You are, of course, exactly right, Sunfish - I'm glad to hear there are still such smart companies in Oz, but I can assure you that they're in very short supply in the rest of the world (whether that's because you're behind or ahead of the game here, I can't judge).
In the US and Western Europe, most senior managers operate on a horizon driven by the next quarterly figures. The only exceptions I've seen are companies that are (or effectively are) in private hands, who can afford to view their share price fluctuations with lofty disdain. No decision-taker seriously plans on being in the same job (or even with the same company) in three years time - why should they care about the long-term effect of their decisions so long as they're left covered in short-term glory?