OREANDA-NEWS. December 13, 2007. Sergey Omelchenko, VolgaTelecom General Director, is awarded Certificate of honor of the Ministry of IT and Communications of the Russian Federation, the press service of VolgaTelecom announced. Certificate of honor of the ministry is awarded to IT and communications workers who made considerable contribution to the development of telecommunications industry of the country.

Sergey Omelchenko is at the head of VolgaTelecom since 2005. Under his guidance the Company has implemented a number of socially and economically significant telecommunications projects which contributed to the development of telecommunications facilities in the Volga Federal district and to the introduction of high telecom technologies in every day practice of the region inhabitants. The Company has introduced into practice new principles of management which affected all the Company’s trends of activities, from business processes to introduction of uniform principles of HR and social policies.

Active expansion and upgrade of the network made VolgaTelecom one of the Russia's leaders in digitalization; at 2007 end this level will be 74%. In the regions where the Company is operating there is actually no waiting list for phone installation and today the requests of residents are met on-line. At present VolgaTelecom is consolidating its cellular assets on the basis of CJSC Nizhegorodskaya Sotovaya Svyaz which will allow for improving operating efficiency of activities and business management and will produce appreciable economic and financial effect.

The Company is one of the largest Internet providers in Russia. The introduction to the market of common trade mark "J" under which broadband access services are provided in all the regions of the Company’s cover area has ensured the growth of these services users to 300 000.

VolgaTelecom is actively participating in realization of significant social programs. Within priority national project "Education" in 2006-2007 the Company provided access to Internet to more than 8 300 educational institutions of the Volga Federal district. Having won the tender for the right to provide universal service the Company has already installed more than 16 000 universal service payphones in the settlements of the Volga Federal district and will continue these activities next year.
In 2006 VolgaTelecom was included into Financial Times rating "100 top companies of Eastern Europe" being rated 55-th, and also was noted among the most information “transparent” Russian companies being rated the 6-th in transparency rating of "Standard & Poor's". In 2006 the Company was awarded the certificate of compliance with the requirements of GOST R ISO 9001-2001 for quality management system. For two years on end (2006-2007) the Company is among the winners of "Russian entity of high social efficiency" and "Taxpayer of the year" contests.

The Company's management lays special emphasis on social policy, personnel development and motivation. In many ways this is the merit of Sergey Omelchenko who pays special attention to the Company’s workers, truly believing, that people – the principal potential of the Company. The Company has established transparent wage system which creates the background for self-interest of each employee in the result of his/her work. In February 2006 VolgaTelecom concluded Labor contract which guarantees the establishment of efficient system of employees’ social protection, helps to engage qualified experts and is the basis of successful operating activities.

Certificate of honor of the Ministry of IT and Communications of the Russian Federation was awarded to Sergey Omelchenko, OJSC VolgaTelecom General Director, during the gala night dedicated to the 5-th anniversary of the Company. The Certificate was awarded by Mrs. A. Kuznetsova, deputy to the director of the department of organizational and special activities of the Ministry of IT and Communications of the Russian Federation.