definition of partners: people who get together

to achieve a common purpose

the deeper the alliance, the greater value-add
the partners can generate between them -
greater potential for profitability, new growth
opportunities.
partner to deliver product; Together reach NEW
markets neither could reach otherwise.

Large companies becoming a collection of

collaborators - collaborative enterprise..
Customer focused - process centric, partner
dependent. extending the boundaries of the
 A relationship between individuals or groups that
is characterized by mutual cooperation and
responsibility, as for the achievement of a
specified goal: Neighborhood groups formed a
partnership to fight crime.

ranges from flirtation / short term relationship/

....marriage
one project / loose reseller arrangement../ value-
add / joint venture ... permanent -
acquisition/merger!

Different types of partnership necessitate different

strategies
 Production Sales Marketing Partnering
Time Period Before 1930 1930-1960 1960-1990 After 1990

Objective Making Sales Making Sales Satisfying Customer Building Relationship

needs

Orientation Short term seller needs Short term seller Short term customer Long term customer
needs needs & seller needs

Role of Provider Persuader Problem Solver Value creator

Supervision

Activities of Taking orders, delivering Aggressively Matching available Creating new

goods convincing buyers offerings to buyer alternatives,
Salesperson
to buy products needs matching buyer
needs with seller
capabilities

Selling Building Partnerships, authors- Weitz, Castleberry, & Tanner, Third Edition
Partner Relationship Management (PRM) is a
business strategy for developing and improving
relations between companies and their suppliers-
channel partners. There are many CRM providers
that have incorporated PRM features in their
software applications. PRM can be also considered a
component of customer relationship management
(CRM) that serves the relationships of channel
partnerships.

an alliance management approach, supported by

tooling to manage the process of information
exchange between the partners in a joint sales cycle.
Mutual Trust
Open Communication
Shared goals
Commitment to mutual gain
Organizational support

SOURCE---Selling Building Partnerships, authors- Weitz, Castleberry, & Tanner, Third Edition
"Customer relationship management (CRM) is a
customer-focused business strategy designed to
optimize profitability, revenue and customer
satisfaction. To realize CRM, organizations must
implement collaborative enterprise processes and
technologies that support customer interactions
throughout all channels."

"Partner Relationship Management [PRM], is a

compelling trend, with a growing track record of
profitable results. The goal of PRM is to create long-
term competitive differentiation with indirect sales
channels. PRM is a key part of the overall CRM
framework, which should support employees,
 Supplier relationship management (SRM) –
focuses on keeping suppliers satisfied by
evaluating and categorizing suppliers for different
projects, which optimizes supplier selection
Partner relationship management (PRM) –
focuses on keeping vendors satisfied by managing
alliance partner and reseller relationship that
provide customers with the optimal sales channel
Employee relationship management (ERM) –
provides employees with a subset of CRM
applications available through a Web browser

Source- AFSMI's Sbusiness. By William K. Pollock

How do the business objectives of the participants mesh with one
another?
Is there a size/power differential?
Is the relationship a business-to-business or supplier-to-buyer one?
Are the participants sharing a common business goal, or simply links
in a supply chain?
Are some partners likely to put their own immediate needs first?
What information do participants need to understand their partners
better?
How will working with new partners assist / create new problems for
participants?
Could differences in work habits and culture endanger partner
management?
 Decide what type of partnership is
appropriate
Select best approach - management and
operations
Identify skills needed
Identify data needed

Some solutions are people intensive,

others depend heavily on IT
 Methodologies with business focus
supply chain management, value stream creation
Information management
document management, CALS
Software
groupware, concurrent engineering
ALL DEPEND ON:
data management, networking, storage
Information in people’s heads or on bits of
paper
Estimated that 80% of a company’s
knowledge is not written down at all
16% is available on computers but is
unstructured (e-mails, ppt presentations)
4% is in structured form, analysable,
shareable (database, information systems)
 A new market sector, promising huge
revenue growth…
A management concept, good practice,
business processes, all supported by IT
Wide range of product types and
solutions

AT ITS MOST STRATEGIC, PRM IS A

MISSION CRITICAL TOOL
It should be clear -
What functions must be performed by each
partner?
What information do they need and when?
Are all processes understood, including
human roles?
Need mechanisms to:
measure criteria for success/ascertain performance
remunerate partners
 Intranet/extranet with shared tools
Extension of supply chain
Extension of CRM
Closed e-marketplace/private exchange
Electronic bonding
BUT..You cannot automate a partnership,
only support it!
Shared extranet built around a
database
Range of shared applications and tools
Role-based access permission/security
Workflow and activity management
On-line Analitical Processing(OLAP)
reporting
Finding and recruiting partners - risk management,
profiling, on-line registration
Motivating and managing - training and certification, joint
business planning, market development funds, lead
management
Supporting joint sales and marketing - on-line product
catalogues, targeted communications, searchable knowledge
base, pricing
Assessing performance and success – Return On
Investment(ROI), analytics, customer feedback, SLAs
Accounting and remuneration tools
Supply chain extension - PeopleSoft
CRM extension - Siebel
Private exchange - Webridge
People productivity and data
management - Intraspect
Electronic bonding - PartnerCommunity
 Usability!
Language and currency support
Links to legacy systems
Supporting best practice, not enforcing
new practices
Lessons learned from failed data
warehousing, CRM and other large
projects
Applies to billing, mediation,
interconnect
Alternative to software licensing
Revenues more predictable for
suppliers
Enforces ongoing supplier/customer
interaction
Strict Service Level Agreement(SLA)
criteria/risk sharing
Best Internet Solution - Partner Relationship
Management: UpShot Sales
"Winning the Microsoft Industry Solution Award for Best Mobile
Solution and Best Internet Solution - Partner Relationship
Management confirms our leadership in Web-powered solutions
for marketing and sales teams," said Keith Raffel, president and
CEO of UpShot.com. "Our use of Microsoft tools and products
enables us to give those teams what they want - ease of use,
quick deployment and any-time, anywhere access."
UpShot.com was launched in 1997 to increase business team
productivity through the use of innovative Internet technology.
UpShot offers Web-based sales management applications that
combine high value with fast deployment and ease of use.
Among the investors in the company are Advanced Technology
Ventures, Alloy Ventures, Intel Corp., TTC Ventures and
Worldview Technology Partners, as well as Informix Software
Inc. Chairman Robert J. Finocchio, Echelon Corp. CEO Ken
Oshman, Intuit Inc. Co-Founder and Netpulse Communications
Inc. CEO Tom Proulx, and Compaq Computer Corp. Chairman
Ben Rosen.
Selling Building Partnerships,
authors- Weitz, Castleberry, &
Tanner, Third Edition

www.microsoft.com/presspass/press/199
9/nov99/netisaawardspr.mspx
www.olapreports.com
www.wikipedia.org