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    Participants of AGBU Goriz
    Participants of the latest cohort of AGBU Goriz.

Inspiring New Leadership

Haik Khanamiryan

AGBU resembles the fabric of the global Armenian nation in its ability to create impact by engaging communities throughout the world for more than 115 years.

GORIZ (eng. Nucleus) – “the central and most important part of an object, movement, or group, forming the basis for its activity and growth”.

The Goriz Leadership Program is an AGBU Europe initiative aimed at identifying, training and providing professional support to the future global Armenian leaders. Based in Amsterdam, Haik Khanamiryan, an Independent Consultant, has served as the manager of the program since 2017.

How did you get involved with AGBU and why were you drawn to the organization?

I have been drawn to AGBU for three distinctive reasons. The first is its apolitical approach to getting things done. The second reason is the inclusive aspect of AGBU’s vision, its ability to include a global community dispersed over many geographical locations. Lastly, what I found remarkable is AGBU’s legacy of transcending values over several generations. The organization resembles the fabric of the global Armenian nation in its ability to create impact by engaging communities throughout the world for more than 115 years. For all these reasons, in 2015, together with 2 friends, I have co-founded the group of AGBU Young Professionals in Amsterdam. After a couple of years, I’ve started to get more involved in the activities of AGBU on the European level.

Since 2017, you have indeed been in charge of the Goriz Leadership Programme of AGBU Europe. Could you please describe the objectives of the program?

The Goriz program is inspired by world class leadership programmes, and additionally offers a platform for high potential leaders of Armenian descent to get engaged in their personal development. The programme is centered around three topics: leading the self, leading others and leading organizations/communities. The platform allows participants to connect with peers, mentors and role models to shape their personal leadership journey.

Could you share some of the recent achievements or successes of the program?

In parallel to our in-class sessions we have created a series of digital seminars where we host a set of diverse leaders from world class universities, consultancies, corporations and NGO’s to share their remarkable leadership journeys. Our participants had a unique opportunity to connect to thought leaders such as Ani Kharajian (Harvard Business School), Ari Libarikian (McKinsey & Company), and Armen Ovanessoff (Accenture).

What are your aspirations regarding the development of the program in the future?

Currently, we are working on several strategic partnerships with well established companies and institutions on the topic of leadership. We like to see these grow to become an institutionalized network of talent holders and talent seekers.

The future of the Goriz program is rooted in its values to promote personal leadership development for high potentials to create impact and serve it to the benefits of the global Armenian nation.

How has your involvement with this program shaped who you are with your family, your friends and in your career?

Facilitating the workshops of the program has also benefited me in my quest for purpose and meaning. The notion of serving something bigger than yourself is very motivating and gratifying. My engagement with the programme has helped me to zoom out and see the bigger picture. Furthermore, it has helped me to connect to very inspiring peers and distinct thought leaders. The program stands on the shoulders of this unique group of Goriz alumni.

April 30, 2021