PARTNERSHIP

E F F E C T I V&E SOLUTIONS
CHALLENGES WAYS
"One of theO F ST
biggest U D Y I NtoGpartnership
challenges
B E F O R Eis E
sustainability Xissue
the A Mof S
long-term resourcing" Tennyson, 2011, p. 29)
PROBLEM SOLUTION
Partnerships do not always have Avoid assumptions
aligned visions with all stakeholders
Bring issue to light
which can lead to inconsistent actions.
Create internal
Nundy and Chandler, (2015) write
strength within
"We’ve seen that until there is an
stakeholders
enabling environment that allows all
Nurture
stakeholders...to work together as a
system toward one or more goals, collaboration
collective impact remains elusive (para
2.) In this article, a partnership was
created with a focus on girls education
in India, but they ran into a problem
when not all stakeholders were working
towards the common vision.

WHEN SUSTAINABILITY IS AT RISK

Partnerships often face the challenge of lasting and determining
what happens with the partnership in the long term. Here are
some potential paths and how to solve them:
INDIVUAL STAKEHOLDERS LEAVE

People may come and go, but it is

important to have a plan for when
they do.

Create a survival plan for the

partnership
Make it possible for new
members to acclimate
Engage with new partners,
incorporating their ideas.
TERMINATION
Partnerships may come to an end.
Sometimes because their vision was
for a specific goal to be met and they
succeeded. Other times there may
have been a lack of success.
PARTNERSHIP SEPARATION
EX. 2
Another potential is that the
original partnership branches off.
Utilizing some of the previous
partners during a transition will
help make a smooth transition,
This path can lead to a new
cross-sector partnership.
PARTNERSHIP SEPARATION
EX. 1

When a goal is met partnerships One version of this involves a

can end feeling accomplished.
If a partnership lacks the
ability to succeed it is
important they celebrate
achievements they had. To
avoid this potential,
partnerships should follow the
guidelines highlighted in this
toolkit.
form of handover where the
original partnership may be
dissolved.
In this case, one of the
stakeholders may choose to
take ownership. The
partnership can continue its
original vision and goals, there
will more or less just be a
change in ownership.
 References
Tennyson, R. (2011). The Partnering Toolbook. An essential guide to
cross-sector partnering: Delivering Successful Projects.
International Business Leaders Forum. Retrieved from:
https://thepartneringinitiative.org/wp-
content/uploads/2014/08/Partnering-Toolbook-en-20113.pdf

Nundy, N and Chandler, A. (2015) Collective Impact: The Missing Link.

Stanford Social Innovation Review, June 2015. Retrieved from:
https://ssir.org/articles/entry/collective_impact_the_missing_link

By Nicole
McElvy