When the war began, Russia cut off fuel supplies to Ukraine and attacked oil storage and stations. At that point, Ukraine had less than two weeks' worth of fuel.
Here's a story of a company that adapted, survived, and ensured Ukraine's essential fuel supply 1/
OKKO, now a market leader, has flourished under the new CEO Vasyl Danylyak, a personal friend of mine, guiding it through wartime transformation.
Today, at the Kyiv School of Economics we're publicly discussing for the first time the case we have written about OKKO 2/
But the story of the company is that of people
When the missiles struck on day one, OKKO's managers didn't abandon their jobs, but acted. With the Russians everywhere, they checked on their teams and prepared evacuation plans 3/
The case highlights manager Olena, who asked her colleagues, "Can I count on you?" and everyone answered yes
I still get emotional recalling those days. That type of determination was everywhere; people had families to save but wouldn't abandon their jobs 4/
But some people did flee. At Andriy's station near Kyiv, only 3 people stayed. Andriy, however, took charge of 2 sites, running between two sites through war-torn streets to oversee operations. "As we focused on our duties, customers calmed," he recalls 5/
Iryna, near the shelled Chernihiv, took charge of 4 stations, fueling the military defending the city. "We are not afraid!" she declared. Though without an official title, she led
Chernhiv later was encircled by the Russians but never fallen 6/
By keeping stations open, OKKO teams kept Ukraine moving. “That our reality now,” Oleksandra thought
Despite the risks, they served customers with positivity, still remembering - I kid you not - to say OKKO's values: "Service with a smile." 7/
Across OKKO, exceptional teams banded together, communicating constantly to adapt. Lawyers & marketers ran stations. Drivers risked their lives delivering fuel. Some died.
Everyone became everyday heroes. Later OKKO created a campaign “Our Heroes” to tell their stories 8/
I could discuss the company's strategy and changes in supply chain management, including finding new suppliers worldwide and bargaining over shipping slots to keep the country running. 9/
I witnessed oil depots attacked and oil tankers driving at night through hidden routes to evade Russian surveillance.
But I think the story is people! Thank you for being human! 10X
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As we speak, Ukraine is attacking Russians in Crimea with Western-supplied missiles. We'll know the results in the morning, but yesterday’s attack was very successful, according to the Russians themselves. 1/
According to Russian military tg-channels, 10 ATACMS missiles hit Belbek military airfield in Crimea, near Sevastopol. The attack was detected just 2 minutes before impact. 2/
The photos circulating on Russian tg channels show a destroyed radar for the S-300/S-400 air defense system and a probably damaged launcher in the background. 3/
Right now, there are emergency blackouts in Kyiv and Dnipro in Ukraine
This means that a slow but consistent attrition campaign of Russian missile attacks on the energy infrastructure is working. This is another illustration of the cost of the delay in the aid to Ukraine 1/
The photo above is Svitlana, our director of KSE Foundation, working in a cafe. The good thing is that businesses and people are experienced and now how to adjust to a blackout immediately 2/
I asked Svitlana what she was doing there in a dark cafe. She said - a friendly chat with friends about why some people avoid taking responsibility and why leadership in organizations tolerates this. The usual office politics talk too, even when in blackout. The life goes on 3/
Did the months long delay in the U.S. aid made the Russian advance in Kharkiv possible?
Yes, absolutely!
But what else has contributed to the recent success of Russians in Kharkiv? 1/
Max Boot offers three more reasons. One is false, the other two are on the spot. 2/
First, the Russian success is attributed to improved combat performance (e.g. using motorcycles for rapid advances, heavy use of "glide bombs" to pulverize Ukrainian lines, and electronic warfare jamming Ukrainian drones and rockets.
Russia’s attempts to escalate the conflict in Ukraine are becoming increasingly evident. It has launched a new offensive north of Kharkiv, while Zelensky now warns of significant activity further north in Sumy and Chernyhiv 1/
What has happened? The US delayed support for Ukraine, driven by domestic political reasons and a fear of provoking Russia. 2/
This cautious approach was based on the hope that Russia would exercise self-restraint if the US withheld certain weapons, such as long-range ATACMS, and imposed restrictions on their use within Russian territory. 3/
They will push back Russian air office and will deny it the ability to launch large guided bombs. Once the bombs are neutralized and Ukraine gets artillery rounds from the aid package, the balance changes 1/
In the meantime, things are getting tougher in Ukraine.
In his yesterday’s evening address, Zelensky has asked Ukrainians to remain vigilant, pay attention to info, not emotions, and believe in our armed forces. He was direct about the severity of the situation 3/