'We need to be smarter than the competition'

Trying to explain his new role at One NorthEast to his young sons - who are, like most children, great fans of Harry Potter - David Allison likens the region to the phoenix.

He tells them that, as with the phoenix, the North-East economy has grown, decayed, and is now being reborn.

Mr Allison, 39, hopes the job, which begins next month, will see the region put past failures behind it. It is his job to help the phoenix rise from the ashes.

"The North-East has had for a long time its old industries, and these have matured and died to a significant degree. But that is what businesses do, they grow, emerge, mature and die," he says.

"We all have a nice lifestyle in this country, because we are relatively well-paid and have a good standard of living, so we have to be smarter than our competition in places such as China, Japan, Korea and India.

"It costs them a fraction of what it costs us to build a plant and employ people. They don't have the same constraints in terms of environmental performance, so we have to be much smarter and create our products in, say, two steps, instead of it taking five manufacturing steps in China or Japan. And that is about improving technology."

Mr Allison, who has spent the past five years at Rhodia Pharma Solutions, on North Tyneside, knows only too well about foreign competition and the harsh decisions that must be taken to stay ahead of competitors.

As industrial director at Rhodia, controlling the pharmaceuticals side of the business in the UK and France, he led the transformation of the company's chemical plant in Dudley, turning it into a £50m-turnover, site.

Under his management, not only did the North-East plant extend its manufacturing facilities and improve profits, but it also won national awards for manufacturing improvement and innovation.

Now Mr Allison feels ready to make a wider difference.

"It is right to be proud of our heritage, with the reputation of hard work, the Jarrow marches, and so on, but it ain't going to put bread on the table," he says.

"We need to make sure we keep ahead of the competition by using what is between our ears - maintaining a competitive advantage globally. We have to work with One NorthEast's centres of excellence and make sure we don't just win once, but create a process, like the phoenix, where we grow, mature and die.

"Then we have a process where there are new businesses constantly coming off the conveyor belt."

A self-confessed "driven and aggressive" businessman, Mr Allison hopes to bring a breath of cool, private sector air to One NorthEast.

He says: "The agency has a big budget, and with someone like me coming in with a strong business focus, I hope to challenge some of the things that are being done, so the credibility of One NorthEast can be enhanced, to maximise its potential.

"I am impressed with the sound structure in the agency and I think it is certainly leading the country in terms of structure and our centres of excellence. I am also impressed by Alan Clarke, (chief executive), because he is ambitious and wants One NorthEast to be the best in the country, and I like that."

A Scotsman, Mr Allison has settled into life in the region, spending much of the past 15 years in the Tees Valley.

Having spent so much time in the south of the region, he is keen that One NorthEast gets rid of the perception, held in some quarters, that the agency is only concerned with Newcastle.

"I want to make sure it is One NorthEast, not One Newcastle," he says. "There has been a lot about the NewcastleGateshead culture bid, and I can understand why people are concerned the focus is there. But I think that is just perception, and I will be trying to change that perception."

After gaining a first class honours in applied physics, Mr Allison worked his way up through ICI, before joining Nasdaq-listed ChiRex, later bought out by Rhodia.

"When I started at ChiRex, every month we had to report to shareholders on our performance, and you almost lived or died every month," he says.

"It was a real change to what I had experienced before in ICI, where you were quite incubated from real business.

"For the first six months at ChiRex I felt like a rabbit trapped in the headlights. You either caved in or you developed, and I kept on with it and have a greater self-belief because of it."

Mr Allison has made some tough decisions during his career, having to cut costs and lay people off, and believes the no-nonsense approach born of that experience can benefit One NorthEast.

"I'm not renowned for my patience - I will have to be more diplomatic in the public sector, which will be an adventure. But I say what I think and I tend to be pretty up-front and honest with people. I do wonder how they will react to my straightforward style.

"But at Rhodia we did a number of things that made us quite special, and I am hoping to do the same with One NorthEast."