Long-term thinking 'vital' for NZ business

Garth Biggs says pushing the boundaries of ICT will help improve the nation's productivity

Being stuck at home supervising tradespeople doesn't necessarily mean an unproductive morning for Garth Biggs.

That's because Biggs, the executive director of the Government's HiGrowth Project communications taskforce, knows how to take advantage of the situation. And he doesn't just know from experience the value of the technology that allows him to work from home - he has the research to prove it.

"We commissioned the Economist Intelligence Unit to look at the impact of broadband if New Zealand accelerated penetration. It's significant - a $150 billion incremental improvement in [gross domestic product] in the next 25 years if broadband penetration reached 50 per cent in five years.

"It would be a huge enabler of the whole economy."

Biggs describes ICT (information communication technology) as a significant contributor to improving the nation's productivity.

"The way we're going to get it is by deploying ICT better," he says. "I worry that we spend too much of our company's disposable dollar on doing almost hygiene stuff - like having the latest operating system - and too little pushing the boundaries."

Born in South Africa, the country's politics led Biggs to move to New Zealand in the early 80s. He worked his way up from software programmer to senior management roles, including chief executive of IT services provider Gen-i and chief information officer of Air New Zealand, Progressive Enterprises, and Sky TV. Through his experiences, he knows first hand the problems that exist in the communications channels between boards, executive teams and IT.

"I don't think companies yet engage with IT properly. For example, no senior manager would be tolerated if they couldn't look through the profit-loss balance sheet and understand what's going on in the business from a financial perspective. However, many managers are not comfortable with taking direct control of IT to the extent I think they should be," he says.

The good news is that Biggs believes there is a new breed of managers coming through who have confidence in their understanding of IT - but they still need to have the rest of the company to keep up.

"The CIO of a large company can deliver the technology, but they can't change the processes and the people - and all three things are required to get a benefit out of the investment."

Of course, not everyone's an IT natural, in the same way they're not a natural human resources manager or accountant. Yet Biggs doesn't see the same desire to change this.

"Most organisations understand this and send people off to financial management for non-financial managers courses. But I don't see them going to IT management for non-IT managers courses.."

Another challenge facing the implementation of ICT, he says, is the desire for a quick return.

"What we're hearing from Australia - and I suspect we'll follow the trend - is that investors in ICT are looking for less than 12 months pay-back. That's very quick."

Biggs admits that ICT has a reputation for creating problems but believes this is unfounded.

"If that's true then I've been very lucky over 30 years as I've seen very few of them. I'm not convinced that the risks are that bad. This [attitude] is a way of controlling the amount of money given to ICT."

Those that are making the investments are reaping the benefits - even through things as simple as installing better software.

"Banks, airlines and couriers have made significant change. The secret is having the people who see the necessity to transform their business or industries," he says.

The HiGrowth Project aims to be a catalyst for growth, with a goal to see ICT contributing 10 per cent of New Zealand gross domestic product by 2012, a target identified by the Government's ICT Taskforce Report.

"In 2002, it was estimated that ICT contributed 4.2 per cent of GDP and if we didn't do anything we'd get to 6 per cent by 2012. Ten is big. It's aggressive and will be exceptional," Biggs says.

So, how important is it for us to get it right? "Hugely," he says. "ICT means we can add value to things that we do without having to put them on a ship and send them anywhere.

"We're hard working, bright and we don't have a lot of other stuff going for us. We don't have ground full of coal or uranium or oil - which would allow us to get fat and lazy. The only way we can keep growing our economy is by being smarter."

Garth Biggs

Who: Executive director, HiGrowth; non-executive director, Optimation; principal consultant, Biggs and Company.

Favourite gadget: "Probably my iPod. It goes everywhere with me during the day."

Next big thing: "For New Zealand it's still got to be broadband. I think we've only just seen the tip of it."

Alternative career: "I wouldn't mind being a writer - a wealthy writer."

Spare time: "We've got a place at the beach and go there most weekends. If the weather's good I do water things - sail, surf, kayaks. I also read and listen to music a lot."

Favourite sci-fi movie: "Which was the one with Hal the computer?" [2001: A Space Odyssey].