Filters

Redvespa News

Leadership & Development

Business Optimisation

Business Analysis

For Good

Reset all

Sharing knowledge and insight is what we do.

Business Optimisation

The Brawndo Problem

The Brawndo Problem is the failure to solve the right problem when a solution is adopted too early. Good business analysis relentlessly asks useful questions during discovery to define the actual problem before you go all in on watering plants with energy drink.

Read more
Leadership & Development

The Great Tech Leap

New technology used to come with time; to adapt and legislate (and for the elite to hold the controls). Modern tech doesn't bring the luxury of time, which has left our guardianship in second gear. We're running out of time to balance innovation with sustainability.

Read more
Leadership & Development

Starting at the Summit

When our process is exhaustive, and our communication style mirrors that by default, we risk asking stakeholders to climb the mountain with us when they’re happy at the camp; it’s time to stop justifying the journey and start at the summit.

Read more
Business Optimisation

What is AI, Anyway?

While ChatGPT and other LLMs dominate the conversation, the real shift is moving past the hype to understand which specific AI tools - from simple rules to agentic systems - actually fit the problem you’re trying to solve.

Read more
Leadership & Development

The Alfred Effect

When you position yourself as the hero, your stakeholders become passive observers of your journey rather than active participants in their own. That's where the Alfred Effect comes in; helping you inspire change and bring people with you.

Read more
Leadership & Development

The Brain is a Guessing Machine

When a story looks exactly like the last five we’ve heard, our internal software guesses what comes next. It's time to break the guessing machine.

Read more
Business Analysis

On Roman Baths & Business Analysis

Roman baths might be the blueprint we need for modern ways of working. But office environments don't follow that blueprint, and that's where business analysis can help create the right conditions (without needing actual baths).

Read more
Leadership & Development

The Business Case for Curiosity

Too many organisations see curiosity as a fluffy, nice-to-have. The truth is, it's the key to unlocking innovation. Here's the business case behind that.

Read more
Business Optimisation

The Spiral: checking in on how we connect

COVID lockdowns made hybrid our default way of working, but 'default' can mean we forget 'intent.' Here, we check-in on hybrid, intentionally.

Read more
Business Analysis

From One Local to Another: supporting local government

As councils across New Zealand reset post-elections, Brigid Withers shares insight on the importance of being engaged in local government and the support Redvespa provides.

Read more
Leadership & Development

Stories from the Blueprint: Josephine Cochrane

Stories from the Blueprint presents short stories which show how innovation grows and is fostered to realise world-changing innovation: this is the story of Josephine, the socialite who modernised domestic life.

Read more
Leadership & Development

AI & the Value of Human Analysis

Redvespa's CEO Sarah Gibson explores how human-centred insight, critical thinking, and trust from business analysts complement the rapid information processing of AI.

Read more
Leadership & Development

Stories from the Blueprint: Malcom McLean

Stories from the Blueprint presents short stories which show how innovation grows and is fostered to realise world-changing innovation: this is the story of Malcom McLean, the man who revolutionised the shipping industry.

Read more
Business Analysis

The Power of Listening

Janet Noble reflects on how her mother's empathetic approach to clients - built on listening - shaped her own approach supporting a client to navigate big changes.

Read more
Leadership & Development

Coffee Chat: interview skills

Client interviews are second-nature for Redvespa consultants. Here, Pam Wright shares the conversation about interview skills from a simple coffee chat with her colleagues.

Read more
Leadership & Development

In Context: the Global Innovation Index

The Global Innovation Index provides an annual, independent perspective on innovation across the globe - we provide some context to where New Zealand sits, and where we need to start moving.

Read more
Leadership & Development

In Focus: NZ's engineering sector and the GII

The Global Innovation Index paints a picture of a New Zealand engineering sector which is struggling with graduates - the sector seems to agree ... and isn't sitting on its hands waiting for others to face up to the challenge.

Read more
Leadership & Development

In Focus: R&D and science in the GII

The science sector in New Zealand is filled with debate about funding and focus: and this contrast is reflected in Global Innovation Index scores. We look at how it plays out across two key inputs: graduates and R&D.

Read more
Business Analysis

Do You Really Need a Bigger Boat: the problem with rushing to solutions

It's human nature to seek solutions. We're wired to resolve problems, but rushing to solutions isn't always effective: whether you're faced with real teeth or a project with some.

Read more
Business Analysis

Always Look Under the Table: business analysis, Taskmaster-style

Taskmaster - the British comedy show synonymous with ingenious problems and solutions - provides many, many lessons for life in the real world, especially for BAs.

Read more
Leadership & Development

Save the Empire: the art of asking better questions

Asking questions helps us make better decisions, solve problems, and build relationships, but what makes a good question?

Read more
Business Optimisation

Caught in a Monsoon: introducing the Navigating Projects Toolkit

Introducing our Navigating Projects Toolkit; a set of cards which are the manual to unleash potential in your projects and your people.

