Resource Guide
Methods that Work for Creating Corporate Clients, page 12
Mary Kay Hamm, founder and president of Linden International, an IT and healthcare staffing firm located in the Philadelphia area and certified as a women’s business enterprise through the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council. Hamm credit s relationships for much of her corporate business. The key to creating successful relationships, she says, is to focus on mutually-beneficial associations that provide value for each person involved in the transaction. Hamm reminds us that a contact in a corporation is one person living at least three roles: the career-minded professional, a member of a family and community, and a corporate representative. Paying attention to the needs of each role will establish you as a valued ally.
Hamm is an active participant on several community and corporate business development councils. Because of her volunteer efforts, she is able to work alongside both supplier diversity professionals and corporate buyers. Building a relationship around the mutual objective of women’s business enterprise promotion increaseser understanding of their challenges, and allows her to develop business strategies
that speak precisely to the individual’s and the corporation’s needs. She also has a realistic view of their accomplishments, which helps her to identify the programs that deserve recognition when the business councils honor achievements in the area of diversity. In t h e s e ways, Hamm’s relationships benefit both herself and her corporate associates.
Working closely with potential clients also gives them a chance to get to know her as a possible supplier, Hamm explains. “My commitment is to creating opportunities for all women, not just for me and my company,” she says. “When I work on these boards and councils, this is what people see in me. If we then have an occasion to discuss business, they already trust me and know I will do well by them.”
Hamm advises other women who are trying to create business with corporations to become active with organizations. She suggests that as they become involved, they need to earnestly consider how the relationships made at these meetings can evolve into mutually beneficial associations.
Citation
Center for Women’s Business Research. “Methods that Work for Creating Corporate Clients, page 12.” Washington, DC.