2025 X-CULTURE GLOBAL BUSINESS WEEK IN VAASA, FINLAND
X-Culture Global Business Week at the University of Vaasa, Finland
X-Culture and the University of Vaasa
are proud to present
The 2025 X-Culture Global Business Week in Finland
Dates: Sunday, August 03 – Saturday, August 09, 2025
Application Deadline: March 10, 2025
Notification of acceptance: March 17, 2025.
Number of Participants: 150 Students, 20 Ambassadors, and 25 Professors
Location: University of Vaasa: Wolffintie 32 FI-65200 Vaasa PL 700 FI-65101 Vaasa, Finland
This event is by invitation only.
You will receive your invitation by email. If you feel that we have an incorrect email address, or that you should have received an invitation, please contact us at global@x-culture.org.
X-Culture and the School of Economics at the University of Vaasa are excited to invite the best X-Culture students from around the world to the 2025 X-Culture Global Business Week Finland!
In this week-long professional development event, participants will have the opportunity to complete and compete in a consulting project challenge with a local international company; attend professional development and academic sessions; and experience cultural visits and events, all while collaborating with other X-Culture students and faculty from all over the world.
The School of Economics, University of Vaasa is internationally recognized as the 4th in Europe for research quality* and 18th globally for Business Administration**. It is a multi- and cross-disciplinary university driven by a mission “Sustainable Business, Energy, and Society” (University of Vaasa Strategy 2030). It comprises four Schools – Management, Marketing & Communications, Accounting & Finance, and Technology & Innovations, as well as several technology labs and platforms for applied research. The University has one of the most beautiful campuses in Finland located next to a UNESCO world heritage site. The University of Vaasa proudly welcomes the guests to share its values of courage, community and responsibility.
The X-Culture Global Business Symposium is an event that brings participants together, chosen from the best of the best. Students from around the world form international teams, meet initially online and finally in person, to finalize their work in solving a real business problem. Since 2010, over 100,000 students from 115 countries and 701 universities have participated, and 16,846 international teams have been formed. Previous Global Business Symposium events have taken place in Miami, United States in 2017, Macerata, Italy in 2018, Calgary, Canada in 2019, Lublin, Poland in 2023 and Chaing Rai, Thailand in 2024.
The selection process is competitive, with a limit of 150 students. Preference will be given to student applicants who have demonstrated excellence in past X-Culture programs, with consideration given to maximize geographic and cultural diversity.
Important Dates
STUDENT DEADLINES
Application deadline: March 10, 2025.
Announcement of the selected students: March 17, 2025
Payment Deadline ($1,795): April 1 – 30, 2025
Late Registration and Payment Deadline ($2,095): May 1 – 31, 2025
Students will receive Team Assignments 5 weeks before the event starts.
No stipends are available to cover the participation fee.
FACULTY DEADLINES
Registration and Payment ($2,195): April 1 – 30, 2025
Late registration and payment ($2,395): May 1 – 31, 2025
REFUND POLICY
Jun 1 – 10 = 100% Refund (Less $100 for Service Fees)
June 11 – 30 = 50% Refund
No Refunds after July 1.
Visa Applicants cannot pay in full.
A non-refundable deposit of $50 is required upon registration to (hold your space), which we will deduct from the full payment of $1795.
