BUSINESSES: How to collaborate effectively with a startup
WHY DO ESTABLISHED COMPANIES HAVE A HARD TIME INNOVATING?
We all know that a company's sustainability depends largely on its ability to adapt to changes in consumer behavior and integrate technological advances. Innovation allows organizations to differentiate themselves from their competitors by improving their products and services, thus standing out in the market. However, with the rapid evolution of new technologies, innovation cycles are becoming increasingly shorter. In other words, to remain competitive, established companies must innovate more frequently and quickly. Unfortunately, their organizational structures and business models can sometimes hold them back. Moreover, in this context, relying solely on internal resources becomes excessively difficult, and they are therefore more inclined to call on external partners.
Innovation is inherently risky and uncertain, which generally doesn't fit with the management culture of many established companies. As they grow, their ability to innovate is limited by their size and the processes and procedures developed to achieve their objectives and mitigate risks. Thus, their organizational structure, which is primarily focused on managing and leveraging the existing business model that has driven their success, makes it difficult to break away from their traditional processes and creates an environment that is unfavorable to innovation.
HOW TO SUCCEED IN INNOVATING WITH A STARTUP?
To innovate, established companies need to set aside certain pre-established assumptions or predefined processes within their organization, which can be complicated to implement. Startups, always searching for a business model, constantly generate new ideas and have impeccable organizational flexibility. They can therefore represent a promising solution to accelerate the innovation process of established companies.
The advantages of working with a startup are numerous:
- Gain agility and momentum: This allows the company to quickly move from prototyping to product development and deployment, reducing the risk of being overtaken by industry competitors. Additionally, working with startups allows you to learn to be more agile by changing direction if the product isn't working.
- Access to new technologies: Startups typically develop or leverage the best technologies on the market to deliver next-generation products or services. Having direct access to these technologies allows companies to deliver new solutions that meet their customers' needs more quickly.
- Delivering a better customer experience: Technology plays a vital role in transforming the customer experience. Startups can offer innovative technology solutions, such as semantic or predictive analytics software, to track customer feedback and anticipate purchasing intentions.
- Attracting talent: Working with startups allows the company to have easier access to entrepreneurs and talent who can help it grow organically later on.
To successfully collaborate with a startup, it's important to understand how they operate and clearly define your needs and objectives. Finding the right startup partner requires targeting startups that match your needs and defining the parameters of the collaboration to align the interests of both parties. A successful collaboration between an established company and a startup can create significant value for both partners.
Interested in exploring collaboration with manufacturing startups? Feel free to contact us at info@garageincubation.com