Stephen Dypiangco 🔜 RDC

Creating content can be a great way to build your network. Whether it's through blog posts, LinkedIn posts, TikTok videos, or podcasts, you have an opportunity to highlight the work of others you admire in your industry. When you create this content that mentions or even celebrates others, it's very easy for you to share it with them directly through Linkedin. This move is not only flattering for them, but it also gives them something valuable, content that they can share with their networks. So not only do you have the chance to make one network connection, but you also have the chance to make connections with their contacts. Content scales. Use content to scale your network.

Make sure you listen to employees. The more that they feel heard, the more they'll feel respected and valued. Employees are often told what to do. But give them a chance to share their opinions and ideas. This is not just in brainstorming sessions. It's in other conversations as well. This will help build trust among team members and a greater sense of ownership in the work.

Define what successful partnerships have traditionally looked like for your organization. Have they been about growth in revenue, distribution, marketing, data collection, or something else? What made those partnerships successful? Was it the internal teams, external teams, process along the way, the final results, or a combination of those factors? What elements of these partnerships do you want to make sure you keep repeating over and over again because they're so effective? What elements of bad / ineffective partnerships do you want to avoid? The more you understand what works and what doesn't work, the more you'll find repeatable success.

Partnerships are not just about finding goods fits. They're also about eliminating all of the bad fits. Create a list of deal breakers or red flags that you want to avoid in a partnership. Maybe it's size of the company, level of experience in your sector, or revenue expectations. Whatever they are, make sure you can spot these issues as early as possible, so you're not wasting time with prospects you ultimately won't be working with.

Make sure that your supervisor(s) and leadership team are aware of the constantly changing landscape and upcoming needs. If you know that changes are coming, don't keep that information to yourself. It's important that you "manage up" to those who have higher level of approvals regarding budget and resources. If they are aware of what's happening and the business rationale for why it's important, they're more likely to lend support when you need it.

I've worked on projects that began with very clear goals and expectations. But when those initial goals were reached, new goals and expectations appeared. How do you deal with new goals and shifting expectations? This can be a big challenge for teams that are not prepared and not flexible. Luckily, my teams make sure to set up our data collection to be as robust as possible from the start. This gives us the ability to have additional data points to help us think strategically. Make sure you're thinking through various scenarios to collect as much data as you can from the start, even if it doesn't directly address stated goals because goals can shift. And monitor data throughout, so you're ready to make changes as priorities shift.