26 February 2024
Kia ora koutou,
TIN – like you, undoubtedly – wants to supercharge Aotearoa’s progress as a major tech exporter and innovation hub. Our contribution is to deliver data that tells the true story of the positive impact that tech has on our country. View our summer NZ Tech Sector Dashboard to unlock current industry trends and insights.
Below, we can see a symbiotic growth relationship between research and development, trade, employment, and wages.
As discussed recently by Business Desk and Newsroom, R&D is a key driver of growth. While New Zealand’s wider economy lags behind the OECD average, Kiwi tech firms that operate at a global scale – the TIN200 – are leading by example. R&D spending across the TIN200 totalled $1.7B in 2023, up $153m on the year prior and exceeding 10% of total revenue. This drives a virtuous cycle that results in more meaningful and interesting jobs, and more wages in people’s pockets, which flows through the rest of the economy.
The key to all of this is people. We consistently hear from our info-networks that finding the right person for the job in NZ is a challenge. Transformative change on that front requires concerted and coordinated efforts in education, immigration, and employment.
In the meantime, Absolute IT may be able to help you with your next recruitment challenge, and you can perhaps learn a best practice or two on attraction and retention from Datacom and Vista. Plus, tips on how to expand into North America.
Until next time,
Lucy Diver
(she/her)
Editor
Technology Investment Network