**Extension is permitted until May 31 for VISA applicants only.
**Please communicate your visa status to global@x-culture.org so that we can track your progress.
Conference Schedule: (Tentative Program)
Sunday, August 03, 2025: Registration and Welcome Reception
Registration Desk 15:00 – 17:00
Students – Lobby, GreenStar Hotel
Faculty – Lobby, Original Sokos Hotel Vaakuna Vaasa
Welcome Reception 18:00 – 20:00: Vaasa City Hall
Monday, August 04, 2025: Orientation & Introduction to Student Teams
Breakfast at Hotel
Welcome Orientation: 9:00 – 12:00
Lunch Time: 12:00 – 13:30
Challenge Company Q&A Sessions: 13:30 – 17:00
Dinner on your own: Explore the city
Tuesday, August, 05: Company Site Visits & Concurrent Sessions
Breakfast at Hotel
Company Site Visits: 9:00 – 12:00
Lunch Time: 12:00 – 13:30
Concurrent Sessions: 13:30 – 17:00
Team Time/ Dinner on your own
Wednesday, August 06, 2025: Cultural Visits
Breakfast at Hotel
Cultural Activity/Cultural Visits 9:00 – 12:00: Stundar Open Air Museum
Lunch and Tour 12:00 – 16:00: Bock’s Brewery
Visit the World Heritage Site 16:00 – 17:00: Replot
Thursday, August 07, 2025: Team Presentation 1
Breakfast at Hotel
First Pitch: 9:00 – 12:00
Lunch Time: 12:00 – 13:30
Concurrent Session: 13:30 – 17:00
Team Time/Dinner on your own
Friday, August 08, 2025: Presentations 2 to Executives / Gala
Breakfast at Hotel
Company Pitch to Executives: 9:00 – 12:00
Lunch on your own
Award Ceremony/Gala 18:00 – 23:00: Strampen
Saturday, August 09, 2025: Student Departures
Breakfast at Hotel
Checkouts + Departures NLT 12:00
**We reserve the right to make changes as mandated by the program
Business Challenges Presented by Local Partner Companies: TBA
Research Xackathon & Master Faculty Certification Training
X-Culture Global Business Week 2025 Vaasa Faculty Invitation
X-Culture Research Xackathon: While the students prepare their presentations, the instructors participating in the hackathon sessions will collaborate on research ideas, beginning to work on developing research initiatives and projects. Dr. Taras will provide a pre-event online session about month before the event so interested professors can prepare research and publication ideas. An X-Culture Xackathon Certificate of Completion will be issued to all who participate.
X-Culture Master Faculty Certification:
The program is highly interactive. With colleagues representing universities from many parts of the world, faculty will work independently and collaboratively to investigate the opportunities and challenges of facilitating X-Culture as a large scale international experiential learning project. All experience levels are welcome. Workshop attendees will receive comprehensive training in program principles, best practices, assessment, and other related topics. An X-Culture Master Faculty Certificate will be awarded to all who complete the training.
Faculty session schedule: See the conference schedule for dates and times of these activities. This schedule will allow faculty to also participate in conference presentations, client and culture visits, and other professional development events, as all portions of the faculty program are scheduled during student team time or student preparation time.
Pricing and Inclusions
Student program fee: $1,795 with a deadline of April 30.
Faculty program fee : $2,195 with a deadline April 30.
Sponsorship Letters to solicit financial support though your network provided upon request.
The Conference Fees include:
Student hotel, double occupancy per room at the GreenStar Hotel Vaasa.
(Please note that you will be required to have a credit card for your hotel room for incidentals. It is necessary to provide the hotel at least one credit card per room.)
Faculty hotel, single occupancy at Original Sokos Hotel Vaakuna Vaasa
Welcome Reception
All breakfasts and lunches
Dinners at the Welcome Reception and Gala are included
All scheduled conference cultural visits, lectures, and guest presentations.
Local transportation to company site visits and cultural visits.
Welcome Reception and Gala and Award Ceremony
Also:
Participation in Business Challenges with Finnish companies, including webinars, client company visit, and presentation of proposal.
Skill Development by attending cultural event, lectures from professors from all over the world, and networking with like-minded students and professors.
Building your International Business Skills through Experiential Learning
Experiencing and learning about Finnish history, culture, and sustainability aspirations
Experiential learning in Global Virtual Teams
Conference materials .
X-Culture Global Business Week Participation Certificate and Recommendation Letter
A new global network of friends (who are as highly motivated as you are!)
For faculty, the conference fee also includes:
Research Xackathon led by Dr. Vas Taras.
X-Culture Master Faculty Certification led by Professor Karen Lynden.
Standards and Decorum:
At X-Culture, we aspire to be global citizens—respectful of others, striving for excellence representing ourselves, our universities, and our countries. We take pride in setting a high standard and encourage you to do the same by being role models for one another.
During X-Culture Global Business Week, full participation is mandatory. This includes attending all sessions, as well as scheduled social and cultural activities, in accordance with our no-absence policy. Certificates and letters of participation will only be awarded to those who meet this requirement and uphold these values.
Additionally, adhering to the designated daily dress code is required. Your professionalism and decorum should reflect the high standards of an X-Culture professional.
Personal Expenses
What participants will be paying on their own for:
Travel to Vaasa, Finland
The registration fee does not cover your trip to and from Vaasa, Finland. Depending on your location, the airfare can cost you up to $400 if you live in Europe or up to $1,200–$1,800 if you live abroad (The Americas, Asia, or Africa). Prices may vary depending on the time of booking and airline. It is advisable that you start tracking the cost of your trip as soon as possible to secure the best price.
