Ranking-Based Municipalities’ Leadership: Quality of Life Evaluation Technology and Management

The article is devoted to the management of sustainable development of municipalities based on their ranking in terms of the life quality of the population and identifying a leader. The aim of the study was to modernize the methodological approach to assessing the quality of life of the population within the municipality to find ways of improving it. In the article, the authors reveal the features of assessing the quality of life at the municipal level. The use of an insufficient number of indicators at the municipality level to fully characterize it; the lack of considering indicators that take into account the highest level in the hierarchy of needs (political freedom, ecology, the possibility of self-realization), and the underestimation of the development characteristics of various territories and factors affecting the quality of life—are those main features. The necessity of expanding the quality of life indicators for municipalities through the introduction of new ones into the assessment is justified. The methodology for ranking the quality of life at the level of municipalities is described. The proposed methodology makes it possible to assess the quality of life at the level of the municipality taking into account the statistical indicators that are determined in the municipality, to rank the territories by the quality of life of the population. It also helps to conduct comparative inter-municipal analysis and identify reserves for raising the quality of life. The proposed methodology was tested by comparing the three similar municipalities of the Sverdlovsk region (Russia). Based on a comparative analysis of objective and subjective assessments of the quality of life of the population areas, the steps for improving the quality of life of the population are identified. This was conducted for the Serovsk, Severouralsk, and Krasnoturinsk municipalities in the field of labor relations, employment, education, health, culture, sports, housing policy, transport and communications, as well as the income policy which all can be used for developing a strategy for the development of a municipality.