02.07.2026, 08:55
German Gref assessed the gap in labor productivity between Russian enterprises
Source: OREANDA-NEWS
OREANDA-NEWS The gap in labor productivity between leaders and lagging enterprises within the same industry in Russia reaches five times, which is significantly higher than in developed countries and China. This was stated by German Gref, President and Chairman of the Management Board of Sberbank, at the plenary session "A course for long-term growth: How not to lose opportunities", which opened the Financial Congress of the Bank of Russia. This is reported by the press service of Sberbank.
"We analyzed labor productivity at individual enterprises, not by industry. The study showed that there are competitive companies within any industry, as well as the so—called distribution tail," Gref said. According to him, the difference between leaders and laggards reaches five times, which is significantly higher than in developed economies or in China, where the maximum gap is three times.
Alfa-Bank Chief Executive Officer Vladimir Verkhoshinsky, President and Chairman of the Management Board of VTB Bank Andrey Kostin, Chairman of the Bank of Russia Elvira Nabiullina and Deputy Prime Minister of Russia Alexander Novak also participated in the discussion. Gref presented the results of an extensive labor productivity study prepared by the Central Research Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the first study of such a high level of detail in the country. According to him, any industry consists of very different companies, which are often united only by a common OKVED code — for example, agriculture includes large agricultural holdings, farms, and individual summer residents, so it is pointless to study the "average temperature" in the industry, you need to look at specific enterprises.
The President of Sberbank also named three main reasons for the gap: chronic underinvestment, primarily in technology, a gap in the quality of company management, and high barriers to the flow of labor and capital.
"Calculations show that if at least 50 percent of companies are brought up to the level of the top 10 percent in terms of productivity, this can lead to additional GDP growth of 2-3 percent per year," said Gref. He added that the introduction of technology can increase labor productivity by 11-22 percent, depending on the specific company, and when combining generative and physical artificial intelligence, the potential for productivity growth can reach 21-33 percent. According to Gref, the key question is how to systematically use these factors at the industry level and what levers the government has for this.
The Financial Congress of the Bank of Russia is a platform for an open dialogue between the regulator and the financial market. The plenary sessions and panel discussions of the congress are devoted to the domestic economy and monetary policy, fintech, banking regulation, financial stability and macroeconomics. Sberbank is the general partner of the congress.
"We analyzed labor productivity at individual enterprises, not by industry. The study showed that there are competitive companies within any industry, as well as the so—called distribution tail," Gref said. According to him, the difference between leaders and laggards reaches five times, which is significantly higher than in developed economies or in China, where the maximum gap is three times.
Alfa-Bank Chief Executive Officer Vladimir Verkhoshinsky, President and Chairman of the Management Board of VTB Bank Andrey Kostin, Chairman of the Bank of Russia Elvira Nabiullina and Deputy Prime Minister of Russia Alexander Novak also participated in the discussion. Gref presented the results of an extensive labor productivity study prepared by the Central Research Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the first study of such a high level of detail in the country. According to him, any industry consists of very different companies, which are often united only by a common OKVED code — for example, agriculture includes large agricultural holdings, farms, and individual summer residents, so it is pointless to study the "average temperature" in the industry, you need to look at specific enterprises.
The President of Sberbank also named three main reasons for the gap: chronic underinvestment, primarily in technology, a gap in the quality of company management, and high barriers to the flow of labor and capital.
"Calculations show that if at least 50 percent of companies are brought up to the level of the top 10 percent in terms of productivity, this can lead to additional GDP growth of 2-3 percent per year," said Gref. He added that the introduction of technology can increase labor productivity by 11-22 percent, depending on the specific company, and when combining generative and physical artificial intelligence, the potential for productivity growth can reach 21-33 percent. According to Gref, the key question is how to systematically use these factors at the industry level and what levers the government has for this.
The Financial Congress of the Bank of Russia is a platform for an open dialogue between the regulator and the financial market. The plenary sessions and panel discussions of the congress are devoted to the domestic economy and monetary policy, fintech, banking regulation, financial stability and macroeconomics. Sberbank is the general partner of the congress.
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