Vladimir Aleksandrovich Mau (born December 29, 1959) is a Russian economist, scientist, and teacher. Since 2010 to 2023 he has served as the rector of the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA). During his career, he was a member of many advisory and scientific councils and commissions. He was a member of the Presidium of the Economic Council (was abolished in 2018 by presidential executive order) under the President of the Russian Federation. He has the federal state civilian service rank of 1st class Active State Councillor of the Russian Federation.
In 2022, Mau was accused for embezzlement in the Marina Rakova Case and placed under home arrest. On 14 October 2022, he was cleared of all charges and the case was dropped 'due to his lack of involvement in the crime'.
Dr Mau is currently a lecturer at the Faculty of Social Sciences at Tel Aviv University, Israel.
Education In 1981, Mau graduated from the Plekhanov Russian University of Economics with a degree in State Economics Planning. In 1986, he completed postgraduate studies at the Institute of Economics of the USSR Academy of Sciences.
In 1994, Mau defended his doctoral thesis on theory and ideology of Russian State Economic Policies in the first quarter of the XX century. Two years later, he became a professor. In 1999, he received a PhD from Pierre Mendès-France University in applied economics.
Career In 1981-1991, Mau was a researcher at the Institute of Economics of RAS. There he met Alexei Kudrin and Yegor Gaidar, who were building a team of liberal reformers.
In 1990-1992, Mau was a laboratory head at the . By 1991, the organization was renamed into the Institute of Economy of the Transitional Period. Up to 1997, Mau was its vice director. He actively contributed to the development and implementation of the Yeltsin–Gaidar government reforms. In particular, in March 1992, Mau was appointed advisor to Yegor Gaidar, who became the Russian Prime Minister. Gaidar's team implemented important reforms in state administration and conducted a price liberalization program that was later nick-named 'shock therapy'. It included liberalization of pricing, international trade, taxation reform, etc. In the following years, Mau wrote scientific publications based on this experience, on many occasions he gave comments to the media regarding the 'shock therapy'. Mau stayed Gaidar's advisor even when he left the Prime Minister post and headed the State Duma's fraction DemChoice.
In 1996, Mau hosted one of the first Russian news-analytical TV program on Channel One Russia.
From September 8, 1997, to May 16, 2002, Mau was head of the Working Center for Economic Reforms under the Government of the Russian Federation. The Center was established in 1991, it developed programs of economic liberalization and produced reports on current social and economical situations and their tendencies for the Ministry of Economic Development. At that time, Mau prepared analytical reports on the investment climate for the Center for Strategic Research.
On May 14, 2002, Mau was elected rector of the RANEPA, his appointment was confirmed by a decree of the government of the Russian Federation. Later, Mau was reelected. When in 2010 RANEPA was merged with the Russian Academy of State Service and 12 regional state service academies, Mau was appointed director of this new united educational institution. He was reelected twice, in December 2015 and May 2020. Under Mau, the institution implemented programs of regional scientific and technological development, digital transformation of federal executive bodies, and other administrative projects. In 2008, Mau became one of the founders and trustees of the Stanford Russian-American Forum. In two years, he co-founded RANEPA business incubator. Under Mau, RANEPA founded its Project Management Center in 2016, and the Center for Interdisciplinary Human Research in 2021. Mau participates in Presidential Academy summer camps, for instance, in Tatarstan he assessed renovation initiatives of local government. As a rector, he took part in the organization of the all-Russian student competition 'Sustainable future of Russia', and the international Global Management Challenge.
At the same time, Mau kept working as an economist, consultant, and public activist. In 2003, he was elected member of the Russian Center for Political Research. In 2010, he entered Sberbank's review board, and three years later Mau was elected its head. At the same time, he chaired Sberbank's audit committee and joined the Human Resource committee. By 2011, as an independent director he joined Gazprom's Executive Board, in two years he also became a member of nominating and audit committees. Through the years, he was a member of executive boards at and Severstal; he directed the Center for Strategic Research, as well as some other organizations.
Since 2010, Mau has been moderating scientific open talks at the Gaidar forum. He often was an expert speaker himself, for instance, on multiple occasions he discussed on-going economic and political trends with Nicolas Sarkozy.
Scholarly activity Throughout his career, Mau has worked as a scientist, educator, and consultant. His area of expertise includes the Economic Theory, its history, and national economy. In particular, he managed projects on comparative analysis of Russia and developed countries, studies on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
As an expert, Vladimir Mau frequently addresses the Ministry of Education's public council with reports on economics and higher education development, he is an active speaker at St. Petersburg and Sochi Economic Forums. As an expert, he discussed challenges of monotown transformation, taxation and economic reforms. In 2013, Mau entered the jury of the contest for the best project of an International Financial Center in . He advocated for income tax cancellation for low-income citizens, reasonable support of the volatile rouble exchange rate to ensure a better investment climate, 2013 reforms of the Russian Academy of Sciences, deeper integration of Russia into global economics as an effective tool against sanctions. He publicly criticized the privatization of the state property that was scheduled for 2020-2022.