Finland’s Visa Processing Fee
If required, you can check visa requirements here.
Note that Visa processing fees vary by country.
Dinners
Only the Welcome Reception and Gala dinners are included in the participation fee.
Other meals will be at your own expense, with average dinner costs in Vaasa ranging from $15 to $40 depending on the restaurant.
We encourage you to plan these dinner opportunities with your team and/or newfound friends to explore the city as well as try new cuisines.
Other Personal Expenses
This includes items such as souvenirs, local transportation, snacks, or optional tours.
Budget around $100–$300 depending on personal preferences
The 2025 Global X-Culture Finland Leadership Team
Dr. Vasyl Taras
Founder, X-Culture
Dr. Vas Taras is a Professor of International Business at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.
He is the Vice President-Administration of the Academy of International Business and the founder of the X-Culture Project. He received his Ph.D. in International HR and International Business from the University of Calgary, Canada.
His research and work revolve around cross-cultural and global virtual teams and experiential approaches to international business education and development. He is an Associate Editor of the Journal of International Management, the International Journal of Cross-Cultural Management, the European Journal of International Management, and Cross-Cultural Strategic Management, and an Editorial Board Member of the Journal of International Business Studies, Academy of Management Review, and Journal of World Business.
Vas has lived, worked, and studied in half a dozen countries and has experience as an academic, manager, entrepreneur, and business consultant.
Dr. Leilani Baumanis
Conference Chair
Dr. Leilani Baumanis is the Academic Program Coordinator and Professor for the International Business Management Program at the College of Business and Management at Lynn University.
She earned her Doctorate in International Business Administration from Nova Southeastern University and has over 25 years of teaching experience with a focus in active learning, cultural intelligence, and study abroad opportunities.
Since 2013, Dr. Baumanis has played a vital role in X-Culture. In 2017, she joined the Executive Team and contributed to the development of the X-Culture Global Business Symposium, a week-long international conference bringing together 200 of X-Culture’s finest students and faculty. Additionally, Dr. Baumanis leads the X-Culture Academy, a global virtual team program that concentrates on college-bound students aspiring to enhance their international business skills through collaboration with like-minded students from across the globe.
Timothy Muth
X-Culture Client Management
Tim Muth has taught various Business courses at the Florida Institute of Technology since 2007. He has been involved with X-Culture since 2012. Tim spent over 25 years in various executive management positions working for a Fortune 500 technology company. He has worked in, or traveled to, over 50 foreign countries. Tim holds degrees from Florida State University and Wake Forest University.
Tim has won numerous teaching awards. In 2023, he won Florida Tech’s highest teaching award (the Kerry Bruce Clark award for Excellence in Teaching). In 2019, he was named one of six faculty members to receive the prestigious Master Teacher award. A scholarship named the “60th Anniversary Professors” was established to honor the Master Teachers. In 2020 and 2021, he won the Student Government Association “Professor of the Year – College of Business” award.
Tim is actively involved with several non-profit groups. He leads a non-profit organization (Hearts Out to Haiti) that provides support for educational programs in two remote mountain villages.
He coordinates the Business Challenges and Student Professional activities at the X-Culture Global Business Week.
Karen Lynden
Conference Faculty
Development Lead
Karen Lynden teaches at the University of North Carolina Wilmington, supporting the International Business and Management concentrations. Her teaching philosophy is centered on experiential and project-based learning.
As an active member of the X-Culture project team, Karen directs the Coaching Program, in addition to supporting roles. She has been teaching with Global Virtual Team programs since 2014 and has had over 1,000 students complete these projects successfully in her courses across multiple higher education institutions.
Karen brings with her 20+ years of higher education and industry experience. Organizations have relied on her to develop global and domestic teams while managing a broad portfolio of client accounts. A primary focus of her industry experience includes creating and facilitating organizational development training programs. Karen’s research interests include; global virtual teams, cross-cultural team and management topics, and organizational training and development.
Professor Adam Smale
University Faculty Dean
Professor Adam Smale is British and Finnish by nationality. Adam has lived in Finland since 2004. He is Professor of Management and has been serving as the Dean of the School of Management since 2018.
He has taught courses in International Human Resource Management, International Strategic Management, and International Management at the EFMD-accredited Master’s Degree Programme in International Business. He has over 20 years’ experience in teaching in the MBA programmes and has received a number of awards for his teaching at the University of Vaasa.
