When deciding whether to work with a particular country, there are three broad stages in the decision making process:
- Awareness – New Zealand must be on the radar here to be able to progress to the next stage
- Consideration – country is only important at this stage if it offers a competitive advantage. Decision makers look for strong brand stories and "ownership" of a product or service (e.g., Italy ‘owns’ parmesan cheese)
- Final decision – is based on the robustness of the business case, and country has little influence.
There is low awareness of New Zealand’s business culture and values. Those with experience have many positive stories to tell, however the overriding perception is that business acumen is low. New Zealanders and New Zealand businesses are perceived to:
- be inventive but lack the urgency and hunger to forge a true entrepreneurial spirit
- be physical risk takers personally but complacent and risk averse in business
- lack a supportive ‘knowledge creation’ infrastructure which would help foster and retain a true (i.e., commercial) entrepreneurial spirit.
Some of the areas where New Zealand businesses could improve are remarkably basic, e.g.:
- lack of follow-up on opportunities and generally low pro-activity
- poor research of the market and overestimating chances of success
- not realising the importance of CEO/Senior Management being domiciled in the country
- refusing to let go, not willing to partner or collaborate to take their business further
- thinking ‘what can we sell’ not ‘what does the market need’.
Human values are high and there is a respect for the strength of those human values
- New Zealand’s openness and directness is in complete contrast to international business
- refreshingly honest – engenders rapid trust from outsiders
- the success of the family and quality of life is the benchmark
- “You must be doing something right” (US).
New Zealand’s positioning relative to other countries is seen as unique
- “you can learn business acumen, you can’t learn inherent human values”
- U.S. businesses are willing to coach New Zealand businesses and bring them up to speed
- there’s no need to become hard-edged or cut-throat, just come up to par.
New Zealand businesses now need to make choices that enhance business capabilities without compromising New Zealand’s unique ethical attributes.
