As experts in the field of partnership for sustainable development, my colleagues and I spend a lot of our time helping our partners and clients master what we call the “art and science of cross-sector partnering.” Partnering now sits at the very heart of international efforts to achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, and few organizations can afford to ignore the culture, mindset and skills required to build and manage great collaborations.
In recent years, however, I’ve noticed a gradual shift of emphasis: The organizations we work with are thinking less about how to partner and more about how to select the right partnering opportunity. In a world of plentiful opportunities, the challenge is to assess those opportunities and select the ones that are going to deliver maximum added value to your work. It’s not just about getting partnership right, but about getting the right partnership.
Why has this concern risen up the agenda? Firstly, it’s about volume of activity: More projects and programs are now delivered through multi-stakeholder partnerships; more organizations are ready and equipped to work in partnership; and more funding is going to the creation of initiatives and platforms that are characterized by complex collaboration. Decision-makers need guidance on where to commit time and resources.