Latest news with #businesspartnerships
Forbes
28-05-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Why Self-Awareness Unlocks The Best Business Partnerships
The best business partnerships start with self-awareness. Strategic business partnerships empower companies to unlock greater value than they could alone. Yet, forming a successful alliance can be difficult – it requires alignment on goals, values, and vision. Whether uniting companies for a chapter or a long journey, here's why having self-awareness creates the best business partnerships. Before embarking on a potential business partnership, it is important to recognize and clarify your organization's key strengths and long-term goals. A successful partnership develops a shared vision. This can only occur if both parties clearly delineate their skills and goals of their business. Sal Frisella, CEO of 1st Phorm, shared to me via email on his company's recent partnership with Anheuser-Busch for Phorm Energy, 'We need to believe in each other and have a common drive to build something that really matters. It's important that both sides bring their own strengths, but what really makes it work is a shared vision.' Home in and streamline your expertise. Companies that dabble in too many products or services may lose their long-term vision and value proposition. Subject matter expertise requires diligent focus and precise cultivation of specific skills. Being a strong player in your market will naturally attract equally successful potential collaborators. Being self-aware means not only identifying the strengths of your organization, but also being able to pinpoint company weaknesses. 'Weaknesses' should be viewed as a future area to develop or a cognizant choice to not allocate resources for a specific domain. Successful organizations are transparent. They understand that naming development areas opens up opportunities to collaborate with a partner that fills the gaps. Revealing your company's weaknesses sets the stage for a continued open and collaborative dialogue. Vulnerability generates reciprocal honesty and trust – the foundation of a successful partnership. Globally, trust is at an all-time low; 68% of people believe business leaders purposefully mislead people, an increase of 12 percentage points since 2021, according to the 2025 Edelman Trust Barometer Global Report. It's important to lead with authenticity in potential partnership conversations. A business partnership is a merging of two ecosystems. Each company has their own unique culture, represented in communication styles and how they work. Frisella elaborates on this, recognizing 'Any real partnership is going to come with challenges, especially when you're building something from the ground up. You've got different teams, different cultures, and different ways of doing things. The key is being flexible without ever compromising who you are.' Embrace flexibility and choice while maintaining the big picture view. Being open to new ideas and approaches will help smooth the transition of multiple teams joining together. Frisella noted that he and Anheuser-Busch CEO Brendan Whitworth connected on a personal level, stemming from mutual respect and a shared vision. Continuously recognize and fulfill the unique needs of your company, the partnering organization, and the collective partnership for a successful collaboration. Knowing and demonstrating your company's values is imperative to finding an equal business that shares similar beliefs. Company values should be more than a catalog of corporate buzzwords. It must be felt in every interaction, email, and decision. An organization's values must be embedded in how you communicate, collaborate, and perform for your philosophies to be meaningful. When asked about advice for businesses looking to secure their first partnership, Frisella replied: 'My advice is simple: be willing to do the work, stay resilient, and only move forward with partners who share your values.' Understanding and expressing your own company values makes finding a business partner with similar values attainable. Building a successful business partnership begins with strong self-awareness. Knowing and communicating your company's strengths, weakness, work styles, and values enables solid business partnerships. Effective collaborations embrace authenticity, flexibility, and a shared vision. Taking this approach will create partnerships that are not only strategic, but also meaningful and resilient.
The National
21-05-2025
- Business
- The National
Gitex Europe can forge new corridor of co-operation, UAE minister says
A new economic corridor and new business partnerships can be forged from the first European edition of Dubai's long-running technology exhibition, Gitex, government ministers have said. On the opening day of Gitex Europe in Berlin, Alia Al Mazrouei, Minister of State for Entrepreneurship, hoped the event would attract further investment into UAE tech companies. Since its inaugural event in Dubai in 1981, Gitex has expanded to host events in technology, business and health care in Africa, Asia and now Europe. More than 1,400 start-up companies and established technology businesses were on show at exhibition stands packed into the Messe Berlin conference centre for the three-day event. 'Gitex has always been a place where people come together to shape what comes next, but this event is not only about technology – it is about vision, collaboration and the will to build a smarter, more connected, resilient global future,' said Ms Al Mazrouei. 'We are here not just to showcase innovation, but to co-invest in a future that is technologically enabled and globally networked.' National pavilions representing India, Italy, Morocco, the Netherlands, Poland, Serbia, South Korea, the UK – as well as the UAE – were hoping to develop new business opportunities and invest in start-ups. Trade partnerships As the third largest global economy, Germany is viewed as rich in potential for new investment and bi-lateral partnerships in technology. Last year, non-oil trade between Germany and the UAE reached 13.4 billion euros, a 5 per cent increase from the previous year. Germany is now the UAE's second-largest trading partner within the EU. In May, it was announced Abu Dhabi investors MGX would partner with world leading artificial intelligence firm Nvidia and other French companies to build a 1.4 gigawatt Ai campus near Paris. The initiate will focus on AI, quantum computing, and next generation materials. It is an example of how technology will continue to play a critical role in European partnerships, Ms Al Mazrouei said. 'Together, we are shaping a new economic corridor, one powered by innovation and grounded in common purpose,' said Ms Al Mazrouei in her opening speech. 'The UAE may be small in territory, but we are expansive in ambition. 'We are building an economy that is digitally fluent, environmentally conscious, globally connected and intellectually open. 'We are not just scaling businesses – we are scaling mindsets and nurturing the next generation of innovators.'
