By Pam McGee

During dinner with my five-year-old son he says, “Mom, do you know what a symbiotic relationship is?” You can imagine my surprise.

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After further investigation on his CD, I found a song titled “Symbiotic Relationship.” It’s about a bug that survives by eating grub off a rhinoceros’ back and a rhinoceros that survives by having a bug eat grub off his back. It’s a two-way street.

In addition, the ecosystem is affected by the general health and survival of these two species because without one or the other the entire community food chain is not as complete. You see, the bug also carries a disease-fighting element that when eaten by birds stops the certain spread of harmful bacteria. (Okay, I didn’t learn all of that from a song; I did a bit more research.)

As business leaders, we know that collaboration that results in true symbiotic relationships reaps many benefits for the community, the business leaders, and, ultimately, the customer. But how does one go about creating and sustaining natural-ecosystem-type relationships?

Collaboration is as important today as it was in previous decades for many reasons. Previously, collaboration was critical for survival. Pioneers relied on each other for setting up camp, hunting for food, and protecting one another. Our agricultural communities collaborated with each other on putting up each other’s barns and getting the crops in. It was nearly impossible to labor endlessly on these tasks alone. It was also the essence of strong communities.

Today it is less critical to collaborate for survival, like setting up camp, or is it? Particularly in the technology industry, collaboration satisfies the customer’s desire for a complete end-to-end solution. Software has become so specialized that it is nearly impossible for one business to be a one-stop shop. It is survival.

Collaboration is also good business because businesses can then focus on their own core business and avoid the context business that could jeopardize their contribution margin.

Peter Moore, Snowmass Dialogue CEO, has studied these core/context relationships and proclaims that businesses that are solid in what is core to their customers have higher ROIs than businesses who mix up core with context businesses. For example, if you are a horizontal financial VAR that specializes in nonprofits, the core of your business is financials and the context is CRM. Context is where rich collaboration can result.

What makes a rich collaborative relationship? Research indicates that successful collaborations include a diverse set of competencies connected by a mutually agreed-upon vision. Either party or all parties benefit from the relationship. They may not benefit equally, but probably in a percentage that satisfies all. A rich collaborative relationship also surfaces when it improves the customer’s experience and both parties are customer-focused.

There is also the element of trust. It is almost too trite to say, nut you must trust each other. What is not trite is that you should do a small litmus test on your collaborative trust index for the relationship. Ed Shein, author of “The Trusted Advisor,” shares a very basic formula for trust. It is not the end-all answer; however, it certainly is better than blind trust.
The formula is Trust = Reliability + Credibility + Appreciation for Others, divided by Ego. Each collaborative effort can be assigned a trust index that predicts the overall trust level. The numbers in the formula are irrelevant, but the exercise of thinking this through is priceless. (See Illustration 1).

For example, if I am about to enter into a collaborative relationship with you to deliver vertical solutions to the fast-food industry. I think you are reliable, because so far you have done what you said and you showed up when you indicated you would. I’ll give you 10 out of 10 for Reliability. You are also very credible. You have deep, deep domain expertise in five of our nation’s most popular fast-food chains. I give you an 8 in Credibility. I only give you an 8 because you don’t have experience with the largest fast-food chain in the world, McDonalds. You also seem very sincere and I get a good gut feeling from you when we discuss what each of us needs to be successful in this relationship. I’ll give you a 9 of 10 for Appreciation. Last, you seem very egoless, so you get a very low score. You get a 3 of 10 on ego.

Now do the math: 10 (Reliability) + 8 (Credibility) + 9 (Appreciation) = 27. Divide 27 by 3 (Ego), and you get a trust index of 9 out of 10. That’s pretty strong.

For example #2, imagine that we change only one of the variables and make you extremely ego-driven. Let’s give you 9 of 10 on Ego. The equation is now 27/9 (Ego) = 3. Your new trust index is 3 of 10, much lower than the first example. I would question our ability to collaborate regardless of competency, shared vision, or my appreciation for you.

Our formula is not fool-proof, but it is better than “blind” trust.

Intuition goes a long way in determining the workability of a collaboration. My guess is the “bug” on the rhino’s back had a gut feeling that he would benefit from this relationship. I stress the “gut” feeling. Over 80 percent of all partnerships fail in small business. The number one reason cited is that one of the partners intuitively felt that it would not work in the beginning, but he/she wanted it so badly because of the friendship, the money, or inability to say “no” that they convinced themselves to go ahead.

Numerous neural scientists have proven that there are millions of nerve receptors in our stomachs just as there are in our brains. They have also proven that when faced with a decision, our stomach’s nerve center is the first one notified and the brain the second. Dr. Cooper, the father of this neural science, proclaims there is now scientific proof to justify a gut feeling or those butterflies we have been talking about for decades.

In conclusion, to increase the success rate of collaborations, research has proven a higher ROI if you concentrate on a shared vision, find someone with complimentary skills or offerings, focus on how it enhances the customer’s experience, and have a high trust index and a good gut feeling.

Remember, it’s a jungle out there, so be sure you land on a rhino’s back when you collaborate.

About the Author

Pam McGee has been speaking publicly and consulting for over 15 years. She has delivered speeches, executive coaching and business consulting in over 22 countries for companies ranging in size from 10 people to 100's. Through her engaging and authentic discussions, she challenges her audiences to new thought processes, business trends, and people impact opportunities. Pam is a Business Consultant and principle of McGee & Co. that helps businesses with strategic planning, change management, leadership development and creating innovative environments. Pam is a member of the faculty at Minnesota State University - Moorhead where she teaches project management and leadership skills. Prior to forming her consulting firm, she worked for Microsoft in leadership development roles, business management roles, and organizational consulting roles. In her eight years at Microsoft, she was consistently praised for her ability to coach senior managers on a variety of business topics ranging from business and industry trends to personal leadership. Through these challenging times, Pam's main goal was always to keep these leaders working toward being great leaders and strategic thinkers. Most recently, she worked with the Microsoft Corporate Vice President of Marketing in the role of Business Manager. This role involved working side-by-side to manage the business management processes, global marketing activities, and all forms of communication for the Vice President. Prior to Pam's time at Microsoft, she assisted in the operation of - a trucking firm and a restaurant venture - as well worked for a Fortune 100 company as a sales manager. Pam has also been an Assistant Professor for the North Dakota University System. She lives in Fargo, ND with her husband, Scott and their two children, Isaac and Erika.