Irina А. Plaksina

In modern conditions, the higher education system of the Russian Federation is characterized by high degree of changeability. It is caused by need of quick and adequate response to changes of internal and external environment. The specified changes are determined by the nature of requirements and interests of stakeholders, which interact with higher education institutions: satisfaction of needs of stakeholders becomes an ultimate goal of development and the most important condition of existence of any organization, including the sector of higher education. Therefore, stakeholders become the main driving forces (drivers) of change in activity of higher education institutions. The research goal is to systematize drivers of change in the higher education system of the Russian Federation. The main research methods are analysis (for detection of the set of drivers of change), classification (for allocation of types of drivers), and the construction method of managerial models (for creation of matrices of changes). Following the research results, current changes in activity of Russian higher education institutions are divided into 4 types: changes in educational, research, innovation and entrepreneurial management activity. The main groups of stakeholders (drivers of change) are distinguished, and their influence on change in activity of higher education institutions is justified. Drivers of change are classified by 2 features: “by attitude to a higher education institution” – into external and internal, “by nature” – into obligatory and initiative. The matrices of necessary and initiative changes are designed. They create interrelation between types of changes and their influence on interests of key stakeholders of Russian higher education institutions (effects, which can be favorable, unfavorable and neutral). The possibility of using the matrices of changes as a tool of managerial decision-making in activity of Russian universities is justified.