5 Things Your Perfect Business Partner Should Bring To The Table
Choosing a business partner can be the make or break point of your business, so it is imperative that you choose a partner wisely. This is important in a business since 77 percent of executives report that positive financial results are attributed to great collaboration. However, just like a marriage, a business partnership may start out great and somewhere down the line, it could run into lawsuits and bankruptcy.
Before choosing a partner, you need to assess your needs and see whether you need the partnership in the first place. Next, ensure that your partner’s leadership style, vision, skills, goals and style mirror your own. The five points below will help you choose that business partner who means growth for your company.
Matching Values
The most successful partnerships are based on common business ethics, and while there may be disagreements now and then, such partners manage to find a middle ground that works out for both of them. Common business standards and values should guide your actions, decisions and judgments. The values both of you have are what shape your personal and professional identities, so ensure that your values are in accord.
No Score Keeping
Just like any other relationship, business partnerships are all about taking and giving. On some days, you may be the one giving more, while on other days you are the one receiving more. Casual acquaintances are great for maintaining a sense of equity and keeping track of the long-term benefits; on the other hand, committed relationships can be rather unhealthy. As partners, when you see the rewards as equal to or more than your contributions, you are at peace with the proceedings in the business as well as each other; therefore, find a partner who doesn’t keep score if your business is to achieve success in the long run.
Skill Sets That Complement Your Own
Successful partnerships bring into a business complementary and different skill sets. When your partner’s skills are distinct in terms of range, the easier it will be when it comes to dividing labor and power. For example, when you are the creative visionary in the company and your partner is the administrator type, who introduces order and planning into the business; such partnerships are an unmistakable advantage since everyone is performing distinct functions.
Knowing The Value Of A Graceful Exit
The best sign of any successful venture is a graceful exit. Even as your potential partner looks into the legal registration of your business through sites like www.secstates.com/NY_New_York_Secretary_of_State_Corporation_Search, you should already have an exit strategy document in the pipeline. Without this document, partners may be forced to make important business decisions when they are not at their usual levelheaded temperament.
Having a written exit strategy drawn up right at the beginning of the partnership is the second (after deciding to partner) smartest decision you have made as partners. However, for an exit to be avoided by coming up with a mutual solution to take a calculated risk, the partners need to have faith in one another’s resolve to see the decision is upheld right up to the end.
A Win-Win
Right from the beginning, business partnerships should be a win-win situation for all parties involved. One-sided partnerships have the potential of ending badly for both. The best way to get what you want in a business relationship is to give your partner what they are asking for; for example, if you have a preference on how you will manage employees through online tools like Clockspot, your partner is most likely going to reciprocate your generosity by suggesting the best workforce management software.