The first results of XVI International Conference «Russian Regions In The Focus Of Changes»

15:32, November 22, 2021

"Russian Regions in the Focus of Changes" united international speakers and attendees for the 16th time

It took almost 4 months of preparation for the team of the Graduate School of Economics and Management of the Ural Federal University, Analytical Center Expert and Expert Ural Business Magazine  to organize one of the largest events on the business agenda of the Urals – the XVI international conference "Russian Regions in the Focus of Changes". On November 18-20, leading Russian and international experts in the field of economics, business, education, ESG, HR, creative industries and other fields gathered at the Ural Federal University and in an online format to discuss the most pressing issues of the current reality. There were a lot of results, forecasts and insights about overcoming the negative consequences of the coronavirus, demographic decline and other factors affecting the economic recovery.

"Now it is extremely important to understand the essence of the existing problems as clearly as possible and to outline ways to solve them. It is at such moments, in such difficult times for the country and the whole world, that the value of expert opinion becomes of particular importance. Today, more than ever, there is a need for constructive, professional communication between representatives of government, business, universities, academic institutions, think tanks, the media and public organizations. It is necessary to find the most effective solutions to existing problems in the shortest possible time. In some situations, it is necessary to act quickly and very clearly, and in some - to implement compromise solutions competently. We must aim to remain optimistic even in the current difficult circumstances, be able to adapt and continue to look for new opportunities. Together we will be able to adequately meet the challenges of the time. It is important to continue to look for new ideas for the much-needed diversification of the economy, strengthen state institutions, develop human capital, use modern technologies and reduce the impact of administrative barriers on business. All this should bring positive results," Viktor Koksharov, Rector of UrFU, stressed in his address to the conference participants.

Russian Regions in the Focus of Changes in 2021 – there were more than 50 events in the conference schedule, 130 speakers of the business days and more than 100 academic day. More than 3,000 participants joined the conference online as listeners. Thanks to modern technologies, the conference had no geographical boundaries.

"Traditionally, in November, the best experts, government representatives responsible for the economic development of their territories, entrepreneurs and company executives gathered in Ekaterinburg. We devoted three days to discussing topical issues of the development of Russian regions. The topic is very acute and boundless - the pandemic has been making its own adjustments to the economic processes of the country for almost two years, experts are observing the decline in the economic growth of the regions. But at the same time, the current situation has become a driver of the development of the digital economy, the transformation of many business processes, which will undoubtedly become an incentive for new growth points in the post-crisis period. The conference was, as always, very deep, informative and lively!", - said the project manager Dmitry Tolmachev, Director of the Graduate School of Economics and Management of UrFU.

The full conference program with a detailed description of the context of each of the events and a full list of experts participating in the discussions is here. Records of key events are posted on the YouTube channel of GSEM UrFU.

In the news cycle, we will tell you in detail the most interesting thoughts and theses of speeches by top speakers who are recognized leaders in their fields. The speakers were: Sergey Afontsev, Deputy Director for Research of IMEMO RAS, Vladimir Salnikov, Deputy Director General, Center for Macroeconomic Analysis and Short-term Forecasting, Andrey Klepach, Chief Economist of VEB RF, Dmitry Tolmachev, Director of the Graduate School of Economics and Management, UrFU, Director of the Analytical Center, Vice-President of the Association of Independent Centers for Economic Analysis, Robert Galliers, Senior Advisor, EQUIS & EFMD Programme Accreditation, EFMD Global (UK), Natalia Ilina, Accreditation and Member Services Manager, EMEA & AP, AACSB, Yuri Simachev, Director for Economic Policy NRU HSE, Hans Wismet, President of the Saxon Academy of Sciences, Professor (emeritus) of Economics at Technical University of Dresden, Vincent Mangematin, Dean and Academic Director, KEDGE Business School (France),  Tommaso Agasisti, Associate Dean for Internationalization and Quality, MIP Politecnico di Milano Graduate School of Business (Italy), Kangjuan Lyu, Dean, SILC Business School, Shanghai University (China), Dr. C. Min Han, Director of the Research Institute of Asian Enterprises, Director of the SolBridge PhD Program, SolBridge International Business School (South Korea), Angelika I. Kokkinaki, Dean, School of Business, University of Nicosia (Cyprus), Duro Njavro, President, Zagreb School of Economics and Management (Croatia), Vladimir Gimpelson, Director of Centre for Labour Market Studies NRU HSE, Vladimir Klimanov, Director, Institute for Public Finance Reform, Head of the Regional Policy Center, RANEPA, Oleg Buklemishev, President of Association of Russian Economic Think Tanks, Director of the Economic Policy Research Center, Moscow State University, Igor Baranov, Vice-Dean Education and Research of Sberbank Corporate University, Sergey Myasoedov, Director of Institute of Business Studies, RANEPA, President of Russian Association of Business Education, Sergey Roshchin, Vice-Rector of Higher School of Economic, Nikita Mkrtchyan, Leading Research Fellow of Center for Demographical Studies NRU HSE, Dan Medovnikov, Director of the Institute of Innovation Management, Andrey Yakovlev, Director of the Institute for Industrial and Market Studies NRU HSE, Andrey Bril, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Korin Holding, Vice President of Non-profit Partnership "Russian Guild of Managers and Developers", Artem Shadrin, Director of the Institute of Social and Economic Designing NRU HSE, Elena Pozolotina, Deputy CEO for Human Resources, TMK-Group, Larisa Bogdanova, President of the Association of Recruiting Agencies of the Urals (ARAU), Rustem Mardanov, Head of the Ural Main Directorate of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation, Alexander Morozov, Director of the Research and Forecasting Department at the Bank of Russia, Denis Papin, Head of TMK Sustainable Development Department, Svetlana Grishankova, Managing director of Rating-Agentur Expert RA GmbH, Tyana Kansafarova, Executive Vice President of the Sverdlovsk Regional Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs and many others.

The organizers express their deep gratitude to the experts, business and academic partners of the event for supporting the conference: NRU HSE - St. Petersburg, Russian Association of Business Education, Endowment Fund of UrFU, TMK, Promsvyazbank, Ural Main Directorate of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation, AACSB, EFMD, ARAU, The Institute of Economics of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences RSPE “Institute of economics” Science Committee of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Bashkir State University, the Magnitogorsk State Technical University, Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation, the Tomsk Polytechnic University, the Kazan Federal University, RUDN University, Southern Federal University. Thanks to you, thousands of people - beginners and experienced professionals, business leaders and owners, researchers, politicians and everyone who is interested in market trends will be able to find answers to the main questions about the present and future of key industries and sectors of the economy.

Enjoy watching the broadcasts and see you again!