Cheng Shuang and Zhang Yongqiang: Persist in Investing in People to Promote the Development of New Quality Productive Forces
General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that new quality productive forces "take the leap in workers, means of labor, objects of labor, and their optimized combinations as their basic connotation, and a substantial increase in total factor productivity as their core indicator." The "Fifteenth Five-Year Plan" (2026–2030) [1] outline includes "making solid strides in promoting well-rounded human development and common prosperity for all" as a guiding ideology for economic and social development during the period. It lists "enriching the advantage of talent resources" as a major strength of China's development and makes the "close integration of upholding the people’s livelihood with promoting consumption, and investing in things with investing in people" an important deployment. Deeply understanding and comprehensively grasping the organic unity and practical requirements of "investing in people" and new quality productive forces is of great significance for achieving high-quality development and building a modern socialist country in all respects.
1. The Organic Unity of Investing in People and New Quality Productive Forces
Investing in people is an important strategy for promoting the adaptation of the relations of production to the requirements of the development of productive forces. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out, "To study Marx, one must study and practice Marxist thought on productive forces and relations of production, have the courage to comprehensively deepen reform, consciously stimulate the vitality of social productive forces by adjusting the relations of production, and consciously adapt to the requirements of the development of the economic base by improving the superstructure, so that socialism with Chinese characteristics progresses more in accordance with objective laws." To develop new quality productive forces, we must further comprehensively deepen reform and form new-type relations of production [2] that are commensurate with them. Investing in people lays the micro-foundation for constructing these new-type relations of production by systematically elevating the principal status and comprehensive quality of workers. On the one hand, investing in people is the key path for the government to better play its regulatory and guiding role and to establish and improve the systems and mechanisms conducive to the development of new quality productive forces. Strategically investing in human capital to comprehensively enhance workers' scientific literacy, professional skills, and innovative vitality is, in essence, strengthening their agency within the production process. This drives the transformation of the labor process toward a model based on knowledge collaboration and creative participation, facilitates more rational participation of factors such as knowledge and technology in value distribution, and provides internal momentum and a social foundation for the transformation of relations of production. On the other hand, investing in people can transform the institutional advantages of new-type relations of production into the developmental advantages of new quality productive forces. Releasing the potential of new quality productive forces ultimately requires the collaborative efforts of high-end, sophisticated, and scarce [3] scientific and technological innovation talents, as well as application-oriented talents who can skillfully master new quality means of production. By strengthening the principal status of workers in production and constructing systems and mechanisms that stimulate the vitality of various subjects, we can release individual potential and promote comprehensive social progress.
Investing in people is a creative application of the Marxist theory of labor value. In Capital, Marx proposed: "In order to modify the human organism, so that it may acquire skill and handiness in a given branch of industry, and become converted into the developed and specific labor-power, an education or training is requisite." This assertion indicates that the knowledge and skills of workers are not innate but are the product of social investment. Investing in people, by directing resources toward the education and quality enhancement of workers, is essentially empowering and upgrading the most active, agentic, and creative factor of production within the productive forces. This facilitates the transformation of existing labor power into more efficient productive forces, thereby enhancing the value-creation capacity of workers. The development of new quality productive forces requires both top-tier innovative talents who can lead and create transformation, and a vast, high-quality force of professional skilled talents who support the practical application of such innovations. The cultivation of these two key talent contingents fundamentally depends on long-term, systematic, and strategic investment in human capital. Therefore, in the Marxist perspective, investing in people is by no means a simple welfare expenditure; rather, it is the most essential productive investment with the greatest multiplier effect. This fundamentally reveals that investing in people is about fortifying the most profound talent guarantee for new quality productive forces and activating their most fundamental driver of innovation.
