Newsletter No. 3 - September 2001

New Zealand's Innovation Report Card - Lots of potential, can do better...

The recently released report of the Science and Innovation Advisory Council (SIAC) is an interesting and balanced view on where NZ is in the innovative world.

SIAC was established to provide advice to the Government on R&D and as one of its first tasks has developed an Innovation Report Card using a range of generally quantitative indicators.

Importantly and positively they observe:

"New Zealand has a good base from which to start. We do not think that we are as far behind as many commentators would have us believe. We lack many of the entrenched rigidities of older economies. We have shown that when faced with a real crisis, we can deal with it"

Some selected conclusions or observations are:

• "Successful innovation can only happen when all aspects of our life and work are considered and all our people are able to contribute and participate. Economic, social, and environmental objectives (known as the 'triple bottom line') are thought to be equally important"
  
  For anyone wanting to see a good New Zealand example of "triple bottom line" we suggest having a look at www.hubbards.co.nz.
• "New Zealand does, on the whole, rely on others to create knowledge. That propensity may be changing. During the 1990s, the average annual growth rate in New Zealand patents was second highest in the OECD, particularly in ICT (Information and Communications Technology)..."
• Where to aim for...
  • Growing the size of our small businesses, and helping them gear up for competing in regional and global markets.
  • An increase in the proportion of the labour force that is self-employed, and in the number of new company start-ups.
  • Greater participation by the employees in the risks and success of their enterprise.

The report can be accessed in full at www.siac.govt.nz or alternatively contact us and we will forward a copy.