Authors:

A.E. Shastitko1,2, S.I. Fedorov1,2

1 Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA), Moscow, Russia

2 Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia

Abstract:

Discussions on the issues of economic organization tend to overlook the sources of a firm’s dynamic competitiveness. This matter becomes particularly relevant in the context of import substitution policy designed to cultivate a resource endowment effect within enterprises. The purpose of the article is to introduce readers to a new analytical framework in organizational economics – the neo-Austrian theory of the firm – which lacks adequate representation in Russian economic discourse. The research methodology, in addition to the neo-Austrian theory of the firm (Nikolai Foss, Peter Klein), is grounded in the theories of entrepreneurship (Israel Kirzner, Jesús Huerta de Soto, et al.) as well as the theory of transaction costs (Oliver Williamson, Claude Ménard, et al.). The work employs both statistical analysis and case study analysis. The paper draws upon official statistical data on key parameters of the Russian automotive industry from 2010 to 2025, aggregated data on new car sales between 2016 and 2025, and results of the surveys conducted by the Russian Public Opinion Research Center (WCIOM) in 2008 and 2023. The findings indicate insufficient incentives for the Russian automotive industry to engage in entrepreneurial activity. The underlying causes for this problem may lie in the resource endowment effect that circumvents competition mechanisms and thereby erodes incentives to compete. The issue can be mitigated by shifting the focus from rationing resources among enterprises to creating competitive environment to acquire those resources through both state industrial support measures and intra-firm governance practices. The research demonstrates that the illusion of control, or Hayek’s “fatal conceit”, is inherent in not only centrally planned national economies but also any hierarchical systems. The adverse effects stemming from the illusion of control can be alleviated by designing and sustaining incentives that encourage economic agents to experiment and discover new resources or explore alternative applications of existing ones. The paper demonstrates the importance of developing positive interdisciplinary discourse in economics and its potential for solving practical problems of economic development.

Keywords: entrepreneurship; entrepreneurial income; economic regulation; automotive market; the Austrian school of economics; the theory of the firm.

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For citation: Shastitko A.E., Fedorov S.I. (2026). Ownership competence: Problems of the Russian automotive industry development from the perspective of the neo-Austrian theory of the firm. Upravlenets / The Manager, vol. 17, no. 2, pp. 38–53. DOI: 10.29141/2218-5003-2026-17-2-3. EDN: DDEGCY.