The Kremlin begins reform of the federal personnel reserve

In Russia, the federal personnel reserve is being reformed to fill positions in the state civil service. The corresponding bill and draft presidential decree were developed by the Presidential Commission on Civil Service and Management Personnel Reserve under the leadership of Assistant to the Head of State Dmitry Mironov. Vedomosti was told about this by two sources familiar with the preparation of the document. According to them, the bill developed by Mironov’s commission involves introducing amendments to the Federal Law “On the State Civil Service of the Russian Federation” and the Federal Law “On Combating Corruption.” In the coming days, the president will introduce a bill to the State Duma, both interlocutors say. The presidential decree must be signed after the law is adopted, another Vedomosti source clarifies.

The federal personnel reserve will be formed to select management personnel at the level of deputy federal ministers, heads of federal services and agencies and their deputies. That is, we are talking about appointments that are made by decision of the president and prime minister. But this is at the first stage – in the future, the principles of creating a reserve are planned to be extended to lower positions, one of Vedomosti’s interlocutors clarified. Since the reserve will be interdepartmental, it can be used for personnel selection by regional authorities and state corporations, the second interlocutor noted. According to him, it will not be possible to get into the federal personnel reserve from the street – it will be formed not on the principle of self-nomination, but solely on the basis of recommendations from officials of the presidential administration, government, heads of federal government agencies and governors.

A recommendation can be given without the knowledge of the potential reservist, says one of Vedomosti’s interlocutors. At the same time, certain restrictions are assumed: for example, a federal minister can make proposals for enrolling candidates from his department, from subordinate organizations or from regions into the reserve, if a person works in an organization that relates to his field.

The formation of a personnel reserve for security forces (albeit non-public) has already been formalized, explains one of Vedomosti’s interlocutors: there are clear requirements for candidates, as well as for the information and documents they submit. A similar approach is planned to be introduced for the formed federal personnel reserve in the civil service, notes the second interlocutor of Vedomosti. A candidate for the reserve will have to submit a declaration of income – his own and family members, consent to possible relocation to another area, consent to an assessment of his professional level and verification activities. According to one of the interlocutors, candidates also need to undergo psychological testing, because during selection not only professionalism and results of practical work will be important, but also commitment to national interests and a focus on achieving public rather than personal benefits.

The final decision on whether to include a candidate in the federal personnel reserve after analysis and checks will be made by the head of the presidential administration.

The concept of a federal personnel reserve was introduced by law in 2004, but in fact this tool for selecting personnel for the highest group of civil service positions has never fully started working, explains one of Vedomosti’s interlocutors. There have appeared their own personnel reserves at different levels of government, as well as separate projects to search for management personnel and improve their skills, for example, the “Leaders of Russia” competition. But such projects are focused not so much on public service, but mainly on supporting promising leaders in all industries, the source notes. In addition, the selection procedures themselves in such competitions are informal. Participation in such competitions will be taken into account when considering the candidacy of a future reservist along with other factors, but does not guarantee entry into the federal personnel reserve, the interlocutor emphasized.

Now, in accordance with the instructions of the President of August 1, 2008, the federal program “Training and retraining of the management personnel reserve (2010–2024)” is already being implemented. Its coordinator is the government apparatus, and the state customer is the Ministry of Labor. This reserve is created for three years and is recruited anew each time, Deputy Minister of Labor and Social Protection Elena Mukhtiyarova explained to Vedomosti: “In 2024, we will complete work with the previous reserve. And to get into the new reserve, colleagues will have to go through a new procedure [описанную в проекте закона и указа]” Continuous stay in the new reserve will be longer – for six years or more, says Mukhtiyarova, but the approach to reservists will be stricter: “Every year, every official who has given a recommendation for enrollment in the reserve must update the characteristics [потенциального чиновника высокого ранга]” The Ministry of Labor attributes this to the fact that to enroll a candidate in the reserve, not only a formal questionnaire with biographical data is required, but also a fairly detailed story about his personal characteristics, as well as projects and achievements, for which the potential employer actually takes responsibility.

Information about those enrolled in the federal personnel reserve will be sent to the Unified Information System for Personnel Management of the State Civil Service. The corresponding functionality of the subsystem is now in the preparation stage – it is expected, Mukhtiyarova says, that it will be launched by April 1. With the adoption of the law and the signing of the presidential decree, the use of the personnel reserve by the authorities is formalized, Mukhtiyarova notes: people who are included in the reserve according to the nomenclature of the presidential administration and government actually have a serious chance for further advancement. Another feature is that inclusion in the reserve will be an additional basis for appointment to significant positions in the civil service.

Experts from the Russian Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA) will take part in the assessment and then training of reservists in accordance with the new regulations – on its basis such personnel projects as “Leaders of Russia” are currently being implemented. According to the rector of RANEPA Alexey Komissarov, the planned transformations should increase the attractiveness of participation in personnel competitions. “2017 (when Leaders of Russia was launched – Vedomosti) can be called the start of a new personnel policy. <...> Experience in working with personnel reserves, especially government management reserves, led to an understanding of the need to form a federal personnel reserve,” he told Vedomosti. The participation of the academy in working with the reserve, according to him, is logical, since the university has extensive experience in this area.

“We are supporters of end-to-end training of personnel starting from school: for example, the opening of the Tsarskoye Selo Lyceum, the implementation of the Resource of Russia program, the training of senior management personnel at the school of governors, the school of mayors, the training of civil servants of new constituent entities of the Russian Federation – all these are prerequisites for the successful implementation of the task on the formation and training of the federal personnel reserve,” says Komissarov. But now there are many different personnel reserves, often their lists are duplicated: “Obviously, resolving this situation requires a systematic approach, which will be implemented through the federal personnel reserve.” All this allows us to qualitatively form the personnel of public authorities. “Having worked and brought to perfection these personnel technologies based on working with reserves, this experience can be transferred to all other employees of public authorities,” says the rector of RANEPA. After all, after the concept of “public power” appeared in the Constitution of the Russian Federation, the issue of creating a single career space in public administration became relevant, he notes: “It is necessary to overcome the fragmentation of personnel policy at all levels.”

An expert on the public administration system, Grigory Dobromelov, notes that the formation of a personnel reserve is advisable taking into account the forecast of personnel requirements for the next five years, the need for preparation of which the president spoke at an extended meeting of the Presidium of the State Council in Veliky Novgorod on September 21. A “single personnel bench” of people for appointments, primarily to senior positions, is necessary, the expert is sure. “The new principle of forming a federal personnel reserve will reduce the time required for appointment to positions,” explains Dobromelov. “A person who has passed all the checks and is already enrolled in the reserve can be appointed at any time in case of state necessity.” Now, the expert reminds, inspections can drag on for a long period – up to six months.

In any case, we now need social elevators that are understandable and accessible to people, which the president has repeatedly spoken about in his messages to the Federal Assembly, notes Dobromelov. “It is obvious that in the federal personnel reserve there will be people who will be part of the president’s future team and on whom he will be able to rely after the elections,” the expert said. At the same time, he added, it is important that when enrolling in the reserve, not only the competencies of future top civil servants are assessed, but also the values ​​​​by which they are guided: “So that we see in the civil service people who come to serve, and not to feed.”