Since 2018, his teaching case on global talent management at KONE has been an international best seller and won the Best Case Award in 2020 for cases in the organisational behaviour/HRM category.
His research interests focus on HRM, talent management, and careers in the international context. He has published in journals such as Journal of International Business Studies, Journal of World Business, and Human Resource Management.
He currently sits on the editorial board of Human Resource Management Journal.
He is the HR Ambassador for Finland in the Academy of Management HR Division, and is a Finland representative in the GLOBE studies , CRANET , and the Cross-Cultural Collaboration on Contemporary Careers .
Aušrinė Šilenskytė
Lead Faculty Host
Aušrinė Šilenskytė is a Program Manager (Bachelor’s in International Business) and an Ambassador for Internationalization at the School of Management, University of Vaasa, Finland.
She also serves as a Founding Governing Board member at the AIB-CIBER Doctoral Academy and previously served as a Chair and Vice Chair (Communications) at the Academy of International Business Teaching and Education Shared Interest Group.
Šilenskytė holds a PhD in the area of international management, is an alumnus of the prestigious Nord-IB program, and her research centers around strategy implementation, blockchain adoption in international business management, and innovations in business education, particularly related to social sustainability.
Aušrinė teaches various topics related to international management to undergraduates, master’s degree learners, executives, as well as professionals in continuous education.
Aušrinė has received several international awards for her research and as an educator. Before joining academia, Aušrinė worked in managerial positions in Lithuania and Egypt. Throughout her academic career, she has consulted international firms and led international industry-academia collaboration projects, such as DEI4SME.
She is Lithuanian by nationality and has lived in Finland since 2010.
Tiphaine Delecour
Faculty Coordinator
Tiphaine Delecour is a project researcher and coordinator at the University of Vaasa.
Her research field focuses are international business management and strategy implementation. She works closely with different projects, companies, and researchers, to raise awareness in these fields.
Her expertise in project work serves the School of Management and several projects.
Tiphaine is also an active supporter of the international community in Finland through her work and volunteering activities.
Maddalena Dulio
X-Culture Lead Ambassador
Maddalena Dulio is a Senior Project Manager in the Legal Department at the German-Italian Chamber of Commerce in Milan, Italy. She graduated with an MSc in Foreign Languages and International Management at the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore in Milan. She has participated in several international experiences involving cross-cultural counselling services, market and business development, and event management. She is fluent in English, German and Italian.
She has been part of the X-Culture family since 2014, being a former X-Culture student, X-Culture Coach, Head Coach, and X-Culture Lead Ambassador.
She was the Conference Assistant and the Lead Ambassador of the X-Culture Business Week in Calgary, Canada: Lublin, Poland and Chiang Rai, Thailand.
Carlos Cardona
X-Culture Lead Ambassador
Carlos holds a degree in International Business with a concentration in French from the University of La Verne, California, where he developed a strong foundation in global business strategies, cross-cultural communication, and international market dynamics.
As a former X-Culture student, Coach, and Senior Coach, Carlos gained extensive experience in global virtual collaboration, international project management, and leadership development. His journey with X-Culture provided him with hands-on experience in guiding diverse, multicultural teams to successfully complete complex business projects.
From 2017 to 2021, Carlos served as the X-Culture Coaching Coordinator, where he was responsible for overseeing the global coaching program, mentoring new coaches, and ensuring the effective management of student consulting teams worldwide. In this role, he played a pivotal part in enhancing the quality of team performance and project outcomes across various international business challenges.
Srishti Konduparthi
X-Culture Lead Ambassador
Srishti Konduparthi is an honors undergraduate student majoring in finance, minoring in music, and pursuing a HR management certification at the University of Central Florida.
She completed the X-Culture project as part of her dual enrollment International Business course at the Florida Institute of Technology in 2021. After graduating high school, she decided to take a gap year and joined the Coaching Program and has been a part of X-Culture ever since.
She has served as the Webinar Coordinator for the X-Culture Coaching program; an Ambassador for the X-Culture Global Business Week Conference in Lublin, Poland and Chiang Rai, Thailand and as the X-Culture Assistant at Academy of International Business conferences in Atlanta, Georgia and St. Louis, Missouri. She co-authors the company challenges with Professor Tim Muth for various X-Culture symposia.
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X-Culture Global Symposium 2024: Chiang Rai
