Vol. 26 No. 5 (2024)

The authors suggest the efficiency and quality of public administration (EQPA) model for public authorities, based on the concepts of quality management, client-centeredness standards, and organizational self-assessment methodology. To monitor and diagnose efficiency reserves while continuously improving the actions of public authorities for the benefit of citizens, businesses, and employees,the article outlines a framework incorporating EQPAcriteria,methods,and self-assessment tools. These instruments are designed to evaluate and enhance the efficiency of public authorities’ activities. The stages and steps of self-assessment according to the EQPA model are described in detail both for the basic format - EQPA-monitoring (rapid assessment), and for in-depth - EQPA-diagnostics. The proposed EQPA model has a direct link to the current agenda of modernization of public administration in Russia and is based on the regulatory and legal framework for the introduction of principles and standards of client-centeredness. When developing the EQPA model,the experience of adaptation and testing of excellence models in Russia was taken into account, as well as the conclusions and recommendations of experts obtained within the framework of research projects of RANEPA.

This article discusses the peculiarities of the domestic ethno-confessional portrait and the pressing issue of social consolidation in contemporary Russian society, which is caused by historical and political factors. Both linguistically and theologically, the authors explore a range of methods for understanding tradition. Emphasis is placed on implementing and interiorizing religious traditions into the legal system. One of the core outcomes of the processes under consideration is establishing a dialog platform for interreligious communication, which will contribute to forming a consolidated civil society. Referring to the retrospective analysis, the authors point out that domestic history has many examples of various approaches to resolving this problem as well as a range of experiences applied in contemporary realities. At the same time, the work in the areas of social consolidation, civil identity formation, etc., is intensified by the ever-increasing pressure from foreign policy. These efforts collectively form the foundation for maintaining Russia's territorial integrity and socio-political order. Traditions are undoubtedly one of these foundations, and their popularization and preservation are given particular importance in contemporary public and scientific discourse.

The author discusses the issue of the interpretation of the term «legal expertise of legal acts», which is widely used in modern legal practice and legislation.The lack of a federal legal definition allows theorists and practitioners to interpret legal knowledge differently.As a result,the term «legal expertise of legal acts» describes a wide range of activities, while some are completely unrelated.Taking into account specificpractices in lawenforcement and rule-making,the author concludes that the term «legal expertise» refers to at least two primary categories of activities: expertise in researching draft laws to enhance the efficacy of legal regulation generally and control examination, which ensures the execution of public authorities’rule-making function and aims to preserve the consistency and systematicity of legislation.The article is an attempt to distinguish these types of activities according to such parameters as: the boundaries of expert analysis within the frameworkof legal examination,the subject composition of legal examination, methodologies for conducting legal examination, and, finally, the formalization of the results and legal consequences of legal examination.

The author performed comparative analysis of statistical data from control (supervisory) activities alongside monitoring data from sociological surveys of representatives of private economic entities (PEE). This analysis was conducted using the author’s methodology, including data collected in 2024. The study looks at opinions regarding the frequency of state control (supervision) activities, such as control and supervisorymeasures (CSM) and preventive measures (PM),their impact in reducing harm to legallyprotected values (LPV), and the necessity and rationality of mandatory requirements (MR). The author believes that sociological research makes it possible to determine and examine the most crucial regulatory barriers to private company growth, the extent of the regulatory burden on private business, and how the position of private companies has changed.The information gathered and the data compared using statistical and social research methods are essential for deciding how to improve state control (supervision) development.

The article analyzes the current methodological recommendations for determining the level of achievement of national projects (the current model).The studyoffers a conceptuallynewmodel for evaluating the implementation of national and federal projects, which are their structural components to enhance their efficacy and the efficiency of public resources. The author focuses on analyzing methods for evaluating the indicators and results of national projects (programs),when examining the current model for determining the degree of success of national projects.The author offers a separate layout of such an assessment for researchers studying this subject.The article highlights the key features of the current model while pointing out both its advantages and disadvantages. The author's suggested universal model has been successfully tested and implemented when assessing the ongoing operations of the national project "Small and medium-sized entrepreneurship and support for individual entrepreneurial initiative" and federal projects that are a part of the aforementioned national project.It enables managers to make decisions regarding the allocation and/or real-location of budget financing for activities.

The article analyzes the main instruments for evaluating the Russian Federation's progress in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). According to the author, the Global Sustainable Development Index has several flaws,including using irrelevant and outdated information and poor correlation between indicators and SDG targets. Additionally, not all of the targets into which the UN SDGs are decomposed have corresponding indicators.The Federal State Statistics Service (Rosstat) has more than 120 indicators for 17 SDGs in its National List of Sustainable Development Indicators, making it challenging to interpret them in aggregate.The list of indicators under SDG No.7,"Affordable and Clean Energy",was examined to show that the indicators in the Rosstat list do not always accuratelyrepresent the essence of the SDG target. The author supports the necessity of developing a domestic methodology for evaluating progress toward accomplishing the SDGs and adjusting the composition of sustainable development indicators determined byRosstat.Finding agreement among the professional communityregarding the weighting coefficients of importance and the hierarchy of indicators within each of the SDGs should be the main focus of its development.The article suggests a scale for calculating indicator's numerical value based on its progress in comparison to the average indicator over five years and its compliance with the target value.

