Achieving Resilience Through the Relational Business Model

The significance of relationships in business is widely recognised, yet many companies fail to implement an effective relational business model. This disparity raises critical questions: How can truly relationship-oriented businesses be distinguished from those merely paying lip service to the concept? What practices set these companies apart, and is the relational business model a genuine source of organisational resilience? To explore these questions, a quantitative CATI survey was conducted with 124 companies, divided into two groups: those with organisational resilience and those less successful. The survey examined 23 specific actions and strategies related to relationship management, IT systems, and process management. Chi-squared and Fisher’s exact tests were used to analyse variations in categorical frequencies, complemented by V Cramer’s coefficient to assess effect sizes. The findings show how the relational business model is operationalised in top-performing companies (relational champions) and highlight its direct link to achieving organisational resilience. These results offer actionable insights for organisations seeking to transition from a transactional to a relational approach, emphasising the importance of consistent, strategic implementation to build lasting, high-value relationships with employees, customers, and other partners.