Business programme

The importance of human capital has grown markedly in the modern economy. Those who are able to attract the best staff are granted a key competitive advantage and enjoy high rates of growth. In recent decades, people have begun to place greater emphasis on quality of life, including with regard to health, the environment, and working conditions. The COVID-19 pandemic has only consolidated this trend. Quality of life has therefore become the key factor in successful development. What is quality of life? How is it defined? How can the state, society and business help to improve the quality of life of citizens? What approaches and international best practices could be adopted most effectively in Russia?

Moderator
Vladimir Mau, Rector, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA)

Vladimir Mau

Rector, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA)

Born in Moscow on December 29, 1959.
1981: Plekhanov Moscow Institute of National Economy.
1981–1990: Graduate program at the Institute of Economics of the Soviet Academy of Sciences; research assistant; Research Fellow of the Institute of Economics of the Soviet Academy of Sciences.
1990-1991: head of laboratory at the Institute for Economic Policy of the Academy of National Economy under the USSR Council of Ministers.
1991-1994: Aide to the First Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation, Advisor to the Prime Minister of the Russian Federation.
1994-1997: Deputy Director of the Institute of Economic Problems in Transition.
1997-2002: Head of the Working Center for Economic Reforms under the Government of the Russian Federation.
2002-2010: Rector of the Academy of National Economy under the Government of the Russian Federation.
2010-present: Rector of the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA).

Panellists
Louise Dann, Resource Mobilization and Partnerships Adviser of Regional Office for Eastern Europe and Central Asia, United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA)
Marco Mira D'Ercole, Counsellor, WISE Centre (Well-being, Inclusion, Sustainability and Equality of Opportunity), Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) (online)
Maxim Oreshkin, Aide to the President of the Russian Federation
Sergei Sobyanin, Mayor of Moscow
Mirjana Spoljaric Egger, Assistant Secretary-General, Director of the Regional Bureau for Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States, United Nations Development Programme (online)
Svetlana Chupsheva, General Director, Agency for Strategic Initiatives to Promote New Projects
Igor Shuvalov, Chairman, VEB.RF

Marco Mira D'Ercole

Counsellor, WISE Centre (Well-being, Inclusion, Sustainability and Equality of Opportunity), Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)

Maxim Oreshkin

Aide to the President of the Russian Federation

Born on July 21,1982 in Moscow.
2002
Bachelor’s Degree in Economics, Higher School of Economics.
2004
Master’s Degree in Economics, Higher School of Economics.
2002–2006
Economist, 1st class; Leading Economist; Chief Economist; Sector Head at the Balance of Payments Department at the Central Bank of the Russian Federation (Bank of Russia).
2006–2010
Senior Manager; Director; Managing Director at Rosbank.
2010–2012
Head of the Analytical Unit at Crédit Agricole Corporate & Investment Bank Russia and the CIS.
2012–2013
Chief Economist for Russia at VTB Capital.
2013–2015
Director of the Long-term Strategic Planning Department at the Russian Ministry of Finance.
2013
included in the management personnel pool under the patronage of the President of the Russian Federation.
2015–2016
Deputy Minister of Finance of the Russian Federation.
2016–2020
Minister of Economic Development of the Russian Federation.
2017
Since March 14 – Presidential Special Representative for Trade and Economic Cooperation with Japan.
2018
Chairman of the Board, at the Centre for Strategic Research.
2020
Since January 24 – Aide to the President of the Russian Federation.
Married, with one child.

Sergei Sobyanin

Mayor of Moscow

Sergey Semyonovich Sobyanin served as the Governor of Tyumen Oblast (2001—2005), Deputy Prime Minister of Russia (2005-2008 in Mikhail Fradkov's Second Cabinet) and Head of the presidential administration (2008-2010). Sergey Semyonovich has served as Mayor of Moscow from October 2010 to 5 July 2013, and was re-elected Mayor in the September 2013 city election. Re-elected for a third term on 9 September 2018.

Mirjana Spoljaric Egger

Assistant Secretary-General, Director of the Regional Bureau for Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States, United Nations Development Programme

October 2018: appointed Director of the UNDP Regional Bureau for Europe and the CIS.
2015–2018: Ambassador, Head of United Nations and International Organizations Division of the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs.
2012–2015: Deputy Head of United Nations and International Organizations Division of the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs.
2010–2012: Senior Adviser in the Office of the Commissioner General of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (Amman, Jordan), covering organizational development, management reforms, coordination of an agency-wide partnership strategy, and comprehensive health, education, relief and social services programme reviews.
Prior to this, Ms Spoljaric Egger had several assignments in the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs in Berne and New York. Earlier in her career, she worked at the Embassy of Switzerland in Cairo, Egypt, and was Desk Officer for the EBRD and Nuclear Safety in Central and Eastern Europe.
Ms Spoljaric Egger holds a Master's Degree in Philosophy, Economics and International Law from the University of Basel and the University of Geneva and has lectured in Global Governance at the University of Lucerne.
She is married and has two children.

