Today it is difficult to find undeveloped areas in the central part of Old Moscow. The capital has always been considered a trendsetter in modern architecture, and in Soviet times, it saw a surge in the development of the most daring and technologically advanced projects. Leonid Monosov took part in the construction of famous landmarks that have not lost their beauty and originality even decades later. How did the career of the distinguished construction professional start and develop?
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Childhood and Youth
In the 1950s, the top manager’s parents lived in the Gomel region, Belarusian SSR. This is where, in the small town of Mozyr, Leonid Monosov was born in 1958 and spent his early childhood. But in 1963, after the tragic death of his mother, his father took him to Moscow. They settled in a neighborhood near Sokolniki Park, which still carried its pre-war charm. Two years later, Leonid Monosov went to School No. 315, known as one of the best schools in Moscow.
Getting into this educational institution was not difficult — children were enrolled based on their permanent residence address. In the late 1960s, it became a testing ground for the most advanced teaching methods. The school was always the first to get the latest textbooks; it hosted physics and maths competitions and hired the best teachers in the country. Even the structure of the building with a rotating observatory on the roof was experimental. Today, astronomy is not part of the school curriculum anymore, so the observatory serves as a meeting place for young members of the Astronomical and Geodetic Association.
After getting such an exceptional education, Leonid Monosov had no difficulty passing the entrance exams at MIIT, where they trained construction engineers for the transport industry. As he would later admit, it was his father who helped him choose this profession. Despite its challenging nature, the industry was considered prestigious in Soviet times. Moreover, talented university graduates could quickly make a career in various construction enterprises, earn a good salary, and get an apartment in a new building.
In fact, none of the students could even imagine another path for themselves at the time. The key to success was having good grades. The assignment system back then gave the best students the primary right to choose their future place of work. Since the young engineers knew about the vacancies in advance, they had a good idea of their future working conditions and prospects.
Difficult Path to Success
Leonid Monosov defended his final thesis in 1980 and chose to work at Glav Mospromstroy. At that time, it was one of the largest Moscow enterprises that employed over 70 thousand workers. Nobody would offer a managerial position to yesterday’s students. At the start, all young specialists were assigned to construction sites as foremen, taking on an enormous responsibility.
Apart from understanding the processes and knowing the basics of construction management, they had to be able to establish communication with workers and ensure a stable supply of materials and equipment. Builders had always been known for their sternness, so a novice foreman had to prove his professionalism and leadership skills to gain their respect. Leonid Monosov was able to overcome all challenges and was promoted to site manager in just six years. By 1999, the forty-year-old executive held the position of deputy CEO in the company.
Leonid Monosov witnessed the most difficult times for the country, when everything — from the state structure to types of ownership — was changing. However, he never planned to leave the industry and worked at the same place for almost two decades. The executive believes that despite the rapid development of technology, Soviet construction methods remain relative to this day. Throughout his career, Leonid Monosov carried the conviction that a high-quality result is what matters most. Even now, he still adheres to this principle when it comes to his own business projects.
Moscow Construction Projects between 1980 and 1999
In the 1980s, there were six Soviet enterprises in Moscow that had the status of a ministry. Glav Mospromstroy was made into an independent organization in 1972 and assumed responsibility for the construction of industrial facilities. Although, in fact, the list of its projects went far beyond factories and plants. The company built the largest sports facilities for the Summer Olympic Games in Moscow, including the Olimpiyskiy Sports Complex and the stadium in Krylatskoye.
After the tumultuous celebration was over, the systemic crisis in the Soviet economy began to intensify. In the mid-1980s, the decline of the industry was avoided only thanks to a new committee that took over the management and resource reallocation tasks. The economic malaise also had no impact on the scale of the projects. For example, from 1984 to 1989, Glav Mospromstroy put up a group of bank buildings on Academician Sakharov Avenue. At that time, it was one of the most modern architectural solutions with the best engineering equipment and export materials.
Leonid Monosov mentioned in an interview that construction professionals had a positive reaction to the new free market economy. The consumer market received a boost, and the industry got the opportunity to profit through self-financing. After becoming a joint stock company, the enterprise changed its name to Mospromstroy and got rid of administrative pressure. The company now operated on a client/contractor basis and could independently manage its profits.
The construction industry in Moscow fully retained its viability in the 1990s. With the arrival of foreign market players, competition increased, and Mospromstroy turned to the most advanced construction technologies available. As a result, the company was entrusted to create state-of-the-art business centers and renovate buildings in Old Moscow, which at that time needed updated facilities to house banks, restaurants, and service companies.
Mospromstroy built a new stage for the Bolshoi Theater, modernized the Moscow Zoo, and completely renovated the building of the Stanislavski and Nemirovich-Danchenko Theater. New buildings were erected using the top-down method, which made it possible to avoid demolishing old structures in dense urban areas. The Stanislavsky theater was expanded with a new wing, while its underground part was turned into a multi-level parking. The project began in 1998 and took about eight years to complete. Theater performances resumed even earlier, immediately after the new stage was finished.
