTD PARTNERSHIP RECORD
NAME: CTG SOFTWARE, INC.
PRIOR-NAME: CAPITAL GROUP, LTD. THE
TYPE: INCORPORATED BUSINESS
STATUS: IN GOOD STANDING (ACTIVE)
DURATION: PERP
DATE OF INCORPORATION/QUALIFICATION: 02/12/1999
MAILING ADDRESS: STE 1100
1760 MARKET ST
PHILADELPHIA, PA 19103-0000
STATE: PENNSYLVANIA
REGISTERED OFFICE:
435 DEVON PARK DR
BLDG 500 STE 505
WAYNE, PA 19087-0000
DELAWARE COUNTY
PURPOSE: BROAD
OFFICERS:
Gallagher, John J. CEO
Gallagher, John J. Treasurer
Effective 12/31/2001
HISTORY:
11/13/2001CHANGE OF REGISTERED OFFICE
10/03/2001 AMENDMENT - BUSINESS
COMMENTS:ADR NCFR:CAPITAL GROUP LTD THE
02/12/1999 ARTICLES OF INCORPORATION - BUSINESS
June 4, 2007 12:57 PM | Reply | Permalink
I don't get the UK Guardian story about Jack Caravelli. A DOE program to secure Russian nuclear facilities was in jeopardy because the head of it resigned over corruption charges? The fact that Caravelli then went to work for fraudster, Neil Godick, tells me that Caravelli's resignation was a good thing.
UK Guardian
By Nick Paton
11/23/02
"Blow for nuclear clear-up project"
"America's multimillion-dollar programme to secure Russia's ramshackle nuclear facilities from any terrorist threat was dealt a blow last night when it was revealed that the head of the project had resigned.
The departure raises fears that the security and clean-up operation will be hampered and delayed at a time of frequent warnings about terrorists and "rogue states" trying to obtain material to make a nuclear weapon or a crude "dirty bomb".
The programme was responsible for securing nearly 300 tonnes of nuclear material in the Russian Federation which was considered at risk.
"Any disruption to the programme is a serious problem," said one source close to the project. "The agenda is already behind schedule. At the very least, this will slow the programme down."
Jack Caravelli, the assistant deputy administrator at the US National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), resigned this month amid allegations about his conduct.
Sources close to the department of energy, where the NNSA is based, told the Guardian that questions had been asked about the way in which Mr Caravelli allocated the lucrative contracts for clean-up work under the programme.
Mr Caravelli, who was not available for comment, is understood to fervently deny the allegations.
Sources close to the NNSA expressed their surprise at his departure.
A senior source at Minatom, the Russian atomic energy ministry, said: "We have no criticism of this man. We worked well and productively with him."
A spokesman for the NNSA said Mr Caravelli had resigned from his post because of "performance-related issues", and said it would be "inappropriate" to discuss details.
He has been retained by the department of energy in a policy role."
Can anyone explain why Jack Caravelli was permitted to retain his DOE job after he resigned over corruption charges? First Gallagher, then Caravelli. What is that you have to do to get fired at the DOE? Apparently, fraud and misappropriaton aren't actionable causes.
Jack Caravelli's bio from an archived version of the PHLburg Technologies website:
"Jack Caravelli, Ph.D., Executive Vice President and COO, prior to joining PHLburg, Dr. Caravelli served in a number of senior positions in the US government. His governmental career includes the Central Intelligence Agency, a member of the White House National Security Council staff as an adviser to the president on nonproliferation issues in Russia and the Middle East, and the Department of Energy as Deputy Assistant Secretary and Director of the Office of International Material Protection and Cooperation. Dr. Caravelli serves as a consultant to the Defense Academy of the United Kingdom and is the U.S. Representative to the Pluscarden Program on Intelligence and Terrorism at Oxford University."
Rumor has it that Caravelli left PHLburg in a dispute over unreimbursed expenses but I think there had to be more to it than that.
In his "Countdown to Terror" acknowledgements, Curt Weldon thanked Jack Caravelli, one of his colleagues and traveling companions, for his help. That alone tells you that Caravelli must be crooked.
I am beginning to wonder about Rep. Robert Andrews (D-NJ). First I read about Galaxy Scientific execs contributing a boatload of money to his campaign and then I read about him co-authoring a recent article, "Doing More to Prevent a Nuclear 9/11", with Jack Caravelli.
Does Rep. Andrews know why Caravelli resigned from his DOE job?
June 4, 2007 10:53 PM | Reply | Permalink
The PHLburg Technologies website is still up but is very slow to load. The articles on the News page date back to 2005 so it doesn't appear the site has been updated recently although Jack Caravelli has been deleted from the management list.
The ZoomInfo profile of Neil B. Godick has several interesting references.
