Xero provided a Briefing to Incoming Ministers (BIM) (Hon Nicola Willis, Hon Judith Collins, Hon Melissa Lee, Hon Andrew Bayly, and Hon David Seymour) in late 2023 which was focused on the challenges our small businesses face and the crucial role the government can play in driving solutions.

Small businesses play a fundamental role in supporting our local communities, fostering innovation and driving productivity. 

But front and centre is New Zealand’s struggle with poor productivity. Solutions to our productivity problem are not earth-shattering, and much of it comes from the new government enabling small businesses to succeed.

In our view, this is a pivotal time for our economy, so here’s three key actions for our new government:

driving productivity growth by supporting the small business community with a comprehensive and holistic approach to digitalisation, including appropriate incentives to drive digital adoption and the effective use of digital technologies 

increasing small business access to finance, in particular by prioritising Open Banking as a tool to create efficiencies as well as grow competition in financial services 

reducing the compliance burden on small businesses.

At Xero we believe that actions on these three important areas would help make small businesses more resilient to crisis, drive more informed decisions and increase business efficiency and effectiveness. 

Our new government needs to recognise that the opportunities for improving productivity in New Zealand are incredible, especially if they prioritise small businesses.

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