The Government's economic transformation agenda provides the impetus for much of the Ministry's work. We have been asked to take a fresh approach and not just build incrementally on old initiatives.
In assisting the Government to develop and implement policies and services that promote growth, we work across nine portfolio areas and take an integrated approach across a wide range of agencies. Given the diversity of our effort, it's crucial that the Ministry has a sound strategy to prioritise its allocation of resources and expertise. The aim of our strategy is to focus on the things that really matter for growth.
Each year, we work with Ministers to review our strategy and agree on a small number of key strategic priorities to focus our effort for the three years ahead. Within each strategic priority we also review our understanding of the key issues, to make sure we are focusing on what matters most.
Our key areas of focus have been refined in this Statement of Intent by the addition of three new strategic priorities: Investment, Sustainable business and Auckland. So our five strategic priorities for the 2007-2010 period are:
- Investment: Improving the investment environment for New Zealand firms
- Sustainable business: Helping New Zealand firms to use environmental integrity for economic advantage
- Auckland: Working to make Auckland world-class
- Infrastructure: Improving the investment environment for New Zealand firms
- International linkages: Improving the international linkages that allow firms to benefit from trade, knowledge transfer and investment
This Statement of Intent explains why these particular priorities have been chosen, what the Ministry is trying to achieve within each, what the crucial issues are and which output classes contribute to each strategic priority.
While the strategic priorities focus on particular areas where increased effort is likely to be most positive for growth, all the Ministry's work aims to enhance growth. The diversity of the Ministry's contribution is reflected in its 12 business outcomes, which are described in the section Ministry's Business Outcomes.
The Statement of Intent also outlines the Ministry's organisational development strategy. This is designed to build the Ministry's capability, so it can realise its vision. It has three key aims: building a connected organisation; maximising the talents and commitment of our people; and developing our leadership capability. The organisational development strategy also describes the Ministry's approach to managing risks that could jeopardise achievement of its strategic priorities, business outcomes and operational services.
The Ministry works across a broad front to promote a step change in New Zealand's economic performance through the success of innovative, internationally competitive firms. The strategy contained in this Statement of Intent shows how we intend focusing our resources on the things that matter most for growth.
Geoff Dangerfield
May 2007