CNA
20-05-2025
- Business
- CNA
Singapore, the Netherlands mark 60 years of bilateral ties with new economic partnerships
SINGAPORE: New business partnerships between Dutch and Singapore companies were inked on Monday (May 19) as both countries celebrated 60 years of diplomatic ties. Singapore's Minister-in-charge of Trade Relations Grace Fu said the country is committed to growing such partnerships by leveraging on both nations' strategic locations. These new partnerships, including one between a Singaporean software firm and a Dutch-founded travel app, were launched across the semiconductor and tourism industries. In a speech at a showcase lunch held at Fullerton Bay Hotel, Ms Fu highlighted the deep economic ties between Singapore and the Netherlands that stretch back several decades. For example, Dutch multinational health technology firm Phillips set up shop in Singapore in 1951 before establishing its first manufacturing facility in Boon Keng in 1968, she noted. 'These early investments reflect the long-standing trust and cooperation between our two countries,' Ms Fu said. The Netherlands is now Singapore's second largest European Union investor and the second largest investment destination for Singapore within the bloc, she said, adding that both countries are strengthening collaboration in sustainability, digitalisation and innovation. 'Initiatives like the Singapore-Rotterdam green and digital shipping corridor … reflect our shared ambition to pioneer solutions in areas such as sustainable shipping, advanced manufacturing and smart mobility," added Ms Fu, who is also Minister for Sustainability and the Environment. SEMICONDUCTOR PARTNERSHIPS A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed between Dutch manufacturer of lithography equipment SCIL Nanoimprint and Singapore Deep-Tech Alliance (SDTA), a locally-based venture investor focusing on developing and supporting cutting-edge technologies. The MOU will allow SCIL, which makes advanced nanoimprint lithography equipment, to expand into Singapore and the Southeast Asian region via SDTA's partnership with another Dutch venture investor HighTechXL. HighTechXL counts ASML, the world's biggest supplier of computer chip-making equipment, among its shareholders and investors. Another tie-up is between Dutch company Sioux Technologies and local firm Applied Angstrom Technology Pte Ltd. Both companies signed a Letter of Intent for a research and development programme. They will be collaborating on a joint semiconductor control platform. TOURISM VENTURES An agreement was also signed between Dutch company Meetingselect, a global meeting and event venue booking marketplace, and local hospitality group Millennium Hotels and Resorts (MHR). Both firms are working on a global venue partnership, with Meetingselect's customers being offered destination experiences and venues via MHR's 145 hotels and properties worldwide. Another tourism collaboration was marked by a contract signing between local software company GlobalTix and Dutch-founded travel app and telecom provider Firsty. Both companies are now able to increase reach and access for their users by tapping on each other's technologies to provide booking and ticketing services. BILATERAL SUPPORT VITAL FOR EXPANSION Two other Singapore companies that have integrated their businesses in the Netherlands told CNA about their positive experience with setting up operations, as well as the support they received from government agencies in both countries. Local battery manufacturer Durapower expanded to the Netherlands a decade ago and has been operating there since, aligning with the European country's push for electrification. The firm started off by powering electric buses and trucks. It currently also supplies batteries for autonomous vehicles at the port of Rotterdam, as well as cranes and marine vessels. Durapower's CEO Kelvin Lim told CNA that it was quite an efficient process to set up a business in the Netherlands. 'We didn't have a lot of challenges … with regards to registration. We had a lot of help from NFIA (Netherlands Foreign Investment Agency), both from Singapore and from the Netherlands. We also (had) great support from Enterprise Singapore,' he said. He added that the assistance provided to Durapower made the process very easy and efficient, and noted that the Netherlands remains a business-friendly gateway to the rest of the region. "Europe remains a very important market for us and as we expand into the other parts of Europe, we wanted to use (the) Netherlands as our base and create a network effect to enable us to expand further,' he said. Mr Lim added that the firm is planning to expand its team in the Netherlands, as well as set up local manufacturing capabilities in the future. Durapower also took part in a Letter of Intent signing during the showcase event. Another company that received support from Singapore and Dutch agencies during its expansion to the Netherlands was global logistics service provider BHS, which provides specialised engineered solutions for semiconductor factories. The company said it ensures safe, precise and reliable handling of critical manufacturing assets for such factories. The firm marked its first step into Europe with its move to the Netherlands last year. Enterprise Singapore and NIFA provided regulatory and migration support to BHS for their move, which brought the company closer to its clients and deeper into the market. The company said such support is crucial for any business looking to expand into the Netherlands, where it has recently established an engineering centre. NFIA also highlighted its support in assisting BHS with establishing an entity in the Netherlands, noting the company's strengthening of the Dutch semiconductor value chain. "Netherlands is one of the biggest hubs for technology,' said its CEO Mr Bryan Lim. 'Startups - there are aplenty. We're hoping to see whether we can support those internationalising companies moving out of the Netherlands, going to the countries that we are already having an office in.'
