Self-described “rehabilitated ex corporate”, Simone Novello left behind a career in financial services and large-scale loyalty programs to move into the Blue Mountains. “My love for my family and the planet triumphed over my love of money, so I made a big pivot in my career,” she explains. “I am transitioning my property as an eco demonstration site, and I've moved right into the eco space.”
At Partner2Grow, Simone works with smaller businesses that have unique value propositions, helping them build powerful partnerships to expand their business – but at a manageable pace.
“Partner2Grow became increasingly focused on building partnership capability. I developed a proprietary framework which I had identified as consistently leading to successful outcomes in partnerships. From building the partnership capability we were able to negotiate opening doors and introducing much more successful partnerships.”
TS: What are some of the key attributes in developing strategic and marketing partnerships?
SN: There are three golden rules. The most important thing is that you have to see a win-win. If you can see a win for yourself, but you cannot see how your partner is going to win in a partnership, then it's pretty difficult to get their attention. All businesses are pretty stretched and very focused on what they're trying to achieve.
The second one is making sure you have an aligned target market, whether it's an existing target market or one you want to grow into. It's very important that you understand the target market that your partner serves. Generally speaking, it's not the bigger the partner, the better – it's actually the more aligned the target market, the better the partnership.
And the third one is that your values align. They don't have to be the same, but it means, for example, that if you are a very ethical business, you don't want to be partnering with an unethical business. If you are a very entrepreneurial business, and you're partnering with a very conservative business, you really need to evaluate how that partnership is going to work. Otherwise, it can be very slow and frustrating if you really can't get anywhere with a partner, or if you don't trust or respect the way that they approach business. It's the intersection of those three things that will deliver your partnership sweet spot.
TS: What's the key message that you are super passionate about that you are advocating and championing?
SN: During the last 20-25 years I have been in business, I have never seen a return on investment as impressive as what you see through partnerships today. My key message is that relying on collaboration and sharing knowledge and resources is one of the key ways that you can turn any vision into reality. We live in a time now where we have many wicked problems and challenges and I think for anyone from WWF to the UN, it's critical that people have partnership capability and a collaborative mindset, when they're looking at how they're going to grow their businesses, and how they're going to make those businesses sustainable. You cannot ignore the fact that the planet’s health is extremely important in a business's health.
We cannot be experts in everything, so it stands to reason that partnerships are the best way to tap into knowledge and resources that we don't have. Also, when we're getting thrown into unexpected challenges like the pandemic and extreme weather events, we need to be able to pivot and bounce back quickly and better. I think partnerships are the best way to do that.
TS: What are some of the hot topics of discussion in the Partner2grow office?
SL: I have been very busy working on my own partnership program. As I mentioned, we live in the Blue Mountains, so we're certainly familiar with extreme weather. We ran the property as an eco holiday rental, which showed me that the short-term rental industry was an excellent distribution channel for the eco agenda. It is not only a great way to help hosts create a more cost-effective and comfortable environment for the guests, it is also a terrific way to inspire people when they're in a relaxed and receptive state to be more eco friendly, and create more resilient, comfortable and cost-efficient homes to run, that are actually way more enjoyable to stay in as well.
I'm busy working on my own partner program in the Blue Mountains, that's really well aligned with the area and with the local council's strategic planning statement on becoming a leading eco destination. They've built some terrific partnerships with universities so it's going to be a great place to be educated in resilience and sustainability, and living in a more eco friendly way. It’s exciting.
TS: What are some of the ways that you as a woman are actively challenging the status quo?
SL: I have to say that doing this renovation at home, the building industry is quite male dominated. It's been a steep learning curve for me and I’m looking to bring a more feminine perspective into it.
I think collaboration is probably more naturally a feminine characteristic. Looking at how we approach our properties in a much more integrated way, I think having that big-picture view and considering everything that sits inside that and starting at the centre – How do we want to live? and How do we want to enjoy our lives at home? – women traditionally are very good at that. But moving into this world of construction and renovation and the building industry, and looking at how we can do it better in that area – that's my new agenda: to disrupt the residential construction industry.
Interested in learning more? Listen to our entire conversation with Rob Hillard at the TradeSquare podcast, TSQ here.
Leave Comment