Technological Entrepreneurship in Russia. Oleg Tinkov
KEY CONCLUSIONS
Entrepreneurship is a vocation and a gift
"Entrepreneurs are a special kind of people, they are the people who change the world. <...> Only entrepreneurs have the talent to see, anticipate which consumer demands could emerge <...> and create it," Oleg Tinkov, Chairman of the Board of Directors, Tinkoff Bank
"We want to change people's lives, and we want everything that is related to financial operations, to such various ordinary things, all of that to be available in our phones," Oleg Tinkov.
Money is not an end in itself
"Many people have a feeling that an entrepreneur or a businessman <...> has only one goal, and that is to earn, and to earn as much as possible. <...> When I spoke with Richard Branson, he strongly objected to this. He said that if an entrepreneur or a businessman strives only and mainly to make money, nothing will come of it," Vladimir Pozner, Anchor, Journalist.
"Money makes the capital for reinvestment, inventing new products, as well as meeting the growing consumer demands. But what really gives one drive, and strength, and faith is that you can change something in this life," Oleg Tinkov.
PROBLEMS
Lack of needed human resources
"Everything that exists in Russia nowadays looks good in <...> the global digital market thanks to such companies as Yandex, Mail, Kaspersky and Tinkoff. <...> All of this is still based on the Soviet groundwork. Our higher education — in mathematics, physics, cybernetics — was focused on the military industrial complex. <...> Naturally, this groundwork begins to expire. <...> We are talking about digital economy, while we have no human resources. Who will take care of it? It is just not enough people,” Oleg Tinkov.
Negative attitude of society towards entrepreneurs
"In my opinion, entrepreneurs should be celebrities, the elite of our society. <...> The strength of the American and the Anglo-Saxon economy in general is that they regard an entrepreneur as a dream <...> a hero <...> and everyone wants to do it. <...> This is what we lack. <...> Our society treats a businessman as if he were some kind of a thief. <...> This changes slowly," Oleg Tinkov.
SOLUTIONS
Need for fundamental changes in education
"Education is the core. We need to invest our efforts in it, as there lies our future. <...> When we start working with people in their 3rd–4th year of college, it's too late. <...> We must start with the school and instead of arts and crafts lessons, we need to buy computer classrooms. <...> Investment in schoolchildren and in education pays off, and it happens quickly enough," Oleg Tinkov.
Strong team and democratic governance structure as a source of success
"If I don’t show up at the bank tomorrow, nothing will change because my management team is absolutely brilliant and autonomous. <...> I hire people who are self-organizing and self-managing. <...> The more you earn, the more you invest in better people. <...> The better the people you can afford to hire <...> the better your products are," Oleg Tinkov.
Need to decriminalize economic offences
"We need a significant decriminalization of economic offences. <...> Of course, the country is full of con men. <...> But punish them with fines," Oleg Tinkov.
Business needs to separate from politics
"Russian business community is overly politicized. <...> Russian business needs to distance itself from politics, not to think about it at all," Oleg Tinkov.
We need to use available opportunities and build our own future
"The best environment for business, for entrepreneurs is here, in Russia. It’s the most competitive and the most accessible. We have the best human resources, the best people, the best programmers. <...> We must strive to build our own destiny and not look at the authorities, thinking they will give us something <...> do not wait for manna from heaven," Oleg Tinkov.
More detailed information is available on the website of the Roscongress Foundation information and analytical system.
