How do you develop a successful Business Partnership?
Developing business partnerships are like developing any relationship – it feels great when we are in sync and aligned. However, dealing with conflict or misalignment can feel like really hard work when we are under stress.
People choose business partners for various reasons. Some choose their partner because they have complementary skills. Maybe they provide the entrepreneurial flair to drive growth or the discipline to put processes and systems in place. Other partners need a product expert with the subject-matter expertise that sets them ahead of the competition.
Some partnerships are formed because the partners are similar – they share a work ethic, have similar skills, or have the passion for doing whatever it takes. Some are already good friends and think it will be great to work together. Sometimes people inherit their share in a partnership, are promoted or buy into a partnership role. Whatever the reason you entered into a partnership, it no doubt started as an exciting journey full of optimism and hope. So how do you maintain that energy long-term and develop a successful business partnership?
Align on where you are going and check in frequently
It can be easy to assume that you and your business partners have the same goals when you go into a partnership. However, this evolves even if you have agreed with your vision for the business upfront. The economic and business conditions shift, and personal circumstances change as we move through different stages of life. As a result, what may have been an acceptable level of risk at the start of the partnership may be intolerable a few years in.
A partner in a medical centre asked us if we could help them and their partners realign. One of the long-term business partners was close to retirement and keen to maintain the status quo for the next couple of years until they left the business. The newer partners knew that to be profitable long term, they needed to overhaul the systems, processes, and physical space. This was then causing conflict between them. The majority of the partners wanted to change, yet they also wanted to be respectful and recognise the legacy of the retiring partner. So, rather than forcing the change on the retiring partner, they held an alignment workshop to discuss their relative needs, concerns, and hopes. With a much deeper understanding of each other, they were able to design and agree on a plan that suited all the partners’ needs.
Agree how you get there
Once you have the clarity of an aligned strategy, you must also agree on how you will move forward and start the process of developing your business partnership. Many components determine how you are going to deliver your desired outcomes. Some of the biggest partnership conflicts occur around the ‘how’. Unless you have agreement on your delivery approach, frustration, confusion, and conflict may result.
An essential part of ‘the how’ or process of developing business partnerships relies on setting your values, expectations for each other and leadership behaviours. Are you role-modelling the values you set for the business, or are your behaviours at odds with your stated values? Agreeing on expected behaviours and guiding principles can resolve any mismatch between your stated values and day-to-day behaviours. This provides clarity for everyone in the business around the behavioural norms and standards and permission for the team to call it out if they observe others not meeting those standards.
If you would like some more information on developing business partnerships, take a look at our Partnership Creativity program or download our free “The 5 Steps to a Winning Partnership” Guide