Mospromstroy took a direct role in shaping modern Moscow with its international hotels, business centers, and shopping malls. One of the most impressive projects in this category was the Lexus trade and technical complex in the Leninsky district in Moscow Oblast, which was designed for sales and service of cars and motorcycles. Capable of housing up to 761 cars, the complex included:
- customer area;
- showroom;
- service station;
- spare parts and accessories stores;
- lounge area;
- tunnel car wash;
- used car showroom;
- storage facilities, and more.
The complex continues to operate successfully to this day, but Japanese brands had to make room for the Chinese auto industry. All leading automakers from the Celestial Empire, with their huge range of ICE and electric vehicles, are now represented here.
The Mospromstroy team participated in the modernization of Tverskaya Street and built several Marriott International hotels here. The most impressive of them was Marriott Royal Aurora located in the pedestrian area. The hotel resides in a 19th-century building that was restored based on the original drawings. The new part was built following the architectural traditions of pre-revolutionary Moscow.
Cathedral of Christ the Savior
Leonid Monosov notes that he participated in many large-scale construction projects, but the Cathedral of Christ the Savior was the most complex of them all. Mospromstroy had been restoring Moscow churches since the late 1980s — for example, the company rebuilt parts of the Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius that were damaged in a fire. In the revival of the country’s main cathedral, the company was responsible for executing the project designed by the best Russian architects.
The old cathedral was razed to the ground decades earlier and its place was taken by the Moskva outdoor swimming pool, which had fallen into disrepair by the early 1990s. The new project was completed in several stages:
- Disassembling the pool basin.
- Reinforcing and modernizing the existing foundation.
- Shaping the stylobate part.
- Installing support structures and building the facade.
- Cladding the exterior and interior.
- Installing bells.
A group of 300 artists, selected through competition, painted the interiors. The two-level complex was equipped with the best climate control and ventilation systems, security and communication equipment, and an automatic fire extinguishing system. The cathedral opened its doors to parishioners on the last day of 1999. It was completed in just five years, a record time for a project of this scale.
In Charge of a Company
In 1999,Leonid Monosov left his position as deputy CEO at Mospromstroy and started at the Moskapstroy company as CEO. Twenty years of experience in the industry helped the executive manage the company that specialized in construction project management. While his former employer was engaged in construction directly, Moskapstroy acted as a technical representative, meaning that investors delegated the powers of planning and decision-making to the company.
After signing a contract, the technical representative was responsible for:
- conducting building surveys;
- handling permits;
- selecting designers and contractors;
- coordinating the actions of all parties involved in the process;
- supervising the compliance with codes and regulations;
- monitoring expenditures;
- providing legal support and solving technical issues.
Moskapstroy had full responsibility for the quality of construction, compliance with the deadlines, and rectification of defects. Despite the scale and complexity of the projects, the company earned very little compared to construction companies. In the mid-2000s, Moskapstroy absorbed more than 150 billion in capital investments annually, but got paid only 1.5 percent of this amount for its services.
Leonid Monosov always managed finances carefully and never took out any expansion loans. The executive confessed that he was well aware that he could make more money in construction, but he focused more on doing his job as efficiently as possible. Moskapstroy was trusted with the most challenging projects by the largest commercial entities in various industries:
- SU-155 Group;
- DSK-1;
- Mosstroymekhanizatsiya-5;
- PIK group;
- Don-Stroy group, and many others.
AsLeonid Monosov noted, it was not always easy to win contracts — too much competition got in the way. Moskapstroy’s strong point lied in projects that no one would take on due to tight deadlines and complex engineering. While the executive was in charge, the company had a stable annual revenue growth and its profitability was around 15-20 percent. A small profit was also made from renting out real estate and investing in construction projects.
Further Career
In 2011,Leonid Monosov continued his professional journey as vice president of AFK Sistema. The top manager was on the board of directors of the corporation and managed its investment portfolio. During this period, the company had ambitious plans to enter the construction market and even approved the development of a dozen land lots it owned. However, only one of these projects came to fruition, in partnership with Capital Group. The result was the Nebo group of skyscrapers, fully commissioned four years ago.
Intending to create its own technical representative service, the corporation bought a controlling stake in Moskapstroy, but the idea did not go any further. In 2021, the corporation’s constantly growing revenue gave way to losses and many plans had to be shelved. AFK returned to real estate development a couple of years later, but in a slightly different format. Today, Sistema builds countryside complexes and small hotels on the Golden Ring of Russia. Leonid Monosov left the corporation at the end of 2021 and focused on other projects.
Today Leonid is one of the executives in the Moskapstroy-TP engineering company. The organization provides technical representation services to investors and manages an impressive residential and commercial real estate portfolio.
Personal Life and Children
The top manager never discusses his marital status with the press. Although his children — Alina Monosova (born in 1990) and Andrey Monosov (born in 1981) — sometimes share details about the life of their parents. The family has always shown respect to the children and supported them in any endeavor. The older and younger family members spend a lot of time together, but never talk about business.
Andrey Monosov graduated from the Moscow State University of Civil Engineering in 2003, with a degree in construction economics. He works in the real estate development business and, following the example of his father, went through every career stage in it — from a first-level manager to an executive. His favorite hobby is sports.
Alina Monosova got a degree in public administration at MGIMO, worked briefly on Channel One, and studied global management in the UK. After studying, she built a career in the marketing department of a development company and worked on investment projects. One of her main interests is psychology.
