Why New Zealand's No. 8 Wire Mentality Is Bad For Business

The ‘number 8 wire’ mentality used to be something us Kiwis we were proud of. 

Named after a British standard wire gauge, the term represented the ability for Kiwi’s to innovate and create solutions to problems using whatever they had available, even the wire from the fence.

That same number 8 wire is now out of date, both due to the metric system renaming it to 4.0 mm wire and because the "she'll be right" attitude just doesn't scale in global markets. 

While writing my new book ‘No 8 Recharged’ along with my co-author David Downs, we interviewed hundreds of Kiwi innovators and entrepreneurs from all over New Zealand.

What struck me was how many small New Zealand companies were trying to solve local problems using only local resources without carrying out thorough market research. 

Far too many of the entrepreneurs we spoke to had taken their products to market before they were ready and before their idea was protected without very little if any research on global competitors or global demand.  Similar traits of having an independent mind-set and an entrepreneurial spirit ran through many of our innovators. Although these used to be traits we celebrated, the independent, build it in the shed mentality may now not be enough to succeed. 

Our independence may seem bold, but it may also be our downfall with lots of solo inventers not realising the strength that comes from collaboration with diverse teams who can bring different perspectives and funding opportunities to their potential solutions. While still respecting the history of the number 8 wire mentality, we should also move forward by ensuring that we capture value from commercially competitive, globally scalable ideas. 

New Zealand businesses are facing more competition than ever before and to move forward we need to make sure we have the right tools for the job.

One of those changes I’d like to see is being more transparent when celebrating our ‘overnight success’ stories. 

PowerbyProxi is one recent example of that, with the headlines last week celebrating how amazing it was that Apple acquired the New Zealand firm. What we didn’t see was credit going to Professor John Boys and Professor Grant Covic from the University of Auckland who had spent their careers researching and building a world leading inductive power transfer laboratory. We also didn’t hear about the many business challenges that CEO Fady Mishriki has gone through since setting up the company a decade ago. These are some of the most important parts of business success stories, filled with rich lessons in how to raise capital, protect IP, recover from failures and find skilled talent suitable for a globally scaling organisation.

With a new government promising change, I should mention that we currently only spend 1.3 percent of GDP on research and development in New Zealand which is way behind the OECD average of 2.4 percent. However funding issues aside, we also lack globally experienced business mentors, a well skilled talent pipeline and an understanding around protecting the value of our intangible assets.

I’d love to build a strong Kiwi foundation through more initiatives in schools that teach entrepreneur-like thinking, practical problem solving skills and collaborative thought. I dream of a New Zealand filled with youth business competitions, expanding on from the amazing work that Young Enterprise Scheme do and empowering even our 5 year olds to develop the skills, passion and gain experience in creating world changing solutions. 

The number 8 wire mentality has shaped New Zealand and made us proud, but it is time to re-wire that image and build a new vision for our entrepreneurial future.