The Center for Public Policy Innovation Hosts CFO Public Policy Forum on Restoring U.S. Competitiveness

Panelists See Tax and Trade Policy Reform as Key Drivers to Enhancing American Global Competitiveness

WASHINGTON, March 21, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ --  Today, The Center for Public Policy Innovation (CPPI), a not-for-profit educational think tank, hosted a policy forum entitled "Restoring U.S. Competitiveness: The Impact of Policy on Strategic Business Planning & Global Investment" on Capitol Hill. During the event, which was co-sponsored by the Digital Dialogue Forum (DDF), Chief Financial Officers (CFOs) from three of America's leading technology companies, Dell, Qualcomm and NCR, shared important insights on how public policy impacts strategic business planning, operations, and international trade at large, global companies.

"Federal tax policy has tremendous impact on businesses' ability to grow, expand, and hire," said U.S. Congressman Pat Tiberi (R-OH), chair of the House Subcommittee on Select Revenue Measures. "It's important to foster an open dialogue, so lawmakers have a clear understanding of how changes in the tax system affect American companies and for business owners to recognize the impact on their long-term operations and goals."  

Federal government policies play an enormous role in reinvigorating the nation's economy, strengthening American global competitiveness, and spurring U.S. technological innovation. Sound public policy can be especially helpful to American businesses by providing the incentives and support they need to make strategic business decisions that will help them grow, create new and innovative products and services, and generate good jobs, which are vital to the overall economy. 

"The current policy and regulatory environment has made the job of the CFO very challenging from a strategic planning and global investment standpoint," remarked Chris Long, CPPI president and CEO.  "Today's CFO must be integrally involved in every major decision impacting their company - from financial reporting to new corporate investments - to help give them a competitive advantage in today's rapidly changing global marketplace. CPPI was delighted to have some of the leading technology CFOs at today's event to help us continue to explore policies and strategies needed to make a measurable impact on American global competitiveness."

"The rise of U.S. competition in a dynamic global economy couldn't be more important for the future of the U.S. economy," said Dr. John Mayo, executive director of the Georgetown Center on Business and Public Policy and professor of the McDonough School of Business at Georgetown University. "I was thrilled to be part of this outstanding opportunity to hear from some of the nation's most insightful business people."

"A competitive tax policy is an important catalyst for growth, not only for larger organizations but also for small and medium-sized businesses to grow and innovate," said Dell CFO Brian Gladden. "Incentivizing R&D and encouraging growth for businesses of all sizes will help them expand in an increasingly global market and, most importantly, help spur job growth in the U.S. economy."

"Business has been the engine of the American economy," said Bill Keitel, CFO for Qualcomm. "Particularly in this challenging period, we need sound policies that will drive new economic opportunities here at home and allow U.S. companies to compete more effectively with the rest of the world. Nothing is more central to making the U.S. a more prosperous nation."

"Global companies make decisions on where to invest based on a network of factors, such as quality of workforce, proximity to customers, infrastructure, tax policies and trade policies," said Bob Fishman, senior vice president, CFO and chief accounting officer at NCR. "Governments that understand the factors that drive corporate investment decisions can attract investment. This is true at all levels: national, state and local.  By focusing on these critical factors that influence corporate decisions, the U.S. government can help improve our country's ability to attract corporate investment and jobs in this competitive worldwide climate."

Today's panel discussion focused on how tax and trade policy affects business decisions; how companies settle on new investments in factories, workforce, and research and development (R&D); leveraging the global economic landscape to support growth; and other financial decisions related to the success of their companies. CPPI's public policy forum was the third in a series of events spotlighting policy issues affecting the global competitiveness of American businesses. The series fosters collaboration between government and industry, shapes the public debate on the proper role of government in promoting innovation, and seeks consensus to address these challenges in the future.

About the Center for Public Policy Innovation
The Center for Public Policy Innovation (CPPI) is a 501(c)(3) not for profit educational think tank. Its mission is to: assist government officials in addressing the many challenging policy issues brought on by the rapid advancement of IT; provide policymakers with thought leadership, informed analysis, and innovative strategies to help ensure American competitiveness in the global economy, and bring together diverse stakeholders from government, industry, academia and the civic sector in productive, collaborative, result-oriented platforms to narrow gaps in understanding and advance innovative public policy. Visit CPPI at www.cppionline.org.

About the Digital Dialogue Forum
Founded in 1998, the Digital Dialogue Forum (DDF) is a non-partisan public policy coalition comprised of world-leading technology companies. Its mission is to enhance U.S. innovation and global competitiveness through high level dialogue between business and government leaders.  For more information, visit DDF at www.digitaldialogueforum.com.

SOURCE The Center for Public Policy Innovation