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The Client-Centric State

3 June 2021
Клиентоцентричное государство

KEY CONCLUSIONS

Client-centric state means person, respect, philosophy and democracy

“It’s about a person. It is all for a person, it all revolves around a person, a person is in the middle of it all,” Dmitriy Grigorenko, Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation – Chief of the Government Staff.

“Two words: person and value, of course,” Herman Gref, Chief Executive Officer, Chairman of the Executive Board, Sberbank.

“Respect and understanding,” Sergey Kirienko, First Deputy Chief of Staff of the Presidential Executive Office of the Russian Federation.

“It is a dialogue, not a monologue. This is what distinguishes the new client-centric approach: it is interesting and important what a person wants,” Vladimir Mau, Rector, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA).

“Philosophy and democracy,” Daniil Egorov, Head, Federal Tax Service of Russia.

 

Creating conditions for self-development

“We have to understand that competitiveness, the future of the country, or a region, or a company depend on whether we can create proper conditions for people’s self-development. If we do not create conditions for self-development, we simply lose, that is it. There is no alternative here. This needs to be done, and I am absolutely positive it can be done,” Sergey Kirienko, First Deputy Chief of Staff of the Presidential Executive Office of the Russian Federation.

“The President sincerely believes that the state should be person-centered. He says it all the time: “People, have some conscience, why do not you care about people?” Currently there are people, there is political will, the President’s administration and the government, and people in the government,” Herman Gref, Chief Executive Officer, Chairman of the Executive Board, Sberbank.

 

PROBLEMS

Developing culture in the company and in the state is necessary for client-centricity

“Problems of client-centricity and effective government are global problems, not local ones; we cannot compete with ourselves. The most difficult thing here is culture. <…> That is where the main risk lies. Culture is very easy to say and very hard to do. It is indeed the starting point,” Vladimir Mau, Rector, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA).

“There are always two clients: external and internal. Internal clients are the employees. If you want your employees, especially in a large organization or in the government, to be client-oriented towards the external customer, then you have to be client-oriented in your relations with the internal customer. A person who is dissatisfied and unhappy is not going to make another person happy,” Herman Gref, Chief Executive Officer, Chairman of the Executive Board, Sberbank.

“To do all this and to implement it – we run into three standard cases of what needs to be done. Yes, culture is definitely important, yes, the rules are important. <…> Without a set of tools – technological tools, that is! – it is simply not possible to implement and introduce all those rules,” Dmitriy Grigorenko, Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation – Chief of the Government Staff.

 

SOLUTIONS

New principles are needed for the basis of client-centricity

“You have to rebuild the internal culture around the employee, create conditions for their development, in order to create an opportunity to meet their needs. And that is a huge challenge within any kind of company,” Herman Gref, Chief Executive Officer, Chairman of the Executive Board, Sberbank.

“It would be very important to start translating the wording of regulatory documents into human language. I am not saying that they are bad. They are what they can be. But I, for example, always ask my lawyers not to send me the articles of laws, but to brief me on what they mean and what risks are behind the wording ambiguity,” Vladimir Mau, Rector, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA).

“The law is very likely to change. We will probably outline the principles rather than elaborate on each function individually, because in that case we will not be able to achieve client-centricity. Otherwise, the law is going to wither away, like the language of the Brahmins,” Daniil Egorov, Head, Federal Tax Service of Russia.

 

Using business experience in the operation of the government

“You need to know your client, know your citizen, know what the people need and what the taxpayer needs. Moreover, this should not be done through rigid communication. What large corporations do, what Sberbank, Rosatom and other large corporations are doing, is very important for the state,” Vladimir Mau, Rector, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA).

“Should we replicate this experience? Yes, we must take all the best from there, but must understand very clearly that the relationship between the state and its citizens is not the same as relationship between the client, the customer and the state. And that is very good,” Sergey Kirienko, First Deputy Chief of Staff of the Presidential Executive Office of the Russian Federation.

 

For more information, visit the ROSCONGRESS.ORG Information and Analytical System.