CIO Straight Talk - Issue 8 - 20

Relationships Beyond the Contract

own; the services are too interconnected," he

The most satisfying and mutually beneficial
human relationships are not defined by words
on a page. They are defined by mutual respect.
And trust. And transparency. And flexibility.

another is not, the whole thing breaks down."

says. "If one partner is high-performing and
This co-dependency is one of the reasons
he and others hold partner review days. For
Swanson, this is a "brokered dialogue where
they all get around the table with me, and I

This is as true in the business world as it is in our
personal lives - though that truth often gets lost in the
sterile language of disclaimers and SLAs and "parties
of the first part" that govern business contracts.
Formal contractual agreements should only provide
the legal basis for a deeper and more committed
partnership between two parties.
This kind of relationship is especially important in
strategic outsourcing partnerships, where even the
best contract can never cover all the contingencies of
today's constantly changing business environment,
can never mandate behavior that will maximize
mutual value creation. That's why HCL Technologies
has focused on the concept of relationship beyond
the contract as the guiding principle in its strategic
partnerships with clients.
Now clearly, a carefully drafted contract is necessary
to clarify the expectations of both a provider of
services and the client that is served.
So how do you reconcile the need for an agreement
that clearly delineates responsibilities with an
awareness that those very responsibilities may
suddenly and surprisingly become irrelevant or even
counter-productive?

say we have to own this together, we need to
drive this solution together."
David Smoley took this approach at
AstraZeneca even as he was drastically
cutting back his contracts with the
company's partners in order to bring a lot
of IT back in-house. "We included them
in the process and shared our strategy in
very transparent ways. We had regular
communication around expectations
and time lines. I was very direct about
performance and cost issues - there were
lots of things not working well, including on
my side of the fence."

How to Win Friends and
Influence Partners
CIOs have a lot at stake in these
relationships - multiple millions of dollars, if
not their companies' very futures. To make

You create a culture that places the highest priority
on value-centric, mutually beneficial customer
relationships. Relationships based on trust,
transparency, and flexibility. Relationships animated
by a workforce of "ideapreneurs," employees who are
encouraged and enabled through a variety of formal
programs to take the initiative in creating innovative
solutions to a customer's business challenges

sure they have a say in where their partners

You create a culture in which people respect and
understand the value of a lasting relationship enough
that they constantly strive not just to meet the
terms of the contract but also to create sustainable
value for the customer.

development organization to understand

HCL's "relationship beyond the contract"
engagement model is the subject of a Harvard
Business School case study to be published this fall.

direction as well."

20

are heading, they and their business peers
sit on their partners' customer advisory and
development boards. "We talk about their
strategy, roadmap, and financials,"
says Guzman.
"We get as close as we can to their
where they're heading," says Blausey. "With
application providers, our functional leaders
connect with the appropriate customer
advisory board to help set priorities and
CIO Straight Talk - Issue 8

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of CIO Straight Talk - Issue 8
