[Book Review] How to Build the Strategic Human Relationships that Drive B2B Growth

Supply:  Kogan Web page

An previous enterprise adage states, “Individuals purchase from folks.” Different variations of the adage embody:  “Individuals purchase from folks they like” and “Individuals purchase from folks they belief.”

No matter model, the adage makes the purpose that human relationships are very important to enterprise success, simply as a lot in B2B as in B2C.

That is the central theme of a brand new e book by Dr. Ryan O’Sullivan. In Building B2B Relationships:  How to identify, map and develop key relationships to win more business (Kogan Web page, 2025), Dr. O’Sullivan presents a compelling argument for the significance of high-quality person-to-person relationships in B2B, and he supplies an in depth course of for constructing such relationships deliberately and strategically.

Ryan O’Sullivan is a senior enterprise government, board member, enterprise advisor, and college visitor lecturer. He’s at the moment a World Account Supervisor at Introhive, a relationship intelligence and mapping firm. Beforehand, he was a Regional Head (EMEA) at Infosys, a worldwide IT companies agency. Dr. O’Sullivan earned his PhD from the College of Portsmouth in 2022.

What’s Within the E-book

Constructing B2B Relationships is structured in three elements.

Half 1 (Chapters 1-3)

On this half, Dr. O’Sullivan explains what trusted relationships are and why they matter in enterprise. He additionally discusses the three attributes which can be essential to create belief – potential, integrity, and benevolence – and he describes how belief varieties between organizations. Lastly, he introduces relationship mapping and explains why it is vital.

Dr. O’Sullivan clearly states his view on the significance of relationships when he writes:

“It’s my view, based mostly on a few years of expertise, that sturdy relationships lie on the coronary heart of profitable B2B interactions. In a world the place there may be entry to a lot information and knowledge, it’s changing into more durable and more durable for a lot of suppliers to supply a very distinctive, differentiated product. Relationships are by definition bespoke and private (regardless that after all they’re typically in-built a enterprise context), and thus proceed to current the provider with the chance to supply one thing totally different from their competitors.”

Dr. O’Sullivan additionally makes it clear that his e book is targeted on the significance of leveraging present relationships. He writes:

“So, whereas there are various folks on the market in the present day who can advise you on chilly outreach methods, this e book takes a really totally different tack. It’s centered on methods to leverage your present relationship community and can assist to open your peripheral imaginative and prescient past what you may think about to be ‘your community.'”

Half 2 (Chapters 4-6)

Half 2 of Constructing B2B Relationships describes Dr. O’Sullivan’s three-step course of for mapping relationships for enterprise functions, and he supplies a easy however persuasive argument for every step.

• Step 1 is the preliminary identification and mapping of key stakeholders (“. . . if you do not know who the important thing individuals are, how will you affect them?”)

All through Constructing B2B Relationships, Dr. O’Sullivan focuses on three particular use instances for relationship mapping – successful key offers, managing key tasks, and managing key accounts.

In Half 3 of the e book, he devotes a separate chapter to every of those use instances, and he concludes the e book with a chapter discussing easy methods to implement relationship mapping and easy methods to take it to the following degree.

My Take

Astute businesspeople intuitively perceive the significance of making and sustaining good buyer relationships. However regardless of this recognition, relationship administration would not all the time get as a lot consideration because it deserves.

Many people are likely to assume that sturdy buyer relationships will naturally develop if we do the remainder of our jobs nicely. We do not often deal with relationship administration as a definite “factor” that, in some circumstances no less than, requires a definite, intentional technique.

Constructing B2B Relationships supplies an in depth roadmap for growing and executing an intentional relationship administration technique. As famous earlier, the e book focuses on three use instances – successful key offers, managing key tasks, and managing key accounts.

What these use instances have in frequent is that they’re strategically vital and might have a major affect on an organization’s monetary efficiency. Dr. O’Sullivan’s relationship mapping course of is clearly finest suited to these sorts of game-changing situations.

Constructing B2B Relationships is well-written, nevertheless it typically reads a little bit like an instruction handbook. This isn’t a criticism of the writer’s writing fashion; it is merely a mirrored image of the e book’s subject material.

Dr. O’Sullivan contains 4 case research within the e book, which assist readers higher perceive how his relationship mapping course of works in the true world. Extra case research would have made the e book even higher.

Constructing B2B Relationships will likely be a invaluable useful resource for anybody in a customer-facing function at a B2B firm. The e book will likely be notably invaluable for anybody concerned in growing or managing a strategic account-based advertising or key account administration program. When you’re in such a job, it is best to put Constructing B2B Relationships in your studying checklist.