Over the years he rose to head the institute, and became general director of the "Krystal" Research and Production Association, working under the Ministry of Communication Equipment Industry.

During this time he oversaw the development of information security systems which were employed in the Soviet Armed Forces, governmental departments and organs, and in economic and financial institutions.

He remained active in commercial fields related to his service, in senior leadership positions in businesses and enterprises, as well as in research and academia.

[1] He studied at the faculty of encryption and coding technology at Penza Polytechnic Institute, graduating in 1962 with a degree in electromechanical communication equipment, and the qualification of an electrical engineer.

After three years practical technical experience, in 1965 Starovoitov joined the Penza Scientific Electrotechnical Research Institute as a senior engineer and laboratory chief.

[3] Over the next three years, until 1986, he oversaw the development of information security systems which were employed in the Soviet Armed Forces, governmental departments and organs, and in economic and financial institutions.

[1] Starovoitov received the Order of the Badge of Honour in 1981 for the scientific development and organisation of large-scale production of special communications equipment, and in 1986 received the Order of the Red Banner of Labour for "the creation and organisation of the serial production of data transmission services for frontline automated control systems".

[1] By now having successfully combined an academic career with development and production work, and having become a leading expert in the field of communications technology, in May 1986 Starovoitov was called up for military service.

[3] He was promoted to lieutenant general on 11 April 1991, and in September 1991 he was appointed chairman of the Government Communications Committee, a post he held through the last months of the Soviet Union.

[2] The award, made by decree of the President of Russia, was closed, but the reason was speculated to be because of his work on the State Automated System "Elections" [ru].

[1][4] He had received the Russian Academy of Sciences's Popov Medal [ru] in 2020 for his works on the "Creation of scientific foundations and development of design methods and software and hardware implementation of promising information transmission systems".