Speech by the Taoiseach, Mr. Brian Cowen, T.D., at the Deloitte Best Managed Companies Awards in the Burlington Hotel on Friday, 5 March, 2010 at 6.45pm.
A dhaoine uaisle;
Tá áthas orm a bheith i bhur dteannta anocht ag ócáid bhronnta na nduais ar comhlachtaí atá stiúrtha is fearr. Comhghairdeachas leis na comhlachtaí ar éirigh leo an bhliain seo tar éis próiseas roghnaithe docht. Ar ndóigh, mo bhuíochas le Deloitte, le hurraítheoirí na hócáide agus leis na comhlachtaí go léir a ghlac páirt.
Ladies and Gentlemen.
I am delighted to join you this evening for the Deloitte Best Managed Companies Awards. Thanks very much to Pat Cullen, Managing Partner of Deloitte & Touche, for the invitation.
I was particularly keen to attend this event tonight to celebrate with you and, most importantly, to congratulate you on the amazing achievements of you and your companies in 2009 - one of the most difficult years for business in the history of the State.
Meeting the challenge - the key role of management and leadership
The word unprecedented, regularly used in the context of the global situation that we have faced, doesn't come near to describing the magnitude of the events that have occurred since the summer of 2008. These events have led us to question the very basis of the global financial system. It has led us to re-think the role of the State in relation to financial markets and markets in general.
It has led some to question conventional macroeconomic theory and it has led many to question how society and our institutions were unable to prevent a global credit-fuelled boom and bust. It has also led us to question - even more than before - the accuracy of economic forecasts.
Every one of you out there has been battling to survive. Business is down because the domestic and world markets are down. You have had to let people go. You have had to make cuts. You have had to deal with a worried staff. It has been tough. And I appreciate that.
They say the only safe ship in a storm is leadership. As management leaders, the importance of what you have achieved since the onset of the worst global recession in our lifetimes cannot be understated.
As Taoiseach, I too have faced a great challenge to lead us through these difficult times. The global economic and financial crisis, combined with a dramatic correction in the domestic property market, has placed an enormous strain on the Irish economy.
Business and policymakers worldwide have been greatly challenged by what is regarded as the worst economic and financial crisis in a generation and the extraordinary scale of its impact. I have certainly never experienced the rapidity of events, the necessity for instant decision making, and the need to take risks in managing the crisis to ensure a country is not over-whelmed by it. You have been doing the very same in your businesses.
It has also been very difficult, in the face of understandable anger and worry, to communicate with the public about what are complex issues that must be addressed on an on-going basis. You have had a similar challenge in your companies. You have had to explain why working practices have to change.
You have had to explain why pay cuts are necessary and, most difficult of all, you have had to explain why it has been necessary to let people go. It has been difficult but you have seen it through.
Good management has been key to the survival of firms and the maintenance of jobs during difficult times. Good management is also the key to Ireland's recovery. So this event, and what it means, is really important. And it is inspirational. This show of talent, positivity, determination and business know-how is the best of what our country is and can be.
The importance of celebrating success
I want to warmly congratulate the winning companies, who came through a rigorous selection process. Well done to all the other participants. I would also like to pay tribute to the organisers and sponsors of the Awards: Deloitte, Bank of Scotland (Ireland), the IMI and the Sunday Business Post. And, of course, I would like to thank Denis Brosnan and the independent judging panel for taking on what is always a difficult task.
Awards programmes like this help bring out the best in Irish companies and are hugely beneficial to all participants. Government recognises that it too has a role to play and Enterprise Ireland has developed the Leadership 4 Growth programme for CEOs of Companies who want to achieve significant scale in their chosen markets. We want to encourage excellence in business, to encourage exports and to encourage Irish companies to develop as global players.
In today's challenging business environment, Irish companies and their management teams need to be more entrepreneurial, ambitious, innovative and creative than ever before. World-class management teams are absolutely critical to achieving success.
Everyone here this evening knows that we, as a country, still have a major fight on our hands. The kind of companies we are celebrating this evening are a very large part of the solution - companies that demonstrate excellence in managing, growing and creating value in their business.
Running a business, growing a business, retaining jobs, growing jobs - I know that none of these are easy. It takes real talent, leadership, business smarts, agility, adaptability, skill, motivation, creativity, determination, resilience, an eye for opportunity and much more. All of you here have all of this in abundance and it is only right that we acknowledge this. People like you are the backbone of Ireland's past success and the key to our future growth and development - the key to wealth creation and jobs. Collectively, you are our country's X factor.
Pillars of recovery
For our part, the Government have been focusing on four core goals - restoring the sustainability of the public finances, providing stability to the banking sector, improving cost competitiveness and driving productivity growth.
These are critical to economic recovery and renewal and we have been devoting a huge amount of time and effort to achieving them. We are making good progress and I am absolutely determined to follow through.
We have taken the necessary difficult decisions to stabilise the budget deficit and we are set on keeping up the momentum and continuing to bring the public finances into line. Our target is to get the budget deficit back below 3% of GDP by 2014 and we will take whatever decisions are needed to do this, however difficult. Realistically, we have no other choice.
I am acutely aware of how much effort and determination it takes on a daily basis to achieve your business success - even just to stay above water in a recession.
And I am acutely conscious of how critical it is that we get our banking system fit for purpose again - fit and ready to support your working capital needs; fit and ready to support your well-thought-out expansion plans; fit and ready again to restore a true relationship with you and all their customers, built on trust and economic and business realism.
That is what's behind the massive effort we have put into the entire NAMA process, which is getting underway right now. But we don't claim NAMA solves everything. We don't say NAMA is all we need to do.
