Essay The Effectiveness of Wittes Economic Reform in Russia

The Effectiveness of Wittes Economic Reform in Russia When Sergei Witte became minister of finance in Russia in 1892 he recognised that the economy had to be modernised if Russia was to become a world power on a par with the west. The Industrial Revolution that had taken place in the west had led to its massive economic growth and an increase in power and Empire building. Being able to buy cheap, raw materials like oil and coal from Russia fuelled part of the west’s industrial revolution. Witte decided that Russia needed state Capitalism to modernise. He borrowed capital and encouraged investment from the west and large factories began to produce heavy industry like steel. Witte imposed†¦show more content†¦Wittes economic policy seemed to be working as by 1897 the Russian currency, the Rouble, was put on the Gold Standard which gave it value in exchange with other currencies. But there were other problems that were beginning to undermine Wittes visions for a successful economy. Although a brilliant mind, Witte was not an easy man to get on with and he was not popular with the Tsarist court or the government. Change was resisted and Witte had no support for his vision of a richer, more powerful, modernised Russia. There was also conflict with the military commanders who pushed their needs for transport and military hardware to the top of the economic agenda. These conflicts interfered with Wittes plans and so by the time of the Great Trade Recession at the turn of the century, critics could identify three major weaknesses in his economic reform. Witte paid To drive his economic reform through without support or interest from the Tsarist court or the government Witte (who was German) brought in many experienced foreign industrialist and capital from the west to manage and finance his projects. This was not at all popular with the Tsar or Russia who did not trust him. Wittes industrial projects were always large and on a grand scale. He failed to nurture light engineering projects which would have helped to moderniseShow MoreRelatedStrategic Marketing Management337596 Words   |  1351 Pages75 77 79 79 80 81 86 88 89 101 102 104 107 109 Stage One: Where are we now? Strategic and marketing analysis 2 Marketing auditing and the analysis of capability 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 Learning objectives Introduction Reviewing marketing effectiveness The role of SWOT analysis Competitive advantage and the value chain Conducting effective audits Summary 3 Segmental, productivity and ratio analysis 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 3.9 3.10 3.11 3.12 Learning objectives Introduction The clarification