Culture of competition is underdeveloped in Russian companies.

Russians do not like to compete with their colleagues. According to the research conducted by the fund Public Opinion, 52% of respondents do not approve of competition at work. And those who are accustomed to competition, most often struggle to share bonuses and clients with their colleagues.

Men support the spirit of competition at work more actively than women. 54% of men have a positive attitude to competition among colleagues, while there are twice as fewer women who share this opinion. Natalya Golovanova, Head of the Research Center at Superjob.ru reckons that it is impossible to use the same criteria to assess the level of competition in different companies.

"There are collectives where competition is impossible in principle, because if the whole team is not focused on the overall goal, it has an adverse result. Medical collectives are the most obvious examples. Therefore, probably getting an average in some collectives does not make sense. But the fact that money is at the heart of any competition – that I can confirm. People are not very happy when they learn about the salaries of their colleagues, especially those who occupy same positions, a s well as salaries in competing companies," says Golovanova.

Most often, colleagues compete with each other because of high salaries and bonuses, as well as the opportunity to handle most important customers. Almost every one out of 10 respondents admits that by standing out above the rest, he hopes to move up the career ladder. Russians compete very seldom out of desire to improve the quality of their work, to take a leadership position or because they dislike their colleagues. Unlike Western countries, where competition is seen natural, Russian companies have an insufficiently developed culture of competition, notes Elena Timofeeva, Director of the International Business School of the Moscow Chamber of Commerce.

"Suppose a man doesn’t think he can get paid, but for this he needs to develop. He believes that he must be paid because he is already there. That must really spoils relations in the team. There should always be competition. When you feel the heat, when someone fights to get a chair by color, or where to sit, near the window or something else – that is unhealthy competition. Healthy competition is when a person can focus on a good result," explains Timofeeva.

Despite the fact that Russians in general do not approve of competition among colleagues, most respondents (42%) believe that the spirit of competition has a positive effect on productivity. 36% believe that competition at work leads to layoffs, worsens the climate in the team, and generally harms the image of the company. Respondents' opinions were divided when asked whether or not bosses should encourage competition among colleagues: 32% agreed that it is necessary, and the same proportion of survey respondents opposed. Dmitry Akopov, CEO of the consulting company Jacobson Partners says that competition in companies should be encouraged not only by cash prizes.

"There should be both material and non-financial incentives in Russia. Material incentives is a variable component of remuneration and bonuses. As for non-financial incentives, during Soviet times there were honor rolls, and now that could be replaced with a public corporate event, diplomas to the best employee or the best seller in the industry," assumes Akopov.

According to sociologists, competition is more often seen in private companies than in public ones. 56% of employees of non-public companies faced competition, while only 37% of employees of the public sector compete among themselves.

Yana Pashayeva

Read more: www.kommersant.ru/doc/2371181