Investing in people is an inevitable requirement for achieving the free and well-rounded development of individuals. As China moves from the primary stage of socialism [4] toward higher stages, investing in people—through the systematic enhancement of workers' comprehensive quality and creative capacity—not only helps realize the people’s aspirations for a better life but also serves as a key path for accelerating the construction of the new development pattern and enhancing the endogenous power and reliability of the domestic macro-circulation. On the one hand, the free and well-rounded development of individuals is the endogenous driver for upgrading consumption structures and forming more sustainable internal demand. When workers achieve continuous improvement in human capital and obtain more stable income through investment in people, it will directly drive the upgrade of their consumption structure from a "survival type" to a "development type." The expansion and quality improvement of consumption catalyzed by investing in people will translate into a powerful market pull and an innovation-driven "reverse pressure" [5] on new quality productive forces. This provides key application scenarios and expands commercial space for new technologies and industries, effectively reducing innovation risks and accelerating iterative upgrades. Ultimately, this promotes the formation of a high-level dynamic equilibrium between supply and demand characterized by "human capital enhancement — effective demand upgrade — high-quality supply iteration." On the other hand, the free and well-rounded development of individuals is the fundamental force driving profound changes in relations of production and breaking down institutional barriers to the development of new quality productive forces. The higher-level systematic demands for equitable distribution, factor mobility, and innovation vitality that accompany well-rounded human development will directly drive the optimization and adjustment of key areas such as income distribution and property rights systems. This promotes the formation of relations of production conducive to the optimized allocation of new-type productive factors. Therefore, while improving the person themselves, investing in people is essentially cultivating the most precious market soil and developmental momentum for new quality productive forces, achieving a dialectical unity between individual development and social progress at a higher level.
Investing in people is a key measure for cultivating a new type of worker contingent that meets the requirements of the times. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: "The quality of workers is vital to the development of a country and a nation. In today's world, the competition in comprehensive national strength is, in the final analysis, a competition for talent and the quality of workers." We should increase investment in human capital, improve worker quality, and accelerate the building of a knowledge-based, skill-based, and innovative army of industrial workers. We must cultivate more "Great Country Craftsmen" [6] and highly skilled talents to inject a lasting source of power into the development of new quality productive forces, effectively transforming "institutional advantages" into "productive force advantages" and promoting high-quality development. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "The transformation and upgrading of traditional industries can also develop new quality productive forces." In the process of accelerating the transformation of traditional industries and developing new quality productive forces, we must properly handle the mismatch between the existing skills of some workers and the requirements of upgraded industries, effectively guarding against the risk of large-scale unemployment. By systematically strengthening vocational education and skills training to reshape and upgrade the knowledge structure and practical abilities of workers, we can not only ensure their smooth transition to new jobs but also continuously accumulate human capital. This is a key path for transforming the advantage of population size into an advantage of talent quality, thereby building a solid "talent foundation" for the development of new quality productive forces.
2. Practical Requirements for Investing in People
Improve the assessment and incentive mechanisms for local governments and establish a clear orientation for investing in people. Establish a comprehensive assessment and evaluation system covering high-quality economic and social development, promoting a profound shift from "scale and speed-oriented" assessment to "quality and efficiency-oriented" assessment. Specifically, first, explore the inclusion of "human-centered" indicators—such as the "proportion of human capital investment," "satisfaction rate of talent demand in key industries," and the "proportion of newly added skilled talents"—into the evaluation system. This uses assessment to force the optimization of the fiscal expenditure structure and ensure the precise flow of resources. Second, establish and improve dynamic monitoring and scientific evaluation mechanisms, conducting quarterly monitoring and annual assessments of key human capital indicators to discover and correct problems in a timely manner, ensuring that policies do not deviate from their expected trajectory. Third, strengthen the rigid application of assessment results, linking them to the selection and appointment of key local leaders, project approvals, and fiscal transfer payments, thereby establishing a performance outlook centered on "people." By improving the "baton" [7] of assessment and incentive mechanisms, the national strategy of investing in people can be internalized into the normalized and institutionalized actions of the government, guiding resource allocation to focus on core tasks such as developing new quality productive forces.
