'''Blat''' is a term which appeared in the
Soviet Union to denote the use of informal agreements, Party contacts, or
black market deals to achieve results or get ahead. The
adverb form of the word is
poblatu.
Because, in the Soviet Union, the
Gosplan wasn't able to calculate efficient or even feasible plans, enterprises often had to rely on people with connections, who could then use blat to help fulfill the quotas.
Eventually most enterprises came to have a supply expediter - a
tolkach - to perform this task.
Blatnoy also means a man that took some job or enrolled in university using connections, or, sometimes, bribes. In Soviet republics abundancy of
blatnoys was taken to such extremes as impossibilty of gaining some post or enrolling at some prestigious majors in universities without proper connections.
See also
Category:Soviet phraseology
Category:Economy of the Soviet Union