Writer
John Howard
John H Howard is a Visiting Professor at UTS and Director of the Acton Institute for Policy Research and Innovation. He has been providing research, analysis, and advice in the area of Science Research and Innovation policy through his own consulting business for over 20 tears. Prior to that, he spent 10 years as Partner PWC and at EY. John holds a PhD in Engineering from The University of Sydney, a Master’s degree in public administration and policy from the University of Canberra and an honours degree in economics from the University of Tasmania.
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Australia’s frontier economy culture threatens opportunity and growth
John Menadue has written two insightful articles on the $530 billion infrastructure scandal. The documented account of waste and misallocation is deeply concerning not only on its own terms but also as the root cause of an even bigger problem in public sector resource allocation. It is a story of a missed opportunity and commitment Continue reading »
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Why do Australian universities have an obsession with rankings?
Australia has the highest percentage of globally ranked universities in the world. Why? What are the implications? Continue reading »
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Underlying tension between mission and money in our universities
The corporatisation of the Higher Education System is complete. It is no longer driven by the community of science but by money. Public higher education institutions are run as “businesses” in a higher education industry where revenues account for approximately 2% of GDP. Continue reading »
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Busted higher education policy demands a reset
The corporatist/managerialist paradigm introduced in the 1990s, with its heavy focus on financial performance metrics, is being rejected by students, staff, business and the broader community. The corporatisation of public higher education, and the substantial wealth it has created, has made the advocates for more money in the current fiscal environment look like greedy rent seekers. Continue reading »
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JOHN HOWARD. Challenges for Australian research and innovation post Covid-19
Australia is looking to rebuild its industrial base to achieve greater self-sufficiency in manufacturing. But we are seriously under-investing in creating the engineering and technology knowledge and skills that will be required to achieve this outcome. Continue reading »
