Is New Zealand business stuck in production mode? Information collected by Auckland based data capture software company QLBS.com suggests that New Zealand companies are focusing most of their human and financial investment in the here and now production elements of business, at the expense of longer-term elements such as future vision, marketing, and customer service.

“Large companies in particular are production oriented with a heavy concentration on fiscal performance. However, to move a business forward there needs to be a fundamental shift in attitude towards a more balanced approach to running a business”, says Keith Phillips, president, QLBS.com.

“Businesses also need to have a good understanding of their market, know their future vision where they see the company in five years and how they will get there, and know how to use marketing to help them achieve their goals. We recently compared data from 150 New Zealand businesses; future vision and marketing were identified as the two weakest areas.”

Viewing business as a science, QLBS.com's Q100 assessment software enables mangers to measure their capabilities and weaknesses, and then analyse the results against others in the industry, providing a plan to adjust their operation to enhance overall results.

Founded five years ago by Steve Lewin and Margaret Mulqueen, and located within Massey University's business incubator (the e-centre), QLBS.com has customers in China, Iran, Singapore, and the UK. Some 200 companies in New Zealand also use its products.