Heads of small Russian towns: is it possible to step into the same river twice?

This article is based on the materials of an empirical study conducted in two different cities of Shuya and Kineshma in the Ivanovo region and one district in the same region. The study was conducted in 2011, 2018 and 2023 in the city of Shuya, in the city of Kineshma in 2018, and in the Rodniki district in 2023. The purpose of the study: to describe changes in management strategies, personal characteristics and team building of heads during the second coming to power in the same city in different periods. The study was conducted using the interview method. A total of 17 interviews were conducted in the city of Shuya in 2011, 12 in 2018 and 17 interviews in 2023. The Rodniki case included 16 interviews in 2018, conducted during the tenure of the former head of Rodniki as the head of the city of Kineshma, and 15 interviews in 2023, when the previous head returned to his place in 2021 in the Rodnikovsky district. Thus, the analysis is based on the materials of 77 interviews taken from the heads themselves, members of their teams, and representatives of the local elite. The results obtained give reason to assume that control over the situation by the regional authorities is not always a total evil. If this control is carried out not with the aim of punishing, but helping, it gives positive results. Heads today still need to interact with strong players in power, since the situation of governance in small towns today requires them to improve management technologies, which are built up precisely in the process of interaction with such entities The analysis also showed that it is possible to enter power twice. Moreover, the second period of work in power as a head is usually more effective than the first. In the second period, it is possible to avoid the mistakes that were made earlier. At the same time, the city leader can change when new tasks arise. However, the scale of personal and professional changes can be different. The higher the motivation, the greater the likelihood of positive changes. However, no clear patterns were revealed here. Much depends on the socio-economic situation, the attitude of the governor and the desire of the heads themselves to change in order to be as effective as possible. It is important that the position of the elites regarding the activities of the heads largely depends on who headed this city (district) before. If the previous head was weak, the more positive will be the assessments of the heads who returned to work in the city (district) for the second term.

city head, district head, team, personal changes, local elites’ perception of changes, governor, curator