Baikal Communications Group organized the “Corporate GR” Forum, which took place on April 4, 2024. The GR-Forum is a closed club that unites representatives of the corporate sector of the GR-industry and was created to discuss topical issues and exchange effective practices in the field of interaction between business and the state.

The Forum’s program was dedicated to the regulatory challenges and opportunities faced by business in Russia due to the changed political and economic conditions.

The speakers were leading experts of the GR-industry and industry leaders, representatives of large Russian and foreign companies. They discussed:

  • features of the foreign business development in Russia and the effective use of GR-tools;
  • strategy and methodology for managing the GR-function in vertically integrated holdings, which include various multidisciplinary companies, including those previously owned by foreign owners;
  • increasing the GR-function role in Russian companies;
  • problems of education in the GR field and the search for suitable personnel.

Here are some conclusions reached by the participants of the discussions:

  • Foreign companies that actively used GR practices have adapted much better to the regulatory changes of the last two years than companies that did not carry out GR work or that started it belatedly.
  • Interaction with the Subcommittee on the withdrawal of dividends abroad is much easier for those companies that have decided to continue working in Russia, even with the reservation of suspending investments in their production. However, sooner or later such companies will still face the question of resuming investments in the Russian economy or finally leaving the Russian market.
  • For successful work with the Sub-Commission, it is necessary to build communication with all participants in the approval process, especially with direct executors in government agencies. The process of approving transactions can take from several weeks to a year or even longer: it depends on the supervising ministry, the size of the transaction, and the quality of the established relationships with authorized executors.
  • For the most effective promotion of interests, it is important for companies to take a proactive position, taking initiatives and offering new regulatory approaches to the state.
  • There is an increasing role of GR in Russia, as a result of which competition within the industry is also increasing.
  • State support for domestic companies is an important mechanism for anti-crisis regulation, but its effect is often offset by the development of fiscal regimes as part of the introduction of counter-sanctions, including an increase in the key rate.

Also at the Forum, the Baikal Communications Group team presented the study on the development of the GR industry in Russia, prepared jointly with sociologists.

It is planned that the “Corporate GR” Forum will become an annual event that will bring together the professional community to strengthen and develop the GR-function in companies in the context of global changes. The next Forum will be held on December 5, 2024. Follow the details in the Telegram-channel and on the event website.

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