Most of the 2020 Summit participants have now been announced. The steering committee has selected as wide a range of people with something to say as could be expected under the circumstances.
Rather than arguing over particular individuals who might or might not have been included, it is more productive now to discuss the composition of the Summit as a whole in terms of the mix of personality types, and then to look forward to the process by which it might best be conducted. These matters seem to have been something of an afterthought for the organisers and are still being decided on the run.
It is fascinating to think about what types of people there will be among the 1000 and how they will pull together over two days. Some know one another already but many do not. Different types of expertise and experience are represented, but just as significantly there will be different types of personalities and approach to discussion. It will be important how those who are used to high-level leadership positions in business, executive government and the judiciary mix with those from academia, the NGO sector, the media and the artistic community.
Some participants will take their position as determined individuals with particular ideas they wish to present, or will come with a record of innovative thinking in their field. In each section there will be ideas merchants and advocates who, given the chance, will have plenty to say.
But to be effective in producing practical outcomes the summit must have many other types of people playing a role. There will need to be facilitators and mediators, experienced leaders, skeptics, wise heads and others.
The facilitators might include Frank Brennan and Geraldine Doogue. Among the experienced operators are the former state premiers, Geoff Gallop, Nick Greiner and Steve Bracks, and the former head of the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet, Peter Shergold.
Those of a skeptical frame of mind include Gerard Henderson of the Sydney Institute and Miranda Devine of the Sydney Morning Herald. And wise figures such as Sir William Deane will provide an invaluable perspective.
The ultimate productivity of the summit will come from dynamic interplay within groups, not individual performance. There are already many opportunities for individuals to make their submissions to government anyway. This is not that sort of occasion. The tension between ideas is more important. The winnowing of those ideas presented will be as