#TBT with Partnership Negotiations

Nowadays, everything is about relations. However, great relations require time to build up a foundation of trust and learning the necessities of each other. Throughout time, the relations will generate great partnerships, eventually adding value to each other’s goals.

If we review history developments, we will notice that economic growth was brought as a result of business exchanges and transportation connections. Rome and Greece were the pioneers in the creation of public infrastructure with the support of private funds. Later on, in the 1858, Suez Canal was developed as the first Public-Private Partnership, allowing navigators to shorten their trips, from the North Atlantic to the Indian Oceans. By the end of the nineteenth century, Public-Private partnerships became a solution to the Americas, the New World.

There are different kind of partnerships between the public and private sector that ranges from managing the governmental facilities to partially own the property and generating impressive return on investments. With time, the non-profit organizations became part of certain agreements because they would benefit from them.

At the present time, partnerships have developed across companies. We can observer private corporations, that haves’ agreements with the regional government, has a well-developed supplier partnership program and reinvest in their communities, as well.

The base of all successful partnerships will rely on the negotiation process. However, having a positive and productive negotiation process to establish a result driven partnership will require patience, willingness to understand the other party necessities and flexibility to maintain the goal as the priority.

Focusing on the common benefits of the partnership will help, both parties, get across the process and eventually build up a long-term business relation. Both of the parties will most likely need to generate value out of the partnership, whether is monetary or an intangible asset.

Moreover, establishing expectations from the starting point of the negotiation, will definitely increase the probabilities of a successful partnerships. Administrative details like: dateline for the closing the partnership agreement, parties’ representatives at the decision table, industries regulations and policies, and values of each of the organizations involve in the partnership.

Communication flow is key to advance steps within the negotiation process and identify new opportunities. Threats will always be present, it will depend on how the parties approach them, use their creativity to solve the problem and move forward with solutions when difficult situations come. Also, assigning one contact person as a channel to all communications, will serve as a mediator and protect business relations between parties’ key executives.

The evolution of designing partnerships will continue and will keep crossing between public, private and non-profit organizations. Furthermore, the need of collaboration will always be present and will strength the economic growth, within all regions. A company that is social responsible and are aware of the importance of integrating partners in order to achieve their goals, have the power to enable large scale impact.

#publicrelations #partnerships #corporatesocialresponsability #events