Blog

Do what you say you will do

Trust is an essential element that determines the success of alliances and partnerships. Even from a broader perspective, trust is an essential element in the success of any relationship. When coaching clients on their journey to successful alliances, sooner or...

The confusion game – what’s in a name?

Time after time I run into situations where people use words to say things when they actually mean to say something else. Or… is it that they use different words than the ones I understand? Hmm, good point. Anyway, the...

The skills of an alliance manager

Alliance management is an often misunderstood profession. Over time I have met many people who don’t understand the alliance manager or don’t even see it as a separate profession. That also shows on my website, where over the past 9...

Your (Alliance) Health: The longer you wait, the more expensive it gets

When I discuss the importance of a health check with people I almost always meet nodding heads. Everybody agrees that it is important and recognizes the value a health check can bring. It helps to identify possible elements of misalignment...

A walking meditation with your eyes open.

The last 8 days of June I spent on the Camino de Santiago. During those days, I hiked from Santiago de Compostela to the coast, to places like Muxia and Finisterre. After that, I walked back to Santiago de Compostela....

How to create 3-way value in alliances

One of the exercises in the Alliance Masterclass is for the participants to discuss an example of a 3-way value proposition in one of their alliances. This 3-way value proposition is also called the win-win-win value proposition. The value proposition...

The Collaborative Business Spectrum 2.0?

The Collaborative Business Spectrum is an overview of the ways organizations can work together to achieve a result they can not achieve alone. It ranges from transactions on the left side, to highly integrated ways of working on the right...

Slow your alliance down, and go faster!

We’re living in a fast-paced world. How often do you realize that you don’t have enough time? Is it a matter of time, or priority? Every now and then it is good to slow down, stop for a moment and...

Partner selection, how easy can it be?

Partner selection, how easy can it be? Some companies do make it very “easy”. They follow the following approach: one executive meets another and they feel their companies should work together. Then, when they come back into the office, you...

Alliance Masterclasses coming to London and Amsterdam

In the last few weeks, a number of prominent consulting companies published their views on the developments in the business world. IBM talks about Power in partnership, 72% of the UK CEO’s interviewed by KPMG are focussed on strategic alliances...

Alliances are not about sales!

When reading “alliances are not about sales!”, you might think I’ve lost it. After all, you are in alliances and you are being measured by the amount of sales your partner does with your company. Or you might be on...

How to know when to quit your alliance efforts

Everything comes to an end, even the longest lasting alliance. Perhaps the biggest challenge is to know when to quit an alliance. In some cases it is obvious: the contract reaches its end, the alliance has served its purpose and...