Minority and women business enterprises (MWBEs) are often hampered by barriers between where they are and where they want to be. On one side, you have established corporate practices barring historically underrepresented businesses, like MWBEs from becoming suppliers. On the other side, there are other access barriers that exist because the MWBE may not understand the bidding complexities due to past lack of opportunity and therefore doesn’t know how to successfully maneuver the competitive process. In both cases, strategic partnering or alliances can change the formula by giving MWBEs the precise tools needed to achieve a competitive advantage.

Strategic partnerships can take many forms. The MWBE can form a legal partnership with another firm, but that is not always a good solution because it means giving up some control of the business. Another strategy is acquisition, but that is an expensive and risky proposition. A better solution is the formation of strategic partnerships through shared services or forming mutually beneficial working relationships that enable firms to complement services. These types of partnerships enable the minority or women owned businesses to approach large customers from a position of strength rather than weakness.