Global Challenges and Formation of a Strategy for Sustainable Development of Automotive Industry in Russia

Abstract

The purpose of the article is, based on the analysis of global trends in the development of the world automotive industry, to identify the development problems of the Russian automotive industry, to formulate key aspects of improving the strategic management of the industry development. The COVID‑19 pandemic has demonstrated the vulnerability of globalized supply chains, accelerated the digital transformation of the economy, and the development of CASE (Connected, Autonomous, Shared & Services, Electric) technologies in the automotive industry. Russia lags far behind other countries in readiness to use such technologies. It is obvious that the global pandemic will lead to the emergence of different car markets, the Russian market by the world’s leading car manufacturers in the long term will be considered as a market for cars with gasoline and diesel engines. The global challenges caused by the COVID‑19 pandemic, the development of new technologies, the existing imbalance between production capacities and the demand for automotive equipment, a low level of localization of production, and low export potential of the Russian automotive industry actualize the issues of improving the strategic management of the industry development. The analysis of strategies and programs for the development of the automotive industry indicates a weak account of the economic potential and risks of the industry development, weak coordination of hierarchically related state, regional, cluster and corporate strategies and development programs. The paper proposes a hierarchical approach to the process of strategic planning for the development of the automotive industry, based on the principles of consistency and subordination of state programs, sectoral, regional, cluster and corporate strategic development plans, which allows balancing the interests of federal and regional governments and automotive corporations, resources and development projects. Coordination of strategic plans and programs for the development of the automotive industry consists in the coordination of: target indicators of strategies and programs of different hierarchical levels of management; activities and timing of programs; conditions for the provision of funds from the federal and regional budgets to finance programs; mechanisms for the implementation of strategies and programs. Given the global challenges, strategic documents at the national, sectoral and corporate levels should be focused not only on overcoming the consequences of economic crises, but also on ensuring sustainable development in the long term. Thus, it is advisable to talk about the formation of not just a strategy for the development of the automotive industry in Russia, but about strategies for the sustainable development of this industry and corporations within it, developed in accordance with national and international documents.