How much time does it take to get started?
It takes about 5 minutes to sign up as a partner. All you need to do is fill out your company's information and logo and you're ready to go.
The time you spend afterwards (inviting your clients or members) can vary. But expect to allocate a couple of hours to send invitations (use the URL-link activated on your Partner Site) and for the follow up.
Will I automatically be publicly listed as a partner when I sign up?
Yes. When you sign up you are automatically listed as a partner at https://networkedbusiness.org/partner.
Why should I join?
· Get access to the latest digital data (which is not available anywhere else)
Get the latest digital data from thousands of companies worldwide. The NBI Dashboard gives you the possibility to filter through industries, countries, company sizes, business functions, technologies and more. The knowledge from the NBI platform will give you a strong foundation for pitches and dialogues about your clients or members digital journey. Use the knowledge in the context of your expertise for marketing, whitepapers, blogs, network meetings and more.
· Get leads and sell more
When your clients or members (or leads!) take the survey, you can ask permission to see their data and get an in-depth understanding of their digital performance and potential, and thereby understand precisely where they need guidance and help.
What happens to my client's/member's data?
Click on the headlines below and learn more about the Networked Business Initiative's data security policy.
Data storage - where is the data?
Data sharing - who gets to see the data?
Deletion of data - can the data be deleted?
How much does it cost?
Being an associated partner of Networked Business Initiative is free, just as it’s free of charge for companies to respond to the survey and gain access to the dashboard.
How can it be free?
It’s free because it’s funded in collaboration with businesses and academics that share an interest in the project, and who see the need for a solid, scientific foundation for navigating as a business in today's networked society.
Can we make sure our contacts are not contacted more than once regarding this survey?
No. Partners invite respondents from their own systems and contact lists, so if two partners have the same business contact, both may contact that company and invite them to participate. It’s up to the responding companies to decide which of the partners they want to engage with. The general recommendation is to approach the contact as soon as possible, as the responding companies tend to stay with the first partner to engage with them.
Why is the survey not distributed directly to the respondents, but through partners?
We see a number of advantages by engaging companies via partners:
● You have a direct and unique contact to many of the relevant respondents of the survey. Establishing contacts to respondents via an organisation that the respondent knows and maybe even collaborates with, increases the respondent rate.
● In order to transform businesses into networked businesses, companies need not only measure and benchmark their digital maturity – they need to act on these insights. And while the Networked Business Initiative provides data-driven insights showing a company’s digital potential, you as partners have the opportunity and competence to further help the responding company come up with the right solutions to move business forward.
How do we know that the information provided by our respondents is not distributed to other partners?
All demographic information about any participating, responding company will only be available to the Networked Business Initiative Research Consortium. Data and results are anonymised when they are made public through the Dashboard or our API. A responding company may grant a partner access to its data in order for the partner to use the results for coming up with solutions or creating relevant activities to move the responding company forward.
How do I get the most out of a partnership?
Here’s a few suggestions to how you gain the most from becoming a Networked Business Initiative Partner:
2. Use your existing communications systems, our marketing assets and your own competent communications people, and put together a great campaign. The distribution can take place through your website, newsletters or however you may prefer to communicate with your contacts. The more you market the survey, the more of your contacts will use the dashboard and thereby gain from their participation.
- If you work for a consultancy, follow up with your contacts as they respond to the survey. We will notify you on your Networked Business Partner Site when a new respondent has taken the survey. Contact the responding company via the system and ask for permission to gain access to their results in order for you to make a deeper analysis of the results and address their needs.
What will happen after the three-year initial project period?
The project's aim is to be financially self-sustaining after the initial three-year period. We expect that sponsorships, further funding and added platform benefits to both partners and survey respondents will present opportunities as the project matures.
What do The Networked Business Initiative get out of it?
Knowledge! The project is funded as a joint consortium between industry and academic players. The business world lacks knowledge about the strategic use of networked business technologies (social media, mobile, cloud, big data and websites). Academics lack data to create new knowledge and management models. Collaborating to create a worldwide knowledge-platform solves the problem. This is the overall mission of the project.