Building Relationships beyond Businesses

There are relationships in life which we are born with. Then there are those that we choose. When we are passing through the age of innocence, we are more likely to form alliances of heart. The ones that are stronger and last longer are with people who we are naturally attracted to, who share similar interests, and often, for whom we share an innate liking.

As we grow and grapple with complexities of the world, we tend to choose alliances from where we could gain. The urge to make alliances for benefits gets stronger, overpowering the impulse to make alliances of heart. 

The dynamics of relationships are too complex to be addressed with a simplified rule. Both forms of relationships have their pros and cons. While alliances for gain have an inherent (and apparent) motive of selfishness or profit, alliances of heart can be a cause for major bias.

It is a practical truth that businesses have to be profitable to sustain, and there’s an economic truth that there aren’t any free meals. Everything is paid for, may not be by the consumer but by someone else. 

Nevertheless, relationships are critical for all human enterprises. In the globalized world, we understand that being connected is essential for growth.

It’s the benefit of international exchange that countries are able to improve upon human development index, healthcare is reaching to more people than ever before, and while a lot needs to be done, mankind has surely progressed.   

The recent pandemic couldn’t have made it more obvious. While cynics argue that globalization caused the virus to spread all over the world, it is the same factor which has made a largely unified and consolidated global fight-back to the pandemic possible, with regards to information and research, diagnostics, healthcare, public policy, and now vaccines.

Today, existing in silos is not an option. Even traditionally closed countries like China today are at the forefront of forming the biggest free-trade bloc much earlier than the West.

At the same time, distancing policies like closing borders, disrupting International alliances and partnerships, and building walls damage economies more severely than they could ever evaluate.

The world needs to create opportunities to form stronger relationships and collaborations. Having said that, it is the nature of the relationships which we are building, that need more thought and consideration.

For an absolute approach either of alliances of mind or alliances of heart is not a good proposition for today’s businesses. It is imperative we build relationships beyond business.

We can achieve this when organizational ideology is not limited to profit or scale, but to a larger vision of human interest, say as the one shared by our Prime Minister, of Atmanirbhar Bharat. 

Equally important is to nurture shared values across organizations aligned to the larger and shared vision. While following the vision, business decisions need to base on these values.

When organizations, authorities, and enterprises build relationships and partnerships governed by these shared values, they eventually develop policies and propositions that cater to larger human interest. 

At SRL Diagnostics, we have been nurturing these shared values for years now which form the foundation of our relationships with our customers and partnerships with organizations and governments all over India.

Whether it is our association with Microsoft on Artificial Intelligence for cancer screening or our tireless endeavors to make next generation diagnostics, including genomics and digital pathology, a reality, or our work with the government of various states to make quality diagnostics accessible to all, our efforts are aligned to make India a healthier, self-reliant nation and our aim is to contribute significantly in making our country the ‘Laboratory of the World’.

At SRL, we are building relationships beyond businesses. Join us in this journey if you are doing the same.