Friends in high places

What do you do once youíve scaled the public service, been governor of the Reserve Bank, a government minister, a state premier?

Growing daffodils doesnít do it for alpha males. But going into an investment bank as a director or consultant does very nicely.

On March 5, Goldman Sachs JBWere appointed Ian Macfarlane, former governor of the Reserve Bank of Australia, as a senior international advisor. Two months earlier, it appointed Arthur Sinodinos, Prime Minister John Howardís chief of staff as a senior director. Macfarlaneís retainer is thought to be six figures.

Goldmanís not the only one wooing the great and the good. Macquarie Bank has been doing it for years, employing former Victorian treasurer Alan Stockdale, former ministers Warwick Smith and Ross Cameron, former New South Wales premier Bob Carr and Max Moore-Wilton, former head of the Prime Ministerís Department.

Whatís the chemistry here?

Michael Fraccaro, head of HR at HSBC, says politicians and bureaucrats have extensive networks built up over years of public service. ìTheir experience in office and in department sectors makes them invaluable in helping corporates navigate their way around departments and bureaucracies,í and Michael Markieowicz at recruiter Carmichael Fisher, agrees: he calls it a potent mix of knowledge and networks, compliance and prestige.

Lifetime banker and senior advisor at UBS Ken Allen, should know. He spent four years as Australian Consul-General in New York. ëEverything you do is influenced by government: you need someone who can help you through the process. With private-public partnerships booming, anyone with governmental experience and a knowledge of sovereign corporate governance has a lot to offer.í

Politics, he says, should not be a career-ending move. The new banking high-fliers may well agree.