we Canadians lament the lack of global leaders in business. We often instinctively say "the government ought to do this or that" (I do this too). Whereas Americans tend not to bring up the government at all -- they go straight to private capital and get it done.
But there are things that only governments can do, that actually are necessary. The Canadian government, as another poster has mentioned, failed to protect Nortel from IP theft from a rival nation-state. The Americans are much more willing to do this (I say willing, not always able).
The government has a role to play. To be sure even American businesses recognize this — this is why there are lobby groups. That’s not my contention though.
My point is more about mindset. The government is not responsible for competitiveness and expansion of businesses into new markets — that’s on the business. But I think many people in Canada default to feeling the government ought to take a bigger role in those areas in order for us to have the next Blackberry or Nortel. I’m like, maybe we shouldn’t rely on that (or let lack of government involvement hold us back) and instead take our own risks?
But there are things that only governments can do, that actually are necessary. The Canadian government, as another poster has mentioned, failed to protect Nortel from IP theft from a rival nation-state. The Americans are much more willing to do this (I say willing, not always able).