Read more
Business Analysis

Framing the Big Picture: landscape photos & the business landscape

Exploring the similarities in framing, perspective, and focus between landscape photography and enterprise business analysis.

Read more
Business Optimisation

The circle of life: the SME/ government relationship 

Exploring how the symbiotic relationship between the government and SMEs plays out, with a little Lion King to balance the tax insight.

Read more
Leadership & Development

Exploring curiosity: from Antiquity to Endurance

For Redvespa, curiosity isn't a nice to have. It's an essential superpower. Here, Pam Wright continues exploring curiosity: from Ancient Greece & the Renaissance, to the Antarctic & Redvespa's own innovation research.

Read more
Leadership & Development

Botticelli should've been a Ninja Turtle

Leaning into an, otherwise unused, art history degree, Head of Community, Jamie Bell outlines five tips for using your imagination in business inspired by Renaissance artist, Sandro Botticelli.

Read more
Leadership & Development

Four tips to own your confidence

Ever feel like your confidence comes and goes? One day you're on top of the world, the next you're struggling to keep your head above water. Don't worry, you're not alone.

Read more
Business Analysis

The Business Analysis Pirate Code

Believe it or not, there's a lot BAs can learn from pirates - Matt Duce takes inspiration from the Pirate Code to help Business Analysts break the rules, navigate chaos, and seize opportunities.

Read more
Redvespa News

Giving consultancy the shakeup it needs

As government departments and large corporates assess their partnerships for culture, value, and outputs alignment - Redvespa continue to be an agile option for getting stuff done - on time, and within budget.

Read more
Leadership & Development

Off-script

We place immense value on transferrable skills so, when Senior Consultant, Yoong Ru Heng opted for improv classes as Learning & Development, the only reasonable answer was "yes, and..."

Read more
Business Optimisation

Right-sizing risk management

Senior Consultant, Jon Foulkes explores the nuances of risk management and mitigation in business projects and asks, how much risk are you prepared to accept?

Read more
Redvespa News

Picture This!

Redvespa's CEO, Sarah Gibson, shares the unusual genesis of an idea which has led to two editions of a book, intended to help businesses plan projects, share information, and tell stories through diagrams.

Read more
Business Analysis

Customer Journey Mapping

In today's competitive landscape, providing a superior customer journey can give businesses a competitive edge. But how do you ensure you're delivering a positive experience consistently and know that it's paying off?

Read more
Business Analysis

Getting the best out of process mapping

Business process mapping is an essential part of managing business processes. In this article, Moya Bawden and Jon Foulkes share eight strengths of business process mapping and why it is so valuable in the work we do.

Read more
For Good

Business for Good

What is business impact consciousness and why is it important? Sam shares why we need a change in the way we see business.

Read more
Leadership & Development

Roll for initiative

How Dungeons & Dragons taught one Consultant servant leadership, and how he takes that learning, and the role of Dungeon Master, to the project table.

Read more
Leadership & Development

Smile less, disagree more

New Zealanders - so quick to stand up against the nuclear might of America, so reluctant to give feedback to a colleague. Aaron Power explores why we’re so scared of conflict, and what to do about it.

Read more
Business Optimisation

Big thinking. Small business.

Three insights to help unleash potential in small businesses.

Read more
For Good

Continuity and Growth Plans

How Small to Medium Enterprises (SMEs) can meaningfully conduct business continuity planning to ensure the security of their small business during uncertain times.

Read more
Business Optimisation

Lost & Found: flexing your imagination muscles

Imagination is often referenced as something we lose as we age. The good news is your imagination can be developed with time and practice, benefitting workplace problem solving and innovation.

Read more
Business Analysis

Breaking imagination free from frameworks

Making design frameworks work, with imagination. Design Thinking has become more-or-less ubiquitous in NZ somewhere in the middle of the current decade. Redvespa’s experiences with our clients over the last 5 years certainly reflect this.

Read more
Business Optimisation

Who cares: purpose & supply

Purpose matters in people’s buying decisions, particularly for smaller, local businesses. But how much do you control how purpose translates into customer experience? How do you protect your purpose?

Read more
For Good

Making change happen

In 2015, the UN published their Sustainable Development Goals: a blueprint for a better and more sustainable future. In 2019, Redvespa assessed how best to contribute to that future.

Read more
Leadership & Development

Time for imagination

Imagination can bring the biggest innovations - but it’s often not a quick win. Here, we make the argument for investing in time for innovation.

Read more
Leadership & Development

Rediscover remote engagement

Engaging people remotely, when attention spans are outlasted by goldfish.

Read more

Call us:

0508 REDVESPA

Email us:

hello@redvespa.com

Subscribe to First Mondays, our monthly newsletter

Next
Oops! Something went wrong.

Cookie Policy

Privacy Policy

Ⓒ 2025 Redvespa