Very few businesses deliver everything to their customers on their own. Technology providers, service partners, suppliers, and specialist firms all play a part in the experience a customer receives. From the customer’s side, there is no difference. If a partner fails, we have failed.
This makes the way we manage partnerships far more important than it is often treated.
A contract is the beginning, not the relationship
Many partnerships are defined almost entirely by the contract. Service levels, penalties, deliverables, renewal terms. These matter. But a contract describes what happens when things go wrong. It says very little about how to make things go right.
The strongest partnerships I have seen operate less like a transaction and more like an extension of the team. Both sides understand the customer, share the same goals, and talk openly about problems before they become disputes.
Share context, not only requirements
A partner given only a list of requirements will deliver exactly what is on the list. A partner who understands why those requirements exist, who the customer is, and what success looks like, will often suggest something better.
I have found that spending time explaining the bigger picture to partners pays back many times over. They make better decisions on our behalf because they understand what we are trying to achieve.
Talk regularly, not only when something breaks
In many relationships the only communication happens during an escalation. By then, both sides are defensive and the conversation is about blame rather than solutions.
Regular, relatively informal conversations change that. They surface small problems while they are still small, allow both sides to raise concerns without pressure, and build the kind of trust that makes difficult conversations easier when they are needed.
Measure the partnership by customer outcomes
It is easy to judge a partner only by the metrics in the contract. Did they meet the response time? Did they deliver on schedule? Those measures are useful, but they can all be green while the customer is still unhappy.
The better question is whether the partnership is improving the customer’s experience. When both sides are measured against that shared outcome, the relationship naturally shifts from compliance to collaboration.
Be a good customer yourself
Partnerships are two-way. Clear briefs, timely decisions, fair payment, and honest feedback make us a client that good partners want to work with, and prioritise when it matters.
The best partners have choices about where they invest their best people and ideas. Being a good partner in return is how we make sure those people and ideas come to us.
Dr. Mohamed Mousa writes about financial technology, business strategy, and leadership.