At Crosscadia, we’ve seen an uptick in interest over the past year to organize both inbound and outbound business delegations. They are a staple in the international trade and investment business; and if done well, they can add a ton of value to all participants by creating meaningful relationships, raising awareness about market opportunities, and uncovering new partnerships. Done poorly, they can be accurately described as junkets that don’t produce any results.
After more than ten years of organizing, hosting, and participating in cross-border business delegations, we’ve gleaned some insight on what tends to be useful and what doesn’t. Here are five ways you can help ensure that your program creates value for all participants:
Be Targeted in Industry Sector
There is value in broad, high-level delegations that include corporate representatives from multiple industries, civic leaders, and academia. But in our experience, crafting a multi-day and/or multi-location program that caters to the diverse interests of all these parties is herculean. Often, in trying to generate meaningful meetings and events for such a varied group, you end up spreading yourself and the program too thin. It’s like a building a matchmaking program from scratch for 10 different industries that have nothing in common other than they come from the same part of the world.
Instead, build a mission that is focused on one vertical or industry sector like hospitality, aerospace & defense, or VR/AR. It doesn’t have to be the primary industry for all participants, but it does set expectations that most program elements will be geared toward this sector. You’ve instantly narrowed the pool of potential site visits, meeting targets, and conferences to a manageable size. There is a sweet spot, however: focus too narrowly on a specific niche technology and you run the risk of not having enough “on the other end” to justify a full-blown mission.
Build a Complimentary Delegation
Once you’ve decided on an industry vertical, be sure to assemble a delegation comprised of complementary offerings. Competition is always welcome, but you don’t want a third of your companies to be competing directly with one another in their core business. Better to include a variety of technologies, goods and services that showcase the diversity of assets and the depth of industry expertise that exist in your region.
A good example of this would be an enterprise software mission that included:
- a cloud infrastructure services company
- an HR automation startup
- a project management solution provider
- professional service providers that advise large enterprises
- a VC firm focused on B2B ventures
- a university-affiliated accelerator for software startups
Include “Buyers” and “Sellers”
I know economic development agencies tend to be solely concerned on promoting exports. But it is important to keep in mind that every business is both a buyer and a seller of goods and services, depending on which side of the meeting table they are on. Leading a group of businesses to a foreign market only to “sell” to potential customers is shortsighted and missed out on potential value for your participants. There is value in finding new suppliers, new technologies to deploy, and new products to sell back in your home market. It also tends to generate enthusiasm among participants in your host region.
When recruiting delegates, it’s a good practice to ask companies both what they are hoping to sell and what they’re are open to buying. You’ll double your chances of creating a valuable opportunity for all participants.
There’s value in broad exposure
While it’s important to be targeted in building the delegation, keep in mind that you are representing your geographic region on an international stage. Therefore, it may be useful to incorporate broader, “region-to-region” networking and discussions. These should not be a primary pillar of the program, but they can help lay a foundation for future or reciprocal missions (see next section).
Industry associations, chambers of commerce, business meet-up groups, and government agencies often play a useful role here. Conversations through these types of actors often give your participants a more holistic local network and more accurate high-level view of the local business landscape.
Build to the Future
Lastly, like almost any endeavor one undertakes: follow-up and next steps are critical to success. Have a plan well in advance of the mission on what the proposed next step will be for your two regions. This could be:
- an offer to host a reciprocal business delegation to your region within 12 months;
- prepare an MOU that actively facilitates ongoing, ad-hoc business exchanges (be specific and include metrics);
- agree to hold a B2B exchange at a future industry event in a neutral location;
Whatever you decide is appropriate and realistic, be sure to set timelines, roles & responsibilities and ways to track outcomes. Unless you proactively set the wheels in motion for follow-on programming, momentum will quickly stall soon after everyone returns home.
