Fran O'Sullivan: Drifting about with a sinking metaphor

America's Cup analogies sprinkled the air at yesterday's Leadership Forum.

The "wham bam, let's all just blame you mam" undercurrent from the opening day had subsided as the 450 leaders got down to some serious discussion over the nation's future.

It all began with a series of concurrent breakfast briefings.

Rod McGeoch - the Australian marketing evangelist who masterminded Sydney's successful Olympic Games bid - wowed delegates with a vision for marketing dual events to get more business Down Under.

Unfortunately for the loquacious McGeoch, his pitch was overshadowed by Australian Treasurer Peter Costello, who across town with Finance Minister Michael Cullen was busy tearing down barriers to future regional investment.

The growth debate inevitably dominated.

Stanford professor Paul Romer's "new growth" theory should be played regularly on television, said one conference organiser, to get the message across.

It is somewhat harder to convey in print.

But it was left to Reserve Bank Governor Alan Bollard - dramatically ripping off his meek exterior and revealing a Team NZ shirt and similar cap - to disclose "there were no magic hulas to be had".

The Knowledge Wave conference should have been held 25 years ago when New Zealand was 9th in the OECD. Not now.

Bollard laid out the issues: New Zealand had to address quality versus quantity; there was a mobility and skills leakage that the current inflow of immigrants could not disguise; the private sector should also look to its own laurels, particularly on R&D investment, not just beat up the Government.

Carter Holt Harvey's Chris Liddell produced an alarming run of figures to show the biggest winners over the last decade were monopolist companies, not exporters or domestic market players.

Business had to get its own house in order: "We are losing the America's Cup of business ... but we are losing it on the defender's course."

Many presentations were clearly prepared when the nation believed the regatta would be heading to a five-zip outcome in Team New Zealand's favour tomorrow.

Even Richard Florida - the Carnegie Mellon professor who on Monday will talk turkey with Auckland Mayor John Banks on why "gays are good for growth" - resorted to the occasional allusion.

But by day's end, the sailors were not the only players looking to put wind into sails.

Distressing statistics from Auckland University's John Hattie - pointing to some 20 per cent of students who are "falling backwards like no other country in the Western world", galvanised a panel.

Teachers had to be motivated, evaluated, given incentives. Not enough was happening.

It was a bit raw for Education Minister Trevor Mallard, who started interjecting. Not even a salute from the stage by educationist John Graham could reduce the sting.

Herald Special Report - February 18, 2003:
Knowledge Wave 2003 - the leadership forum

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