The elements of a great business partnership

Over two years ago, Zappi, at the time a small technology startup, and Mars, one of the largest family-owned businesses in the world, set out on a journey together to shake up the status quo. On paper, these two businesses could not seem more different. However, the two shared a vision for the future and each faced critical problems they needed a partner to help solve. Thus, a partnership was formed. 

At TMRE this past November, Mars’ Senior Manager of Consumer and Market Insights Jessica Southard and Zappi President Ryan Barry took the stage to bring the audience along on their journey, giving insight into what a productive partnership can look like between a supplier and a brand and what makes building these partnerships the most powerful tool to have in your arsenal. 

Building a great partnership starts with establishing a strong foundation, but fostering a productive partnership takes consistent energy, iteration, accountability and honesty from both sides. Here’s their take on the elements that make up a great partnership.

Ryan and Jessica broke down the process of building and sustaining a productive partnership into the following five elements.

1. Shared goals and vision

Simply put: Partnerships that don’t start with the same intent are doomed to fail. The first step in creating a partnership is to get your principles aligned and firmly discuss what each side is hoping to see as end results.

When setting out to form a partnership the big question is not what do you do now; it’s what do you want to do?

- Jessica Southard

“I was looking for vendors that could clearly articulate not just off-the-shelf what they can do today, but talk about what the capability they can’t do yet but want to figure out is,” Jessica explained. “I wanted to know: What is the problem you haven’t been able to solve so maybe we can solve it collaboratively?”

A partnership is more likely to have staying power, be equally nurtured and create meaningful growth when you establish a mutually beneficial vision for the future and build a roadmap to get there together.

2. Open and constructive dialogue

Even if you set a shared vision at the start, it is crucial to ensure you stay on the same page every step of the way. And the only way to do that is to keep lines of communication open with honest feedback flowing in both directions.

Feedback is the cornerstone of every relationship.

- Jessica Southard

One way to keep the feedback loop in motion is to set a specific schedule for review of what’s working, what you’ve learned and what you want to do differently moving forward.Just as you have to be constructively critical about where you think the other side has room to grow, when entering a partnership, you have to leave your ego at the door.

Being transparent about what you’re good at and what you’re not good at allows you to work together to fill in the gaps and go further together than you could on your own. Or as Jessica said: “Tapping into each other's strengths is a force multiplier.”

3. Bravery

A partnership is only as strong as the individual people involved.

Tying into honesty and lack of ego, sometimes the supplier has to be the ‘bad guy’ in the interest of setting customers up for success.

By this we mean a supplier can't just tell the customer what they want to hear. If the supplier really has the customer's best interest at heart, it has to push back sometimes.

This is a two way street. If you’re selling solutions to a brand, your job is to make them successful — which means sometimes you’re going to have to tell them things they don’t want to hear like: ‘You’re gonna screw this up.'

- Ryan Barry

4. Sponsorship

There are many layers to who is involved in making sure a partnership operates smoothly.There’s the people on the ground building the solutions. There’s the people on the ground using the solutions. And there’s the people in senior leadership who make sure the partnership is given the prioritization, attention and resources it needs to be successful.

Of course, with partnership still comes politics. If there isn’t buy-in going all the way up, it’s going to be challenging to actually push the needle forward.

5. Not being afraid to fail

The purpose of forming partnerships is to push past the boundaries of what’s been done before in the name of innovation. So, as with trying anything new, failure is bound to happen.Creating a culture where experimentation is celebrated allows for big wins. Experimenting allows you to learn; true failure only comes when you don’t learn from it.

This is probably not natural to classically trained researchers — we’re in the business of being right, but we’re also in a world that is unpredictable so things aren’t linear and you’re going to fail.

- Ryan Barry

You try something new, it doesn’t work. You iterate and try again. Eventually you’ll strike gold. So make sure you’re creating a space where failure isn’t just accepted, but welcomed.

1. Microsoft and OpenAI (2023 expansion)

In early 2023, Microsoft took its partnership with OpenAI to the next level by investing an additional $10 billion. This collaboration brought AI features (like ChatGPT) into Microsoft’s core products, including Word, Excel and Teams. As a result, businesses can now easily integrate advanced AI into their daily workflows.

Why it worked:

• Microsoft gained a competitive edge by embedding cutting-edge AI across its product suite.

• OpenAI got the infrastructure boost it needed, using Microsoft’s Azure platform to scale its models.

• The partnership fast-tracked AI adoption in both enterprise and consumer markets.

2. McDonald’s and Cactus Plant Flea Market (2022)

McDonald’s teamed up with streetwear brand Cactus Plant Flea Market to create a nostalgic twist on the Happy Meal — this time aimed at adults. The limited-edition release, featuring redesigned versions of classic McDonald’s toys, went viral and sold out almost instantly.

Why it worked:

• McDonald’s tapped into millennial nostalgia while staying culturally relevant.

• Cactus Plant Flea Market gained massive mainstream exposure.

• The buzz created a sense of urgency and excitement, making this a textbook example of scarcity-driven marketing.

3. Nike and Ocean Conservancy (2021)

Nike partnered with Ocean Conservancy to launch the Arctic Shipping Pledge, committing to avoid shipping routes through the Arctic to protect fragile ecosystems. The initiative also encouraged other companies to rethink their supply chain practices.

Why it worked:

• Nike aligned its brand with environmental sustainability, resonating with eco-conscious consumers.

• Ocean Conservancy gained the backing of a major brand, amplifying its message.

• The partnership raised awareness about the environmental impact of Arctic shipping.

Partnership isn’t just a word to be used at renewal season. We need to elevate the word, not commoditize it.

- Ryan Barry

The reality is, most partnerships tend to fail because they don’t have a strong foundation or see an equal effort from both sides.

While partnerships can look different across organizations, these five elements can serve as the building blocks for creating something sustainable and strong.

If you take the time to instill honesty, get leadership behind you, embrace failure and align on a shared vision in this process — you’ll be well on your way to building a great partnership.