The article presents the theoretical and methodological results of modeling the economic activity of enterprises, obtained in the Laboratory of Methods and Mechanisms of Enterprise Management of the Central Economics and Mathematics Institute, the Russian Academy of Sciences from 1963 to the present, and shows the meaningful logic of the development of scientific research data in their chronological sequence. Initially, research in the Laboratory began to be carried out in two directions: a) methodology for creating automated control systems in enterprises and industries; b) economic and mathematical modeling of production plans. Within the framework of the first direction, methodological materials were first developed that determine the composition of automated management systems for enterprises with a discrete nature of production. Within the second, the main one, economic and mathematical tools for making planning decisions by enterprises were developed based on complexes of multi-level models, where special attention is paid to the vertical and horizontal coordination of planning decisions using systems of economic and mathematical models. Work related to economic and mathematical modeling of planned activities at different levels of management in an enterprise continues to the present day. In the last decade, the range of research of the Laboratory has expanded, and new, urgent tasks of rationalizing the activities of domestic enterprises have been added to the traditional areas. In particular, the tasks of structural transformation of vertically connected industries; mechanisms for establishing productive inter-company cooperation ties; ways to rationalize enterprise management in the context of digital transformation; measures to activate the human capital of enterprises. The presented results allow us to assert that the Laboratory remains among the active developers of economic and mathematical models for managing domestic production enterprises.

The current stage of development of the Russian economy and society is characterized by the need to bring a coherent scientific paradigm (theory) under the economic state policy. The need to choose and substantiate such a paradigm is a complex and, at the same time, an urgent task over the past 20–30 years. For these purposes, the concept of «paradigm» is analyzed. The significance of the choice of the economic paradigm is substantiated as the basis of the economic and social system of the Russian society, influencing the economic policy of the state and the choice of its instruments. The significance of economic theory (paradigm) in the interpretation of empirical data and their relationship is substantiated. One and the same phenomenon can be interpreted in different ways, depending on the theory in which the empirical data and the results of their analysis are interpreted. On the example of the role of the state in the economy, its various interpretations are given, depending on the chosen economic theory. The existence of a crisis in the current scientific paradigm is argued and the need to form a new one is substantiated. The paper analyzes two approaches to changing the scientific paradigm: revolutionary (T. Kuhn) and evolutionary (J. M. Keynes). A review of scientific paradigms (economic theories) proposed as a civilizational paradigm by Russian researchers-economists over the past 15 years is carried out. Evidence is provided that the current economic paradigm substantively and methodologically incorporates aspects of three concepts: the concept of a service state, the concept of an effective state (good governance) and the concept of sustainable development. At a higher level, the new concept should be based on a systems paradigm. The shortcomings of the existing concept are analyzed. The feasibility is substantiated and the need to include the moral aspect (ethics, trust) in the construction of the Russia’s economic paradigm is argued.

Successful social and economic development of the country, including stable economic growth, improving the welfare of the population is impossible in unstable demographic situation. Alongside rather extensive research on demographic topics in our country, most of the present work study is devoted to the study research in of patterns and trends at the country level, and not in the regional aspect. The relevance of the research topic is confirmed by the Decree of the President of the Russian Federation on national development goals (№ 474, 21.07.2020), the first of which is the maintenance of the population, health and well-being of the people, implementation of the national project «Demography», development of various programs to stabilize the demographic situation at the regional level. The main purpose of the study is a comprehensive review of the characteristics of demographic trends in the Samara Region and the study of opportunities for their stabilization. To achieve the stated goal, the tasks were set to conduct a comprehensive statistical analysis of the current regional demographic situation in the Samara Region and its comparative analysis in the regions of Privolzhsky Federal District, identify the causes that provide the transformation of the size and structure of the population, study planned regional documents to stabilize the demographic situation. In the process of studying the demographic situation, the following features of the development of the Samara region were revealed: an increase in demographic burden on the able-bodied population with a simultaneous reduction in its number; negative dynamics in the indicators of population reproduction; pessimistic trend in the formation of the family institution and deformed gender and age structure of the population. The article systematizes the home scientific practice of compiling integral indicators for measuring the demographic situation. The integrated assessment of the demographic situation proposed in the study and its practical application on statistical data from the regions of the Privolzhsky Federal District using a multidimensional non-parametric method confirms the presence of negative trends in the Samara Region. It should be noted that programs aimed at stabilizing the demographic situation are being implemented in the region. At the same time, within the framework of the planned regional demographic policy, it is proposed to take into account a number of measures proposed in the study.

The article examines information channels for the dissemination of the results of scientific achievements. The goal is to initiate processes for the development of the scientific institute and its research staff to improve communication with the environment. The study is based on the analysis of the specifics of the activities of a scientific organization of economic profile. We have identified key elements such as the lack of competition between scientific organizations in the classical form, the principle of free dissemination of scientific knowledge and others. The author identifies four areas in which communication can be carried out. These are science itself, as well as education, business and society. Each direction has the specifics in framing communication channels: by the nature of the transmitted information, by the type of intermediaries who ensure the dissemination of information etc. The concept of a scientific product is important. This is the transformed result of research, which becomes convenient for consumption by various target audiences. We offer several long-term solutions. These are aimed at the creation of special tools and methods that would promote scientific results, raise awareness in the scientific community, as well as develop other communications. These approaches are implemented in several ways. These are combining the strategy of a scientific organization with the strategies of its key employees; creating specialized departments that aimed at helping to disseminate information about the achievements of their employees; activating external communications etc. The main economic trends are the creation of competence centers and technology transfer centers.

Infrastructural support of activities plays an important role in improving the efficiency of organizations. In modern conditions, the interaction of organizations and their cooperation to achieve their goals is becoming particularly relevant. The problems of interaction between small & medium businesses and higher education are coming to the fore. This is due to the fact that economy needs personnel with modern competencies that are constantly changing, and without interaction between business and education, it is almost impossible to form such competencies. Interaction between business and education is considered in modern scientific works, but the features of interaction between small & medium businesses and higher education are not studied deep enough. The purpose of the study is to design a methodology for assessing the infrastructural support of interaction between small & medium businesses and higher education, based on the analysis of a set of indicators presented by economics and by the author. The study was carried out using the methodology of ranking economic indicators and a survey in the form of a questionnaire. The results are systematized and presented in the form of a system of indicators. As a result of the study, a methodology was proposed for assessing the infrastructural support of interaction between small & medium businesses and higher education, including, along economic, indicators obtained by the survey method. The study made possible to identify risk indicators and areas for making management decisions in improving the efficiency of small & medium businesses and higher education.

The researchers generally monitor the dynamics in scientific areas following the relatively less popular micropublications, but also attending the scientific events – ​conferences, round tables, seminars. Modeling of socio-economic systems is one of the rapidly developing areas, and the latest results, the promising ideas, and the new hypotheses were discussed at the events on artificial societies and supercomputer technologies held in September 2023. These events are the conference «Artificial Societies and Information Technologies» and the round table «Supercomputer Technologies and Artificial Societies». The relevance of the topics of the events justify an overview of the research in this subject area. The common issues among the reports presented underpin the consistent summary of the messages ensuring the clarity of the narration. The main issues of the events involve the application of agent-based models for public administration and methodological aspects of computer models.