The Power of Partnerships

John Leach

27/09/2010


Partnerships, alliances, and collaboration are a vital tool for any business. In an increasingly complex environment we can often find ourselves one minute competing and the next collaborating with others. John Leach CEO of Winning Pitch, thinks there are a lot of ways we can view collaboration and there are a lot of permutations on how they can work – here are some ideas to think about:


1. If you are a start-up - you will obviously be viewed in this way - how can you team up with larger partners to help you punch above your weight?


2. As a growing business could you find business partners that provide a route to market but where there is a reciprocal benefit – e.g recruitment company teaming up with an accountancy practice?


3. Developing new products - working with a university to bring you credibility and new expertise?


4. Could your business align with a leading expert or brand personality to enhance your credibility or endorse your offer?


5. Could you create alliances or partnerships with businesses that offer complimentary services/products - ones that you know could be channeled through to your customer e.g Costa Coffee franchises in Waterstones?


In an age where competitive advantage is crucial and differentiation is vital - we should all think about how partnerships can help benefit all parties. The operative word here is all - partnerships must be win-win and this is the mindset we must embrace.  If not, partnership could quickly become partnerSHAFT.