Building High Performance Business Relationships E-Book

Tony Lendrum

• Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
• Kategorie: Wissenschaft und neue Technologien
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 350

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2011

Beschreibung

A practical guide for building and maintaining high performance business relationships Every business sinks or swims on the quality of its relationships and alliances, whether they are between management and staff, departments, subsidiaries, partners, suppliers, or customers. It's no wonder then that building and maintaining high performance relationships has emerged as one of the hottest topics in today's hypercompetitive, global business environment. This indispensable guide will help you to understand what high performance relationships are and how they work. Written by a distinguished pioneer in the field, it explains what a high performance business culture populated by a fully engaged workforce looks like. It describes simple, proven strategies and techniques for implementing and sustaining high performance relationships, both internally, within your organizations, and externally. And, it details the many benefits that await business organizations of any size that place greater emphasis on relationship performance management. * Offers simple and effective methods for building successful business and organizational relationships * Concise and easy to read, this book provides a common language and practice for high performance relationship management and critical change management * Arms you with an array of tested-in-the-trenches tools for building robust and sustainable high performance business relationships

Leseprobe

Building High Performance Business Relationships: Rescue, Improve And Transform Your Most Valuable Assets

Table of Contents

Chapter 1: 0 To 10 Relationship Management - A Storyboard Perspective

0 to 10RM — a storyboard perspective

Storyboard Part A — framework and components

Storyboard Part B — people and change

Storyboard Part C — journey management

Chapter 2: The Framework

Unpacking the 0 to 10RM Matrix

Relationship types in brief

Summary of the 11 relationship types

The five elements of relationships

The vendor, supplier and partner segments

Relationship performance

Summary of the 11 performance levels

Key results areas

The two anchor points

Secondary approaches

The green line

The ‘how to’ plan

The Way

Business implications surrounding the 0 to 10RM Matrix

How to determine which relationship approach is appropriate

Are some relationship types better than others?

Aligning culture, strategy, structure, process and people

0 to 10 relationship alignment diagnostic

Intuitive RAD

e-RAD

0 to 10RM relationship strategy map

The benefits of making relationship management a core competency

Chapter 3: The 11 Relationship Types

A relationship outside the three segments

Type Zero relationships

Vendor segment relationships for relationship types 1, 2, 3 and 4

Type 1 Combative relationships

Type 2 Tribal relationships

Type 3 Trading relationships

Type 4 Transactional relationships

Supplier segment relationships for relationship types 5, 6 and 7

Type 5 Basic relationships

Type 6 Major relationships

Type 7 Key relationships

Partner segment relationships for relationship types 8, 9 and 10

Type 8 Partnering and Alliancing relationships

Type 9 Pioneering relationships

Type 10 Community relationships

Chapter 4: Key Components

Leadership and value propositions

Contracts and agreements

Relationship charters

Elements of the relationship charter

Characteristics of the relationship charter

Contracts and relationship charters

Performance measurement and relationship KPI scorecards

The varieties of KPIs

Avoid conflicting KPIs

Risk–reward performance-based remuneration models

Getting paid on performance or effect

Relationship plans

Other aspects to consider around relationship plans

The importance of relationship plans

Governance and structure

Chapter 5: Let's Go Change Model

People — you can’t do business without them

The Bus of Change

Let’s Go change model explained

Strategic and tactical Five Ws

Let’s Go action plans

Linking current and future attitudes and behaviours to results

The process of the Let’s Go change model

Linking corporate culture and leadership

Culture survey

Three critical relationship roles

Chief relationship officer

The 0 to 10RM relationship facilitator

The 0 to 10RM relationship manager

Getting internal relationships right

Chapter 6: The Relationship Development Curve

The stages in the development curve

Instability

Crisis

Trust

Innovation

No turning back

Applying the relationship development curve

Paradigm shifting

Tyre paradigms

The value question

Crisis and opportunity management

The four stages of relationship maintenance

Breakdown maintenance

Preventative maintenance

Predictive maintenance

Design-out maintenance

So why do relationships fail?

