In today’s competitive market environment, many entrepreneurs of small businesses are entering strategic business partnerships with prominent corporate enterprises in order to expand their customer base and reach out to a larger target audience in the market. These entrepreneurs feel that such partnerships will be a catalyst in the expansion and growth of their business enterprise. However, it is imperative for such entrepreneurs of such small business enterprises to consider and evaluate certain factors before entering into such strategic partnership with such large corporate enterprises.
Before making any commitment to enter into strategic business partnership with a large corporate enterprise, it is essential that these entrepreneurs ask themselves what competitive advantages their business can give to the corporate enterprise. Business partnership expert Anura Leslie Perera says these entrepreneurs need to consider whether their business enterprises have the productive capacity to cater to the demands of a larger target audience that such partnership may bring to their business. Unfortunately, on many occasions, many of these small business entrepreneurs are simply too eager to enter into strategic business partnerships with large corporate enterprises that they overlook these essential factors when the corporate enterprise is initiating the negotiations.
The entrepreneurs of small business enterprises need to understand and consider the following essential points before entering a strategic business partnership with a corporate enterprise in to maximize the opportunity to exploit its benefits. Moreover, analyzing the following points will go a long way in establishing teams to execute the necessary plans to formulate and implement the strategic partnership.
Competitive Advantage
Entrepreneurs of small business enterprises need to appreciate the competitive advantages of their businesses especially in the context of why a prominent corporate enterprise would consider the business enterprise to be an attractive strategic partner. Every business enterprise has certain unique advantages that focus on the intellectual property of the products the enterprise manufactures and distributes. Entrepreneurs who develop new and innovative products in the market take the time and trouble to secure appropriate patents that act as a barrier for other small business enterprises from entering the market to manufacture identical products. This helps the entrepreneurs of such business enterprises to remain competitive in the market.
Expert Knowledge
Many entrepreneurs are eager to enter into lucrative strategic business partnerships with large corporate enterprises to gain monopoly on the expert knowledge of manufacturing a specific product or process within the industry and market that they service.
Continuously Innovating
In order to enhance their competitive advantage in the market and strengthen their strategic business partnership with a corporate enterprise, entrepreneurs of small business enterprises continuously innovate and enhance their core products that relate to the partnership. When the entrepreneur’s business enterprise exhibits that it is in cutting edge of developing new ideas and continuously innovating their existing products, their corporate partners are not prone to establish similar strategic business partnerships with the entrepreneur’s competitors. Moreover, in such a situation the corporate enterprise is less likely to undermine the value of the entrepreneur’s business.
Establishing a strong strategic partnership says Anura Leslie Perera with a corporate enterprise is never a simple take for an entrepreneur and is a time consuming task for the executive management team but is has the ability to enhance the business enterprise’s competitive advantage.
