Recently, I’ve been obsessed with the concept of “strategic partnerships” and how important they are to the success of a recruiting leader (or any leader for that matter).
But I've also realized I've been thinking about it all wrong.
Let's explore...
The Power of Strategic Partners
Put simply, when you don’t have strategic partners, you face your biggest challenges alone.
Strategic partners play an important role in accelerating results, getting you out of hot water, and providing a competitive edge in good times and bad. I share some examples below.
But first, what is a strategic partner?
The Difference Between a Partner and a Strategic Partner
It’s important to understand that every recruiting leader has existing partners today. But some of them are tactical and some are strategic.
A tactical partner is a company or person you leverage to provide a basic product or service. It’s a transactional relationship.
An example might be a recruitment agency you use every once in a while to fill a difficult role. Or a software tool you buy but rarely interact with their customer success team.
In these instances, when you need something custom or ask for something outside the scope of the partnership, you might feel a little resistance.
A “strategic partner” is a lot different.
While they also provide a product or service, the relationship with a strategic partner has a longer-term feel. You share more information with them so they know you better. You meet with them more frequently. The nature of your meetings tends to include more two-way dialogue so both parties benefit.
Now, not all your partners can be strategic. But when you have strategic partners, you tend to need less partners overall.
REAL EXAMPLES FROM THE PAST MONTH
To illustrate the benefit of strategic partners, I’ll share some recent examples of how my strategics helped me out recently (and how I help them):
GAINING A COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE: Last week I had the opportunity to visit with a key advertising partner at their HQ (hence the cover photo). We had a pre-meeting to determine a mutually beneficial agenda. We wanted to understand where we had gaps in our use of their products. They asked for ideas on how to improve their products. We left full of energy and ideas. They left with a better understanding our business and how to better serve the high volume sector.
CRISIS MANAGEMENT: We have a service provider we rely on for a variety of recruiting ops tasks. We attend their user conferences, have regular QBRs, and provide feedback to them on a regular basis to improve our relationship. Last week I needed a huge favor on a very sensitive topic. I made one phone call to an SVP at the company. The problem was resolved over a weekend.
BRIDGING RESOURCE GAPS: This month I doubled down on a partnership with an existing talent provider. We needed something more custom to bridge a gap while we figured out how we were going to handle a resourcing challenge. This partner sat down with me over dinner, listened to my challenges, and offered a custom solution that addressed my needs. In the long run this will no doubt benefit their book of business with us.
TECH DEVELOPMENT: Also this month, I had a conversation with a strategic technology partner of ours. I was transparent with them that I might need to go outside the partnership to purchase a different solution and shared why. So what did they do? They offered us an opportunity to work with their product team to co-develop a solution within their system. We had a productive first meeting last week, instead of a breakup call in six months.
CHANGE YOUR FOCUS FOR BETTER RESULTS
As you can see, strategic partners are extremely helpful. So it's critical to understand how to establish them.
I used to think that you went looking for them. You asked your peers -- "Hey, who's good at X, Y, or Z?". And then you made some phone calls and chose someone.
But I've realized over time that I've been thinking about it all wrong.
In order to have strategic partners you have to first think of yourself as a "strategic customer".