Svetlana Chupsheva

General Director, Agency for Strategic Initiatives to Promote New Projects

Svetlana Chupsheva was born in Prague. In 2001 she graduated from Samara State Academy of Economics with Honors.Commencing from 2000 Svetlana Chupsheva worked at the Central Department of the Bank of Russia for Samara Region, then at the Government of Samara Region.From 2004 she held position of the Director General of the Rating Agency of the Government of Samara Region, and was the head of the State Institution Agency for Economic Development of Samara Region.From 2009 – adviser to the Deputy Chairmen of the Government of Samara Region – Ministry of Economic Development, Investment and Trade of Samara Region, then adviser to the Chairman of the Board of the CB Regional Credit, LLC.From 2011 – corporate director of the Agency for Strategic Initiatives (ASI). On August 10, 2015 she was appointed as the line director of the Social Projects of the ASI.From 2017 – Director General of the Agency for Strategic Initiatives.She is awarded with the Certificate of Merit issued by the President of the Russian Federation, she has the certificate of acknowledgement issued by the President of the Russian Federation and the certificate of acknowledgement issued by the Mayor of Moscow.She brings up four children.

Igor Shuvalov

Chairman, VEB.RF

Born on 4 January 1967 in Bilibino, Magadan Region.

1993, Lomonosov Moscow State University, degree: Lawyer; major: Jurisprudence.

Professional Background:
1984–1985, laboratory technician, Ekos Research Institute.
1985–1987, compulsory military service in the Soviet Army.
1993, attaché, Legal Department, Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
1993–1995, Senior Legal Adviser, ALM Consulting; from 1995, Managing Partner, ALM.
1997, Head of the Department for the State Register of Federal Property, Russian State Committee for State Property Management.
1998, Deputy Minister of State Property.
1998–2000, Chairman of the Russian Federal Property Fund.
2000–2003, Minister of the Russian Federation as the Government Chief of Staff.
2003, Aide to the Russian President.
2003–2004, Deputy Head of the Presidential Executive Office of the Russian Federation.
2004, Aide to the Russian President.
From 2005, sherpa for the G8.
From 2008, First Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation.
On 24 May 2018 Igor Shuvalov was appointed as Chairman of Vnesheconombank.

Front row participants
Mikhail Kuznetsov, Head of the Executive Committee, All-Russia People's Front
Nikolai Podguzov, Chairman of the Management Board, Eurasian Development Bank
Xenia Frank, Chair of the Supervisory Board, Elena and Gennady Timchenko Charitable Foundation

Mikhail Kuznetsov

Head of the Executive Committee, All-Russia People's Front

Nikolai Podguzov

Chairman of the Management Board, Eurasian Development Bank

Mr Podguzov holds a degree in applied mathematics and physics from St. Petersburg State Technical University (1997), and in world economics from Moscow State Institute of International Relations (University) of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
From 2000 to 2003, Mr Podguzov held various positions at the Ministry of Finance of Russia.
From 2003 to 2006 – Vice President of Trust Investment Bank.
From 2006 to 2010 – Vice President and Department Director at Renaissance Capital – Financial Consultant.
From 2004 to 2005 – Department Head at VTB Capital.
From 2012 to 2013 – Deputy Director of the Russian Government’s Economy and Finance Department.
From 2013 to 2017 – Deputy Minister of Economic Development of the Russian Federation.
From July 2017 to June 2020 – General Director of Federal state unitary enterprise Russian Post; General Director and Chairman of the Management Board of Joint-stock company Russian Post; First Deputy General Director and Director for Strategic Development at Joint-stock company Russian Post.
On 29 June 2020, Mr Podguzov was appointed as Chairman of the Management Board of the EDB.

Xenia Frank

Chair of the Supervisory Board, Elena and Gennady Timchenko Charitable Foundation

Philanthropist, venture investor
Support 20+ venture and impact projects with focus on female founders, including R&D in breast cancer diagnostics, wheelchairs production, FoodTech startup supporting local farmers. Xenia is the chairperson of the Supervisory Board of the Elena and Gennady Timtchenko Foundation.
In 2020 Xenia established a grant for women from the regions to study at the Skolkovo School of management.
Xenia graduated with honors from the University of Edinburg and INSEAD MBA.