Under his management, RANEPA Siberian branches were reformed in 2021.
Membership in advisory and scientific councils and commissions
Through the years, Mau was a member of numerous expert councils and committees, some of which are listed below:
July 31, 2003 — appointed member of the State Commission on Administrative reform in the Russian Federation, re-approved in 2004 and 2008; April 30, 2004 — joined the State Commission on Budget Efficiency; October 20, 2005—present: Member of the Council under the President of the Russian Federation for Science, Technology and Education, re-appointed to the Council in 2006 and 2008. 2005—present: Member of the Scientific Council of RAS on the Problems of Russian and World Economic History; December 4, 2007—present: Member of the Government Commission for Assessing the Performance of Federal and Regional Executive Authorities. On June 12, 2008, re-approved as a Member of the commission; August 25, 2008—present: Member of the Presidential Commission for the Civil Service and Executive Candidate Pool of the Russian Federation (terminated); Prior to Council abolishing in 2018: Member of the Presidium of the Economic Council under the President of the Russian Federation June 2008—present: Member of the Expert Council on Educational Legislation under the Committee of the Federation Council on Education and Science. 2013: Board Member of the Foundation for the Development of Socio-Economic Sciences and Education; 2019: Member of the National Council on Professional Qualification under the President of the Russian Federation; May 30, 2019: Vice Chair of the Supreme Attestation Commission of the Ministry of Education and Science of Russia; November 2019: Member of Presidium of the Russian professorial Assembly; May 2020: Member of the Analytical Centre under the Government of the Russian Federation.
Over the years, Mau was a chair of public councils under the Russian Economic Development Ministry, the Federal Service for Labour and Employment, the Federal Taxation Service, and others. As an expert, in 2017 he voted for an increase in the retirement age, he recommended raising the Value-added tax and, on the contrary, reducing deductions to social security funds. He strongly discouraged short-term stimulation of economics planned by the government in 2017-2025. In 2010-2019, Mau participated in meetings and assessed the Federal Taxation Service performance, as well as the 'Association of the Innovative Regions of Russia'.
Class rank and Academic degrees Honoris causa June 20, 2001: 1st class Active State Councillor of the Russian Federation; Honorary professor of the Russian-Armenian (Slavonic) State University — for a significant contribution to the development of the theory and practice of economic reforms, for long-term fruitful scientific and pedagogical activity, for high professionalism in all aspects of activity.
Publications Author of more than 20 books and over 600 articles published in scientific magazines, journals, and newspapers in Russia, England, France, Germany and Italy, including: Development of the Theory of Socialist Economy Conformity to the Plan (late 30s-early 60s): Extended Abstract of Cand. Sci. (Eng.) Dissertation. Moscow, 1986. In search of conformity to the plan: From the history of Soviet economic thought in the late 30s-early 60s. Moscow, 1990. The book is dedicated to one of the most dramatic periods in the history of Soviet economic thought. It addresses the deep crisis that swept science in the context of administrative system formation and repression against prominent academic economists, and the first attempts to get out of this crisis related to the theoretical preparation of the economic reform of 1965 in the USSR. While analyzing the theory of the planned economy, the author reveals the inner logic of the development of science, the contradictions inherent in it, and quantum leaps, the relationship between political economy views and concepts of economic mechanism. The regularities of the revolution, the experience of restructuring and our perspectives. Moscow, 1991 (co-author). Restructuring as a revolution: past experience and attempts to forecast. Kommunist. 1992, No. 11 (co-author). Reforms and dogmas. Moscow, 1993. Analyzes the state and the economy in the age of reforms and revolutions (1860-1920), examines the history of the economy and economic policy of Russia and the USSR in the first third of the 20th century; it shows the integrity of this period, including the continuity of economic decisions by successive governments of Russia (Tsar, Interim, and Bolshevik governments). It analyzes how different governments searched for the measures to steer the country out of social and economic crisis and to expedite economic growth. Economy and power: interim results. Moscow, 1994 Economy and power. Political history of economic reform in Russia, 1985–1994. Moscow, 1995. The book considers the relationship and the impact of economic and political problems that arose during the period of perestroika and after the collapse of the Soviet system. It reveals the reasons for decisions made by the highest authorities of the USSR and Russia, as well as the root of the authorities’ illusions and delusions. The book was published in Delo Publishing House in 1994, and in 1996, it was released in the UK under the title The Political History of Economic Reform in Russia, 1985-1994 (L.: Centre for Research into Communist Economies). The political history of economic reform in Russia, 1985–1994. London: Centre for Research into Communist Economies, 1996.