This document discusses key factors in selecting a business partner and maintaining a successful partnership. It addresses: 1) The most important factors are trust, alignment, and communication between partners. 2) Setting aligned expectations and ensuring goals are consistent is critical for long-term success. Flexibility is also important to allow for innovation. 3) Maintaining governance, stakeholder involvement, and communication keeps the relationship in control while allowing flexibility. Success should be measured holistically using both tangible and intangible metrics beyond just SLAs. Communication is key to addressing any failures.

1. Joann Martin, Global Director BPO at PBI

2. 2
2
“A good alliance is like a unicorn. Everybody had
heard of them, but few have actually seen them.”
Tom Hooks Motorola

3. 1. What are the most critical factors in
selecting a vendor or a partner.
2. How to set the right business expectations
to ensure aligned engagement on both
sides.
3. How to keep control of the relationship
while providing the partner sufficient
flexibility to innovate and improve
4. How to measure success and how to
handle failures.

4. Key Decision
Criteria
Weights
Architectural -
Technology
15
Operations 10
SLAs - KPI 10
Quality 10
Implementation 10
Risk Mitigation 10
Pricing 30
Value Add 5
Overall 100
Key Decision Criteria Weights
Costs 25
Program Management/
Continuous Improvement
15
Hiring/Training/Retention
Practices
10
Customer Retention 5
Similar Experience 10
Capability/ Technology 10
Transition 15
Personnel 10
Overall 100

5. Performance Criteria
Financial
What does the vendors balance sheet look like compared to others?
Its trends?
What part of the vendors portfolio will we be
Technology
Has technology investment been yearly?
Where are they investing?
Does it match our strategy?
Process
How do they measure quality? Is it industry standard?
Do they measure outcomes? Cycle time?
Does the measurement match our goals?
Employees
What is their attrition? Hiring practices?
Do they have good talent management plans?
Is there an adequate labor pool available geographically?
Organization
Is there a global account rep?
Are there global barriers?
Do they have structural alignment with us?
1. Continued

6.  Long term Mutual Success
 COMMUNICATION
 Flexibility
 Alignment
◦ Culture
 Leading Practices in
◦ Technology & Innovation
◦ Financial measurements
◦ Risk Mitigation
 Multi-Vendor Handoffs and Accountability
 How long are you in this relationship for?
1. Continued
What’s Most Important Today?

7.  Trust and Alignment
Communications
1. What are the most critical factors in selecting a
vendor or a partner

8. Get past the dollar and cents, you are in this for
the long run.

9. 2. Continued
Who we are:
• Organizational structure
• Financials & Risk Structure
• Special Programs (Green, Diversity)
• Future Goals
• Financial, Value Proposition, Market Share, Locations
What we are looking for:
• Savings
• Enablers & Flexibility
• Risk Mitigation
• Innovation & Best of Breed
Intros and Want Ads

10. 2. Continued
Are the goals in the same playing field?
Can we get there?
• Costs versus Best of Breed
• Costs versus Risk
• Accountability
• Growth and location
• Short term wins versus long term success
• Dedication & CONTROL

11. We set expectations – But here is reality
2. Continued
Reality
Expectation
Expectation
Expectation

12. 2. Continued
Communication
• Proactive
• Engage senior leadership early on
• Ensure consistent delivery of key messages
• Multifaceted approach to communication
• Live
• Email
• Instant Messaging
• Webinar
• Seminars
• QBRs/Annuals
• Target approach and messages to different
audiences
Communication

13.  Trust and Alignment
Communications

14. 3. How to keep control of the relationship while
providing the partner sufficient flexibility to
innovate and improve
Don’t Box Yourselves in!

15. 3. Continued
Governance and Stakeholder Management
Perform Will take responsibility for a significant portion
of the project.
Sponsor Will provide the resources and leadership
necessary for the success of the project.
Oppose Will attempt to block an action.
Allow Will allow the project to proceed but may not
directly support it.
Assist Will help in some way to ensure the success
of the project.
Involvement
Commitment

16. 3. Continued
Vendor Customer
Executives
Account Owners
Project Level
Build
Trust
Governance and Stakeholder Management
Vendor and Customer mapped in alignment

17. 3. Continued
Governance and Stakeholder Management
 Relationship Management
 Service Request and Receipt Verification Management
 Performance Management
 Escalation Management
 Project Management
 Security, Business Continuity, Disaster Recovery Management
 Financial Operations Management
 Asset Management
 Contract Management
 Change Management
 Communications Management

18. 3. Continued
• Business Case Continually reviewed
• Strategic responsibility kept close to the top
• Multilevel organizational links
• Regular, goal-oriented meetings
• Utilize communications technologies
• Scorecard and Metrics used
Communication

19. .
When things are going well, something will go wrong.
When things just cannot get any worse, they will.
3. Continued

20.  Trust and Alignment
Communications
3. How to keep control of the relationship while
providing the partner sufficient flexibility to
innovate and improve

21. What is the true intended value and success?

22. Performance KPI Measurement
Financial
Costs in budget
Economic
Technology
New tools
Impact on functionality
Process
Improvement over x%
Full compliancy
Employees Attrition less than x%
Organization Customer Satisfaction
4. Continued
SLAs and KPIs from the contract?
Why isn’t success that easy?

23. Performance KPI Measurement
KPI Service Credit
KPI Service Loss
4. Continued
Win-Wins Gain Sharing?
Why isn’t success that easy?

24. 4. Continued
Define Success
 Which metrics are more relevant to your business
 Tangible objective
 Leading Indicators
 End Value or current activity
 Manage end to end
 Process Improvements
 Compete in the future
 Purpose of Metrics
 Recognize trends
 Motivate behaviors
 Prioritize resources
 Allow benchmarking
 Compensation
 Alignment
 Data Driven Communications

25. 4. Continued
Intended Value - Balanced Measurement
 Tangible
 Financial
 Costs per X
 Net Savings
 Operational
 Speed
 Volume Reduction
 Defect Reduction
 Intangible
 Strategic
 Innovative
 Satisfaction
 Relationship
 Decision Making
 Degree of Alignment
 Communication

26. 4. Continued
Define Failure
 Differentiate between failure and problem/escalation driven change
 Lack of Success
 Lack of Tangibles
 Lack of Intangibles
 Lack of Communication

27.  Trust and Alignment
Communications
4. How to measure success and how to handle
failure

28. Business Networking Sessions
Workshops, Forums
Conferences
Trade Shows
Congressional Sponsored Events
Pre Proposal/Pre Solicitation Conference
Vendor Outreach Sessions
Industry Day
Social Networking
How to Learn More
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