Russia: From Manpower to Talent Power – Report on Human Capital Transformation and Knowledge Economy Competitiveness

Key Chapter Title List

1. 2025 Competency Model – The Key to Global Competitiveness
2. The World Today: Two Development Trajectories
3. 2025 Labor Market: The Knowledge Economy
4. Russia's Current State: Low Unemployment, Not Competitiveness
5. Russia's 2025 Competitiveness: Development Scenarios
6. 8 Steps from Human Resources to Talent
7. Research Methodology
8. Employer/Labor Market Segmentation Approach
9. Employer Segmentation Profiles under the Research Framework

Document Introduction

Against the backdrop of global technological, demographic, and geopolitical trends reshaping the economic landscape, the knowledge economy has become the core pillar of national competitiveness. Although Russia is promoting economic diversification and innovative transformation at the national level, the lack of systematic planning for human capital development has made it difficult to achieve related goals. This report serves as the starting point for a large-scale study on human capital development in Russia, focusing on the transformation of the labor market in 2025. Its core objective is to explore how upgrading human capital can propel Russia into the forefront of the knowledge economy.

The report establishes an analytical foundation through rigorous research design: conducting over 90 in-depth interviews with senior executives of large Russian organizations spanning 22 industries and providing over 3.5 million jobs, alongside a nationwide online survey targeting Russian employers. This comprehensive approach collects critical information on development priorities, talent needs, and transformation barriers for 2025. The research is supported by institutions such as Sberbank and WorldSkills Russia, ensuring data authority and representativeness.

The report first defines the core competency model for the knowledge economy era, identifying critical thinking, teamwork, adaptability, digital skills, and other universal competencies as essential workplace literacies for 2025. By comparing the development trajectories of globally leading nations with Russia's, it reveals structural imbalances in the Russian labor market—only 17% of positions fall into the high-skill knowledge-based category, significantly below the minimum level of 25% in leading countries.

In-depth analysis indicates that Russia's human capital development faces three major bottlenecks: insufficient demand for high-skilled talent in the labor market, with the economy relying on resource exports rather than intellectual capital; an education system failing to meet the needs of the knowledge economy, characterized by lagging teacher training, disconnected vocational education, and a lack of lifelong learning mechanisms; and a socio-cultural preference for stability over development, coupled with inadequate professional incentive mechanisms.

The report proposes two development scenarios for 2025: a catch-up transformation scenario and an advanced modernization scenario. It outlines eight key action steps covering three dimensions: stimulating demand for high-skilled talent, optimizing the supply from the education system, and fostering an environment for talent development. The research concludes that only through systematic reform, shifting the labor market structure towards knowledge-based jobs, can Russia achieve a qualitative economic leap by 2025 and join the ranks of global leaders in the knowledge economy.