Partnership Development Part Two: Confirming Clear Project Milestones
Hello again! If you have already been tuning in to this newsletter series, we hope it has been helpful to get a peek at what it’s like to work with Michael Anderson Consulting on partnership development. Our previous issue introduced three “pillars” of our process.
Working with a Joint Committee
Confirming clear project milestones
Conducting a thoughtful and collaborative process
We also shared how a Joint Committee plays a key role in the partnership development adventure. Today, we’ll dig further into how it participates in defining and achieving key project milestones.
Project Milestones
To plot the journey ahead, we work with the Joint Committee to confirm and prioritize important decision points that serve as milestones, or markers of progress. These typically align with the development of the following three project deliverables.
Vision for Partnership
If you sought us out for a partnership development project, it’s likely there is already some shared sense that a partnership would benefit both organizations. To test those assumptions, we engage the Joint Committee in conversations about what the organizations can do together that they could not do independently, and how this would be different or better than what they do now. We capture these motivating factors for partnership — e.g., increased combined knowledge, resources, or programming — in a Vision for Partnership that the Joint Committee will use as a north star throughout the partnership development process.
Due Diligence Roadmap
Not relying on celestial navigation alone, the Joint Committee next turns to creating a Due Diligence Roadmap. This is a working document that identifies core issues and questions about the potential partnership so the team can set about resolving them. We form small workgroups to focus on each topic, from governance to programs to all areas of operations (finance, HR, facilities, IT, etc.). Our consultants are there every step of the way to facilitate clarifying conversations and decision making with the workgroups and the full Committee. Our team also draws on our deep expertise in financial analysis to provide rigorous due diligence support.
“The greatest value brought by Michael Anderson Consulting was having a dedicated perspective on how we should structure our merger, engage our team, organize our integration process, and assess implications. This service helped us get in front of many challenges and effectively address issues that were meaningful to our stakeholders.”— Brianna Terrell, Bellwether (formerly College Possible)
Term Sheet
The Due Diligence Roadmap leads the Joint Committee to recommendations that we capture in the form of a Term Sheet. The Term Sheet is the document that the Joint Committee will bring to their respective boards for approval. If approved, it provides the foundation for any legally binding agreements necessary to finalize the partnership.
Although these are all essential milestones, experience tells us that success is not just about the deliverables but rather how we engage every participant to bring out our collective best. Watch for our future newsletters to learn how we ensure a thoughtful and a collaborative process.
If you are considering a partnership development strategy, or if you find yourself already in a process that seems to be “stuck,” let’s talk about what could help.
