Adrian Orr is worth it

Adrian Orr is the CEO of the New Zealand Super Fund. It is colloquially referred to as the Cullen Fund, so named after the Minister of Finance Michael Cullen who established it. The fund was set up to help offset the escalating cost of retirement faced by the New Zealand government. The baby boomers are starting to retire in increasingly large numbers and everyone in NZ is entitled to an income from the age of 65. The entitlement is not means tested. Baby boomers are generally considered those born after the Second World War, up to about 1966. They comprise a bubble or boom in population and all of them qualify for this universal superannuation.

The story behind the fund is that it has been remarkably well managed. Adrian Orr is the latest Chief Executive Officer and he has performed outstandingly. Through GFC's and various global meltdowns that have wiped out some economies and seen large financial institutions destroyed, the 'Cullen Fund' has returned 9.67% growth.

Its performance is one of the better out there and Adrian Orr is to be commended. But instead what we see is the Cullen Fund and Orr becoming a political football. Criticism has been vocal from the the current and likely temporary Prime Minister, Bill English, who is notable for having done nothing apart from be a professional politician and faux Southlander. The criticism is backed by the State Services Commission who oversee state sector salaries. They're a bunch of time-serving bureaucrats who struggle to balance their own cheque books, let alone juggle the complexities of the likes of the Cullen Fund.

Their complaint is that Adrian Orr earns too much and that the board that supports him agrees with what he is paid. Shock, horror, a CEO that does his job superbly and a board that knows he does. The critics know nothing about money and so should, to put it bluntly, shut up and let them get on with it.

But wait there's more; the Prime Minister and his lackeys have threatened to not re-appoint the board. I presume this is intended to bring the board into line and reduce or throttle Mr Orr's salary. And why would anyone want that? Oh wait, would it be jealousy, he's good at what he does, and proves it year in year out.

The downside is Orr takes off to deliver his skills to some other country or corporate, and NZ sits there and the Cullen Fund loses money. People like Mr Orr don't come cheap. If they do then they're no good. You pay handsomely to get the job done right.  Orr is probably worth twice what he's getting, shh, don't tell him, he seems to like living in NZ.

Don't vote for National this election. NZ has to get rid of this Bill English fool, he's going to break the country. That means NZ is going to end up broke with him at the helm. Yes I know he was Minister of Finance but he had John Key looking over his shoulder, his stupidity was reined in then.

I got the idea to comment on this matter yesterday. I had two brake pads on the rear of the Subaru replaced by a man who comes to your house or workplace to do the job in twenty minutes. He has a successful business and he's run off his feet doing brake jobs all over town. He's had two brake businesses previously and both have done well, but for the mobile service he got the idea from Australia when he was there. Talking to this chap about things (such as would you trust your car to one of the franchise car mechanic outfits from Australia (never) and what were the most reliable cars - Subaru, they are actually made in Japan), I was able to work out what he made on his own with his one van. About $200,000 a year. Not bad eh, 10 to 12 hour days but few overheads. Are you seeing where I'm going with this?

That's right, my brake repair chap makes money and do I begrudge him that? Hell no, he's not the most expensive, nor is he the cheapest, he just has the very pleasing habit of doing the job right. So why does the Prime Minister complain about someone competent like Adrian Orr doing the job right and making money doing it? Hasn't Orr, like my brake repairer, earned the rewards? Well yes he has, now Bill English, grow up and remove yourself from meddling in things you don't understand. There's a job of work to be done by people who know what they're doing.