4.2.6.Relationships between Businesses

The courtesies that are commonplace in the dealings between individuals should apply equally to the relationships between businesses. The assumption that a business has no personality is false. The reality is that, when dealing with other companies, every action of every employee creates an image that either reinforces the expected standards of behaviour of the business or detracts from it.

Respect hierarchies

Every business has its own hierarchy. Just as you have a recog­nised position in your company's order of seniority, so has the person you are dealing with in his own.

You should always:

• Make your status clear when you meet for the first time. Use a business card as a minimum, adding helpful information about the structure that you fit into.

• Use a level of formality appropriate to your respective positions. Thus, equals are likely to be quickly informal (for example, using first names soon after meeting) while a more junior person should always adopt the level of formality dictated by the more senior.

• Decide on the most effective way to exploit your respective structures. Most managers have had the experi­ence of being bypassed at some time or another by a decision being taken over their heads and know that it ranks among the most unacceptable forms of behav­iour.

Among the problems you may meet in handling another organ­isation's hierarchy are:

• Being let down by your main contact. It is courteous to give him a fair opportunity to take corrective action before taking your complaint higher in his company.

• Changing levels of contact after an initial meeting. It is common for the first contact between businesses to be at high level and subsequent business to be done at a lower level. There is no problem with this except where there is an implied promise that all contact will be at the high level.

Be loyal to your firm

It can be tempting to share any problems you or your firm are having with a friendly person from another organisation. You may strongly disagree with some aspects of your company's policy or find that you are asked to defend the action of a colleague who has made a foolish decision. How should you behave in these cases?

• Remember that criticising your own firm in front of others diminishes the image and status not only of your company but also yourself. People respect loyalty. You should reserve your criticism for the privacy of your own office or factory.

• Defend the actions of your colleagues - particularly when you don't have all the facts − but always acknowledge the concern of the person making the complaint. Equally, never attempt to defend the obvi­ously indefensible − it only makes you look foolish. The best cure for valid criticism is the promise and delivery of effective and speedy corrective action.

• Although a certain amount of gossip is a vital ingre­dient in most effective relationships, you should avoid the spiteful and malicious.

If you are to be a good ambassador for your firm you should always be well briefed about what is going on in it. It is embar­rassing to be told by a third party something about your company that you should have known yourself. Accentuate positive aspects of your firm's activities and be ready to talk about its success stories. Showing pride in your firm is infectious and it is good manners to brief yourself on the achievements of the firms you deal with to avoid sounding too much like a one-sided commercial.

Handling the pressures when your firm has publicly known problems can be difficult. The trick is to be diplomatic without being pompous. Speak honestly but discreetly, and remember that you don't have to answer every question that you're asked.