Ecosystems and marketplaces aren’t just a trend, it's a top 5 strategic priority for CXOs globally, according to new McKinsey research, which also discovered that 🎯 90% of executives have used external partnerships to scale new businesses.
A recent McKinsey & Company Global Survey involving 1010 CXOs and senior managers reveals a shift in strategic focus towards creating new revenue streams and the role of partners in making them successful.
Astounding 74% of top-performing companies prioritize new business and revenue stream development more in 2023 than in the previous year. Half of executives surveyed view new business building as a TOP priority and 30% of them plan to focus on building ecosystems and marketplaces.
🤝 Ecosystems and marketplaces is a strategic focus
This surge in attention towards ecosystems and marketplaces is evident, with 30% of businesses across various industries planning to build an ecosystem, a marketplace, or both in the next 5 years.
The trend is especially prominent in financial services, technology, and life sciences. This ecosystem focus also remains consistent, being in the top 5 priorities for both 2022 and 2023.
📈 Go-To-Market Partnership is the Key to Scaling
McKinsey research highlights the undeniable role of partnerships in scaling new businesses. An overwhelming 90% of executives report using external partnerships to some degree in their business scaling efforts.
Most successful builders however are 📍 ~2X more likely to use partnerships to a GREAT extent in new-business building. Apparently to great success.
Explaining the key reasons for external partnerships, survey respondents tend to say that the most critical capabilities gained from partners for their new businesses include key business-building aspects: engineering, R&D, and design.
However, those who report successful outcomes place less emphasis on the impact of external partners' R&D efforts. Instead, they highlight the importance of their partners' marketing capabilities as being essential to the success of their new ventures.
GTM is often the hardest in new businesses and companies need all the help they can get from partners in this aspect.
McK: “we have observed at many companies building businesses: building them is often the easiest part. The biggest challenge is how to market and sell the new product or proposition.”
📊 The Shift in Strategy
This data points to a significant shift in corporate strategy. Ecosystems and marketplaces are no longer peripheral considerations; they're central to the revenue growth strategies of the world's leading firms. The emphasis on marketing capabilities underscores the evolution from a product-centric to a market-centric approach in business expansion.
What's Your Take?
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