Chapter 7: The 12/12/6 Roadmap Process

The 12 motivators of the roadmap

Add value

Reduce total costs

Improve communication

Develop trust

Resolve conflicts

Remove hidden agendas

Provide leadership

Empower people

Gain commitment

Develop ownership

Break down barriers

Remove fear

The 12 steps of the roadmap

Evaluate and select the vendor, supplier or partner

Review internal relationships for quality and performance

Review or workshop the relationship process, progress and performance

Conduct requirements analysis for the present and future

Meet or exceed requirements IFOTA1 specification

Select or review relationship managers and teams

Conduct site visits

Review or implement skills requirements

Review upstream supplier and support relationships

Establish technology requirements, current and future

Review internal and external relationship networks

Develop, implement and review relationship strategies and action plans

The six outcomes

Financial success

Customer and stakeholder satisfaction

Sustainable competitive advantage

Best practice implementation

Innovation

Attitude

An example of a 12/12/6 roadmap

Conclusion

Appendix A: Master Negotiation Terms Sheet

Appendix B: Activities

Rating

Rating

Appendix C: Templates

Workshop purpose

Desired outcomes

Attendees and roles

Agenda for the day

Sample workshop and meeting norms or ground rules

Building High Performance Business Relationships

Rescue, improve and transform your most valuable assets

Tony Lendrum

First published 2011 by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd 42 McDougall St, Milton Qld 4064

Office also in Melbourne

Typeset in ITC Berkeley Oldstyle Std 10.75/14.5pt

© Tony Lendrum 2011

The moral rights of the author have been asserted

National Library of Australia Cataloguing-in-Publication data:

Author: Lendrum, Tony.

Title: Building high performance business relationships: rescue, improve and transform your most valuable assets / Tony Lendrum.

ISBN: 9780730377740 (pbk.)

Notes: Includes index.

Subjects: Business communication.

Success in business.

Strategic planning.

Dewey Number: 650.13

All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the Australian Copyright Act 1968 (for example, a fair dealing for the purposes of study, research, criticism or review), no part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, communicated or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior written permission. All inquiries should be made to the publisher at the address above.

Cover design by Peter Reardon, Pipeline Design <www.pipelinedesign.com.au>

Cover image: ©iStockphoto.com/Stephen Strathdee

Printed in China by Printplus Limited.

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Disclaimer

The material in this publication is of the nature of general comment only, and neither purports nor intends to be advice. Readers should not act on the basis of any matter in this publication without considering (and if appropriate, taking) professional advice with due regard to their own particular circumstances. The author and publisher expressly disclaim all and any liability to any person, whether a purchaser of this publication or not, in respect of anything and of the consequences of anything done or omitted to be done by any such person in reliance, whether whole or partial, upon the whole or any part of the contents of this publication.

This book is dedicated to Julie, my wife and business partner for more than 30 years, and my two sons, Simon and Mark, for their continuous love and support.

About the author

Tony Lendrum is founder and director of Strategic Partnering Pty Ltd, a management consulting firm he formed in September 1994 to work with organisations interested in pursuing the benefits of strategic partnering and alliance relationships, and high performance relationship management. Tony has established himself globally as a recognised authority, facilitator and coach in these fields.

Tony Lendrum is the author of two highly successful books, The Strategic Partnering Handbook, now in its fourth edition, and The Strategic Partnering Pocketbook. His books are widely used by small, medium and large organisations in both the private and public sectors to provide a model and guide for implementing effective partnering and alliance strategies. His books are benchmarks for relationship management generally.

Tony is also the founder and director of 0 to 10 Relationship Management Pty Ltd, which offers training programs in the practical application of 0 to 10 Relationship Management™ (0 to 10RM), online business relationship health check diagnostics, and the licensing of 0 to 10RM elite trainer facilitators (ETFs). ETFs form communities of relationship champions, working independently and together to create value for their own and other organisations.

