4 essential drivers in a good partnership
What constitutes a good partner relation? What are the critical drivers? We have asked our partners around the world for their opinion on the matter. Four things stand out in their answers, and we have summed them up here in a brief guide to a good partnership.
1: TRUST
Regardless of which of Aquaporin's partners you ask, one thing recurs in their responses. Trust. To some, it’s instant, a gut feeling. To others, it's something that comes with time. No matter what, mutual trust is with certainty highlighted as a critical cornerstone in a good, professional partnership.
According to Ilija Andreevski, CEO of Ecotip and Aquaporin’s partner in Austria, Hungary, and the Balkans, an ideal partnership is entered into between two trustful parties.
2: VISION & VALUES MATCH
Before letting trust pave the way for a good personal relation in a partnership, an equally important factor usually comes first. Whether implicit or explicit, sharing the same values and having corresponding visions is a strong means to spark initial interest. So strong that it might be the main reason someone eyes you as a potential business partner. In fact, Ilija was convinced he wanted to engage in a partnership with Aquaporin the very minute it occurred to him that Ecotip and Aquaporin share more or less the same long-term goals and vision. It’s all about taking responsibility and helping preserve the world’s valuable resources to ensure the next generations will get the same joy from inhabiting planet Earth as its current inhabitants do.
3: PROACTIVITY
Although essential for the foundation in a partnership, trust and a match in values and vision are not necessarily what drives a partnership ahead. It takes energy, courage, motivation, support, and much more that can all be boiled down to one word: proactivity. Actively causing something to happen rather than waiting for it to happen.
4: BELIEF IN THE PRODUCT
To sell something convincingly and with a clear conscience, you need to believe in the value the product can create for the potential customer.
It’s more than commerciality. It’s about how a product and the vision it evolved from has the capability to change the world for the better. About Aquaporin’s drinking water solutions, Ilija says:
“It’s not just business, it’s not just filtration, it’s not just drinking water. It’s the belief that we can make the world a better place.”
