Piercing the Boundaries: BRM Capability and B2B Collaboration

^{a repost from BRM Institute Online Campus}

by DeWayne Cassel 

When I first considered the role of the BRM in B2B (Business-to-Business) collaboration, the visual that immediately came to mind was that of two businesses sharing information, and I wondered what role BRM would play in this interaction. However, as I began to think about my experiences as a BRM, I realized that there was much more to the topic than I originally assumed.

First, let’s take a deeper look to establish what a Business Relationship Management capability entails, followed by what is meant by B2B collaboration. Lastly, I will define what must transpire in order for a BRM to pierce the boundaries of B2B collaboration.

What is a Business Relationship Management capability?

A Business Relationship Management capability is defined by Business Relationship Management Institute (BRM Institute) as “a set of competencies (e.g. knowledge, skills, and behaviors) to foster an effective business value-producing relationship between a Service Provider and consuming Business Partners.” BRM Institute goes on to explain that the enterprise at large is the ultimate beneficiary of improved relationships and converged business capabilities across the value chain, thus optimizing value to the enterprise and to its customers.

In a nutshell, Business Relationship Management cultivates and forms the connective tissue between Service Providers and Business Partners, focusing value-chain partners on common objectives and shared goals. Without BRM as an art and discipline, an enterprise may consist of silos.

B2B Collaboration Defined

The term B2B most concisely describes an activity where one entity executes a process to facilitate an act with another, or for the purposes of our discussion, a collaboration. These entities happen to be businesses. According to Wikipedia, Business-to-Business (B2B) refers to a situation in which one business makes a commercial transaction with another. This typically occurs when:

• A business is sourcing materials for their production process
• A business needs the services of another for operational reasons, e.g. a food manufacturer employing an accountancy firm to audit their finances
• A business re-sells goods and services produced by others, e.g. a retailer buying the end product from the food manufacturer

Piercing the Boundaries

Now that we have an understanding of BRM as a discipline as well as B2B collaboration, let’s see where BRM fits into this interaction, as well as how BRM can permeate the boundaries of B2B collaboration.

The BRM is the connecting force between the Demand (the Business Partner) and Supply (the Provider Organization). We have become accustomed to working with internal service suppliers—specifically the IT organization—and we spend countless hours learning how to navigate the internal waters to work on behalf of the business, developing value plans and ensuring that the appropriate resources are allocated for approved projects and programs.

This can become tricky (or interesting, depending which way you look at it!) when we have to reach beyond our four walls and work with a third party solution provider on behalf of the business partner. Our ability to work with third party solution providers effectively has become increasingly more important, as more and more companies are looking at SaaS (Software as a Service), NaaS (Network as a Service), IaaS (Infrastructure as a Service) and IoT (Internet of Things). Whether it’s an internal or a third party solution provider, the single most important purpose of both entities is to enable business initiatives with value-based solutions.

In my experience, the BRM typically works with the business to identify a need (Shape Demand) first, and then reaches out to an internal or third party solution provider to develop a solution. While this can work, it does not establish the optimal framework between the business partner, solution provider, and the BRM.

In an effort to drive optimal value to the business, we must permeate the boundaries of B2B collaboration in an effort to elevate the “service provider” to strategic partner status. As BRM Institute-trained professionals, we know that strategic partnering assists with vision and demand shaping, which ensures overall delivery and effective communication. Strategic partners must become respected contributors to the business leadership team by earning a “seat at the table” and successfully articulating how their products and services drive value realization. Let’s explore how this can be done.

A Tool for Success

Third party solution providers have different business models that reflect different business drivers. They are very skilled at Demand Shaping to drive sales and revenue for their companies. This is where the BRM has to be keenly aware of the solution being provided, since most solutions from third party providers are designed to provide future opportunities for services.

Hypothetically, if there was a tool that could provide the BRM with the ability to facilitate solution-based and value-based discussions between a Provider (Internal or Third Party) and the Business Partner, wouldn’t it be valuable in these situations? Fortunately, the BRM Institute team has developed a technique called Linking Business Drivers to Technology, which serves as that tool. This technique focuses on the areas that are key to elevating the provider to a strategic partner, which are: Business Drivers, Business Initiatives, IT Enablers, Technology, and Solution and Value-Based Discussions. All of these areas are necessary in order to build a trusting relationship with the business based on quantifiable value, drive conversation clarity between the solution and its quantifiable business value, and ultimately pierce the boundaries of B2B collaboration to elevate the “service provider” to strategic partner status.

The End Game

The BRM capability exists to ensure that the service provider’s products or services converge with business objectives, and to reposition them as a “Strategic Partner” versus “Service Provider.” Since the ultimate goal is to enable business innovation and stay ahead of the competition and ever-changing consumer demands, business leaders must rely on collaborative business models based on trusted strategic relationships. Having a strong strategic partner is paramount for business leaders to deliver results in this ever-changing marketplace, and it’s the BRM capability and the Business Relationship Manager who can be the catalyst to help permeate these traditional boundaries.