12
A Presentation on Strategic Alliances and Joint Ventures To The African-American Business & Professional Network
A Presentation on Strategic Alliances and Joint Ventures To The African-American Business & Professional
Network
THREE KEY QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Q1. When is alliance strategic right?
Q2. How do you make a strategic alliance fit?
Q3. What about the management and the finances?
Ronald W. Brown, Esq., MBA
WHAT ABOUT THE MANAGEMENT OF A STRATEGIC ALLIANCE?
In order for the strategic alliance to be successful and to fulfill its stated purpose, it must be well managed by a manager. Here is an excellent definition of management: “the effective, efficient, correct, and timely use of another person’s property and resources for the purpose for which they were delegated with a view to producing the expected added value.” Given that definition, managing well, may be easier said than done depending on factors such as the geographic location of the alliance, its intended purpose, scope, and duration.
The shortest and best definition of a manager that I ever heard was given by Harold S. Geneen., when he said a “manager turns in the performance.”
Ronald W. Brown, Esq., MBA
12 CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS FOR STRATEGIC ALLIANCES
#1
. H
avin
g c
lear
purp
ose
s,
ob
ject
ives,
metr
ics,
and
g
overn
ing
str
uct
ure
.
#2
. H
avin
g a
wri
tten
entr
ance
str
ate
gy.
#3
. H
avin
g a
wri
tten e
xit
st
rate
gy.
#4
. B
uild
ing
and
m
anag
ing
“re
lati
onsh
ip
cap
ital.”
Ronald W. Brown, Esq., MBA
12 CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS FOR STRATEGIC ALLIANCES
#5. Knowing your enterprise economics and finance.
#6. Knowing ”the turf” .
#7. Never compromising your ethics.
#8 Knowing what you will consider success and failure.
Ronald W. Brown, Esq., MBA
12 CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS FOR STRATEGIC ALLIANCES
#9. Managing risk by managing compliance.
#10. Staying actively engaged in the operations of the alliance.
#11. Using ADR to resolve disputes
#12. Engaging legal counsel Ronald W. Brown, Esq., MBA
The Six Top Tips Thou Shall Never, Ever Forget in a Strategic Alliance: #1
Don’t Quit Before You Start!
Ronald W. Brown, Esq., MBA
The Six Top Tips Thou Shall Never, Ever Forget in a Strategic
Alliance: #2Personal values are important. Your personal values and business values should be congruent, not in conflict.
Ronald W. Brown, Esq., MBA
For example, if honesty and integrity are important personal values you should not compromise those personal values in business. To illustrate, if you are discussing a strategic business alliance with someone abroad who tells you that in order to do business together in that country it is expected and required to pay bribes because “everyone pays bribes here”, you should terminate the discussion
The Six Top Tips Thou Shall Never, Ever Forget in a Strategic Alliance: #3
Don’t try to solve everything by yourself.
Ronald W. Brown, Esq., MBA
Even Superheroes have sidekicks.
The Six Top Tips Thou Shall Never, Ever Forget in a Strategic Alliance: #4
Every morning in Africa, a gazelle wakes up. It knows it must run faster than the fastest lion or it will be killed. Every morning a lion wakes up. It knows it must outrun the slowest gazelle or it will starve to death. It doesn’t matter whether you are a lion or a gazelle. When the sun comes up, whether in Africa, or in a strategic alliance, you better be running.
“To everything there is a time. To everything there is a season. There is a time to start, and a time to stop. But in between those times, keep moving.
Ronald W. Brown, Esq., MBA
The Six Top Tips Thou Shall Never, Ever Forget in a Strategic
Alliance: #5 Know what’s
going on where ever your strategic alliance or joint venture is located.
Ronald W. Brown, Esq., MBA
“You are not in Kansas any more. You are on Pandora.”
Strategic Alliance/ Joint Venture Never Forget Tips: #6
A strategic alliance entails faith, planning, and execution. Notwithstanding, your strategic alliance may fail.
Face the fear of failure, but have the courage to step out of your boat into deeper waters, while never forgetting what it takes to be a water-walker.
Ronald W. Brown, Esq., MBA