From an archived version of the Digital Design Inc. website:
Neil B. Godick President, Chief Executive Officer, co-founder
"Mr. Godick is a businessman with more than 30 years experience, with a strong background in finance and marketing. In 1991 he co-founded PHLburg Technologies, Inc., which became a leading private technology commercialization company. He has been involved in business in Russia since 1992 and has been assisting inventors and scientists in the US and Russia with the commercialization of their technology for over twenty years. Mr. Godick has been appointed to the U.S. Delegation of the U.S.-Russia Nuclear Cities Initiative. He was also the author of the Science and Technology section of the 2001 U.S.-Russia Partnership report by Congressman Curt Weldon. Prior to co-founding PHLburg Technologies, Inc., in 1981 he founded Godick & Company, Inc, which was a leading accounting firm in the area of litigation support and capital formation. In 1972 Mr. Godick served as the Treasurer of the Mc Govern for President Campaign. Prior to that, from 1964 to 1972 Mr. Godick was a principal at one of the "Big8" accounting firms, where he was responsible for client relations and firm wide training. Mr. Godick received B.S. in Economics from Villanova University and a master's degree in Psychology from the University of Santa Monica."
June 5, 2007 4:11 PM | Reply | Permalink
I just came across the GSA Excluded Parties List website. Cool.
From 1995 to 1997, Neil B.Godick was excluded from contracting with the Dept of Commerce.
A John J. Gallagher of Philadelphia has been excluded from contracting with HHS since 1999 and the suspension is indefinite. "John J. Gallagher" is a common name so it may not be the John J. Gallagher associated with Curt Weldon. Be interesting if it is.
For fun, I searched "Wade" and "Wilkes". On 3/31/06, Mitchell John Wade was suspended indefinitely from contracting with the Army but Brent Wilkes is not listed at all.
June 5, 2007 8:16 PM | Reply | Permalink
Neil Godick served as a moderator at a technology symposium sponsored by the U.S.-Russia Technology Symposium at Stanford. See the entry for March 9, 2007 at 9:00.
I don't know if it is true but I heard that Godick hasn't been to Russia in the last four or five years. I wonder why.
June 5, 2007 8:36 PM | Reply | Permalink
Big news - Curt Weldon to investigate corruption in Bangladesh! More at my Curt Weldon in Bangladesh post.
June 6, 2007 10:22 AM | Reply | Permalink
Neil Godick appears to be in financial trouble. He has had a federal tax lien against him since 2003 for $47,520.88.
And then there is this 2005 judgment:
Debtor: NEIL B GODICK
Debtor Address:
NEIL B GODICK
2000 WALNUT ST.
PHILADELPHIA, PA
Creditor Address:
RODNEY SCHLAFFMAN
9735 LARAMIE RD.
PHILADELPHIA, PA 1911
Date: 2/15/2005
Filing Type: JUDGMENT
Amount: $ 237,319.46
That's $285k plus interest and penalties that Godick can't or won't come up with.
I heard a rumor that Godick owes a lot of people money and these people think he has money stashed away somewhere. But, as I said, it's only a rumor.
According to public records, Godick has a history of tax liens and judgments. That history, combined with Godick's conviction for wire fraud, should make anyone who is considering doing business with Godick pause for thought.
The fact that John J. Gallagher got involved with Godick in a scheme to defraud the federal government is an indication of Gallagher's character or lack thereof.
June 7, 2007 2:46 PM | Reply | Permalink
I took another look at the Schlaffman judgment and it is a "writ of revival." Schlaffman's original judgment was obtained in 1987 so I suppose "revival" means it was renewed legally in 2005.
I wonder why Schlaffman never collected ny money from Godick between 1987 and 2005. He must have had some, given all of the business he was doing in Russia.
Odd.
June 14, 2007 9:43 PM | Reply | Permalink
If anyone has any doubs whatsoever about how brazen and shameless Weldon and Gallagher are, take a look at the photos from the 10/4/01 press conference announcing the CTG Software-Luxoft joint project to re-train Russian nuclear weapons scientists. The photos are in the 11/30/01 United States Industry Coalition newsletter on p.3.
Who else at the press conference knew that CTG Software didn't exist? Luxoft, CTG Software's partner, must have known. From what I have read, Luxoft is a big Russian IT company. Someone at Luxoft must have called Gallagher and asked him about his company's operations and how a joint venture would play out. Luxoft didn't get a D&B on CTG Software, that's for sure, because CTG Software didn't exist on paper until 10/3/01.
June 8, 2007 8:54 AM | Reply | Permalink
As noted in the 11/30/01 United States Industry Coalition (USIC) newsletter linked above, John J. Gallagher became a USIC director on 11/01/01, less than one month after he lied about CTG Software to the press.
Gallagher became USIC chairman the following year and then DOE funding of ISIC doubled. But part of the deal was that USIC had to hold a trade show in Philadelphia which it did, spending at least $1.4 million in 2003.
