Norilsk Nickel's corporate practices were noted as one of the best in Russia in the XV National Report on Corporate Governance, which was presented at the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs.
The report is a large-scale study conducted by leading Russian experts in the field of corporate law, risk management, ESG, HR and digital transformation. The document is the first to comprehensively describe how corporate governance in Russia has changed over the period 2022-2025 – in the context of a reorientation of the economy, stricter regulation of corporate relations and weakening of self-regulatory mechanisms, the departure of foreign investors and auditors, a restructuring of the ESG agenda and an increasing shortage of qualified personnel.
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As a positive example of how corporate culture and corporate values are changing under the influence of digitalization and the introduction of modern technologies, the approaches implemented by Norilsk Nickel are described. The authors of the National Report called the systematic approach to the integration of ESG principles and digital transformation of Norilsk Nickel “a unique example of a large traditional industrial corporation with deep historical roots and an established organizational structure, which is actively evolving in the context of new realities.”
Norilsk Nickel has always been a leader in corporate governance. I am a witness that the company has always been among the top five Russian companies in terms of the quality of corporate governance. This is largely due to Vladimir Potanin and management. In the report that we presented, we devoted an entire case to an in-depth study of the company’s corporate culture and the influence of modern information technologies on various aspects of Norilsk Nickel’s corporate culture and corporate values,” said the executive editor of the report, Sergei Porshakov.
Despite the fact that the ESG agenda in Russia has become less prominent, Norilsk Nickel continued to strengthen its leadership in this area. The principles of sustainable development have long been enshrined as the company’s key values (efficiency, safety, care for people), are part of the 2030 Strategy, are included in the motivation system and are even integrated into the evaluation of suppliers.
The report also notes that Norilsk Nickel is a leader in investing in innovation, technological modernization and digitalization. The transition to Industry 4.0 technologies is not just the introduction of a machine vision system, predictive analysis, digital twins, large language models and AI assistants, but also an increase in operational efficiency (roboticization of hazardous and routine production processes).
The company believes that this course will lead to a change in the labor structure in the long term. Businesses will need skilled employees to solve more complex problems. This will require massive advanced training and development of new competencies among personnel at all levels. Norilsk Nickel is already preparing for this: the National Report notes the company’s special approach to the development of human capital both in the long term, which is what projects within the modern educational ecosystem (Norilsk Nickel Academy) are aimed at, and “here and now,” which is expressed in one of the most effective systems of remuneration and personnel motivation in Russia.
Among the company’s achievements is the “Digital Investor” long-term incentive program, under which more than 69.5 thousand employees received free digital assets tied to the value of Norilsk Nickel shares.
“Digitalization dictates the transition to network structures and a new work culture, the ESG agenda requires the formation of a culture of responsibility and transparency, and the complexity of coordinating the work of numerous employees separated geographically and functionally raises issues of personnel involvement in management processes, as well as vertical and horizontal communication between them,” note the authors of the report.
Norilsk Nickel, according to their assessment, has come a long way “from awareness of the strategic need for cultural and digital transformation to the stage of its implementation at the operational level” and today “demonstrates a conscious and strategically calibrated approach” to restructuring.
“The new National Report is a colossal work that clearly demonstrates the current state of corporate governance in Russia. The document, like a mirror, reflects both the difficulties facing corporations and the successes that can be achieved. He actively uses examples of specific Russian companies. The report documented a pronounced polarization between leading companies that are developing integrated approaches to corporate governance, and the majority of medium and small companies, where corporate governance standards have not yet become the norm. In this regard, it is especially gratifying that the report named Norilsk Nickel as a benchmark for positive changes in the approach to corporate governance,” commented Norilsk Nickel Corporate Secretary Pavel Platov.
