Innovation in co-operative enterprises

Innovation in co-operative enterprises

To understand how co-operatives contribute to the economy, a team from The University of Auckland Business School and Erasmus University’s Rotterdam School of Management is undertaking a series of case studies and a major survey of co-operative businesses.

Researchers Dr Frank Siedlok and Dr Lisa Callagher say it is time to find out how the 149 Kiwi companies registered as co-operatives tick, what they are doing to improve their competitiveness here and abroad – and what lessons can be learnt to help all co-ops to do better.

“Several high profile co-operatives, such as Zespri and Foodstuffs, show that through strategies focused on added-value products or services, innovation and knowledge-sharing, they can successfully compete against large private sector organisations and multinationals. Yet, there are many misconceptions about just how innovative and entrepreneurial they are. We want to better understand the mechanisms that can make co-ops more competitive” says Dr Siedlok. He adds that as well as representing a significant part of New Zealand’s economy co-operatives are considered to be more resilient to economic recession.

The survey, which is funded by the IceHouse/University of Auckland Business School Research Fund, will provide a comprehensive picture of how contemporary co-operatives, as member-owned and controlled organisations, operate to provide purchasing, marketing and distribution, and other support to their members, and the ways they improve theirs and their members’ competitiveness. The results will be shared with co-operative businesses and used to inform both policy and university curriculum.

Dr Callagher points out that “current research is preoccupied with the structural aspects of co-ops, and fails to provide systematic research of the factors contributing to innovation and entrepreneurship. We want to move beyond structural explanations and show how co-ops are a viable business model that can work very well”.

These views are shared by Ian Macintosh, Chief Executive of Cooperative Business New Zealand, which represents co-operatives and mutuals, and provides needed support to the survey.

Mr Macintosh points out “every day one in four New Zealanders deal with a co-op: they are a bigger part of our life than we realise and we need to make society more aware of their role”.

For the study to make a difference it is paramount that as many co-operatives as possible take part in the survey, which has been recently mailed out to the 149 companies registered as co-operatives. “Quality up-to-date information is vital to help us better understand this most important type of organisation – we appreciate the return of as many completed surveys as possible” say Frank and Lisa. Alternatively, co-ops who are yet to respond and prefer to complete the survey online can use the link http://tinyurl.com/cooperativessurvey.

The team is also looking for co-operative members to share their views. Members who wish to participate can find more information at www.co-opinnovation.auckland.ac.nz or can contact Frank or Lisa directly.

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