The dissertation explores the reform of Russian public administration that began in 2003.
Although, it was considered by the ruling elite as one of the most important political
projects that should establish a necessary fundament for further socio-economic
modernization of the country, the reform has not yet resulted in significant improvement
of governance in the country. The dissertation investigates the conceptual inconsistency
of the model of reform, based on the New Public Management approach, and the nature
of political process in Russia, established during the presidency of
Vladimir Putin and
named building the ‘vertical of power’.