Russia Business

Jonathan A. Grant has written a highly original study of the Putilov works—the most famous industrial conglomerate in the Russian Empire during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. With the emergence of a capitalist system in the Russian federation in the 1990s, scholarly debate over the nature of Russian capitalism has been revived, and with this study, Grant issues a major challenge to the conventional wisdom on the nature of the Russian economy in the years before the Bolshevik revolution. Grant argues that the Putilov Company, which manufactured arms for the Russian state and a wide range of heavy industrial equipment for civilian use, adopted business practices that resembled the experiences of large machinery and armaments manufacturers in Britain, France, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and Germany. This interpretation runs directly counter to the traditional and widely held view that Russian capitalism was shaped by the tsarist state's orders and subsidies and that the tsarist system was incompatible with the development of modern capitalism. Grant makes direct comparisons between Putilov and the famous western firm of Krupp and Vickers, illustrating similar business decisions made by both companies in terms of diversification of the product line and a penchant for private (as opposed to state) markets for primary income. Grant has gone beyond Soviet works on the Putilov plant, examining archival documents of the company and offering critical comments on both Soviet and Western scholarship on Russian economic and social history from the perspective of this important industrial enterprise. Grant not only repeatedly demonstrates that the Putilov firm responded effectively to the changing market for its wide range of industrial products but also shows that the tsarist regime provided far more of the "systemic regularity" needed for capitalist development than generally believed. Grant's work is a significant contribution to this ongoing debate, offering a much-needed case study of Russian business history and a comparative study that extends across national boundaries. Big Business in Russia is essential reading for graduate students in Russian and European history and will also appeal to American and European business leaders eager to understand the historical background of the current economic challenges facing Russia.

A comprehensive guide in a compact format on doing business in Russia. This book contains everything business-minded individuals need to know, using practical information and numerous tips to succeed in Russia. ‘Russia Business’ discusses the economy, highlights the challenges Russia would face after the Coronavirus crisis, and covers key societal topics. In addition, it gives a greater insight into the work culture, business regulation and provides first-hand advice on how to manage a business in Russia.This book covers topics of interest to business professionals looking to enter the Russian market, to grow their Russian operations, and to all managers who intend to update their knowledge about Russia in relevant business areas.

Russia is a major economy and important power in the global political-economic landscape. Following the dissolution of the USSR, Russia has become a premier global marketplace despite remaining enigmatic and challenging. The book serves as a concise guide in understanding Russia from an international business perspective. It explores strategic issues, drivers, constraints, costs, and risks of international expansion and includes analytical tools, practical applications, sources of information, and assistance in international business research. These are supplemented by analysis of Russia’s macro-economic profile, drivers, strategic strengths and weaknesses in the comparative context, including its international market attractiveness and opportunities for U.S. companies. The book examines Russia’s main industries, their profiles, trends and business attractiveness, trends, and marketing strategies. The discussion of Russia’s regions covers regional subdivisions and economic profiles with the focus on Moscow, the leading economic region. The book also covers the drivers and trends of the Russian small business sector and entrepreneurial business venturing. Despite the onslaught of capitalism, Russia retains its relationship-driven culture. The book provides insights by evaluating the determinants of Russian culture, its national profile in major global cross-cultural studies, and practical cultural applications in business, negotiations, and communications. The book’s pedagogy includes skill development exercises and cases on doing business in Russia.

Seminar paper from the year 2003 in the subject Business economics - Business Management, Corporate Governance, grade: Distinction, Bond University Australia, language: English, abstract: Abstract "Communism was based on everyone being the same. Being different was a threat. Right now, Russian society is going through the painful process of reforming itself, and ridding itself of old ways of thinking. Although differences are officially allowed by the authorities great animosity still exists towards anything or anybody that is not average." Marina Tyanhelkova, International Republican Institute Background to the Russian people The Czarist and Communist regimes have suppressed people’s desire to work individually under personal initiative. During the restructuring period (perestroika), the Soviet Communist value system was redefined, but the pace of the restructuring has been very slow. Western values of individualism and profit maximisation are adapted to gradually, however many Russians, especially older Russians, have difficulty in adapting to a Western outlook on life. The older generation is generally pessimistic and does not have faith in a better future life, whereas younger urban Russians are more open to a Western lifestyle. Currently, Russia is going through a profound period of change to replace the values of Communism with those of democracy and a free-market economy. Visitors to Russia may find that many Russians are still unfamiliar with, or misinformed about, concepts that form the basis of Western business culture. It may be necessary to explain and persuade Russian counterparts to accept ideas such as motivation, fair play, individual accountability and reward, profit and loss, turnover, proprietary rights, good will, or public relations. However, these terms should only be used with tact and caution. One consideration to keep in mind is the widespread ‘assumption’ by Westerners that Russia is a very ‘European’ country. Discussions with several Russians have indicated that there is an affinity with Asia, and this should be kept in mind when assuming that Russia will converge to act more like North Americans or Europeans over time. Russians themselves often distinguish between Russia as a country and Moscow and Saint Petersburg as the most technologically and economically advanced cities in Russia. These two cities are relatively modern, meeting Western standards, and have experienced large-scale foreign direct investment in the past decade.

