Solution of urgent problems due to the injection of money - again, uncontrolled, and not at the expense of quality control gives only short-term results, and even then not always. Allocate money is not enough, we should still be able to manage costs, based on the final result. Now, for example, officials are justified: "Well, we were allocated the money. Yes, but at the Russian House in Vancouver, spent a whole $ 2 million, including a party with free alcohol and refreshments and concerts of music stars (it's at 11 th place in the team competition), but for biathletes Anastasia Kuzmina, won gold and silver for Slovakia, no money was found - she left Russia because sports officials refused to help her with the improvement of living conditions - and not in Moscow but in Tyumen (!).
You can not put the engine on the cart. In other words, Russia's system of governance is too primitive to solve complex problems.
So, for example, every year already can not fly "Bulava", for the same reason, I'm afraid we did not see the production of the fifth generation Russian fighter. There were many trials and launches commemorative train "Sokol-250", it was all over a beautiful German "Sapsanom. Again, it's not a lack of financing, engineering and design staff or lack of so-called political will, cause a loss of ability to manage complex projects.
In Russia, in my opinion, this unfortunate trend is compounded by the "disease" of postmodernism: Russia's government is trying to manipulate the media space with the help assure all: not only that all everywhere in perfect order, so still it can implement very complex development projects. Like, build a Silicon Valley in the Moscow region, will become a leader in the modern world. All is good, but first the state must learn to solve basic problems of citizens, to bring the quality of public services at the current level, and then take up something more complicated. After visiting the toilet on train optimism about the modernization of stations is much less (it's in the amount of the investment program Railways). The authorities of St. Petersburg, where I live, were not able to make snow removal - how then to believe in their ability to develop innovation? Learn how to knock down the icicles on time, you see, and nanotechnology will be better to receive.
THREE WHALES Olympics in Sochi
Return to the Olympics. It could be supposed that the main sad result - this is the projection of the outcome of Vancouver on Sochi. I'm afraid to assume, but Sochi-2014 may be too complex a problem for the Russian authorities. In principle, the events of recent years have shown that in Russia there is a positive experience of public events. For example, the Champions League final and the Eurovision Song Contest in 2008, according to general estimates, were carried out very high quality, the authorities in Moscow have risen. But the Olympic games - a much more difficult task. Preparing for the Games in Sochi requires, in my opinion, the decision at least three major problems.
First, the construction of Olympic facilities. Leapfrog to the designation of the Olympic Games (vice-premier and head of state corporation, the mayor of Sochi), as well as the choice of structures is clearly not conducive to speed up construction. The abundance of scandals - that the quality of facilities under construction, then the payment of compensation for confiscated land, then the protests of ecologists, says the complexity of the problem. Moreover, there are two aggravating circumstances: 1) a world-class sports infrastructure in Sochi, there was virtually no 2) sochintsy opposed to the Games (listen to the product of local creativity).
The latter - subjective, I'm not on the side sochintsev. I believe that the interests and behavior of people who dream only about how to sell high price of low quality tourist services "resting" in this case, contrary to the interests of the country. However, they have the right to defend their rights - the right to be heard, the right to receive fair compensation for alienated property, the right to the opportunity to continue to profit. Here there is a conflict of local interests and the federal center, but with the difference that the main existing tools for the moment the federal intervention - mediamanipulirovanie and riot police - are applicable only in part. It is necessary to adopt more flexible policies for regulating relations with local communities, which requires effective management. On the construction of Olympic facilities remained incomplete for 4 years.
Secondly, social infrastructure and personnel. The Olympic Games requires a short-term mobilization of highly skilled labor force - the maids, cleaners, waiters, porters, translators, etc. The need for them (not counting the construction workers) can reach up to 170 000 people. And sochintsy do not want these positions, it is incompatible with their mentality, they believe that we need to bring the games to the Chinese. This - not the solution: the game is over, but the hotel will remain, who will they work?
The solution is known - to recruit volunteers across the country, and now.
By the way, when I taught in the U.S., I had a student-Mormon from Utah (the capital - Salt Lake City), in Russian spoke well, spent a couple of years in Tomsk. According to him, when he wanted to offer its services to organizers of the Games in 2002 as a volunteer translator, he was denied - too high a contest.
The organizers of the Olympics so far confined to send information to universities about recruiting volunteers among the students who want to work at the Olympics in 2014. Training programs for volunteers has not yet been established, and there is no clarity, will they all. If the authorities came for 2-3 months, to be understood - a professional coach you 170 thousand newcomers (especially with languages) is physically impossible. I would not meet the Chinese Olympic visitors and forcibly given untrained students whose English level «London is the capital of Great Britain».
Thirdly, the actual outcome of Vancouver. It would be a special kind of national self-abasement - it's expensive to build all facilities, recruit and train staff and take 10 th place in the team event. Games in Vancouver, too, began with protests against the people of Vancouver for the Games, the death of Georgian athlete on an imperfect track and talk about the poor quality of food in the Olympic village. However, the first place Canada in the team competition, and gold hockey reduced these conversations to nothing. Even the most inveterate optimists in Russia are forced to recognize that Russia's sports and the Olympic movement is, if not in crisis, then in a phase of recession. In any case, control of development of sports was beneath criticism. In the old baggage, the training of athletes will be difficult to achieve even moderate results. Preparing for the Games in Sochi must include a serious reform of sports management.
When applying for the holding of the Olympic Games in Sochi acknowledged one problem - the construction of sports facilities. Several months ago, it became clear that to her and added a second - where to get 170 000 people staff. Vancouver added suddenly, and the third - if not to reform the sport, the medals will not be. I have great doubts that Russia's system of governance capable of managing all three of these challenges simultaneously, besides the complex. I fear that attempts to coordinate the work on three fronts will be held according to the principle "to the buttons on the claim is?" Olympic Games in Sochi may be insurmountable task for Russia's authorities due to lack of managerial skills.
Again, remember the old Soviet anecdote. Maybe the system should be changed?
http://www.slon.ru/blogs/sherbak/post/308089/