Strengthening Credibility
• Communicate frequently and explicitly. Make progress and accomplishments visible in clear and non-technical ways. Focus group members found that when difficult decisions are planned collaboratively and clearly articulated in advance, there is much less tension in the relationship.
• Pay attention to the “little things.” Wherever possible, take steps to provide prompt feedback and responses to queries and ensure consistent high-quality service encounters.
• Utilize external cues to credibility such as, awards, and endorsements from third parties, as well as the experience and background of IT staff. These can be very useful when starting a new relationship with the business.
• Assess all business touch points. All focus group members stressed the need to really listen to what the business says about its expectations and the problems it feels exist in the partnership. Just the effort alone sends a strong and positive message about its importance, said a manager. However, he also stressed that undertaking such a review creates expectations that changes will be made, so regular reports back to the business about what is being done to improve things are especially important.
