What are the challenges we face in partnering?

We all know how hard it can be to work within our own organisation and break down the internal barries that often divide and fragment organisations, let alone navigating the maze of the dynamic and complex relationships that occur through a partnering process. But what is it that makes successful partnering so challenging? By recognising these key challenges, we can affectively address them by asking the right questions at the right time in the partnering process.

Confusing Language

We see lots of confusion around partnering language, with a lack of clarity and consistency around terms such as ‘collaboration’, ‘alliancing’, ‘partnering’, ‘cross sector partnering’ and many others. In fact, the word ‘partnering’ has become so generic and is often interpreted so differently that it is does little more than give a general idea that it involves some form of relationship with another sector, organisation or individual. This lack of clarity around defining the different types of partnering relationships and how they can be used in different circumstances often leads to misunderstandings, unrealistic expectations and loss of potential. In some cases, partnerships may be seen as just a different way of allocating funds to projects or initiatives. In other situations, they may focus on solving a complex challenge that no one partner can solve by themselves. Two vastly different propositions that can operate quite differently in practice.

Limited Partnering Capability

While many organisations espouse their partnering credentials very few have had the internal conversations that are needed to gain clarity around this subject. This leads to little understanding of just what partnering means to the organisation, how it should be used and what type of partnering should be entered into at what time. When combined with bureaucratic structures, old systems and the tendency for organisations to fragment and create endless ‘silos’, this actively works against collaboration and effective partnering.

Lack of Skills

There is an assumption that working beyond the boundaries of your own organisation and/or sector is easy, and that people should just be able to ‘partner’. What we see in practice, is that partnering and specifically cross sector partnering can be challenging. It often involves an extremely complex set of relationships that require considerable understanding and skill in brokering between partners to achieve outcomes. In fact, it requires a specific skill set that is becoming increasingly recognised internationally as a prerequisite for effective partnering.

Differing Ways of Working

Once we go beyond the boundaries of our organisation we are in unchartered waters – different cultures, practices, policies and ways of doing business. Often, we find when organisations come together, they want to continue to use their own operating systems, processes and procedures. This can result in constant tension and conflict as one partner tries to impose their way of working on the other partner.

Getting Buy In

Partnering is a vehicle for change. But as in any change process the challenge is how to take the outcomes or actions from a partnering project or initiative and embed them across a wider region or system. Partner representatives can work hard to build and maintain relationships and co-develop innovative solutions to a common challenge or agenda, but this can amount to nothing if they do not have sufficient buyin from within their host organisations. Building and maintaining a consistent level of internal buy in across all partners as the partnering process is created, developed and sustained is not easy. Participants in our training courses over the last 10 years have universally agreed that getting and maintaining internal buyin is one of their biggest challenges in partnering.

As partners, these are some of the challenges we face in partnering, but what are the questions you should be asking to address them?

If you want to ask the right questions and tackle these challenges, then take a look at our free eBook ‘7 Questions Every Partner Should Ask.’