Maybe Russia's bureaucracy is more stubborn than most, but there are always people in every government that are dug in so far it would take an atom bomb to get them out. Some of them you just have to work around, until they finally die of old age at their desk. There are some people who can play the rules of the bureaucracy like a violin, so they never get "caught" doing bad and they always survive any purges. Those are the ones who listen to the new rules and nod and then go back to their desk and say the new boss will be gone in a couple of years, so, no real change. Medvedev has to outlast the obstinant ones who expect that his anti-corruption program will not last very long. I wish him success and a long career.

a bureaucracy in it's essence is a 'black' market , markets are very efficient . so it is very true that individuals can 'play' the bureaucracy market, that's what individuals do. It is efficient at being not efficient that is. but these problems are able to be solved , once you find the motives of the players, they are often simple things, every market has a motive the normal market is that 'power to increase what one has' or the potential to do so. so definitely to analyze these motives and switch them to others could be possible.? the point is that these individuals believe they can keep getting 'the extra' the two prongs are the system in the story and a motive for 'extra' for the other the people the people that implement the reforms.. above below.