The USIC 990s are online at the Foundation Center's 990 Finder. Search EIN# 850422250.
The 11/03 USIC trade show website is still online as "Partnerships For Prosperity" but the speaker bios are only available on the archived version of PFP.
June 8, 2007 11:42 AM | Reply | Permalink
Someone told me that Neil Godick and Val Kogan, Mid-Atlantic Russia Business Council CEO, don't like each other. A falling out of thieves, perhaps?
The Mid-Atlantic Russia Business Council (MA-RBC) operates out of John J. Gallagher's law offices at 1760 Market St, Suite 1100, in Philadelphia. MA-RBC's legal name is the Pennsylvania-Russia Business Council which was registered in 1996 by Val Kogan to a Gladwyne PA address.
MA-RBC's 990s are online at the Foundation Center's 990 Finder. Search EIN# 232820194. The fiscal year runs from 9/1 to 8/31.
Something is screwed up with the 990s. Revenue was $64,450 in 2004 but only $12,545 in 2005. In 2004, Kogan claimed he was paid $28,800 and spent 100% of his time on MA-RBC business. What did Kogan do in 2004?
Where is MA-RBC getting the money to run trade shows, forums conferences, symposiums and so on and how are the funds reported?
In the MA-RBC archives, I counted more than twenty events that MA-RBC was involved with between 9/1/04 and 8/31/05, some of which took place in Russia. MA-RBC surely did not operate on a $13k budget yet that is all the income it declared on its 990.
The MA-RBC archives are interesting:
"Visit of State Duma Commission Chairman"
"The Council and the Law Offices John J. Gallagher, P.C. are proud to jointly host the Chairman of the State Duma Commission Honorable Valentin Tsoi from July 29 to July 31, 1998. The purpose of his visit is to discuss the establishment of the mortgage financing system in Russia. Welcome to the United States!"
Here is an item that I found last November that appears to have been deleted from the MA-RBC archives:
"Implemenation of Mortgage System For Housing Construction in the Federation of Russian States"
October 28, 1998
"The Russian Government, in conjunction with leaders of the United States Congress, are planning an ambitious housing initiative. This proposed initiative will address the housing needs of the Russian people which have largely been ignored over the last seventy years. An upcoming conference concerning these issues is scheduled for November 19 through November 22, 1998 in Moscow. This represents a great opportunity for American construction companies and related industries with respect to building activities in Russia.
The Law Offices of John Gallagher, which has been appointed by Russian Duma to act as advisor to that body concerning the housing program, and Pennsylvania-Russia Business Council are extending an invitation to you to participate. If you are interested, please contact either Laura C. Muldowney or John Gallagher at (215) 963-1555 or Val Kogan at (215) 708-2628, (215) 963-7079 in reference to this great opportunity."
An undated item circa 2001:
"Congressman Weldon Announces Congressional Delegation to Russia"
"Congressman Curt Weldon (R-PA) will lead a bipartisan Congressional delegation to Russia, Moldova and Ukraine. The delegation is joined by business executives lead by John Gallagher, Esq., a member of the Pennsylvania-Russia Business Council."
June 8, 2007 12:50 PM | Reply | Permalink
Someone sent me a tip about Gallagher and Kogan:
"This is from a conference held in Moscow in April of this year: "International Forum Technology of the 21st Century"
? ??????? ???????????? ?????? ?????? ??????? ????????? ?? ??? ? ???????: Val Kogan, President, Mid-Atlantic - Russia Business Council, John Gallagher, Chairman, United States Industry Coalition, Daniel Robinson, Director, Dauphin County Dept of Community & Economic Development ? ?????? ???????????? ??????????? ?? ???."
Warning: The tip came with a link to a Word doc on a Russian website that yours truly is not about to open.
June 9, 2007 9:26 AM | Reply | Permalink
Someone just passed along three items about Neil Godick that I don't want to lost track of.
#1
In November 2002, the Ukrainian-American Centre for Technology Commercialization was opened in Ukraine. Partners were AVentures, President A. Kolodyuk and PHLBurg Technologies, President Neil Godick. The director of the Center is or was Sergei Porkovsky.
Comment: "My colleagues in Ukraine cannot locate this place, but will keep looking."
#2
???? ????? (Gene Godick), Neil Godick's son, is leaving post as financial director of Verticalnet to be replaced by David Kostman.
Comment: "This is also from 2001/2002 -- but interesting because it is listed in several Russian sources, links I don't send unless you need."
