From time to time, discussions about the shortage of qualified personnel—or “staff hunger”—resurface in Armenia. How are these issues being addressed, or how can they be solved? On this occasion, I would like to highlight two examples: one from abroad and one local.
Immediately after his election, Donald Trump created the Department of Government Efficiency, granting it extensive powers. The department is led by Elon Musk, currently the world’s richest man. Musk’s tenure in this role has been met with severe criticism—he has dismissed thousands of employees or placed them on forced leave.
However, Trump came into office with a clear agenda and is implementing it through his team. Whether that agenda is good, and whether its methods—particularly those based on “technological optimism” (which is why Musk was chosen)—are justified, is for Americans to decide. But one cannot deny a certain logic behind it.
In contrast, Armenia’s government frequently changes its programs and objectives. When a Prime Minister contradicts himself a thousand times between 2018 and 2025, how can any serious specialist be expected to work with such a government?
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The second story comes from Ara Tadevosyan’s book “Ruben Vardanyan: “Don Quixote” and “Dragons”, which I found particularly interesting. On September 13, 2016, Karen Karapetyan was appointed Prime Minister. This event greatly encouraged Ruben Vardanyan, who wrote a letter to the newly appointed leader. As far as I understand, excerpts from this letter are published for the first time in the book.
“We need…” Vardanyan writes, before listing several key proposals. Among them are a “center for assessing people and competencies” and a “center for spiritual revival and cultural traditions.” The reason these two are presented as part of the same vision is clear: Armenia’s human resource crisis cannot be resolved with opportunists, self-seekers, or cynics. Expanding on this idea, Vardanyan suggests:
“We need to attract ‘300 Spartans’—people who will leave their comfortable lives abroad to come work for us.”
I believe these proposals remain relevant today. However, they are impossible to implement under current conditions, where securing or keeping a position depends on cursing out Pashinyan’s opponents as much as possible or having the right family and personal connections.
And beyond that, after 2020, many wouldn’t even want to be associated with a government that is leading the country to ruin.
Aram ABRAHAMYAN
