Why we have this survey
Strong, growing businesses are important to New Zealand's economic success. Continued economic growth requires innovative, capable, and profitable businesses that generate wealth and provide employment, both now and in the future.
The Business Operations Survey pulls together a broad range of data that is used to compare New Zealand internationally, and to inform policy, and public debate. Established in 2005, the survey is run annually to provide current and accurate information on how businesses operate, and what factors are key to their success.
Figure 1
Why we need your help
We need to hear from a representative selection of all New Zealand businesses, to develop the best possible understanding across the economy. The survey asks questions on a wide range of topics, in order to be relevant to a range of businesses. Thank you for taking part.
How will you benefit from the survey?
The information we collect is available to you in summary format. This can help you to benchmark your business, and identify potential areas of growth. An online benchmarking tool has been created by the Ministry of Economic Development and can be found on their website, www.med.govt.nz.
Businesses who took part in the 2008 survey were offered the chance to participate in a follow up study from the Ministry of Economic Development that explored how businesses cope with skill shortages. This work will feed into cross-governmental initiatives for growing businesses.
How the information is used
Results from the Business Operations Survey allow us to see the impact of business practices and behaviours on business performance. Summaries of information collected can be used to:
- make international comparisons
- better understand how businesses operate
- allow businesses to benchmark themselves against others in their industry.
Results from the survey are published on our website and you can access them for free.
Who requests information from the survey?
A wide range of people and organisations use the results from the survey, including:
- businesses, for decision making.
- universities, for research
- high school students, for assignments
- many people who request information from the survey to combine it with data from other surveys, creating in-depth pictures of the New Zealand economy.
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How the data benefits New Zealand
Many government departments use this data to improve understanding of the New Zealand economy, including:
- Ministry of Economic Development
- The Treasury
- Department of Labour
- Ministry of Research, Science and Technology
- New Zealand Trade and Enterprise.
New Zealand Trade and Enterprise provides a number of initiatives for businesses, such as training programmes, which are informed by Business Operations Survey data. These initiatives help businesses to overcome hurdles to growth.
Providing a snapshot of businesses
“The Business Operations Survey provides Business NZ with a varying array of information that captures some of the key performance measures for business, as well as exploring specific issues that provide a useful snapshot on current topics. Given Business NZ’s significant and wide-ranging membership across various business sectors, results by industry are particularly useful for tracking progress, and can highlight issues that may require further analysis and industry action.”
Stephen Summers, Business NZ.
Key survey findings – 2009
Of businesses surveyed in 2009:
- 46 percent engaged in innovation over the past two years.
- 85 percent trained their staff.
- 41 percent reported increased sales in 2009, compared with 57 percent in 2008.
- 90 percent of innovators cited that increasing their revenue was a reason to innovate.
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Ministry of Economic development: www.med.govt.nz
Ministry of Research, Science and Technology: www.morst.govt.nz
New Zealand Trade and Enterprise: www.nzte.govt.nz
Business NZ: www.businessnz.org.nz
Motu Economic and Public Policy Research: www.motu.org.nz