Business Roundtable: Business Roundtable Releases New Report "Catalyst for Growth: America’s Hybrid Infrastructure"

Business Roundtable—an association of chief executive officers of leading U.S. companies with more than $7.3 trillion in annual revenues and nearly 16 million employees—released its new report detailing how the integration of physical infrastructure and information technology is creating a new platform for sustained economic growth and job creation, and calling for government policies to be adapted to the reality and promise of 21st century hybrid infrastructure.

“Hybrid infrastructure is the future of the U.S. economy, creating a whole new platform for job creation, economic growth and U.S. competitiveness,” said Francisco D’Souza, CEO of Cognizant and Chairman of Business Roundtable’s Subcommittee on Hybrid Infrastructure, which is part of the Roundtable’s Committee on Information and Technology. “Government can best serve America’s future by removing barriers and facilitating the development of these new economic drivers.”

As the U.S. stands poised to benefit from another wave of growth based on hybrid infrastructure — the integration of IT with traditional physical infrastructure to deliver more efficient and effective capabilities, ‘Catalyst for Growth: America’s Hybrid Infrastructure’ calls for policymakers to work with the private sector to develop a comprehensive strategic plan for hybrid infrastructure that aggressively invests in the development and deployment of these technologies, eliminates regulatory barriers to their use, and promotes the importance of hybrid infrastructure to the economic future of the country.

The report examines benefits and opportunities associated with the deployment of five leading hybrid infrastructures: cloud computing, mobile payment systems, sensor networks, the smart grid and the Next- Generation Air Transportation System. It also provides public policy recommendations designed to maximize the potential benefits of further deployment of hybrid infrastructures.

“The CEOs of the Business Roundtable believe that building out hybrid infrastructures offers the nation an opportunity to spur long-term economic growth and generate substantial societal benefits, including the creation of new, innovative businesses; new public and private-sector services; new jobs; and improved quality of life,” write Francisco D’Souza and Ajay Banga, President and CEO, MasterCard, and Chair, Information and Technology Committee, Business Roundtable, in a foreword to the report.

“Achieving these ends, however, will require all stakeholder groups—public and private sector leaders, key policymakers, and individual citizens—to work together toward a functional framework for deploying hybrid infrastructures. Key considerations for such a framework include the minimization or removal of barriers such as costly and outdated regulatory policies; a lack of public support for investment; a scarce talent pool of individuals trained in science, technology, engineering and mathematics fields; and concerns about the privacy and security of data,” they write.