JOINT VENTURES &
STRATEGIC ALLIANCES

"Businesses once grew by one of two ways; grass roots up, or by acquisition... Today businesses grow through alliances - all kinds of dangerous alliances. Joint ventures and customer partnerings which, by the way, very few people understand."
Peter F. Drucker

 
THE BASICS

What is Corporate Partnering?

      Corporate Partnering is the joining of two or more companies to exchange resources, share risks, or divide rewards from a joint enterprise.

      Corporate Partnerings can take any of a number of forms such as: a strong relationship with a major customer, a partnership with a source of distribution, a relationship with a supplier of innovation or product, or an alliance in pursuit of a common goal.

      Sometimes partners form a new jointly owned company. In other instances one partner purchases equity in the other. Most often the relationship is defined by a contract.


The Quickest Way To Grow

     Partnerings and alliances are the quickest way to grow your company, particularly in times of change. Without implementing difficult and time-consuming internal changes, they allow you to:
  -  Rapidly move to decisively seize opportunities before they disappear.
  -  Respond more quickly to change.
  -  Adapt with greater flexibility.
  -  Increase your market share.
  -  Gain access to a new market or beat others to that market.
  -  Quickly shore up internal weaknesses.
  -  Gain a new skill or area of competence.
  -  Succeed although your company lacks otherwise key resources.     

     Partnerings and alliances can rapidly meet your needs for key resources such as more customers, additional capital, new products, better products, new distribution channels, additional facilities, increased production capacity, or more personnel.

Selecting Corporate Partners

     Few companies have everything that they need. You may need money, customers, or product.

      No matter what you need, there is someone who has it. That someone is a potential Corporate Partner.

      Look for someone who has resources or knowledge you need - someone who shores up your weaknesses.


Three Vital Steps to a Successful Partner Search!

1. Determine what it is you need but don't have: this can be customers, capital, special expertise, personnel, products, or distribution channels.

2. Determine who has what you need.

3. Ask them for it, but, (and this is key), first make sure you have something they want or need. To do otherwise assures that you will waste time on a deal that will either fail to close or will dissipate before you get what you came for. In such situations even strong introductions won't help. They just increase the amount of time you waste before you must withdraw to seek your needs elsewhere.

Information About CPI Tools, Products and Services
CPI Partnering Tools
Customer Partnering (Guide to Key Practices) || Executive Partnering Kit
Corporate Partnering Handbook, A "How-To" Handbook
(table of contents)
Key Partnering Checklists for the 11 Most Common Partnering Agreements (table of contents)
Shareholder Buy/Sell Agreements || Letters of Intent || Due Diligence Checklists (table of contents)
One Page Strategy Sheet

Order Online || Order by Fax or Mail || Order by Email

Information on How to Partner
The Basics || Alliance Advantages/Disadvantages || Questions and Answers || Partnering Quotations
Dangerous Dozen Mistakes (summary) (full text ) || How to Find a Partner || Partnering With Your Customers

PartneringAgreements.com - Corporate Partnering Institute
CEO-Notes || DueDiligenceChecklist.com || Business Research Links
Mediation and Arbitration Including Sample Provisions
Telephone Consults || Fees || About Us || Testimonials
|| Clients and Customers
heidi@corporate-partnering.com