The 2024 New Zealand Public Sector Reputation Index report has just been launched by research and communications agency Verian. FENZ remains on top, with creative sector the biggest improver, writes Nicholas Dynon.
The free to download report reveals the top 10 performing agencies on the Index in 2024, and reputational trends for the public sector more broadly. It also explores perceptions of trust relating to information coming from agencies, news organisations, and online sources, such as bloggers.
Most reputable
Fire and Emergency NZ continues its reign as the highest rated of all agencies on the Index, with new entrant, NZ Search and Rescue, following closely. Callaghan Innovation, NEMA, Tourism NZ and Creative NZ all improved their position in the index this year.
Creative NZ enjoys the strongest improvement in overall reputation in 2024. Organisations in a similar space, Ministry of Culture and Heritage and RNZ, are also among those who have seen the strongest improvement in reputation, suggesting a more favourable view towards the arts and creative sector.
Reputational recovery
2024 sees a recovery in reputation across the public sector, following two years of falling scores. The distribution of New Zealand public sector agencies has improved slightly (2024 average of 64 compared with an average of 62 in 2023). 20 agencies have improved their score by at least two points since 2023, while four have fallen by at least two points.
While the proportion of those with negative perceptions towards the public sector is unchanged, the attitudes of those who were more neutral in their opinion are once again warming.
With 58 agencies on the New Zealand Index, the Electoral Commission, NZ Search and Rescue, and High Performance Sport NZ are new to the Index this year.
Major influencers
News media has, by far, the most influence on the reputation of the public sector – the number of people influenced by the media is double those who are influenced by an agency directly (through communications or personal experience).
While the news media is the most common influence on reputation, this differs markedly by age – the news media influences older New Zealanders much more than younger New Zealanders. In contrast, the impact from word of mouth and online sources is more skewed towards younger New Zealanders.
The index
The Public Sector Reputation Index was developed nearly a decade ago in response to demand from public sector agencies for rigorous, independent benchmarks of their reputation. In 2023 the index was expanded into Australia and Singapore.
The Index is a globally validated model of reputation that has been carefully adapted for the public sector. This model includes four central pillars: trust, leadership, social responsibility, and fairness. The research involved 3,541 online interviews of a nationally representative sample by age, gender, region, ethnicity and education level. Fieldwork was conducted from 14 to 29 March 2024.
