As product manager overseeing the New Zealand Government’s transformational FormBuilder function, the no-code digital form builder for public sector agencies and councils, Shelley Campbell has been at the forefront of the NZ’s push to level up with and even exceed the capabilities of the most advanced digital governments.
Campbell also leads the charge with FormBuilder’s overseeing agency, Business Connect – a revolutionary digital platform that aims to simplify and enhance how New Zealand’s small businesses interact with and share information with government services. Since its launch in November 2019, Business Connect now boasts more than 100,000 registered businesses.
In an exclusive interview with FST Media, Campbell discusses the Business Connect platform’s development journey, its successes, and the vision for its future expansion.
The Business Connect vision
Business Connect was born out of more than a decade of research into the experiences of New Zealand’s small businesses dealing with government agencies. This research revealed two key areas where New Zealand was underperforming: coordination between agencies and councils, and consistency of service delivery.
“Our goal is to address these core concerns by providing a one-stop shop for businesses, where all forms are consistent, data is prepopulated, and repetitive paperwork is eliminated,” Campbell explained.
The platform has already achieved significant success. To date, Business Connect has delivered 47 forms, with over 100,000 businesses registered on the platform. These businesses have submitted a total of 152,000 forms.
Based on a conservative estimate of 10 minutes saved per application, the platform has already saved businesses around 25,000 hours.
“The time savings are just one example of how we’re making a real difference to small businesses,” Campbell noted.
Overcoming the challenges of integration
Integrating services from multiple government agencies has not been without its challenges. One of the most significant hurdles has been breaking down silos within government, where agencies often focus solely on their own internal processes.
“It’s been crucial to demonstrate the value of collaboration and to bring agencies together to work on service design,” Campbell said.
Campbell highlighted a successful case study involving NZ Customs’ Secure Export Scheme. Previously, small businesses needed to work through a paper-based application process which could sometimes take up to 18 months to complete and process, due to the complexity of the application. Through Business Connect, this process was digitised, reducing the application time to just 40 minutes.
“We didn’t just digitise the form; we fundamentally rethought the entire process to make it more straightforward and user-friendly,” Campbell emphasised.
By employing conditional logic, businesses only interact with the information relevant to them, making the process much more efficient.
Quantifying the impact on small businesses
Feedback from businesses participating in the pilot phase has been overwhelmingly positive. Business Connect’s user-centric design actively seeks to reduce the burden of compliance and administrative tasks.
Net Promoter Scores (NPS) are collected from users who submit applications, and weekly interviews with businesses help identify pain points. In addition, analytics are built into the platform to track form completion rates and address issues as they arise.
The impact of Business Connect isn’t just anecdotal—it’s measurable. The New Zealand Institute of Economic Research was commissioned to quantify the platform’s benefits. They estimated that combined productivity improvements, including time and cost savings, could generate up to $132 million over three years.
“These estimates are based on our current growth trajectory. If we can unlock the full potential of this platform and steepen that trajectory, the value could be far greater,” Campbell said.
Long-term vision and success metrics
As Business Connect continues to expand, Campbell’s long-term vision is for the platform to become a mainstream tool across New Zealand’s Government. With 47 forms already published and over 100,000 businesses registered, the platform is well on its way.
Campbell aims to accelerate this growth by enabling agencies to publish their own forms through a self-service form-building tool, similar to what is used in Singapore and the UK. “This would allow us to scale more quickly, delivering more services without requiring additional resources,” she said.
Leadership and strategy in a cross-agency environment
Managing a platform that spans multiple government agencies requires a clear vision and effective communication. Campbell stressed the importance of aligning agencies with the platform’s goals by showing them how Business Connect can help them meet their own needs.
“Listening to stakeholders and understanding their challenges has been key to building alignment,” she said.
With a team of around 30 people, Campbell leads both Business Connect and FormBuilder in an agile environment, relying on quarterly planning sessions to set goals and ensure the team remains focused.
Retaining talent has been another crucial factor, with many staff having been with the team for over four years, providing continuity and depth of expertise.
Engaging stakeholders and scaling the platform
While Business Connect has limited marketing resources, Campbell’s team has employed effective strategies to engage stakeholders and drive adoption.
Monthly webinars provide an opportunity for government agencies to learn more about the platform, see demos, and ask questions. These webinars, attended by around 15 people each month, have been instrumental in building awareness and interest in the platform. Additionally, a mailing list keeps stakeholders updated on progress and opportunities for user testing.
“We work openly and share what we’re doing,” Campbell said, emphasising the importance of transparency and collaboration. This open approach has helped build trust and support for Business Connect within government and the broader public sector.
A ‘cornerstone’ of NZ digital government
Business Connect is transforming the way New Zealand’s small businesses interact with government, making processes more streamlined, consistent, and user-friendly.
Under Campbell’s leadership, the platform has already delivered significant time savings and productivity improvements, with the potential to generate hundreds of millions of dollars in economic benefits over the coming years.
As Business Connect continues to expand, it is poised to become a cornerstone of New Zealand’s digital government landscape, driving efficiency and innovation across the public sector.
