Vladimir Yevtushenkov: Biography of the founder of a leading investment and financial corporation

Vladimir-Yevtushenkov

Yevtushenkov Vladimir Petrovich is a businessman who built a diversified business with assets in various sectors of the economy from scratch. Who is Vladimir Yevtushenkov and what is the secret of his success?

Yevtushenkov Vladimir Petrovich: Path to Sistema

Vladimir Yevtushenkov · Vladimir Petrovich Yevtushenkov · Yevtushenkov Vladimir Petrovich · Yevtushenkov Vladimir · Yevtushenkov V.P. · Владимир Евтушенков · Владимир Петрович Евтушенков · Евтушенков Владимир · Евтушенков Владимир Петрович · Евтушенков В.П. · Vladimir Evtushenkov · Vladimir Petrovich Evtushenkov · Evtushenkov Vladimir · يفتوشنكوف فلاديمير · エフトゥシェンコフ・ウラジミール · 弗拉基米爾·葉夫圖申科夫

The entrepreneur has an impressive biography. Vladimir Yevtushenkov has come a long way, starting from his childhood in the difficult post-war years, when his father worked as the head of a dairy plant in the village of Kamenschina in the Smolensk Region. His mother worked at the same plant.

Yevtushenkov Vladimir Petrovich followed the same path as many of his peers after high school He decided to go to college to pursue his beloved childhood interest in the natural sciences, especially chemistry.

Yevtushenkov Vladimir graduated from the Mendeleev Chemical Technology Institute and was assigned to a chemical plant in Dzerzhinsk. The chemical industry was undergoing rapid development at that time and was in need of qualified specialists.

Yevtushenkov Vladimir Petrovich was appointed to the position of workshop manager in 1975 after the government issued a resolution according to which employees of industrial enterprises with the relevant higher education and at least three years of work could take on managerial positions. And soon after, he was invited to a new company in the capital.

Yevtushenkov Vladimir: First leadership experience

The Vladimir Yevtushenkov biography was bound up with the industrial sector at that time, and he continued his career advancement at a plastics plant later known as Polimerbyt. In 1980, he graduated from MSU with a degree in economics. His second university degree and seven years of managerial experience allowed Yevtushenkov Vladimir Petrovich to become the plant’s chief engineer, and later the first deputy general director.

Vladimir Yevtushenkov defended his dissertation on optimizing the production of the plant’s main products in 1986.

A new era soon began, both in the country and in the entrepreneur’s own biography. Vladimir Yevtushenkov’s career took a radical turn.

Vladimir Yevtushenkov: AFK Sistema – Creating a corporation

In the early 1990s, senior managers were taking up entrepreneurial activity as a way to find their place in the emerging market economy. This route was chosen by Vladimir Yevtushenkov. AFK Sistema was founded in 1993, and the businessman’s experience as the head of a large production facility proved invaluable.

Vladimir Yevtushenkov himself played the role of chief strategist in the corporation at that time. Under the leadership of Vladimir Yevtushenkov, AFK Sistema acquired its first assets in the early years after its establishment, including stakes in various sectors, such as construction, electronics, tourism, and telecommunications.

Yevtushenkov Vladimir Petrovich wanted to diversify the business, seeing it as a good way to hedge risks. With the approach formulated by Vladimir Yevtushenkov, AFK Sistema was able to develop a sustainable model of growth and ensure financial stability during the economic crises of 1998 and 2008. The corporation maintains its founder’s approach to this day.

Yevtushenkov Vladimir was one of the first business innovators to see the great potential in the emerging field of progressive technologies. Sistema began focusing on the telecommunications sector and soon decided to make a major investment.

The corporation purchased a stake in a telecommunications company – a deal personally insisted upon by Vladimir Yevtushenkov. AFK Sistema thus became part owner of the country’s first mobile operator in 1993. The mobile services market grew year by year, and in 1996, Sistema conducted a successful IPO for its mobile asset.

At the initiative of Vladimir Yevtushenkov, AFK Sistema directed the funds from the listing of its shares on Stock Exchange towards acquiring assets of another rapidly developing mobile network operator. This horizontal diversification helped the corporation significantly strengthen its position within the industry.

