The Journey explained
Yury Starostin’s career spans 27 years in international financial institutions. Since mid-90s Yury has worked for the Bretton Woods institutions (World Bank Group and International Monetary Fund) in Washington DC. He is an international expert on IMF/WBG, Its Objectives, Structure, Functions, Members, Role and History.
Yury holds a master’s degree from the University of Pittsburgh School of Information Sciences and post-graduate diplomas in Influence, Negotiations, and Public Relations from Georgetown University. Also, he holds a degree in Skilled Facilitation from John’s Hopkins University.
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Having nearly three decades of experience at the World Bank Group and the International Monetary Fund, Yury deeply engaged in preparation of key decisions of the core of global economic governance. He supported the Executive Boards, maintained Board of Governors operations, and facilitated IMFC/Joint Bank-IMF Development Committee processes during significant crises such as the Asian Financial Crisis, the Global Financial Crisis, the Eurozone Debt Crisis, and the 2020 pandemic. He also facilitated the delivery of the World Economic Outlook, the Global Financial Stability Report, and the Fiscal Monitor as well as regional and country-specific assessments.
Yury played a vital role in shaping the procedural, and communications frameworks that enable these institutions to operate effectively. He helped steward high‑level ministerial engagements such as the G‑7, G‑20, and the International Monetary and Financial Committee, ensuring clarity of process and seamless coordination among global stakeholders.
Yury's knowledge spans key institutional processes such as :
- Preparation and delivery of Annual and Ministerial Meetings
-The mechanisms involved with IMF decision making
-IMF Accountability, Transparency and Good Governance
-Interactions of IMF and other international organizations
-IMF Lending, Policy Advice and Technical Assistance
Complementing his contributions to institutional governance, Yury’s career includes strategic work in strengthening the operational backbone that supports international cooperation and decision‑making.
Yury is passionate about sharing his experience with students, researches, and helping organizations improve performance with effective systems and tools.
In addition to supporting the governing bodies of IMF/WBG Yury has unique set of experiences of organizing international events including high-level IMF and World Bank events in Washington, Tokyo, Singapore, Istanbul, Dubai, Bali, Lima, and Marrakech.
His extensive hands-on experience provides a rich foundation of subject matter expertise, making him well-equipped for both teaching and consulting across a wide array of disciplines.
International Events
Official Events
Government protocols, arrangements for keynote and plenary sessions and other high-level functions.
Open Events
Planning for press briefings, open attendance seminars, educational and information sharing sessions.
Cultural Events
Social and cultural activities. Receptions and tourist programs.
Transportation
Airport arrangements, VIP arrival and departure management, lounges, signage and information for participants.
International Shipping
Collection of goods, air and sea fast forwarding, customs clearances.
Campus Space Management
Campus design, decor, room arrangement and venue management.
Security
Campus access and security, personal safety and emergency preparedness tools.
Information technology
IT/AV setups, registration and badging, RFID, on-line collaboration technologies.
Information Tech
Yury brings years of experience as an IT project manager, where he specialized in developing and implementing systems to support large-scale event management. This dual expertise in IT systems implementation and event management allowed him to apply his knowledge to the world of international conference coordination — enhancing structure, predictability, and accountability across complex operations.
His background in IT also includes project supervision and budgeting, procurement of systems and services, drafting detailed requests for information, and evaluating tenders and RFPs. This multifaceted skill set positions him as a strategic asset in both technical and logistical domains.
Registration and RFID
Under his supervision several enterprise-grade systems were rolled out including a large conference management systems Ungerboek (Europe), registration systems such as Cvent and Certain (North America).
Facial Recognition
He pioneered the Radio-frequency ID badging, facial recognition, and self-badging technologies for the World Bank Group and IMF Annual and Spring Meetings.
IMFCONNECT.ORG
He developed and managed an intergovernmental information exchange network utilized by by the governments of 190 countries for exchange of information since 2010. It is used during and in between the annual conferences.
Communications
After joining the IMF and working alongside colleagues from over 100 nationalities, Yury developed a deep interest in cross-cultural communication and the nuances of workplace behavior across cultures. Why people express themselves differently? Why does time allocation for tasks vary by culture? Most importantly, how can one build genuine rapport and communicate effectively with individuals from every corner of the globe?
Becoming fluent in international communications was a journey marked by years of hands-on experience, formal education, cultural awareness training, and fieldwork. Today, Yury brings a thoughtful approach to building rapport, anticipating situational dynamics, guiding diverse teams, and shaping communication campaigns with confidence and cultural insight.
Education
Yury holds a master’s degree from the University of Pittsburgh School of Information Sciences and post-graduate diplomas in Influence, Negotiations, and Public Relations from Georgetown University. Also, he holds a degree in Skilled Facilitation from John’s Hopkins University. He is a neuro-linguistic programming practitioner and a body-language specialist. Over the years he received training in Media engagement, Conflict resolution, Cultural awareness, Change Management and Leadership.
Public Speaking
Yury has led speaking engagements at various venues including the Eurasia Association, International Association of Professional Congress Organizers, Moscow Educational Forum, International Finance Corporation. Among his favorite topics are interpersonal effectiveness, influence, rapport and management of international conferences.
