University, business and government administrators should trade places in scheduled secondments to improve cooperation on policymaking, according to a governance expert.

John Simpson, a member of Monash University¡¯s council, said that industrialised economies ¨C and Australia¡¯s in particular ¨C could never achieve their full potential unless the private, public and academic sectors worked together ¡°in a more integrated and intelligent way¡±. The former oil and gas executive said that, alongside secondments, the higher education sector should stage roadshows to explain itself to government and corporate decision-makers.

¡°We have become a nation of polarised institutions, and this is very unhelpful when it comes to understanding the pressures on respective parts of the economy,¡± Mr Simpson told Times Higher Education.

¡°If you want a departmental head to have a better understanding of what it is to run a university ¨C and vice versa ¨C the only way you can achieve that is by having a cross-flow of people moving between those sectors.¡±

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Mr Simpson said secondments to universities could help public servants understand the impact of sudden changes of government higher education policy. ¡°The sector doesn¡¯t want to be blindsided by government decisions that it didn¡¯t expect. When you have a degree of certainty or policy reassurance, you tend to get better outcomes. You can plan and think better.¡±

As an example, he cited recent cuts to research funding in Australia. ¡°You gear up projects and employ people, then all of a sudden there¡¯s a 2?per cent cut. That is massively damaging to Australia¡¯s standing, our potential for growth and our reputation as a place to invest for research.¡±

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Mr Simpson said that in the 1990s, when he had been an executive with the energy multinational Shell, an ¡°up and coming¡± public servant had been seconded to the company¡¯s London headquarters for 12 months. Several years later, the same person was appointed to lead Australia¡¯s Industry Department.

¡°That was very helpful. The global energy industry is wildly misunderstood at government level. He could draw on the experience and use it to the nation¡¯s advantage,¡± he said.

In another example, the company hired a Canberra conference centre and invited key public servants, politicians and their minders to a morning¡¯s presentation from the chief executive and the heads of each business arm.

¡°The first year we got probably 100 people. The second year, 200. Third year, 600 people turned up. That¡¯s the sort of thing I¡¯m talking about. There¡¯s no advantage in sitting on your hands complaining about being misunderstood. You¡¯ve got to take the initiative and do?it.¡±

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Mr Simpson acknowledged that issues of institutional autonomy or commercial confidence could militate against secondments of government or business executives. ¡°There are competitive issues involved, but it¡¯s not impossible,¡± he said.

¡°You start off in a small way, and the next year it builds on itself. It¡¯s not hard to achieve; it¡¯s not expensive; and Australia needs to do much more of it.¡±

john.ross@timeshighereducation.com