What Works: The Power of Strategic Partnership

Last week, I wrote about my strategic partnership with Adams Hub for Innovation. I suggested you don’t have to do business, life, or your career alone. I framed it as seeking help through mentors and coaches. Yet, there’s another angle I would like to show you – the strategic partnership.

This week, I want you to consider the value of the strategic partners in your business. How do you work with them? Do you have letters of agreement with them? Or, do you do business on handshake only?

A strategic partner is someone who doesn’t offer what you do, but you serve the same people. Strategic partnership is an important path to business growth. When two entities align, such as Adams Hub and What Works Coaching, great things happen. Both sides have their strengths. But they come together to create something bigger and better than they would alone.

It's important to note that a strategic partnership is not the same as a legal partnership. In the book “Flawless Consulting,” Peter Block defines the contracting phase. He also reveals it as the biggest point of failure in a partnership. This is why you must have a memorandum of understanding or letter or agreement if you are considering doing a strategic partnership. You can deliver it via email or even worked on together via a Google doc. The point is to get a written YES to your understanding so business can move forward.

This written yes is something a few people shy away from. They prefer strategic ambiguity in their businesses. It's important to approach a letter of agreement as more of a sign of understanding versus a bullet in a legal gun. You aren’t planning to fail. You are planning to succeed. You build your success on the foundation of understanding.
Understanding can be a funny thing.

One party can be so certain they heard one thing. Yet the other party has a completely different understanding of what transpired. Handshakes are well and good. But they only confirm that you agree to work together. They do not confirm the action of the partnership. In the "what will be done" phase of the working relationship, that’s where things get sticky. If you unstick them from the get-go, you are on your way to a beneficial partnership. Expectations are clear.

Rates for your product or service are clear. Commissions are clear. Promotion is clear. Once you have an agreement, you have "what will be done" in black and white. The agreement can grow. The agreement can change. But the core is there for you to reference.

After you complete the letter and you both agree, be sure you deliver what you promise. Set boundaries to assure they deliver as well. The written agreement is the beginning. Now you both take action. Be a good partner by staying in communication. If you mention your partner to someone, tell them. Some partners choose to set up regular times to meet, talk on the phone, or Skype. Some partners like to text each other.

The point is, keep delivering and keep the lines of communication open. This is the touch point for new ideas. It will help your partnership evolve and benefit both of you. You will both be bigger and better because of it. Now that is WHAT WORKS!

EMBRACE CHANGE IN 2017
February 3, 2017: Vision Board and Vision Statements Workshop hosted by The Sophisticates Networking Group at Round Table Pizza on Topsy Lane, Carson City – 11:30 am – Members: $20 – Non-Members: $30 Email diane@whatworkscoaching.com for details.

Every Monday Beginning February 6, 2017: Motivation Monday with Diane Dye Hansen at Adams Hub for Innovation from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. (Email grow@adamshub.com to schedule an appointment)

March 21, 2017: How to Use LinkedIn to Build Your Business – Tuesday Lunchbox Training Noon – 1:00 pm at Adams Hub for Innovation

April 12, 2017: Diane mentors at Entrepreneurs Assembly (Occurs the 2nd Wednesday of each month in The Studio at Adams Hub for Innovation)

Schedule your individual or group coaching session, including a free 30-minute consultation at www.whatworkscoaching.com

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Diane Dye Hansen is the Chief Inspiration Officer of What Works Coaching, an individual and organizational coaching and consulting firm based in Carson City. She has 20 years of experience working with top corporations, growing businesses, motivated entrepreneurs, and individuals hungry for a fresh start. Diane holds a Bachelor’s in Business Administration and Marketing from Cal State San Bernardino. She is also a candidate for a Master’s degree in Communications Management from the University of Southern California. Her column appears every Monday, and sometimes Tuesday, in Carson Now.