Relating to productiveness, it’s no secret Aotearoa New Zealand lags closely behind our OECD counterparts. In actual fact, our latest analysis reveals Kiwis would want to work 20 p.c extra to achieve the common OECD GDP output.
For Kiwis working a 40-hour work week, that is equal to working an additional day per week to make up the labour productiveness hole – and that’s simply to achieve the common productiveness mark.
These are not possible numbers.
We will’t merely put our heads down and work our option to higher productiveness. We have to guarantee each hour spent working is doing one thing solely a human can do.
The chance for digitalisation
This week we launched new insights developed by the New Zealand Institute of Financial Analysis (NZIER) revealing a 20% enhance within the variety of companies adopting cloud-based enterprise instruments sooner or later might add as much as $7.8 billion to Aotearoa’s annual GDP by improved productiveness.
In unsure financial occasions, we have to do all the pieces we will to digitalise our small enterprise economic system and switch this nation right into a world-leading digital nation.
The analysis additionally confirmed the payback interval for companies’ funding in digitalisation is comparatively quick, usually lower than two to 3 years earlier than they begin seeing an ongoing constructive return.
In as little as two years, we may help rejuvenate the economic system, doubtlessly including billions of {dollars} by the improved productiveness delivered by the elevated uptake of digital instruments.
Taking classes from worldwide success tales
Whereas economies all over the world proceed to quickly digitalise, Aotearoa New Zealand’s digital competitiveness has fallen behind within the main classes of information, expertise, and future readiness.
Within the 2022 IMD World Digital Competitiveness Rankings, we ranked twenty seventh out of 63 international locations, down from an general rating of nineteenth in 2018.
Singapore and Denmark proceed to guide the digital approach globally and are key examples of what sturdy, dedicated authorities funding into digitalisation can do for an economic system.
Singapore’s Go Digital programme consists of in depth assist for SMEs reminiscent of pre-approved options for digitalisation supported by the federal government’s Productiveness Options Grant.
It additionally gives SMEs a chief expertise officer-as-a-service – a self-help platform empowering enterprise homeowners to determine their digitalisation wants and entry digital consultants for customized recommendation and market-proven options.
The roadmap to bettering digitalisation in Aotearoa New Zealand
After all, the enterprise group can’t do that alone. The New Zealand Authorities must do all the pieces it could possibly to assist our digital progress.
We want insurance policies encouraging the growth of the digital economic system by addressing the important thing obstacles many enterprise homeowners face together with monetary constraints, expertise gaps, attitudes and consciousness.
Our newest report by NZIER highlights the teachings from digitalised international locations to tell future actions and insurance policies for digitalisation.
Within the quick time period, creating a Productiveness Options grant to fund enterprise digitalisation is a key instance of empowering progress.
General enchancment of digital literacy in any respect ranges of society in the long run is essential, as is boosting the competitiveness of Aotearoa New Zealand’s tech sector immigration coverage.
There’s no fast repair to an issue as advanced as productiveness. However we all know investing in additional digitalisation is a step in the proper path.
For NZIER’s breakdown of high-priority actions for the Authorities, learn the complete report.
