This article analyses the influence of different types of economic proximity (geographical, organisational, technological and social) of business units of multidisciplinary organisations on the effectiveness of their innovative activities. The conducted research is based on a survey of a sample of 83 holdings belonging to 27 MCOs (a total of 189 respondents). The analysis confirmed that most of the companies surveyed associate increased efficiency of innovation activities with organisational and technological proximity, while geographical and social proximity are significantly underestimated by respondents. It was also possible to identify separate profiles of different types of economic proximity of the business units in the sample. Thus, the net profit from the sale of new products is more influenced by technological and social proximity, the introduction of new products to the market is influenced by technological and geographical proximity, and the growth in the number of patents registered is influenced by organisational, technological and social proximity.

Based on econometric estimates, our results suggest that while all types of proximity have a positive effect on the introduction of new products to the market, only organisational and technological proximity have a direct effect on net profits from the sale of new products.

The article discusses issues of ensuring economic security as one of the most important qualitative characteristics of logistics systems, which determines the ability to ensure the established parameters of material flows in the process of goods distribution when implementing digital systems and technologies. Contemporary risks and threats characteristic of the development of digital transport and logistics ecosystems are analysed. The key factors for ensuring economic security and their importance in logistics are examined from the point of view of ensuring operational control over compliance with established key indicators of product distribution. An interpretation of the concept of ‘economic security’ is given from the point of view of protecting a business entity from external and internal threats in order to increase the level of competitiveness and sustainability of business in the market. The issues of ensuring the parameters of goods distribution within the established thresholds are addressed in order to achieve the optimal functioning of the goods distribution system and to ensure the economic activity of the enterprise with all the necessary resources. Logistics systems are studied for the effective organisation and management of material flows, aimed at ensuring the reliability of operations and the implementation of the strategy of economic entities. The need to use modern digital technologies to increase the level of economic security in logistics systems and to ensure the transparency, controllability and traceability of material flows in the field of goods distribution has been demonstrated. At the same time, the very fact of digitising cargo delivery processes is considered from the perspective of the ecosystem paradigm and the platform concept. The patterns of transformation of traditional logistics operators into providers of digital logistics services are substantiated. A model of a cyber-physical ecosystem in logistics has been developed, enabling end-to-end management of business processes and data exchange in the distribution of goods.

The article focuses on the problem of designing, constructing, measuring and interpreting indices for assessing the digital transformation of manufacturing companies. We analyse the compositional features, advantages and limitations of the three indices, which are a fairly focused on comparing industrial sectors (or at least extended groups of industries) according to their level of digital transformation or digital maturity: Industrial Digitalisation Index MGI McKinsey, Smart Industry Readiness Index (SIRI) of the World Economic Forum, Digitalisation Index for Economy and Social Sectors by the Higher School of Economics. The main thesis of the article is the need to develop a unified, continuous and relevant index of digital transformation for manufacturing companies, taking into account all the positive experiences in the conceptual and methodological development of digitalisation assessment indices that research and analysis teams have managed to develop so far. At the same time, the author points out the need to avoid retrospective construction of indices based on lagging statistical data. It seems very important to take into account the need to introduce a strategic vector when measuring the level of digital transformation of manufacturing companies. It is not enough to simply aggregate indicators of digital adoption and identify certain indices or sub-indices as the main markers of digital transformation. From a statistical point of view, such an approach can be perfectly correct, reliable, and verifiable.Questions arise about the productive potential of clustered technologies in the context of evolving business models, particularly in manufacturing. As a part of constructing any indices and methods for assessing the dynamics of digital maturity, digitalisation, digital transformation, it is better to face the inevitable uncertainty about the potential of some frontier technologies in an attempt to foresee the intersections of technological factors and future niches for business models, than to try to generalise the trajectory already traversed with a more retrospective logic based only on the verified and more tested parts and layers of the technologies. With this approach, digital transformation indices for manufacturing companies take on projective and instrumental functions, as they serve, in a sense, as a roadmap. They make it possible to improve the strategic vision of companies in different sectors, as well as their stakeholders, associations and public authorities (especially those in charge of digitalisation and industrial policy), with a view to achieving later stages of digital maturity.

