Silicon Valley high-flyer joins brain gain a world away

By PETER GRIFFIN

The term "brain-drain" is not used much anymore as Kiwis trickle back to work in New Zealand, fleeing global unease.

A small number of foreign executives are also turning their backs on high-powered IT jobs in the United States and Europe in favour of a more encompassing role at a smaller company, a better lifestyle, or a mix of both.

Frank Owen is one of those people.

The new chief executive of GPC Electronics, a Christchurch contract manufacturer of high-tech electronics, gave up a senior job in Silicon Valley to settle a world away in Christchurch.

As the vice-president and general manager of Raychem Power Components, a division of global heavyweight Tyco International, Owen was destined for even bigger things within the American group.

Instead, he now runs one of the key firms in the country's small electronics manufacturing industry.

GPC New Zealand, a subsidiary of Australian firm GPC Electronics, which is owned by the Janssen family, makes some of the products that have put the country on the map internationally in terms of electronic excellence.

Its customers include PulseData, maker of the successful BrailleNote, GPS specialist Navman, radio equipment maker 4RF, Atrax, Carter Holt Harvey, Schneider Electric, fellow Christchurch technology company Allied Telesyn, Eftpos terminal supplier Cadmus and Connexions, the company making tracking terminals for transport networks.

Owen, an English engineer, started his career at electronics giant Philips.

He helped to develop the Dect cordless phone standard, before being posted to France.

Assigned to a team working on point-to-multipoint communications in the early 1990s, he had his first contact with New Zealand, visiting Telecom to look at local loop radio access.

The pleasant experience stayed with him.

"I liked the way people did business. It was straightforward.

"And the country was beautiful. The seed was sown."

Owen could have built a lifelong and rewarding career at Philips, but felt the need to move on.

He left to complete an MBA (master of business administration) at a business school in Switzerland.

Then it was on to Raychem, where Owen served as managing director for 2 1/2 years before the company was acquired by Tyco.

He experienced the height of the tech boom first-hand from the heart of Silicon Valley, where Raychem was based.

"Up until 2000 the market was buoyant.

"A lot of money was pumped in with little concern for return," he says.

Then came the wreck. The Raychem division was able to increase revenue and profitability throughout that period, despite tough market conditions, says Owen.

"We were one of the few firms who came through it well."

Even so, he yearned for the autonomy of running a smaller company.

"Being in that environment, you live there not on your terms but on the valley's."

As he made up his mind to leave, an accounting scandal involving senior management - which Owen remained oblivious to - was brewing at Tyco.

Former chief executive Dennis Kozlowski and chief financial officer Mark Swartz are now on trial accused of defrauding the company of US$600 million ($893 million) through unauthorised pay and illicit share sales.

GPC Electronics, which employs just over 100 people in Christchurch - 70 in manufacturing, 35 in engineering and design - has a highly automated production line set up to be adapted quickly for manufacturing different types of electronics and to account for the varying requirements of markets, such as the lead-free initiatives of the European Union.

Products range from radio frequency equipment to monitoring systems, Eftpos terminals, microwave radio units and medical equipment.

Most of it goes overseas.

"Ninety-five per cent of what we manufacture is sold outside New Zealand," says Owen.

In him, GPC was seeking a "global horizon" - the ability to sell into markets worldwide and use his experience in multinationals to pave the way.

"Many products are stifled by lack of understanding of the global marketplace," he says.

"I was brought on board to grow sales globally.

"I've greater influence, I can make larger things happen, I've more flexibility."

The transtasman group generates revenue in excess of $100 million a year, with most of that coming from the Australian electronic manufacturing operation.

GPC New Zealand reported revenue of $12.4 million in the year to last June 30 and a loss of $500,000.

Owen sees GPC as a good candidate for the ICT Taskforce's grand plan of creating 100 New Zealand companies turning over $100 million or more by 2012.

"It was a great initiative to put that pole in the sand," he says of the target, which he believes is realistic.

"It's an enabler for New Zealand to become, or in some cases remain, competitive."

Owen believes the presence of GPC gives local technology companies a specialised manufacturing base that can compete with Asian manufacturers, who are perceived to be cheaper.

"We're more expensive [than Asian countries] if you look at labour dollars per hour but not if you look at total cost," he says.

"You've got to look at the business risk - inventory issues, technical risk, miscommunication. And you need overhead to manage a Chinese contractor."

With the buying of materials a global business, GPC can buy components at the same price as other manufacturers around the world.

One of the biggest challenges for the company as it expands its Christchurch operation is finding enough skilled workers, says Owen.

While the Christchurch technology cluster consumes its fair share of graduates and employs thousands of skilled IT workers, many companies have to look abroad to find recruits.

"The unemployment rate in Christchurch is only 4.4 per cent. We have to look elsewhere," says Owen.

"We're bringing in two engineers from Scotland and one from England."

Lifestyle was a major factor for him in making Christchurch his home after years of climbing the ladder in multinationals.

Owen, his wife and two young children make the most of their surroundings. "I'm a huge fan of the outdoors lifestyle that Canterbury can offer, with the Southern Alps on one side and the sea on the other."