On 24 February, Russia began its invasion of Ukraine. And while commentators speculate about Putin’s true motivation and how this might play out, ordinary citizens are being forced to re-order their lives.

Michael Utkin, the CEO of FieldBee, is a Ukrainian based in the Netherlands. FieldBee uses mobile, cloud, sensor, and big data technologies to build precision products for farmers and agricultural machines; they have a 40-person R&D department in Kyiv. Now, as a business owner and CEO, he is having to deal with a situation nobody trains for: caring for his team, his business and his community as the bombs begin to fall.

Join us on Friday, 25 March (NZDT) for a virtual conversation with Michael, hosted by Boma NZ founder and CEO Kaila Colbin.

This session is NOT political commentary, prognostication or analysis. We will not be discussing military strategy or whether anyone is “winning.”

It’s one business owner’s story, from entrepreneurship to navigating the unfathomable.

This is a free virtual event. We’ll be sharing vetted links to donate directly to reputable organisations working in and for Ukraine at the end of the webinar.

When: 8-9 a.m. NZDT Friday, 25 March

(That's 7-8 p.m. GMT / 8-9 p.m. CET Thursday, 24 March)

This event will be live close captioned.

About the Speakers

Michael Utkin

Michael Utkin’s mission in life is to spread smart agriculture innovations to farmers all over the world with the help of technology.

He has worked for more than 20 years in senior management positions in the spheres of software, social entrepreneurship and energy. Now, at FieldBee, he leads a team of farmers and engineers who facilitate the transition to more efficient and sustainable farming.

FieldBee designs and manufactures tractor navigation and steering systems as well as autonomous vehicle software and hardware kits. Its clients include farmers, distributors and agricultural equipment manufacturers.

Previously, Michael was a CFO and board member at Kyivenergo, a public utility company in Kyiv, Ukraine and a director of a cultural centre. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Management from King’s College London.

Kaila Colbin

Kaila Colbin is a co-founder of Boma Global, CEO of Boma New Zealand and a Certified Dare to Lead™ Facilitator.

A serial entrepreneur since the age of 22, Kaila has dedicated more than 15 years to enhancing Aotearoa’s global connectedness and championing Aotearoa on the world stage. She spearheaded the hugely successful SingularityU New Zealand and Australia summits, introducing more than 2,500 people to exponential technologies and their impact on humanity, and ran TEDxChristchurch for a decade.

She is also a co-founder and trustee of the non-profit Ministry of Awesome and has extensive governance experience, including serving as chair of the New York-based Natural Gourmet Institute for Health and Culinary Arts, and deputy chair of ChristchurchNZ and CORE Education Ltd. Her purpose in life is to be an uplifting presence.