An exploration of the facilitators and impediments influencing the development of the New Zealand biotechnology industry.

Abstract

Using qualitative, semi-­‐structured interviews of nine participating biotechnology industry members, this case study explored the factors that act as facilitators and impediments to the development of the biotechnology industry in New Zealand. Numerous studies both domestic and international have been conducted to understand the factors that influence biotechnology sector development. It is found that the three major influencers are; factors external to individual firms, factors internal to individual firms and government interventions into the sector. This study investigates these three factors from the perspective of the industry members, and their facilitating or impedimentary impact on the sectors development. This study found that there are numerous internal and external factors influencing the sector, the majority identified were impediments to development, however, some facilitating factors were also identified. These factors included; the shortage of funding and its effects, the shortage of skilled workers, the strength of the networks within the sector, and the impact of taking firms overseas. The majority of these factors were supported by previous studies, however novel findings such as the potential use of New Zealand as a test bed for biotechnology, were also identified. This study’s findings contrasted previous literature with regards to the influence of government. Previous studies found New Zealand’s interventions to be insufficient and in some ways an impediment, however this study found the current interventions to be beneficial to the development of the sector. The identification of factors that influence the development of the biotechnology sector, strategies to overcome or mitigate impediments can be formulated, particularly through use of the facilitating factors.