Accounting and analytical support of innovative activity of universities

Currently, the role of universities is rapidly changing. The article considers the process of formation of universities and determines their role in modern conditions. The main models of universities, formed in the process of modernizing the activities of universities at different historical stages, are determined; their characteristic features are examined. The authors pay particular attention to “entrepreneurial universities”, since they currently play the decisive role in society modernization and economy transformation. The examples of governmental support measures to universities aimed at creating an economic growth engine through enhancing their cooperation with business society are given, as well as examples of successful implementation of these tasks in the US and Europe, and in Russia. The necessity of forming universities 4.0, targeted at foresight technology in all spheres, and their development is revealed, and their objectives are determined. The concept of innovative activity in relation to universities as the creation of new products, their commercialization as the university's research activity on the one hand, and the activity of the university itself under new conditions, on the other hand, is analyzed. It is substantiated that data collection and accounting of resources and economic operations of the university is not enough under new conditions. The necessity of forming an effective accounting and analytical system within the universities of modern models, which would ensure the effective formation of reliable financial and management information, and implementation of the necessary tasks, is proved. Requirements for the structure and content of such an accounting and analytical system, as well as the factors that influence its formation, are determined. The structure should take into account all the factors and risks, as well as the peculiarities of the university's activity, and would have the ability to generate reliable and timely information. Efficient functioning of such a system will allow reducing the possible risks of the universities’ activities and will ensure the continuity of its activities in modern conditions.