For many business leaders, 2025 marked the point at which artificial intelligence moved from being an emerging interest to an unavoidable reality. The question of whether AI matters has largely been resolved. The more pressing issue is how organisations respond and the implications of inaction.
For New Zealand’s private and family businesses, this carries particular significance. This is not just about technology – it’s a leadership decision that shapes how value is created and sustained over time.
The latest New Zealand data from the PwC Family Business Survey shows that private businesses already recognise the importance of this shift. Technology advancement and digital transformation were identified as the most significant growth opportunities, ahead of more traditional drivers. In this context, awareness is not the constraint, execution is.
The emerging separation – redesign versus bolt on
What is now emerging, in New Zealand and internationally, is a growing separation between organisations that are genuinely becoming AI-enabled and those that are not. This divide is not driven by access to technology; it's driven by approach. The separation is emerging between organisations that are genuinely redesigning how work gets done, and those that are treating AI as another tool to bolt on.
That distinction matters. History tells us that major technology shifts do not reward incremental adoption. The organisations that benefit most are those that reorganise around the new capability by reshaping cost structures, decision-making, and the way value is created for customers. AI is no different.
Why private businesses have more to gain than they think
For private businesses, this transition presents both challenges and opportunities. While AI can disrupt established ways of working, it also reduces barriers that have historically favoured scale. Today, organisations without large technology teams can access extraordinary capability and scale it quickly.
Private and family businesses often have attributes that AI can reinforce rather than erode: a clear sense of purpose, strong values, deep customer relationships and relatively agile decision-making. When applied thoughtfully, AI can help embed these strengths into everyday operations, enabling private businesses to compete more effectively.
The real barriers are human, not technical
So why is progress uneven?
The limiting factors are rarely technical. Our experience, supported by broader CEO research, suggests that the most significant constraints relate to people and leadership: skills, confidence, change readiness and executive fluency. The choice of platform or tool is secondary.
AI does not compensate for weak foundations. Poorly defined processes, fragmented data and unclear operating models are exposed more quickly when AI is introduced. By contrast, organisations that are seeing tangible benefits are those taking a disciplined approach—building leadership capability, investing in workforce upskilling and focusing on a small number of high-value use cases that are embedded into daily work.
What private business leaders should do now
AI adoption does not require immediate large-scale transformation. It does, however, require clear leadership intent and sustained effort. Based on our work with private businesses in New Zealand and globally, five priorities stand out.
New Zealand family businesses may be well positioned to navigate this transition. Our Family Business Survey data shows strong alignment between current and next-generation leaders on innovation and technology adoption, creating a foundation for AI to support both near-term performance and long-term succession objectives.
The cost of waiting is rising
The greater risk lies in deferring action, with some organisations waiting for greater certainty or maturity before committing. While AI will continue to evolve, the competitive baseline is already shifting. The gap between what is technically possible and what is practiced is already widening, and history suggests that the longer organisations wait, the sharper the eventual disruption becomes.
As AI capability becomes increasingly commoditised, competitive advantage will be shaped less by technology itself and more by leadership choices: the ability to learn quickly, redesign work deliberately, and invest in people and change.
For private businesses considering future value, succession, and relevance, this is the central question. AI is not about replacing what makes these businesses special. It’s about ensuring those strengths continue to deliver value in a markedly different competitive landscape.
AI and New Zealand family businesses: what we’re seeing in the data
Selected insights from our New Zealand Family Business Survey 2025.
Technology and digital transformation are the top-ranked growth opportunity for New Zealand family businesses.
Most New Zealand family businesses invest selectively or take a wait-and-see approach to AI, rather than acting as early adopters.
A majority of New Zealand family businesses believe digital transformation will be critical to their success over the next five years.
Current and next-generation leaders in New Zealand family businesses are most aligned on innovation and technology.
Long-term investment remains focused on core business expansion, with technology often positioned as supportive rather than transformational.
New Zealand family businesses actively monitor disruption and uncertainty, but many are yet to embed AI into everyday operations.
About the author(s)
Value in Motion
AI, climate change and geopolitical shifts are reconfiguring the global economy. Read our global thought leadership that maps where value is moving over in the next decade.
Insights and Publications
Get the latest insights, news, and publications covering multidisciplinary sectors, industries, and economic developments that help shape the business landscape in New Zealand.