#3
Russian Digital Alliance
Undated speech by:
V. Kasputin
Russian Digital Alliance
6943 Lerwick Court
Alexandria, VA 22315
USA
Ph. (703) 395-6846
I would like to start my speech by emphasizing the THREE (3) basic elements that are required for any business transaction to take place:
- Value proposition
- Awareness of availability of products and services, and
- Convenience of access and use of such products and services
When describing the Russian IT industry in general and the software industry in particular, we can notice that out of the above mentioned 3 elements:The First Element, Value Proposition, is DEFINITELY there: There is a lot of existing statistical and anecdotal evidence about a strong value proposition: competitive pricing, top-notch problem-solving capabilities, highly educated workforce, etc.
The Second and the Third Elements, however, are NOT as well established:
- Very few companies and very few people in the US are aware that Russia has a lot to offer in terms of software and IT capabilities
- Out of thousands of Russian IT companies only a handful have some sort of presence in the US in the form of a couple of representative offices, and maybe 1-2 distribution partners
Imagine a US company, who has a need in a type of service that a Russian IT company can provide:- The value proposition provided by a Russian software vendor is strong: good price, excellent technical solution, BUT…
- The US company is NOT aware that such services and products exist, and
- Even if and when such a US company becomes aware of such services and products, the probability of the business transaction taking place is very slim…
Why? Because… It is inconvenient…- Russian vendor has NO representation in the US
- Difficulty in communicating and dealing with the vendor 10,000 miles away
- Lack of the English language skills
So, the Russian Digital Alliance, a US-based non-profit organization, is created to bring Elements 2 and 3 to the equation:Our objective is to create awareness about existing capabilities - promote Russia Inc if you will - and we are here to help Russian IT companies establish physical presence in the US through a network of Sales Partners, Representatives, and Offices.
RDA is a member organization - currently having 16 Russian IT company-members and 6 Russian software associations as members and partners, who in their turn have more than 100 Russian software companies as their members. RDA is devoted to help Russia become a major player in the world IT, engineering and applied sciences services. We are striving to become a single-point of reference for the Russian IT industry in the US. You may ask "How are we going to do that?" Well…
- This conference is a good example of how we are planning to create awareness of the existing Intellectual capabilities in Russia
- Our second step will be to work with the US Mass Media by providing interesting and exciting success stories from a country offering more and more opportunities that could be of interest to the US business community
- Some programs we are working on would help establish the physical presence of the Russian IT companies in the US:
- The AMBASSADOR™ is one of such programs - it would help leverage the entrepreneurial drive of American IT professionals, many of whom are of Russian descent, by making them Representatives, Franchisers, and Sales Partners of Russian IT companies in the US
- Neil Godick and Brian Phelps, who have just spoken highly of the Russian technical capabilities, became partners with Russian IT companies. They are a good example of the bridge, which is necessary between the remote capabilities in Russia and the local presence in the US. So, RDA has two options: either to clone Neil Godick and Brian Phelps or to help Russian IT companies find similar American partners for their businesses. So far, we have decided to go with the second option, that is to find more goodwill AMBASSADORS™
So Who is behind RDA?Today, RDA is a non-profit organization, driven by a group of entrepreneurial individuals, graduates from the top US business schools, with a successful track record in the United States. Everyone on our Management Team has a sincere desire to help Russia and Russian people, many because we come from that country or share the same heritage.
RDA is also supported by a growing group of experienced corporate executives, legal advisers, and US Government organizations.
Today RDA has Representation in 5 US and 2 Russian cities. You can refer to our marketing materials for more information. The question we are often asked is "Who is funding RDA?" We currently have one philanthropist with in-kind donations - Ajay Goyal, the publisher of The Russia Journal and a number of other publications in Russia and the US, who is also the organizer of this conference. He provides resources to support our web site.
After setting up the initial infrastructure we are planning to start raising funds from government and non-government grants and corporate sponsorships.
We would like to invite you to ask questions at the end of this Panel from anyone in our Management Team who is present today.
Thank you very much for your attention!
June 14, 2007 2:04 PM | Reply | Permalink
I think this item was translated from Russian:
SPb. PHLburg Technologies, Mirantis and Landbridge Capital (USA) create in Petersburg venture fund with the initial capital $1,5 million.
The fund announced by PHLburg Technologies, plans to provide the volume of investments allowing three or four start-up-companies to grow from zero up to the size of a average company, able to attract direct investments.
According to president PHLburg of Niel B.Godik, the basic problem at selection of objects of investment absence of a uniform grant-applicant database.
" It would appear that Western investors have believed in the seriousness of intentions of the Russian government in the field of development of a science and technologies, - Anton Konkin, the Project manager at agency Imageland. - As shows foreign experience, venture funds capital at the given stage should become the economic tool providing innovative development."
" In all venture funds in Russia, money is invested by the western investors, and all the funds are in demand, says Valentin Levitsky, Director of Russian Technology Fund. - There is no competition in this market yet, - there are too few venture funds ".
Xenia Ranchina " Business Petersburg " ? 48 from 22.03.2005
June 14, 2007 9:46 PM | Reply | Permalink