Optimize the direction of investment and enhance the strategic effectiveness of investing in people. The scientific planning of investment direction directly determines the quality and efficiency of human capital accumulation. We must take the optimization of investment direction as a key grasp [8], promoting a profound transformation of resource allocation toward a modern paradigm that emphasizes structural, forward-looking, and synergistic qualities. Specifically, first, adhere to the coordination of "highlighting key areas" and "consolidating foundations." Concentrate superior resources on frontier key areas such as artificial intelligence and bio-manufacturing, using mechanisms like "unveiling the rankings and taking charge" [9] to strengthen support for top innovative talents and teams. Relying on major initiatives such as the national vocational education reform, we should improve the overall quality of the worker contingent on a massive and systematic scale, fortifying the talent foundation for industrial upgrading. Second, adhere to the coordination of "serving the present" and "laying out the future." We must respond quickly to talent gaps in key areas and timely adjust and optimize the allocation of academic disciplines in higher education and vocational skills training resources. More importantly, we must maintain a long-term perspective and, facing the trends of future technological and industrial change, make advance investments in basic frontiers and cross-disciplinary integration to cultivate strategic forces capable of leading the next generation of technological development. Third, adhere to the coordination of "hardware guarantees" and "ecosystem creation." Promote the coordinated development of investing in things and investing in people. While continuing to guarantee "hardware" investment in research facilities and large-scale instrument platforms, we must emphasize the optimization of the ecological environment, such as talent support and service supply. Improve the financial support system for early-stage and high-risk talent innovation projects, and systematically solve the concerns of talents in key livelihood areas such as housing, education, and medical care.
Integrate the development of education, technology, and talent to form a multiplier effect of investing in people to promote high-quality development. Accurately grasp the internal consistency and mutual supportiveness of education, technology, and talent. Build an integrated system guided by national strategic needs, centered on the realization of talent value, and localized through the deep integration of industry and education, thereby fortifying the support of education, technology, and talent for the development of new quality productive forces. Specifically, first, construct a collaborative pattern that serves the overall situation and is open and shared. Focus on major national strategies and local economic and social development needs, break down institutional barriers between enterprises and universities, and promote the joint construction of high-level scientific research platforms and innovation unions to facilitate the cross-domain flow and optimized allocation of core innovation factors such as talent, knowledge, and resources. Second, establish a talent evaluation and value realization system guided by actual contribution. In processes such as mutual recruitment between universities and enterprises, focus evaluation standards on the substantial contribution of talents in promoting interdisciplinary integration and tackling key industrial technical problems. Fully grant talents the right to participate in decision-making and share benefits in disciplinary planning, technological R&D, and the transformation of achievements, effectively turning talent advantages into educational advantages and innovative momentum. Third, promote the deep integration and mutual promotion of the talent chain, education chain, and innovation chain. Taking the integration of industry and education as a "grasp," align superior disciplines with the urgent needs of industrial development. By hiring "industrial professors" and jointly building industrial colleges, deeply integrate real industrial technical projects and R&D practices into the talent training system to achieve dynamic adaptation between talent supply and industrial upgrading.
Establish and improve systems and mechanisms that stimulate innovative vitality to build a lasting foundation for investing in people. The ultimate effectiveness of investing in people depends not only on the direction and efficiency of resource investment but also on whether a systematic and lasting institutional environment can be constructed to stimulate innovative vitality and fully release human creativity. Specifically, first, improve property rights and distribution systems oriented toward the value of knowledge. Accelerate reforms regarding the ownership or long-term use rights of job-related scientific and technological achievements, granting research teams greater autonomy over the disposal of and income from their results. Explore and promote various distribution forms such as technology-based equity, post-based dividends, and project income dividends. Second, implement "inclusive and prudent" supervision combined with "error tolerance and correction" [10] guarantee mechanisms. In facing talent innovation activities in the development of new quality productive forces, optimize supervision while strictly adhering to the "bottom line" [11], allowing for pioneering trials within controllable bounds. Establish and improve institutional error-tolerance arrangements that support reform and tolerate failure, clearly distinguishing between mistakes made due to lack of experience or pioneering trials and violations of discipline or law, thereby reducing the cost of innovation trials and errors. Third, create a social and cultural atmosphere that respects science and pursues innovation. Through policy guidance and public discourse, vigorously promote the spirit of scientists, craftsmen, and entrepreneurs. Strengthen the whole society's awareness of intellectual property protection and the rule of law, and crack down on infringement. Continuously improve the scientific literacy of the entire citizenry and promote the formation of a public value orientation that encourages bold exploration, seeking truth from facts, and the pursuit of excellence.