Tony’s work spans more than 30 years, 14 of which were spent with ICI, the global chemical company. Tony holds an honours degree in physical chemistry, and he has worked in many technical, sales, marketing, management, business development and manufacturing roles. He spent two years in South Korea as ICI’s business development manager with responsibility for acquisitions, joint ventures and new business opportunities. He was also operations manager for one of ICI Australia’s petrochemical plants.

Acknowledgements

My thanks go to those stubbornly passionate innovators and champions with whom I have worked over the past 20 years — those people who have an uncompromising belief in the value and importance of relationships. The list is endless, but in particular I would like to thank Jock Macneish for his boundless energy, powerful images and challenging intellect. Jock’s creative images, spread throughout the book, give insight and bring stories to life. Sometimes the messages will be as clear as day, sometimes hidden like treasure. I have conducted workshops in Hong Kong and mainland China in Chinese, but I don’t speak Chinese! The pictures did their own facilitation, spoke their own words and told their own stories. They bridge the gaps in culture, language and location across all generations.

Introduction

Success in business is critically linked to the quality and performance of both internal and external relationships. If people are an organisation’s greatest asset, then the relationships they form are a prime indicator of their quality and performance, and therefore a lead indicator of business success and sustainability. Evolving business relationship management as a core competency will give an organisation a key strategic platform upon which superior performance, cultural transformation and competitive advantage can be sustained.

While the focus of this book is on business relationships, there is a direct relevance to relationships in our personal lives and throughout society as a whole. Mastering the art of relationship management will have a direct and positive impact on personal insight, individual empowerment, work–life balance and quality of life.

0 to 10 Relationship Management (0 to 10RM) comprises a methodology and approach for managing the relationship journey of improvement from the current state to the desired future state. The 0 to 10RM methodology and approach applies to the relationships with a single customer or supplier or stakeholder through to the development of a high-level relationship strategy involving many relationships, with varying current states and differing desired future states. Relationships in this context can be defined as those human associations, connections or interactions — real or virtual — that have a goal or a purpose. The 0 to 10 Relationship Management Matrix (see chapter 1) provides the framework for understanding and implementing relationship rescue, improvement and transformational strategies.

The 0 to 10RM relationship scale was first presented in the first edition of The Strategic Partnering Handbook. The focus at that time was on partnering and alliance relationships. However, business relationships come in all shapes and sizes and, as it turns out, not all relationships need to be partnerships or alliances. It is the full spectrum of 0 to 10 relationship types and associated performance levels that need to be understood and managed. An understanding of the spread of relationships (both type and performance levels) is required to support business goals and objectives. A range of both current states and desired future states exist across internal and external customer or supplier relationships, and so there are a number of different relationship improvement journeys to manage.

Many of the current 0 to 10RM tools and models are unaltered from those described in my previous books, The Strategic Partnering Handbook and The Strategic Partnering Pocketbook. Others are variations and modifications of those models and tools. Experience has taught me that they all have practical application right across the 0 to 10RM spectrum, and don’t apply just to the partner segment as first envisaged. This book is a natural evolution from my earlier books: adapting existing material, adding new material, and expanding the conversation from a core focus around partnerships and alliances to relationship management more broadly.

0 to 10RM is people-focused and principle-centred, and it applies across the full gamut of human relationships. The models, tools, applications, checklists and diagnostics in this book are as relevant to directors in the boardroom as they are to sales, marketing and procurement professionals at the coalface, shopfloor and operating levels, and all people in between. This book will help turn theory and rhetoric into successful practice. It provides a framework for common understanding, common language and common practice around business relationship management in an increasingly complex and fast-paced global environment.

A storyboard and story-telling style is used throughout this book to create narratives around which business relationships can be better understood and managed. The underpinning six principles and five themes together form the 0 to 10RM storyboard (see chapter 1), which presents a single integrated picture for 0 to 10RM. By reading and applying the material in this book you will be able take any conversation and place it somewhere on the storyboard, tell a story, generate discussion and understanding, challenge and innovate for improvement, and add value for your organisation. The 0 to 10RM storyboard, the six principles and five themes are introduced in chapter 1.

