Australia's golden moment: will we take it, or lose it?

Not only are we dealing with a future of astronomically-high debt levels, we’re also facing unprecedented levels of global competition. Whole industries are moving online, and the digital economy has been fast-tracked by five to ten years in the space of mere months. 

We’re lucky to live in a country whose government is prepared to act quickly to protect our most vulnerable, however, the economic cost of a COVID-free future is severe. But now we have an opportunity to re-evaluate how Australia can reposition itself for growth.

One upside of COVID-19 is the shattering of the existing workplace model. Companies are freed from age-old conceptions of traditional work; unshackled HR departments are ushering in a new normal of flexible working, and executives are taking a more creative approach to problem-solving. 

Businesses have shown they can innovate fast. It’s been impressive. And now the Federal Government must do the same. 

For too long, we have relied on our natural resources for our economic success. For too long, the Federal Government has concentrated - and arguably, largely squandered - its fiscal efforts in support of industries that were unlikely to form the building blocks of our future prosperity, multiplying in value across our economy and labour market.

One example was the billions poured into propping up the traditional car manufacturing industry in the 2000s; an industry clearly in long term decline. Any rigorous investment analysis around its future growth prospects would have found that without government support, it wouldn’t survive or create future material value across our economy.

So, how do we set up Australians to continue to enjoy the quality of life we’ve been so lucky to enjoy, mainly thanks to our natural resources?

We need to ask:

1. Which industries are going to capture material value in the future global economy? 

2. Of those industries, which can Australia position itself to be one of the top global players? 

3. How do we position our workforce to take advantage of this? 

And finally, how can we galvanise our political apparatus to make the scale of investments required to give us a shot of becoming truly world-class, recognising that these time horizons need a much longer period than elected Governments and CEOs survive?

The federal government should make targeted investments in industries likely to capture a high share of future global GDP. We saw a minimal version of this in the most recent budget with the creation of a $1.5bn fund to target advanced manufacturing. The following areas are also rife with opportunities: 

• ‍Renewable energy. With an incoming Democratic President in the US, we’ll see a revitalised global appetite for deep investments in renewable energies. Australia’s vast landmass puts us in an amazing position to be a world-leader in this space.
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• ‍Biotechnology. Australia’s most valuable company, CSL, is a global biotech giant. Let's unlock the deep experience Australians have to create the next cohort of billion-dollar biotech companies. Paypal is an example of this in the US; the company's alumni have gone on to create companies that are now worth close to a trillion dollars and include the likes of Tesla, LinkedIn, SpaceX and YouTube. Imagine if Australia did the same here in biotech.
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• Fintech. Australian businesses have emerged as some of the most creative, innovative and fastest-growing fintech businesses globally. From wealth and investment to payments and blockchain, we've put a lot of runs on the board. We can't take our foot off the peddle now. The federal government plays a vital role in creating the fiscal and regulatory environment to ensure we can continue to punch above our weight.‍
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• Digitally-enabled education and work systems. There's been too much pressure and responsibility on universities and public vocational providers to educate us all. Our #1 focus should be creating an on-ramp (both initial education and reskilling) for all Australians to participate in the digital value chain (from software engineering to customer service), as this will have the greatest multiplying effect across our population. Corporate Australia is starting to recognise this. Now the government needs to create incentives for companies to innovate education offerings across the digital value chain that link education to real employment satisfaction outcomes for workers.

At Hatch, we’re working with some of the most innovative education providers in the country, to help connect their graduates to our employer partners. We’ve helped over 1,000 people find meaningful work, and we’re investing in the infrastructure that’s required to connect the next million young Australians to employment in this new digital age.

In my own experience running Hatch, I’ve seen a strong appetite from many of our partners, big and small, old and new - from Westpac, Qantas and Domain to Canva, Zip and Afterpay - to invest in their talent programs and workplaces, that sets themselves up to thrive in a highly competitive digital future.

These early signs from industry are positive. As we see a rapid global acceleration of the creation and commercialisation of new digital-led industries, a real but small window is upon us to bravely lean into and invest in this future or be left behind. 

This is not the time to be sheep and follow. At The Australian E-Commerce Virtual Summit in October, Prime Minister Scott Morrison suggested Australia should not attempt to be a globally leading innovation centre saying, “we’ve just got to be the best at adopting [technology]”. 

It's not just deeply uninspiring, it’s a dangerous and irresponsible sentiment, and in fact, the opposite is true. Now is the time to set up all Australian businesses and workers to take advantage of the innovative and creative potential that exists around us. And this is where the federal government should roll up their sleeves to help catalyse this massive opportunity, not hide behind the tough challenge it presents.

By bravely investing in the industries of tomorrow, and creating an even playing field for all Australians to participate in this digital future, we’ll be securing our quality of life for generations to come.