We are certainly not telling banks that working with NAMA is all they need to do. They know that we, the Government, taxpayers, the business community and our whole society, expect and demand a lot more than that.
The Government is resolute and determined that our central and indepensible objective for banking will be achieved - the provision of normal credit on fair, commercial terms in our economy to business, large, medium and small, and to personal customers.
I know that that day can't come too soon for your businesses.
One other area of concern to business is the issue of rents. Yesterday, my colleague Dermot Ahern T.D. announced the establishment of a working group to look at the issue of commerical rent reviews. The group will be asked to focus particularly on the arbitration process and the adequacy of the information available to all parties in the context of commerical rent reviews. Having already banned upwards only rent reviews in new leases, we are now moving to bring together all the relevant Government departments to see how we can deal further with other aspects of concern in existing leases.
In terms of competitiveness, the Government is proactively implementing policies that will see our competitive edge progressively sharpen.
The Consumer Price Index was consistently negative throughout 2009, highlighting the correction in prices occurring across the economy. On a European level, the Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices shows that our price levels are improving relative to other Member States. Of particular benefit to companies is the substantial fall in energy prices. Unit labour costs are also coming down.
Our continued high level of investment in infrastructure, despite limited resources, demonstrates the Government's determination to drive economic growth through productivity gains. At 5% of GNP, public investment this year is among the highest in the EU and will support over 60,000 jobs.
Building for the future
We will come through the recession - I am determined that we will. I am confident growth will return this year. But I am determined that when we recover, we will be stronger than before, ready for the next phase of development.
Last December, the Government launched our Framework for Economic Renewal, 'Building Ireland's Smart Economy'.
A Smart Economy is a 'high-productivity' economy. Productivity is the key driver of economic performance and economic sustainability.
The Smart Economy framework has five action areas to enhance productivity.
The Smart Economy has been misrepresented by some. It is not just about PhDs, public R&D funding and scientists in white coats. It is about people thinking smarter and working smarter, getting more for less across all sectors of the economy. It is about process innovation as well as technological innovation.
This smart economy applies as much to a plumber and the electrician who get laid off from the building site and set up a company installing energy-efficiency appliances.
It applies just as much to the doctors in Kilkenny hospital who addressed the A&E queues.
It applies just as much to these people as it does to those working in high-tech areas of the economy developing the products and services of tomorrow.
Most importantly it applies to all of the companies represented here tonight.
Just as good management has been a key factor in getting us through these difficult economic times, good management will be key to driving productivity improvements and economic growth into the future. Good management will be a key factor in creating quality jobs for this and future generations. Good management will be a key factor in building a smart economy.
Positive message for St. Patrick's Day
In the next few weeks, I and the members of the Government will lead a major marketing effort around the world as part of St Patrick's Day celebrations.
And I am bringing a positive message of hope and confidence about Ireland.
Most important in all of my messages will be what I am going to tell them about you. Everything you do. Everything we are celebrating tonight.
Every ounce of ingenuity and effort and confidence that goes to make up your success and the success of hundreds of thousands of other Irish people who make business and jobs happen in and from our country.
I am going to tell everyone why I am confident and proud of Ireland; what we have to offer and what will be the source of our success for the future.
And the companies represented here tonight demonstrate that source of success.
It is about people -what we can do; how we work with others; how we solve problems; how we innovate; how we network in the world; how we reward and encourage effort, enterprise and success - including how we do not punish honest effort that fails.
And the good news is that, in so many ways, we have the fundamentals of these success factors in place. We have not lost them at all in this recession. The foundations for economic growth are not destroyed, but are firmly in place, ready to be built on.
In fact, we are better positioned than the 1980s or early 1990s, with nearly 900,000 more people in employment.
We have high levels of education - and we will strive for higher levels, so that every young person can reach their true potential, best of all, in our country.
We are promoting and investing in R&D and innovation as never before. The quantity and quality of research in our universities and businesses is far, far ahead of anything we had in the 1980s and early 90s.
Very soon, the Government will publish the report of the Innovation Task Force I set up last year, so that we provide the best possible environment for innovative businesses like yours.
We have focused well - we have great strengths in food technology, the arts, tourism, financial and other services, pharmaceuticals, medical devices and information technology. And we are growing new areas for focus, such as efficient energy technologies.
We have shown flexibility and adaptability - we have got to be ever-more competitive in how we price our services and wages to ourselves and, crucially, to people globally who we are selling to.
We have reduced our costs in the public service, and we will do more to provide services more efficiently and at less cost to business and taxpayers.
We have gone out and won new markets and business. The IDA, Enterprise Ireland, our Embassies and a myriad of businesses all working together have been great. Let's continue to do this; passing on the learning, the contacts, the skills, the openings.
We have developed networks worldwide that source finance and investment -that will continue to be part of Ireland's success.
We have shown that export-led growth is not just something that big multinationals can achieve from Ireland.
Small firms who have been innovative and daring have also shown the way for export-led growth.
Export earnings are supported by innovative, efficient and adaptive companies that service the domestic market.
We have a great story. Your companies are great stories. We must be proud of them and have confidence for the future.
Conclusion
In conclusion, I and my colleagues in Government are facing Ireland's challenges head on and are working hard to provide the right environment for recovery.
But it is you -business leaders, managers and your employees - who will effect the recovery.
You are the key. Your management skills are key to the survival and growth of companies in Ireland. And they are the key to the recovery of the Irish economy. That's what we are acknowledging and celebrating here this evening.
Congratulations once again to all the winners: you can be very proud of yourselves. I am proud of you and I would like to take this opportunity to wish everyone gathered here every success for the future.
What we are celebrating here tonight confirms what I already know. Ireland will recover and Ireland has a bright future.
Thank you very much
ENDS.