Career Center Business NetworkingThe widely popular business networks have different names and are growing in numbers everyday though the internet. Names such as Virtual Enterprise Networks, Virtual Collaborative Networks, Virtual Cluster Networks, Virtual Collaborative Supply Chains and Virtual Networked Enterprises are a few examples among many such names.
The most common type is the Collaborative Supply Chain Network which acts as the supply chain for a major organisation or company and is prominent in the government sector and defense sectors.
The second most common type of network is the Joint Supplier Network and it represents a group of business suppliers operating under a common name jointly providing auxiliary business services. The Joint Product Development network is a group of small businesses and companies invest money and resources jointly to innovate, and perform research and development. The Subcontracting and Partnership Exchange virtual business networks are non profit industrial networks with the main objective to develop the regional economy.
The Virtual Enterprise Networks are formed by groups of small businesses or companies with the primary aim of bidding and winning large business contracts. The individual businesses and companies may posses the skills and expertise but may not have the financial backing to participate in such large contracts single handedly.
Hence by forming a collaborative network, the companies or small businesses achieve the capability to participate in large business deals and ventures. This article will help to identify each of these business networks and define parameters and factors to assess them.
Considering the varied types of business networks, it is important therefore device method to assess the worth and value of these networks. Especially for the prospective customers and other small business planning to join one of these networks, this assessment method will be very valuable in deciding which network to choose from the many available.
The business networks can be assessed based on several factors. The most important factors that describe the value of business network are described below.
Business Network Status: This factor is the most important of all other factors. The Business Network Status indicates the state of the network. All networks have different states such a Formation, Valuation, Expansion, Formulation, and Operational state.
The formation state indicates that the network is new and has just begun the process of developing into a business network. Valuation state indicates that the goals of the members are being analyzed and reorganized towards a common collaborative goal.
In the expansion state further network alliances and expert service providers are being added to increase value to the network. Formulation state decides the responsibilities, accountability and also creates a hierarchy and control chain. The last state is the fully operational state where all key elements of the Business Network are in place and operational. The Operational state is the status which is highly preferred by the potential customers and other small business planning to join one of these networks
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