What is a genuine strategic partnership, and why is its importance emphasised right now? Please read from the blog of Henna Ahtola, the leader in business and change consulting, how strategic partnerships can respond to the challenges of a changing operating environment and develop one’s business in the desired direction.
Change and uncertainty are the biggest themes of recent years, and every leader has been thinking about them.
We operate in a constantly changing environment, where local crises quickly become global, and issues become intertwined into complex wholes. The incredible leaps taken by digitalisation and technological development, market uncertainty, and global challenges have made the operating environment unprecedentedly dynamic and sensitive to changes.
Technology is crucial for competitiveness and operational reliability. Technology investments constitute a large part of companies’ costs in many industries. At the same time, sensible technology utilisation linked to business offers tremendous opportunities for improving operations, developing business, and even creating entirely new markets.
Strategic partnership is a sustainable way to respond to the challenges of the operating environment, enabling organisations to access expertise, resources, and markets.
When discussing strategic partnerships, the debate often focuses on the benefits and drawbacks of decentralisation and centralisation, related risks, and possible cost implications.
However, this discussion remains relatively narrow in today’s environment. I argue that today, characterised by rapid technological development, many alternative solutions, a deepening and worsening talent shortage, uncertainty in the operating environment, as well as increased demands and risks from the perspective of operational resilience, elevate strategic partnership as an increasingly important means for developing both competitiveness and operational reliability.
We know that a good partnership enables flexible and easily scalable resources in changing situations. In addition, especially in ICT-intensive sectors, a good partner can bring significant added value by providing the company with the expertise, ideas, and innovations needed for business development.
The structures of companies’ and organisations’ operations are generally in transition. We operate more and more as part of networks, and skilful partnership construction and management can be one of the key factors determining how well an organisation succeeds in its goals.
At its best, strategic partnerships allow organizations to bring their strengths to the table, allowing them to achieve goals that would be much more difficult to accomplish alone. Partnerships can enhance innovations, improve cost efficiency, and strengthen market position.
Strategic partnerships do not arise merely by proclamation; they require genuine will and commitment from all parties. A central element of the partnership is continuous dialogue, which leads to a deep understanding of the client’s business and needs. This is a prerequisite for each party to bring their expertise to the partnership in the best possible way—whether it’s new, disruptive innovations or efficient operating methods. Dialogue also enables the strategy between partners to become common through deepening understanding. .
Flexibility and measurability are also critical to the management of the partnership. Goals must be clear and reviewed often enough. The partnership must help all parties achieve their goals – the goals must become common.
A true partnership should last for a long time, and its strength is tested in uncertain situations. Monitoring the achievement of goals enables the ability to anticipate and be flexible in new situations.
Most importantly, the partnership's ultimate goal is to create value for both parties and their customers. Satisfaction stems from trust, openness, and the results of cooperation.
We at Digia believe in this, and it is also reflected in our partners' very high customer satisfaction. A strategic partnership is much more than just a contract. It is a commitment to shared success in today’s rapidly changing world. With such cooperation, organisations can survive challenging times, thrive, and achieve their long-term goals.
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