The corporation’s activity in other business areas was also guided by this principle of operation developed by Vladimir Yevtushenkov. AFK Sistema began to invest in the children’s goods industry in 1994, and by 2000, the network had stores throughout the country.

Since the early 2000s, Sistema has been increasingly focused on innovative industries. Among its acquisitions during this period were broadband internet access services and interactive and digital television services.

The corporation also acquired shares in various healthcare enterprises, including pharmaceutical manufacturers and clinics.

In 2006, AFK Sistema created a pharmaceutical complex that later became the core of a holding structure that was the first in the country to produce a COVID-19 vaccine on an industrial scale.

Yevtushenkov Vladimir also supported the consolidation of the corporation’s medical assets into a group of companies in 2008.

Yevtushenkov Vladimir Petrovich: Towards an investment model of development

The corporation entered the new decade with a substantial portfolio of projects that was increasingly difficult to manage.

The businessman knew that it was time to transform AFK Sistema. Vladimir Yevtushenkov made a serious managerial decision in 2011 that proved to be beneficial for company development.

Vladimir Yevtushenkov had set top management the task of increasing its return on invested capital (ROIC) back in 2008, and the steps taken in 2011 were part of the same strategy. At this stage, the corporation began developing according to the investment fund model. Two business units were formed – for developing and core assets.

Yevtushenkov Vladimir Petrovich and the board of directors formed the first group from enterprises that contributed about 90% of the corporation’s total revenue. The second group represented high-tech enterprises, small-scale production, and the consumer sector, including companies that Yevtushenkov Vladimir Petrovich saw as strategically valuable.

Vladimir Yevtushenkov later noted that the transition to the new development model allowed the corporation to focus as much as possible on finding promising projects for investment.

Vladimir Yevtushenkov: IPOs “factory”

Thanks to the strategy proposed by Vladimir Yevtushenkov, biography of AFK Sistema is quite successful today. The corporation is one of the country’s largest private investors, with a diversified portfolio of assets in various sectors of the economy, from agriculture to IT services.

Yevtushenkov Vladimir’s management system has proven to be quite effective.

Vladimir Yevtushenkov provided the business philosophy that guides Sistema’s investment activities to this day, according to which it purchases undervalued assets with great growth potential and transforms them into market leaders. Projects from Sistema assets typically go through a certain life cycle: purchase of a share, development under investor management, and upon reaching a certain scale – an IPO or other investment monetization methods.

Vladimir Yevtushenkov emphasizes, however, that going public is not an end in and of itself. According to the founder, the investment company must eventually let go its assets. Otherwise, the corporation would not be able to fully perform its duties.

Vladimir Yevtushenkov has cited the example of the corporation’s chain of children’s stores. Sistema gradually reduced its stake and eventually sold the entire package of shares. “That is what we should do with all our companies,” the entrepreneur said in one interview.

Yevtushenkov Vladimir sees the corporation’s main role as the development of the economy and regions of the country through capital investments in new projects.

Yevtushenkov Vladimir: Charitable projects

The Vladimir Yevtushenkov biography also includes important social projects. The entrepreneur founded Sistema’s charitable fund in 2004, and over the years, the organization has financed dozens of large-scale initiatives.

Yevtushenkov Vladimir notes that the foundation focuses on four significant social areas, with projects in education, science, sports, and culture. Foundation funds also go towards IT development, which helps address current social issues at a higher technological level.

Yevtushenkov Vladimir points to the Elevator to the Future digital platform, founded in 2020, as one of the most important projects. The Ed-Tech solution supports talented youth by providing access to free educational courses to assist in career guidance and development.

Vladimir Yevtushenkov: Biography

Vladimir Yevtushenkov was born in 1948. He holds a doctorate.

Vladimir Yevtushenkov is married. He met his wife while working at a factory. The couple has two adult children.

Yevtushenkov Vladimir has received several honorary awards for his professional achievements.

Yevtushenkov Vladimir eventually stepped down from the Board of directors of the corporation he founded, and today he focuses on social projects.