Organisations from which conclusions were drawn had rates of return on these factors of between 10 and 60 times their industrial average. The argument is that without action and experimentation then new ideas, products, services, relationships are never tested and no movement is obtained. Offer added value to the customer and working in co-operation with them are important to competitiveness. The supplier wants the highest possible price at the lowest cost. So quality and support for customer relationships involves costs i.e. there is a tension in a competitive and collaborative supplier-buyer relationship.
Collaboration involves trust, confidence and joint problem-solving.
If a supplier becomes too confident in a relationship then complacency may set in. This is the old human relations nutmeg. The managerial call to arms is to create an organisation - a place and a culture in which all employees are aware that their contributions and best efforts are essential to business success and that they will share in the rewards of the organisation's success. Stick to the knitting Corproate managers in contemplating corporate development and acquisitions are recommended to stay close to what the business does well and not to diversify into unlikely tangential areas. The problems of managing these will take executive attention and energy away from focusing on the business that the organisation knows best.