The article establishes that it is possible to develop universal recommendations in the process of coordinating the interests of various actors in the development and implementation of the recentralization strategy. The article proves the feasibility of building a methodology for developing a decentralization strategy based on the creation of digital platforms; as a fundamental regulation (business process) it is proposed to consider the process of “Synchronization of the development of the territory and sectoral production complex”,which is presented on the basis of IDEF0 notation,which is used to create a functional model showing the structure and functions of key processes. The article presents the author's methodology for strategic synchronization of the development of territories and sectoral production complexes on the basis of re-centralization and ESG-transformation, which acts as a basis for coordinating the interests of the regional government and business stakeholders, which was tested in the framework of the creation of JSC “Roskhim”. It is stated that consolidation under a single management and sales policy of enterprises opens up opportunities for implementation of necessary investment projects for modernization of existing production, as well as production of import-substituting products with high added value.

This article highlights and examines the risks and threats to an individual’s digital sovereignty in cyberspace. As more data is gathered and processed, the issue of people’s right to control their data and decide howit can be used arises.Digital sovereigntycan be viewed as a reaction to the difficulties presented by widespread digitalization. Given the increasing value of personal data, each user must recognize their rights and freedoms. Protecting digital human rights is a crucial component of an individual’s digital sovereignty, as evidenced by the growing use of smart devices, mobility, and communication technologies, as well as digital profiles and accounts. Recently, the state’s digital and technological sovereignty has received significant attention in the scientific and practical literature. However, there are still many issues that reflect the unique characteristics of personal growth in the context of digitalization and the worldwide growth of Internet technologies and platforms. Even though the state is responsible for individual rights and is accountable for human rights violations, social media platforms and major tech companies still misuse their influence in most jurisdictions.Given that social media platforms are businesses and have the potential to violate human rights,it is imperative that theybe acknowledged as duty-bearers of those rights and held responsible when they do so.

Due to the ongoing urbanization processes in Russia, young people are actively migrating from rural areas. An information policy that creates a positive image of the village and the population's perceptions can mitigate negative migration trends. The study aims to compare the cinematographic image of rural areas and small towns with their actual socio-economic condition, as shown in statistical indicators and the opinion of the residents of these territories. The study's scientific novelty constitutes the application of triangulation techniques to the problem of rural and small-town migration unattractiveness and the creation of a methodology for examining their representation in Russian cinema. The authors discovered that cinematography frequently depicts the one-sided technological and infrastructure deficiencies of small towns and villages, which cannot help viewers form a desire to live in such conditions. Statistics show that the studied localities have better conditions than depicted in the films in the spheres of digitalization, employment, education, local crime, and alcohol consumption.

The article aims to evaluate the degree of demand for three economic approaches in Russia's professional training system for civil servants: metric,political economy,and narrative.The authors note that in addressing the economic challenges of industrial, energy, and climate change, the three approaches in management, research, and education have varying degrees of application. The empirical base includes the analysis of scientific publications in leading economic journals for 2010-2021,the review of higher education programs for training civil servants of five major Russian universities, and students' graduate theses of the Siberian Institute of Management for the 2021-2022 academicyear.The authors conclude that the educational field needs to enhance the level and volume of the humanitarian component within economic training.This adjustment is essential for fostering more analytical thinking,which is increasinglynecessaryin the context of evolving sociopolitical and socioeconomic realities. The development of narrative analysis skills requires a thorough theoretical education, simultaneous immersion in professional issues, and increased effort from students and teaching staff. Narrative analysis abilities play a crucial role in shaping the future official's personal and professional traits and provide the foundation for the growth of professionalism.

The article examines the experiences of implementing patrioticeducation among future state and municipal employees.The author studies the implementation of forms and methods of patrioticeducational work among students in the Smolensk region's higher education institutions.Considering the accumulated experience,the research makes several conclusions regarding the structure of the educational and patriotic process,lessons,and perspectives.Particular emphasis is placed on the educational impact of new working methods used by teachers and youth movement leaders on forming civic and patriotic positions among students of the "State and Municipal Management" specialty.The study highlights the unique significance and function of the teacher-educator personalityin issues related to patrioticeducation since it depends on the professors to determine the extent of development and application of different creative forms and methods of educational work.Pedagogical activity should be considered as a set of joint actions in one or another direction of upbringing or education of mentees, their individual-personal formation, as well as subjective development of the young persons (students) and the teachers.

The article suggests a regional organizational and management model for Olympiad training. Its implementation enables business success by raising the school's rating,competitiveness in the educational services market,attractiveness as a center for talented young people,and successful collaboration with them. Effective Olympiad training methods in the top gymnasiums in the Sverdlovsk oblast served as the basis for the study's content analysis.The management model distinguishes between organizational, financial, media, methodological,educational,and informational forms of support (accompaniment).Mechanisms for working with gifted youth are being introduced,and the school's organizational structure is being developed to carry out this Olympiad work.The external relations system is centered on partnerships with universities,Olympiad prize winners,winners'associations,and regional higher education centers.It creates a corporate culture that supports the Olympiad values and the desire to grow in knowledge.The suggested solution to the Olympiad training issue provides insight into the types of support that ought to be set up and implemented,either by utilizing an outsourcing system to transfer a portion of operations on specific support forms to more successful schools or by scaling up the successful practices of other school administrations.