THE BENEFITS OF BUILDING AND NURTURING BUSINESS RELATIONSHIPS
December 28, 2020
Healthy and successful relationships are the foundation of all our success in life, both personal and professional. Large companies and institutions across the globe are governed by the idea that the linkages built through our relationships are the greatest asset one can possess, and they make every effort to protect and invest in these valuable connections.
Creating and cultivating healthy business relationships will not only make us more efficient or productive, they’ll also have a huge impact on our well-being by influencing our feelings of self-worth and belongingness. Healthy relationships cultivate trust, loyalty, and mutual respect, which are all beneficial for any line of profession.
So, wherever we stand in the business relationship continuum, whether we’re employers or employees, stakeholders or partners, the relationships we build will become the foundations of our succeeding successes. Our relationships may entail effort and hard work, but like anything important in life, they should be patiently built and preserved.
In this post, we’ll take a closer look at the importance of connections in our business and the ways of fostering and building healthy and lasting relationships.
A CLOSER LOOK ON BUSINESS RELATIONSHIPS:
Business relationships are the linkages or connections that exist between all the units (stakeholders) in conducting business. This includes the employer/s, employees, managers, outsourced business partners, and all other companies that the business is associated with.
I. The Different Types of Relationship that are important to our business:
Employer-Employee Relationship– This relationship refers to the connection shared among the employees, either from the same or different teams. The employees should be comfortable with each other to make the relationship work, while the superiors or managers are given the task to make sure that the employees are working under favorable conditions and that conflicts are resolved and discouraged.
The healthy and strong relationship among the employees and the employers would benefit the whole company, for the working environment will be filled with mutual respect, happiness, productivity, trust, and loyalty. All of this will positively affect the business in the long run.
Relationship with the Customers– A customer is any person or institution that consumes, purchases, or receives a product or a service that a business is producing. The main goal of any business is to attract clients or customers and entice them to try, and in the long run, patronize their brand.
In building a healthy relationship with our customer, we will be benefited in two ways: First, our customers will engage with our offers and buy our products or services, Second, they can refer our brand to other potential customers by providing great feedback and by telling their contacts reviews about the positive experience they’ve had with our brand.
By fostering relationships,we can transform them into our brand supporters, and they can become an integral part of our business’ growth and success.
Corporate Relationships– This refers to any sustainable relationship between a company and a nonprofit organization that provides value to both. These relationships are cause and mission-related. They are often initiated by the nonprofit organization, but can also be started from the corporate side. The main purpose of creating corporate relationships is to support the organization’s mission.
Legal Relationships- Our legal relationships in business are valuable in achieving clarity in our mission. Although we don’t really need to work with our legal team regularly, it is important for us to establish healthy relationships with them, as they can ensure that our business is running in compliance with all the laws (local, state, or federal) and this can help us prevent future legal problems.
Relationship with Competitors– A competitor is a person, a team, business, or company who operates in the same industry, produces similar products or services and targets the same customers that an entity also does. In business, we refer to competitors as our rivals.
We can grow our business by the use of this relationship. Whenever our rivals are gaining higher market share, we can be more motivated to work harder, and when they are failing, it can be used as our insights about the things or actions we need to avoid. When it comes to innovation, seeing our competitors trying something new can raise the bar greatly and inspire us to innovate and think in advance.
A healthy competitive relationship with our competitors can give us the push we need to advance, expand, innovate, and be competent in our business.
II. What defines a good business relationship?
A healthy relationship in the business would require the values of mutual respect, trust, self-awareness, and open communication.
RESPECT- Respect is considered as the cornerstone of every relationship. In building and nurturing business relationships, the value of respect is highly needed. It indicates acknowledging and validating the needs and feelings of all the individuals who are involved in the flow of our business.
With sincere and mutual respect, we should make sure that our employees, partners, and customers’ needs are being met. The presence of respect in our working environment will help us resolve conflicts faster and decrease our stress in the workplace. This would, in turn, increase our productivity, camaraderie, and sense of belonging.
