You joined Skoltech in 2012, when the Institute was still finding its feet. In your first role, you headed recruitment and internal communications. What was that period like?
– At first we were based in the Moscow School of Management building. Then we moved to 3 Nobel St., which was surrounded by a wasteland with dogs running around. If you missed the last bus, you had to walk to the parking lot with an umbrella at the ready.
Edward Crawley used to talk about a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and that was no exaggeration. We were starting from scratch, with no established processes, but with a huge desire to build an institute that did not yet exist in Russia. My task was to find and attract people who could work in an environment where there were no ready answers, only an ambitious goal.
We worked closely with MIT and adapted their best practices. Many of those who joined us in those years now head key departments. For me, that is the clearest indication that our hiring decisions were the right ones. By the time Alexander Kuleshov joined the Institute, we already had more than 300 employees, research centers were up and running, joint research projects and programs were underway, the centers were being equipped, and the number of master’s and PhD students was growing every year.

– Your career path is certainly unusual – from recruitment to heading internal control and audit. What was the most challenging part of that transition?
– I moved from a field where people, their potential and motivation are at the center of attention to an area where you need to model business processes, implement systems, and adapt them to the organization’s needs. It is a different language, a different logic, a different pace. That was exactly what made it interesting.
My consulting and HR experience gave me an advantage. To build an effective internal control system, you need to understand not only business processes, but also people, their motivation and corporate culture. Internal control is not about punishment; it is about creating a sustainable environment where talented people can work safely and productively.
In 2017–2018, we launched a large-scale business process reengineering project and redeployed the ERP system as a foundation for internal control. The key principle is: Control works well when the process itself is properly designed.

– In your view, what are the key conditions for internal control and audit to be efficient?
– First, the functional independence of the department; second, support from senior management and the Board of Trustees; and third, the competence of the team. We are responsible for ensuring full transparency, especially when it comes to funds we receive from the federal budget. All our reports undergo rigorous review, and we successfully pass external audits and inspections by regulatory authorities.

– The professional community often discusses the difference between internal control and audit in the commercial sector and nonprofit organizations. What do you think is specific to Skoltech?
– We are a nonprofit, and we have strict requirements regarding the targeted use of funds. We work with grant providers and the government, and trust is the most important asset here. Grant providers and partners see a mature internal control system and internal audit as key criteria for cooperation.
Skoltech is also a technological “icebreaker”. Our task here is not to get in the way, but to support departments and projects in a timely manner. And today, people come to us as early as the planning stage.

– So, you work more like internal consultants?
– Exactly. From the very beginning, we positioned ourselves as partners people could turn to for advice and expert assessment. Today, the department is made up of experienced, competent, and responsible professionals with extensive knowledge of business processes, projects, and programs.
We do not wait for things to happen; we get involved at an early stage, work proactively and strive to make controls function as an embedded capability. To achieve this, we integrate them into operational and management processes so that they become part of the system rather than an external layer imposed on top of it.
Internal control is not a set of barriers, but a system that helps all departments work in a coordinated way, with an understanding of the relationships between business processes and inherent risks, as well as the possible consequences of various decisions.
Risks are always there: As soon as a goal is set, a risk arises. It is important to identify and assess risks. This does not mean accepting them, but rather managing them.

– In your view, what challenges will Skoltech face under its new strategy through 2030?
– First, the transition to a new higher education system and the transformation of our educational portfolio. Second, and most importantly, the talent challenge. We compete for talented researchers and engineers with major state-owned corporations. Our task is to create an environment in which a high level of control fosters confidence and stability without stifling creativity.
And, of course, there is the financial challenge. Maintaining a campus like ours requires significant resources. Our task is to optimize spending without compromising quality and to attract extrabudgetary funds. The strategy outlines a transition to a model in which the Skolkovo Foundation grant is complemented by substantial extrabudgetary financing. And here, control over spending efficiency will become even more important.

– Speaking of the talent challenge, you mentioned the Institute’s attractiveness. How do you assess Skoltech’s reputation among the younger generation?
– For me, the most accurate indicator is neither rankings nor citation indexes, although they are important too. The most honest indicator is the way our children see us. My daughter is an 11th-grader in her school’s medical track, and this spring my colleagues helped organize a tour of Skoltech for her class.
What happened next looked like evidence of high acclaim to me: Within a week after the tour, these school students were calling and texting me with the same questions, “Where should we study now so that we can later apply for a master’s or PhD program at Skoltech? Where can we read about Skoltech and listen to its scientists?” That is what real recognition looks like. In other words, we are not just building an institute, we are building a dream. We are creating a place ambitious young people want to be part of. And when our employees’ children consider Skoltech the best institute in the country, that is worth a lot. That is the main result of all our work together.

– And the traditional anniversary question. What would you wish for Skoltech?
– May Skoltech preserve its unique culture: ambition and attention to people. May we continue to set ambitious goals without forgetting whose efforts make it possible to achieve them.
Science shapes the future of the country, and Skoltech creates that future every day. The Skoltech model is centered on the triad of research, technology, and education. And for this triad to work, it needs a solid foundation – a governance system based on trust and control. May our research and development results truly change people’s lives for the better, and may our graduates and employees always feel they are part of something great and important.