The book is divided into three parts — A, B and C — which reflect the three sections of the 0 to 10RM storyboard. At the end of each chapter a summary outlines the major topics and key points in the chapter. The reader can either read the book sequentially or quickly identify areas of interest from the summary and focus on the detail.

Part A (chapters 2 to 4) introduces the framework and components of 0 to 10RM. Chapter 2 looks at the 0 to 10RM Matrix and details the diagnostic tools used to understand and evaluate the current state and desired future state of relationships, and discusses which relationship types are appropriate in different circumstances. Chapter 3 discusses the 11 legitimate relationship types and performance levels. Chapter 4 analyses the seven key components that need to be considered and managed, irrespective of the relationship type and performance levels reached.

Part B (chapter 5) discusses in depth the Let’s Go change model, along with the role competencies for 0 to 10RM high performance relationship managers. It also looks at people, high performance culture and the effective management of change in terms of engaging and sustaining the right attitudes and behaviours required to deliver the desired results from business relationships.

Part C (chapters 6 and 7) considers managing the journey from the current state of relationships to the desired future state. Chapter 6 reviews the relationship development curve presenting the connection between time, the quality of relationship outcomes, and the different stages and phases engaged throughout the improvement journey. Chapter 6 also introduces the concept of relationship journey management and the journey to be taken in bridging the gap between the current state(s) and desired future state(s). It addresses a number of matters: how to sustain high performance relationships and deliver superior value beyond the life of key people; how to engage effective relationship rescue, relationship improvement and relationship transformation strategies; and the phases of relationship development and how long they will take. Paradigm shifting, innovation and continuous improvement are key areas of focus. Chapter 7 considers the process of startup, as well as the ongoing management and improvement of relationships. It looks at the 12 motivators that drive the improvement process, the 12 steps that can be taken to implement and execute the journey, and the six outcomes that need to be considered and delivered on.

I hope that this book will provide enjoyment, insight and value, and will turn relationship management from a business competency into a life competency. I prefer high performing cooperative and collaborative relationships, be they internal or external, or at an organisational, team or individual level. This book and my work over the past three decades in the area of strategic partnerships and alliances, pioneering and community relationships support that preference. The reality is, however, that relationships come in all shapes and sizes, with varying degrees of alignment, understanding and performance. They don’t always go the way we plan. There are controllables and non-controllables, different people and personalities, market forces, and local and world events that shape our relationships and destinies. To be successful in business and in life we need to understand and be able to effectively manage all types of relationships. 0 to 10 RM is a toolbox of principles, models and tools to do just that.

Your ability to interpret and apply the 0 to 10RM Matrix and the other 0 to 10RM principles and themes that make up the storyboard will benefit and add value for you and your organisation, and others.

Chapter 1: 0 To 10 Relationship Management - A Storyboard Perspective

Six principles and five themes underpin 0 to 10RM and, when combined into a single picture, they form the 0 to 10RM storyboard. The 0 to 10RM storyboard (shown in figure 1.1, overleaf) provides the canvas upon which to take a journey; a framework for telling stories; a set of engagement tools to simplify complexity; and a way to proactively manage and improve business relationships. This chapter gives an overview of the 0 to 10RM storyboard, leading to a more detailed analysis and understanding in the subsequent chapters.

I remember some years ago as an operations manager being frustrated at the lack of progress in implementing improvements in safety, reliability and productivity in a manufacturing plant. These improvements were critical for the ongoing viability and competitive advantage of the business. For unknown reasons there was significant resistance from the operations and maintenance teams. Bewildered, I approached Ian, one of the lead maintenance fitters, whom I had known for years and respected. I asked Ian, ‘How is it that the operations and maintenance teams don’t understand the importance of safety, reliability and productivity improvement for the sustainability of the business?’ His response caught me by surprise, ‘We know what you want and understand the importance of these things to the business. We also know how to deliver the benefits you are looking for but we’re not going to do it’. ‘Why not?’ I asked, even more bewildered. ‘We simply don’t trust management to do the right thing by us when the improvements are delivered’, he said. Then added, ‘Many of us fear our jobs will be in jeopardy if the business improvements are made’.