What does the future of business for Aotearoa New Zealand look like?

About the consultation

Long-term Insights Briefings (LTIB) are a new requirement for agencies under the Public Service Act 2020. They help us plan for the future and identify opportunities early. Your input and help selecting a focus area (Phase one) will help us add value to thinking about the long term possibilities for business in Aotearoa

Why are we interested in the future of business?

New Zealand businesses are rethinking their role, purpose and how they operate in response to global trends such as climate change, technology change and demographic change. New Zealand’s unique characteristics, strengths and enduring challenges are also influencing this shift.

There are opportunities and implications for future productivity and wellbeing outcomes for New Zealanders. There may be a role for government to help ensure the future outcomes that businesses and New Zealanders more broadly want to achieve, are aligned. 

We plan to take a broad view of a business. Our approach includes businesses large and small, with different ownership structures and purposes. This means business includes:

• publicly-listed corporations
• family-owned firms
• sole-traders
• co-operatives
• state-owned enterprises
• social enterprises
• Māori and Pasifika businesses. 

What these businesses all have in common is that they produce goods and services (such as food and houses) for consumers, and create jobs and incomes for workers. We are keen to explore how this will keep supporting and improving wellbeing outcomes for New Zealanders in the future.

The final Long-term Insights Briefing will be a resource with information and analysis on the strategic choices we may face when looking at the future of business. It will be available to help Government, other stakeholders, and be available as a public resource.

Why we are consulting

We are keen to hear directly from New Zealanders on our proposed topic. 

Our goal is to produce a Briefing which not only reflects the current ideas and perspectives on business in Aotearoa, but will also be useful to anyone looking to future trends and opportunities. 

Government agencies are now required under the Public Service Act 2020 to produce Long-term Insights Briefings. The Briefings make available to the public:

• information about medium and long-term trends, risks and opportunities that affect or may affect New Zealand and New Zealand society

• information and impartial analysis, including policy options for responding to these matters.

The Briefing needs to appropriately consider Māori and Treaty interests. The same considerations in relation to Te Tiriti o Waitangi that normally apply to the work of government departments also apply to the Briefings.

Next steps

We will formally seek feedback at two stages as we develop the Briefing.

Phase one: During July and August 2021, we will seek feedback on the subject, scope and focus of the Long-Term Insights Briefing.

This first consultation will also help us make a start on the draft of the Briefing. We will continue engaging with stakeholders throughout 2021 as we develop the draft Briefing.

Phase two: In early 2022, we will seek feedback on the draft Briefing from the public.

The final Long-term Insights Briefing will be presented to the House of Representatives by 30 June 2022.

Submissions close 5:00pm Friday 20 August 2021.

If you have any questions please contact LTIB@mbie.govt.nz