TRUST– Trust is equated to transparency in the workplace. It indicates the comfortability in relying and confiding to our team, and is the feeling of safety and security that allows a harmonious interaction between a business and all its stakeholders.
Every business should work to earn the trust of the whole organization, and every interaction should be used as an opportunity to create healthy relationships that’s nurtured with trust.
With this trust, our brand becomes believable. Customers and investors will have the best interest in mind. The business then operates with the culture or trustworthiness and affirms the organization with transparency and accountability.
SELF-AWARENESS- This value allows leaders to identify the flaws and gaps in their managerial skills and reflect the areas in which they are most effective. With this information we can capitalize on our strengths and improve the areas that need polishing.
Having awareness and being accepting of our feelings, will affect the performance of our business directly. It will open opportunities for improvement and transformation. It will also give us a clear sense of purpose and reaffirmation of both our uniqueness and our value as a team member.
OPEN COMMUNICATION- Communication in the business area is the process of sharing information between people from and outside a company. It is how the employees and the management interact to reach a certain goal. Business organizations aren’t just faceless entities, they are made of real people and involve real-life situations. Therefore, the communication needed in our relationships would also be needed in interacting with our business group.
III. The Role of Communication in the Business Relations
Healthy relationships are considered the key to all our ventures in life, especially in this age of technology and advancement. Communication, may it be internal or external, needs to be clear
in order for it to effectively serve its purpose. In this section, we will look into the different roles of communication in the business relations.
1. Information Exchange
Communication is valuable in the process of relaying information between people who make up the business organization. It can be with our clients , suppliers, or employees. An open and healthy business communication allows a flawless exchange of ideas and updates. It results in productivity, effectiveness, and happiness for every stakeholder.
2. Goal Achievement
Being a key element of human behavior, communication in the workplace helps in aligning workers to work harmoniously and achieve the objectives of an organization. Good communication plays a vital role in almost every facet of any organization. Whether it be in management, product development, and customer relations.
The employees are considered the key audience in business communication, as they often serve as the channel of information to other audiences. If employees are informed and engaged, communications with other stakeholders will be strong and healthy as well.
3. Decision Making
Effective communication helps the organization make better decisions and reach its goals. By communicating with all the stakeholders, and taking in their ideas, point of views and opinions, the organization can perform more efficiently and productively. Through effective communication, employees become more aware of what is happening internally, this increases the probability of cooperation and coordination and the decisions will be carried out more smoothly and successfully. In addition, our business communication helps in identifying existing problems and working towards solving them.
For a business communication to be healthy and open, it needs to be:
1. Clear and Concise.
2. Complete and Concrete.
3. Courteous and Considerate.
THE BENEFITS OF BUILDING AND NURTURING BUSINESS RELATIONSHIPS
RELATIONSHIP CREATE THE BRAND IMAGE
Our brand is considered as the intangible connection between the company and all the people that comprise it. It is a powerful tool that is defined by emotions and connections.
It can be compared to a relationship that exists between a couple, as it won’t be made possible without the linkages that are founded on mutual trust, respect, and unity.
Our businesses are initially faceless corporate entities and it is only by fostering healthy and positive relationships that we can create a unique face for our organization. One that is relatable and appealing.
RELATIONSHIPS CREATE LOYALTY
With loyalty being a life-long investment for any venture, it’s important for every business to cultivate and nurture the relationships they build, both internal and external. By building positive relationships with our stakeholders, especially with our clients, we can transform our business into a brand they can trust .
Creating loyalty through our relationships, isn’t something that happens overnight. It takes a lot of our commitment before they begin to materialize, and the results will be in congruence with the time we spent nurturing our relationships. The more we nurture it, the more successful our business becomes.
RELATIONSHIPS CREATE THE BEST TEAM
Every business strives to build the most competent and productive team. But in order to create the best team, good relationships should first be built within the company. By developing healthy and mutually-respectful relationships, we’ll be able to create an atmosphere that is conducive for the development of an alliance with a strong sense of camaraderie and teamwork.
By creating and nurturing good relationships in our business, we’ll be able to increase the team’s morale, job satisfaction, commitment, and productivity- the factors that define the best team.
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