Building Successful Business Partnerships With Productivity In Mind: Steps To Follow.

Are business partnerships worth the effort? A report shared in Forbes reveals partnerships boost revenue, create new opportunities, and boost innovation. For example, Microsoft generates 95% of its commercial revenue through a partnership ecosystem. What a successful partnership with suppliers or other entrepreneurs does is bring two or more talents together, improving productivity and fuelling innovation, which are vital in sales generation. Now that you’re aware of how big and small businesses can benefit from B2B collaborations, should you form a partnership with any company out there? One thing you should know about establishing healthy and productive business partnerships is: the process is daunting. Successful partnerships demand understanding between partners, commitment, and consistent efforts. How do you meet these criteria to deliver desired results in your partnership? In this article, we’ll discuss the steps of maintaining successful business partnerships with productivity in mind. These steps include choosing your partners carefully, defining goals, setting clear expectations, and investing in effective communication.

This is a guest post by the wonderful Lucy Rose. Thank you, Lucy, for writing this for me.

Pick Your Business Partner Wisely.

Who is your ideal partner in the corporate landscape? Of course, you want someone whose values, visions, and working models align with yours. So, before collaborating with any other entrepreneur in the supply chain sector or tech industry, do your homework carefully. Find out what makes a great business partner or what qualities you should look for in prospects. A partner who brings complementary skills to the table is a perfect match for a successful partnership. Why? Leveraging unique skill sets not only enhances efficiency and productivity but also fuels innovation as you challenge each other to think out-of-the-box. A remarkable reputation is another aspect to look for in partners.

Whether you’re partnering with a supplier, tech company, or law firm, check their history of collaboration with other companies. If they have a successful collaboration history, it means they are reliable and trustworthy. Something else you should consider when evaluating potential business partners is whether they have a great mind like yours in delivering quality products and services in a timely and cost-effective way. Your customers want high-quality products and services delivered to them quickly at affordable prices. What does this mean? Your team must be productive and efficient. Therefore, when partnering with another business ensure they agree to maintaining high productivity and efficiency levels.

Define Goals

What do you want to achieve from a partnership? Do you want to reach a larger audience, boost your revenue, or foster creativity and innovation? Whatever goals you have in mind, define them clearly before signing a partnership agreement. Your business partners should also talk openly about what they want to accomplish during the partnership. Sounds like a waste of time, right? However, when each party defines their objectives, you get a deeper understanding of each other’s motivations and expectations. And if all parties dig deep and specify goals, you get to know the purpose and direction of the partnership. For example, instead of just saying you want to increase sales, specify the number of sales you want to reach, when, and how. You could say you want to improve sales by 30% within the first quarter through co-branded marketing campaigns.

Set Clear Expectation

Are goals not the same as expectations in the corporate world? Goals set you up for a challenge to work hard towards success. But expectations help you nurture a professional code of conduct to achieve your goals. With that in mind, your expectations in a business partnership should revolve around the responsibilities and contributions of each partner towards attaining defined goals. Specify clearly what is expected of everyone to do to ensure the team works effectively on projects. Ideally, assign all team members a role that aligns with their expertise. When there’s clarity in a business relationship, partners can focus on their strengths and deliver expected outcomes. Another secret to maximising productivity throughout your partnership is creating milestones for each team member. Milestones serve as checkpoints to determine progress and moments for reevaluation.

Maintain Flawless Communication

Have you ever considered the link between communication and productivity in business partnerships? As a business owner, it pays to know communication boosts productivity. How? Through flawless communication, partners in any business formation know their roles and contributions towards achieving set goals. Imagine having a partnership where nobody communicates about ongoing project status, upcoming projects, or current industry trends. Each partner, together with their staff members, will feel confused about what they should do to achieve the organisation’s goals. Too often, poor communication leads to reduced morale, which results in low productivity.

So, how can business partners improve communication to build stronger relationships that are productive? First rule: keep communication lines open. In healthy and productive business partnerships, each side depends on the other to update them about project progress, upcoming events, or obstacles. This means all parties need to communicate regularly, clearly, and consistently using channels or tools that work best for you and your partners. For instance, you could use teleconferencing tools if you work from different locations. Communication channels like Skype, Google Meet, and Slack can also be useful. Also, be honest and keep disagreements constructive and respectful when communicating.

It’s not easy to see the benefits of business partnerships beyond co-branded ads on tv, billboards, and social media. But, strong and productive business relationships increase revenue, fuel innovation, and create opportunities to reach new customer bases. The question is, how do you maintain success in a business partnership for maximum productivity? First, select the right partners, define goals, establish clear expectations of each partner, and focus on open communication.

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