Partner Strategy Network Podcast

Interview with Kim Fennell, venture partner at True North Fund and Angel Investor in dozens of companies via Fleet Hill Ventures. Kim serves as a director on the boards of several companies and had held a number of CEO positions. In this episode Kim shares his experiences from both an investor perspective and as an operator at companies like Uber. Kim led led 8 teams across Uber's verticals, doing deals with companies like Google, Apple, Live Nation, Amazon, major airports and pro sports teams & venues. The video version of this episode can be found here:https://youtu.be/8tg2wc6stxE

Interview with Harpal Gill, a sales and alliance leadership veteran who was most recently General Manager of the Data Group at Mobilize, which was acquired by Snowflake. Harpal shares his secret to sales success leveraging partners and how to drive acquisition exit value via multiple bids from strategic partners. Check this episode out to hear about these valuable insights from Harpal and more!The video version of this episode here:https://youtu.be/VY7yMW2_bXg

Gaurav Sharma is the head of strategic partnerships at Hubspot. Gaurav shares his expertise and learnings on partnerships covering some of the biggest challenges large companies face in their partner programs. Many companies think first about what partners can do for you and Gaurav explains a better mindset for planning out how to achieve your partner goals. This episode is packed with insights from Gaurav backed by a tremendous amount of partner experience.  Check out the Youtube video version and join the conversation on the Partner Strategy Network LinkedIn group. 

Revenue is an obvious measure of partner development progress. But what kind of revenue is most relevant? And what should you track if you're just getting started and don't have much revenue yet? 

You need to maximize every revenue source and that often means firing up a resale partner channel alongside a direct sales strategy. Ever wonder how long it takes to start getting revenue? Check out this episode to learn what a realistic time frame looks like and why. Come join the discussion at the Partner Strategy Network LinkedIn Group

Should you distribute your product under a partner company's brand? Mark has some very strong opinions on this. Check out this episode to hear the pros and cons. Come join the discussion at the Partner Strategy Network LinkedIn Group. 

Ever wonder how legal agreements work when there's a reseller between the software vendor and the end customer? How does the end customer agree to the vendor's license agreement and who do they commit to pay? Check out this episode to hear how it works for both resale and OEM transactions. 

Unlike resale partnerships, OEM royalties may be only distantly related to your normal product pricing.  Check out this episode to learn about several key factors to consider in determining how to set the royalties for an OEM product offering. 

Are you building out a partner program or negotiating discounts with partners? In that case it can help to know the typical range of partner incentive rates for enterprise software partner programs. Check out this episode to find out what the strongest brands in the business offer. Come join the discussion at the Partner Strategy Network LinkedIn Group. 

Having negotiated over 200 deals, Mark Sochan has learned some hard lessons about strategic product partnership deals. In this episode he summarizes his top 5 tips so you don't have to repeat the mistakes that others have.  Have your own tips? Come join the discussion at the Partner Strategy Network LinkedIn Group. 

Some might think it's a good idea to meet with the Partner Alliance team when you want to build a strategic partnership with a large organization. Turns out this is usually a bad idea. Check out this episode to hear why, learn who you should be targeting, and how to do it! Come join the discussion on the Partner Strategy Network LinkedIn Group

Partners come in many flavors and some types may be better suited for your business than others. For example, do you need to ramp up your services partners or double down on strategic product partnerships? Check out this episode to learn what to look for to help determine the best mix of partner types for you.  

Global Systems Integrator (GSI) partners are the giants of your partner portfolio. Although it can take a big effort to get one of these partnerships off the ground,  the results can be a game changer for your company. Check out this episode to hear how to get started with engaging GSIs. Join the discussion on the Partner Strategy Network LinkedIn Group

When you're working toward securing large strategic partnerships, you'll want to pursue several at once.  How can you prioritize them to make the most of your time? In this episode Mark Sochan outlines a prioritization exercise and worksheet from his book, "The Art of Strategic Partnering: Dancing with Elephants." You can use this approach to help identify the best opportunities to focus on. Download the Strategic Partner Prioritization WorksheetJoin the discussion on the Partner Strategy Network LinkedIn Group

Should you terminate the relationship if your partners aren't producing? What are the advantages and disadvantages of cutting ties? Check out this episode for a couple different perspectives on when to ride it out and when it's best to terminate. Download the Partner Termination Reference CardJoin the discussion on the Partner Strategy Network LinkedIn Group

Channel conflict can be highly disruptive to your partner business. However, in many cases it's an unavoidable part of maximizing your business across multiple channels. Check out this episode for an intro to channel conflict and what you can do to minimize it. Download the Channel Conflict Reference CardJoin the discussion on the Partner Strategy Network LinkedIn Group

When working with Global Systems Integrators you'll often need to consider setting up a Center of Excellence. We spoke with enterprise software partnership expert, Alan Ota, who explained what this is all about. Listen in as he explains what this is, how to scale your results, and shares some pitfalls to avoid. Come join the discussion on the Partner Strategy Network LinkedIn Group!

Partners may ask you for an exclusive right to sell your products, sometimes limited to a specific geography. Should you do an exclusive deal? Check out this episode for a discussion of the pros and cons. Download the quick reference card on partner exclusivityJoin the discussion on the Partner Strategy Network LinkedIn Group 

Many people ask us what's the difference between and OEM and a Resale partnership. Aren't both partner types reselling your software? Check out this episode to hear the key differences, advantages, and why these can be controversial. Download the Reseller Comparison with OEM Reference Card

Hear what kinds of partnerships are popular in enterprise software, how those partners make money, and when to use each type. Download the Partner Type Reference Card