The mainstream perception of Russian business today is framed by images of wild capitalism and a Dutch-diseased resource-dependent economy with poorly functioning rules and institutions. Despite the continued relevance of these issues in the current environment, readers of this book will discover that business in Russia has undergone a remarkable transformation. Important characteristics of the contemporary Russian business climate include the rise of a new generation of Russian business leaders and entrepreneurs, a variety of innovative and adaptive business strategies developed to respond to the increasingly VUCA world, a confident middle class with significant purchasing power, as well as a surprising level of integration in the world economy, including increasingly with China and its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). These evolving developments have received little attention from researchers and practitioners. This book has been written by Russian experts and thought leaders to address this knowledge gap. The five sections provide a diverse but integrated set of opinion pieces, analyses and cases about Russian business covering markets and macro perspectives, strategy and governance, innovation and entrepreneurship, internationalization and leadership. The aim is to overcome preconceptions by illustrating the underreported and multifaceted nature of the life of Russian business and take the reader closer to what is really happening on the ground. The book contains more than 50 contributions from 54 authors representing opinion leaders in Russia and abroad including prominent academics and businessmen. The Life of Russian Business is aimed at practitioners, policy-makers and educators, as well as those generally interested in Russia. By disseminating state-of-the-art insights on Russian decision-makers and institutions, the book ultimately delivers a well informed and balanced guide for those wishing to participate in Russia’s economy. Endorsements "This book, with its 50 contributions from scholars, thought leaders, entrepreneurs, and business leaders opens a door to Russia’s institutions, management practices and economic potential. The book fills an important gap in the literature and is a must for practitioners of trade and investment along the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Chinese and Asian readers will enjoy the fresh and dynamic stories, the rich detail, and the privileged insights into the present and future of Russia." — Professor Tony Chan, President, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) "In the Russian Federation, the shelf life of inquiries into the country’s business practices and institutions has always been short. This is all the more true for the past 3–5 years, which have seen a series of important changes in Russia’s economic context and structure. This book, which brings together a wide range of expertise and voices, will be useful to readers both in Switzerland and beyond by providing them with up to-date insight into 'the life of Russian business,' covering both the challenges and opportunities." — Yves Rossier, Ambassador to the Russian Federation, Embassy of Switzerland, Moscow

This book presents a study of the complex relationship between the Russian state and big business during Vladimir Putin’s first two presidential terms (2000–2008). Based on extensive original research, it focuses on the interaction of Russia’s political executive with the ‘oligarchs’. It shows how Putin’s crackdown on this elite group led big business to accept new ‘rules of the game’ and how this was accompanied by the involvement of big business in policy formulation, particularly through the organisational vehicle of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (RSPP). It goes on to discuss why Yukos and its CEO Mikhail Khodorkovsky were targeted by Russia’s political authorities and the resultant consequences, namely the end of the relatively successful framework via which state-business relations had been managed, and its replacement by fear and mutual distrust, along with a vastly expanded role for the state, and state-related actors, in the Russian corporate sector. The book explores all these developments in detail and sets them against the context of continued trends towards greater authoritarianism in Russia.

Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia has developed a powerful business community and a potent network of transnational organized groups. Russian Business Power explores the powerful impact these new actors are having on the evolution of the Russian state and its foreign behaviour. Unlike other books, which focus either on Russia's foreign and security policy, or on the evolution of Russian business, legal and illegal, within the context of Russia's domestic transition, this book considers how far Russia's foreign and security policy is shaped by business. It considers a wide range of issues, including energy, the arms trade, international drug flows, and human trafficking, and examines the impact of Russian business in Russia's dealings with Western and Eastern Europe, the Caspian, the Caucasus and the Far East.

This book examines how Russia’s entrepreneurs operate in a business environment beset with risk and uncertainty. The challenges they may encounter include an unreliable judicial system, insecure property rights, arbitrary interference from officials, as well as corruption, harassment, suspicion and violence. Based on extensive original research, including fieldwork within three businesses, this book explores how entrepreneurs survive and some thrive. It focuses on the kind of obstacles they face from day to day, details their motivations, rationale and methods, and describes the actual relationship between ordinary entrepreneurs and the state, providing new insights into business-state relations.