Bermuda needs to focus on offering better value for money than its global competitors rather than trying to beat them on cost.That is according to a panel of experts talking about Bermuda’s role in the world economy at Capital G’s Private Wealth Conference held at Rosewood Tucker’s Point Hotel & Spa yesterday.The panellists included Economy Minister Kim Wilson, James Gibbons, chairman of Capital G Bank Ltd, Neill Currie, president and CEO of Renaissance Re Holdings Ltd, William Gray, president of Orbis Investment Management Ltd, and Andrew Banks, president of Paradigm Ltd, moderated by Peter Everson.They debated everything from Bermuda’s viability as a domicile, the increase in overseas competition and the issue of rising unemployment to the cost of doing business, the real value of tax information exchange agreements (TIEAs) and the Island’s attractiveness as a tourist destination.“Bermuda can’t compete on a cost basis,” said Mr Gray. “So we should be looking instead at the value for money proposition.”Mr Gray, an asset manager headquartered in Bermuda, with operations in other countries, said that the Island’s society and economy was influenced just as much by other jurisdictions as from within and the focus should be on the ever-changing outside environment with the global economy fully embracing capitalism.In today’s world, he said, opportunity should be viewed as something to compete for rather than a given right and while Bermuda had a lot going for it in terms of location and natural beauty compared to its rivals, its tourism and international business models had had to shift as new competitors entered the fray who were after the same business.Welcoming competition as a good thing, Mr Gray said that it was time to change the mindset of being in a privileged position to improving the quality of service provided on a continual basis.Speaking on the issue of employment opportunities for Bermudians, he said that while the Island had done well to afford such chances to its own people, with 30 percent more jobs than the number of working-age Bermudians, there should be no sense of entitlement on their part, rather they needed to have earned and achieved the roles they seek.Mr Currie, who kicked off proceedings, and is a keen proponent of Bermuda, said that the Island was perfect for companies such as his due to its proximity to the US and favourable tax rate.“We have got the golden goose here,” he said. “The people here are very commonsensical they know it’s a good place for companies like us to be located.“So long as it continues to be properly managed in the same way it has been then Bermuda has a great future ahead.”Mr Currie said that most of the jobs that had been lost in recent years had been outsourced elsewhere with a number of companies relocating to places such as Ireland and Switzerland the wisdom of which he questioned given the economic pressure on governments to raise taxes due to the not-so-welcoming environment for expatriates a couple of years ago, but now it was a more conducive place to do business.He said that one of the top priorities for him and his staff was safety and provided Bermuda could tackle the issue of violent crime it would remain the place to be.Mr Currie said his company had been successful in bringing in and retaining the best talent, a component of which was Bermudian, and it was imperative for the Island to remain an attractive proposition. In order to make those new recruits brought in feel comfortable, he said, a company might pay out a sizeable housing allowance, the cost of which had to be balanced with the value they offered.“I think in our company right now I’m very satisfied with the Bermudians that we have got and that the balance is correct,” he said.Mr Gibbons said there were a number of forces at play in the global market including the classification of offshore centres and the signing of TIEAs.“We are looking to compete with literally more people and as such there is more choice,” he said. “So we have to ask ourselves ‘How competitive are we and what is our competitive advantage, and, at the margins, are we worth coming here to and paying our licence fees?’”He said that Bermuda needed to make itself more competitive at the margins from ease of doing business to having the right legislative and judicial structure and support system in place and high production levels in terms of labour.Citing the job adverts by Bermuda-based companies in newspapers in other jurisdictions and vice versa, Mr Gibbons said that while salaries were comparable, the main difference was in the higher cost of rents in Bermuda, despite a fall in demand.Mr Banks commended businesses for continuing to provide scholarships and bursaries to students particularly during these tough economic times, and stressed the importance of monitoring the progression of Bermudians working at companies to ensure that they are developing their careers.On the subject of tourism, he said that those in the business needed to be “at the top of their game” in terms of welcoming visitors and ensuring they enjoy their stay.Useful website: www.capital-g.com