Entering foreign markets is an important area of strategic development for SMEs. It allows you to secure higher growth rates, expand the use of limited but often unique resources, gain access to key strategic partners, extend the life cycle of products, diversify risks, etc. Like any strategic decision, the organisation of export activities requires a thorough analysis of internal and external factors, both favorable and unfavorable, in order to justify the choice of the most promising and appropriate markets, to adapt your products or services to them, to assess their competitiveness, and to develop strategies for entering and promoting the selected markets. Recent years have seen many significant changes in the composition and nature of these influences. Therefore, the purpose of this article is to identify and structure the factors that influence the performance of Russian export-oriented SMEs, as well as to substantiate the methodological tools for assessing such influence in order to make informed strategic decisions. A comparative analysis of the factors influencing the efficiency of Russian SMEs in foreign markets was carried out with a view to assessing their export potential. The analysis is completed by highlighting the risks and opportunities associated with the spread of digital technologies and the introduction of sanctions restrictions. A classifier of factors and conditions affecting the efficiency of export activities is proposed. The structure of the indicator system for assessing the effectiveness of SME export activities has been defined. The SWOT matrix format highlights factors that have a significant impact on the ability and results of Russian SMEs’ export activities. A comparative description of methods for assessing such influence is given. The advantages of the cognitive modelling method for reflecting the complex and dynamic nature of the relationships between factors and the outcomes of export activities are demonstrated. The basic rules for constructing cognitive maps are presented.

Jewellery made of precious stones and metals is a luxury item, referring to goods with excessive consumer properties. At the same time, the sphere of turnover of precious metals, precious stones (PMPS) and products made from them is of strategic importance for the formation and development of the state economy. Businesses operating in this sphere are subject to compulsory registration in a special state register. The government is interested in supporting the jewellery industry and increasing its turnover, which is directly dependent on the population’s demand for PMPS products.

Popular demand, in turn, depends on many factors that have their own specificities in relation to the area under study. An assessment of the factors based on expert opinion, conducted by the author with interviews of a group of consumers, the study of scientific research materials and journalistic articles from various Internet resources, indicates the acceptable superiority of offers of jewellery made of precious stones and metals, focused on the potential increase in the possibilities of sunlight.

The conclusions presented in the paper on the factors influencing demand are recommended for use in the development of business development strategies and may be useful in making decisions on state regulation of the sale of jewellery made from PMPS.

The purpose of this study is to identify ways to improve the effectiveness of risk management, thereby bridging the gap between the increasing needs of organisations and their current capabilities based on the study of past civilisational crises. To solve this task the main ethical factors that contributed to the success of bifurcation transitions in the past were identified through the analysis of turning points in history: the Upper Paleolithic Revolution, the Axial Age Revolution and the Industrial Revolution, using the model of minimum necessary social stability developed by the author based on the hypothesis of techno-humanitarian balance. Starting from the current position of the society on the eve of the next bifurcation transition, a comparative analysis of the ethical factors that made past successes possible with the current practice of risk management in organisations was carried out. The following factors were highlighted as priorities for the implementation in risk management practice: working together to achieve common goals, establishing and adhering to uniform rules for achieving common goals, and creating a favourable environment for the targeted use of human creative potential. As a result, a scheme has been proposed to complement current risk management practices by incorporating higher level ethical factors that promote rational goal setting, as well as involving the creative skills and efforts of lower level stakeholders in situational response. The proposed scheme can help to strengthen the impact of risk management, both for the organisations themselves and, indirectly, for society.

The article highlights relevance of a socially oriented bank in the financial sector of the country’s economy, the specifics of its strategy and banking services. The relevance of the study lies in the need to examine complex issues of access to financial services. The purpose of the article is to substantiate the author’s position on the relevance of the strategy of a socially oriented bank. The research methodology used in the work includes: a historical method, a systematic method, a method of scientific abstraction and theoretical knowledge, not excluding logical approaches and mathematical calculations. In the course of the research, a scientific hypothesis is put forward about the impossibility of the existence of a socially oriented bank without banking services that differ in criteria from the general market. The conclusions drawn help us to actively discuss the need to increase the level of accessibility of financial services to the population of the country and to raise issues of competition in the banking sector. They broaden the discussion on commercial bank interest rates and their role in stabilising the country’s economy. The author’s position, in the conclusions, reflects the relationship of the bank’s customer, as a part of society and a commercial bank, with its services as a platform for the availability of financial services. The author concludes that there is virtually no competition between the leading banks and that the total cost of the loan varies in the range of 20-40%. Considering the bank’s customers as a part of society, the author raises social issues of financial stability of the country’s citizens through the prism of accessibility of financial services. And the financial stability of the company and the attractiveness of internal financing are important, relevant and complex issues in modern Russia.

The scientific novelty of the article lies in the fact that it explains the relationship between society and the state through financial institutions and the services they provide, reflecting the bank’s social policy as an integral part of its strategy.