The reputations of New Zealand’s public sector Agencies have soared in the midst of the COVID-19 crisis, a new study has found.
The Colmar Brunton Public Sector Reputation Survey shows that the average Agency rating for being trustworthy increased from 37 per cent in 2017 to 48 per cent in 2020.
At the same time, the average Agency rating for being less trustworthy decreased from 17 per cent to 11 per cent.
Research Director at Colmar Brunton, Edward Langley said Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ) continued its dominance, taking out the top spot for the fifth year running.
“It is rated most highly overall, and across each of the four pillars that shape reputation — trust, social responsibility, leadership, and fairness,” Mr Langley said.
However, over the past five years the gap between FENZ and the remaining Agencies had narrowed.
“This is despite FENZ being more highly rated by New Zealanders than in recent years,” Mr Langley said.
“In other words, perceptions of the rest of the public sector are improving more rapidly,” he said.
“Key movers in the top 10 include the Defence Force and the Customs Service which have climbed the rankings to take second and third place respectively.”
Mr Langley said the biggest mover in the top 10 was the Health Promotion Agency, which moved up 13 places to take sixth position.
The research was conducted as the COVID-19 crisis started to hit in March and Mr Langley said the strong public sector reputation had supported the successful response to COVID-19.
“As we entered the crisis, New Zealanders were rating public Agencies more highly than in recent years,” he said.
“This means they were more likely to be in listening mode and prepared to place their trust in those leading our response.”
“This no doubt supported New Zealand’s strategy to eliminate the virus,” Mr Langley said.
Wellington, 28 May 2020
