The priority goals of the national development of Russia in modern times are associated with technological innovations and digital technologies. To achieve the goals, it is essential to train highly qualified personnel, to raise the level of the country's personnel potential, to develop the national qualifications system, and to implement professional standards, including those in the field of professional education. The international practice shows that introduction of professional standards provides the requirements to the specialist and insures interrelationship between the labor market and the specialist competencies formed by the system of higher and secondary professional education. The science and education sector generates "talents and ideas", which in turn are sources of innovation. The study attempts to define the role of professional standards in innovative development of the country and to investigate the mechanism of their implementation in the system of higher education. To achieve this goal, a number of tasks should be fulfilled: 1) to reveal the importance of professional standards for development of the labor market and enhancement of the competitiveness of national innovation systems; 2) to analyze regulatory, organizational, and methodological aspects of implementation of professional standards;3) to identify the features of the mechanism for implementation of professional standards in the system of higher education.