Infometrics Principal Economist Brad Olsen said there needs to be more investment in infrastructure to ensure connectivity and resilience in the North. Photo / File
Infometrics Principal Economist Brad Olsen said there needs to be more investment in infrastructure to ensure connectivity and resilience in the North. Photo / File
It was the Covid-19 pandemic that made Whangarei-raised Brad Olsen a household name.
He had only been graduated from Victoria University a year when seemingly out of nowhere, he became the media’s go-to voice on New Zealand’s economy, at a time when people were desperate to comprehend the financial implications of the pandemic.
Olsen’s rise to media stardom was astounding not just because it was so sudden, but because he was only 22 when journalists began turning to him as an expert economic commentator.
“It’s been a pretty rapid rise the last few years,” he admitted to Newstalk ZB’s Real Life with John Cowan on Sunday night.
“It certainly wasn’t something I intended to get into to the degree I did. It wasn’t something I thought would come my way. Covid came along, and really what came through was that no one had been through a pandemic before and no one knew what the rulebook was with the economy.
“People were looking for a little bit of understanding at a time of huge upheaval – I tried to provide that. I was very much focused on doing that as well as I could to make sure it was information people could understand and use.”
Delivering commentary that’s comprehensible to the general population is a major point of pride for Olsen. He doesn’t see the point in speaking in highly technical terms just because it makes you appear smarter.
“If it’s not usable information, it’s not worth it,” he told Cowan. “What I struggle with the most is people who try to make themselves sound grandiose so that no one can understand them just because it makes them sound bigger and better.
“I just remember thinking, if I can explain things well to my father and the team on his building site, and if they can use that information, then we’re onto a good thing.”
It’s not just media commentary that Olsen has excelled in recent years, though. Last year, he was appointed CEO of Wellington economic consultancy Infometrics at just 25, having started at the bottom rung of the company just a few years prior.
Add to that his accolades of becoming Queen’s Young Leader for New Zealand in 2016, Young Wellingtonian of the Year in 2020, and one of the country’s youngest Justices of the Peace, and it’s clear Olsen is an exceptional talent.
His recent achievements aren’t a surprise to those who knew him as a boy in Whangarei, though.
Infometrics principal economist Brad Olsen. Photo / Jess Wong
From a young age, Olsen would sit with a notebook while watching the news and note the trends in the stock market, he told Cowan, and he was always wanting to be involved in conversations with his Mum and Dad.
“It was always a conversation that happened at the family home, not purely about the economy, but just the world around me. I wanted to be part of that conversation and I realised I needed to get up to speed with the world, and also with what motivates people.
“I figured out fairly quickly that having a story is important, but having some numbers to back it up was much more convincing, so I looked to do that.”
Looking back, Olsen says he was an odd kid, but not the stereotypical nerd.
“I remember at the time a lot of people complained about the number of badges on my blazer, which probably gives you an indication of the sort of kid I was.”
As a primary school student, he was a member of a group that was flown to attend an international problem-solving competition in the US, which they won.
Infometrics principal economist Brad Olsen. Photo / Tania Whyte
He was also an inaugural member of the Whangarei District Council youth advisory group, where he helped set up a free health clinic for 12-18-year-olds in an effort to unclog Whangarei Hospital’s busy emergency department.
Olsen’s social action was motivated by the negative views adults had of young people in Whangarei, he said.
“I wanted to turn around that thinking, to provide better opportunities,” he said.
“I got involved wherever I could. in particular though, I didn’t want to wait until later in life to make change or make things better. I was champing at the bit to do it then – so I did.
“I looked at ways things weren’t always working well… a big focus for me was, when there were problems, I could make a bit of a difference.”
Real Life is a weekly interview show where John Cowan speaks with prominent guests about their life, upbringing, and the way they see the world. Tune in Sundays from 7:30pm on Newstalk ZB.
