First, as economist Lester Thurow of MIT writes, companies and nations have become rich, in the past, if they enjoyed four key advantages - more natural resources, more capital, superior technologies, or better skills. In today's global economy, three of those four are much less important. Capital and technology flow around the world at lightning speed and are available everywhere. Natural resources may move a little slower, but they also can be shipped anywhere - and are a less important component of product value as we move into the Information Age. Brain power will create new technologies, but skilled labor will be the arms and legs that allow one to employ the new product and process technologies that are being generated.
Skilled people become the only competitive advantage.
So business needs skilled people. And our country needs them - to stay ahead in the global competition. And of course, people need skills and skill standards. What you and I are doing during the next two days is, I believe, 'cutting edge' stuff. Inherent in this is the fact that nothing is pre-determined, nor in any way, set in stone.